The November 2024 Cab Post
One whiteboard to rull them all, Patreon and going back in time
Hello everyone, I hope you are well! The weekend before the American elections, I went to Ottawa with my girlfriend and our friend Ken, just to appease my sense of democracy. I saw stores selling drugs, the Parliament, a punk and arcade bar, Obama cookies, I ate really well and had a lot of fun. I took some nice photos of this trip but I ran out of disk space with my web host and the price they are charging me to upgrade is insulting. So I'm looking for a new host to move my website and the Utown site. If you have suggestions for companies, preferably Canadian, I'm all ears!
The last few weeks have been really busy but I'm starting to see a silver lining. It's silly but I installed a whiteboard next to my desk, displaying all my current projects on index cards. It allows me to get a big picture of my workload and appeases my little mental hamster. What's fun about my project management system is that it doesn't need updates, it doesn't come with an AI assistant that's impossible to uninstall and it doesn't sell my information to data brokers. Neat, huh? Also, that neon sticker tape dispenser makes me so happy. Ahem.
Here is what’s on the board at the moment:
- The cover illustration for the 3rd volume of the Enquête de Peur series by Maude Alexandre. I've been wanting to do a Patreon post for months with the covers and sketches from the rest of the series but I never have the time! In the meantime, here are the illustrations of the first two volumes.
- Character sketches for a kid’s book which will be published next year with Druide.
- Inking on a collaborative, sci-fi comic book project that I’m really excited about!
- Greeting cards in honor the 30th anniversary of my favorite Christmas movie of all time
- A commissioned illustration and a new partnership with the ArtPop boutique on Mont-Royal street
- A very niche commission by the owner of a beloved restaurant down my street
Most of the smaller commissions on this list are done but the book projects will carry over the next year. I'm slowly starting to “check out” mentally and I'm really, really looking forward to taking a couple of days off.
Announcements
My Patreon is my convention table and my virtual workshop all at once: it's where I share my sketches, my processes, announcements and final illustrations. You’ll notice I post increasingly often in French, a decision I took as I gradually abandoned the “old” social networks. I hope I don’t alienate too many of my English readers by doing this but it’s what feels the best for me. Besides, translation tools have gotten sooo much better!
That said, I'm trying something new: for the first time ever, I’m offering fifteen, 3-months subscriptions to my Patreon! It unlocks access to almost 6 years worth of archives, research posts, workshop photos, lots of fingers holding pens and more. If you're a free member or not familiar with Patreon, this is your chance to check it out. Head over there: 3 months subscription to Cab’s Patreon
It looks like Bluesky has reached 20 million subscribers. I've been there since the beginning! Cab on Bluesky
The Canada Post strike is still going and all my print orders are on ice. My store is still open but let's just say my holiday sales period is ruined this year. To people from Montreal or passing through: I still offer local pickup options for prints or signed books. More info here.
That’s all for November! I wish you happy holidays in peace and lots of pigs in a blanket. I can't wait to start my recap of the year, which I will publish at the beginning of January. Merry Christmas to all!
This newsletter is and will ALWAYS be free. If you like what I do, I suggest visiting my online shop or hunt down my books at your favorite bookstore or library. You can also support me on Patreon or buy me a coffee on Ko-fi. Thanks a lot!
Cool stuff
All Pleasure by Thus Love. There’s too much good music emerging from end-of-year charts and I’m running out of adjectives!
2024 was full of villains worthy of James Bond films but I’m awarding the “pile of shit” award to Doug Ford, who passed a law to remove bike lanes from Toronto. The little game Loser Lane makes a good case for the necessity of inner-city cycle lanes. I lasted 54 seconds before getting hit by a bus. Will you do better?
Like a survivor who got rescued from a desert island after 20 years, I started watching The Office for the first time. I’m feeling A LOT OF EMOTIONS. I also started playing Stardew Valley, a game released in 2016. If I continue to go back in time this way, I’ll end up going back to college next year and wearing SpongeBob t-shirts again.
Cool artists:
Camille Bruya is a young photographer who already has a very nice portfolio, notably photos of music shows and landscapes. Here is her newsletter and web site.
Blake Stevenson AKA Jetpacks and Rollerblades is a multidisciplinary artist who mixes clean design and illustration. He also sells some really nice merch!
For webhosting the Comiclab danger duo has recommended Dreamhost before.