Comics editor Georgia Webber at TCAF

In the wake of the 10th anniversary of the Toronto Comic Arts Festival, I declare that there is a new stereotype in  town. Wait! I know, stereotypes are bad… But hear me out with this one, if only to curse me with accurate citations when you’re done reading.

The recent rise in alternative comics (and by that I mean anything not following the most mainstream of traditions) has heralded—no, been born of—open and kind-hearted people interested in elevating the medium, not just their own careers. There is nothing more infectious than passion and kindness rolled into one, and when the focus is a fledgling industry of heart-driven artists, it’s invigorating, inspiring, and just plain beautiful to watch.

From behind my table at TCAF this past weekend, I did watch. I watched thousands—literally, thousands—of people pass before my table and through the crowded events, and all of them were a delight to behold. Perhaps it was a good year for haircuts, or people went that extra mile with their wardrobe, but my guess is that it has more to do with them coming together, the glee that comes from being a part of this amazing event.

From its inception in 2003, TCAF has been about accessibility. The festival is always free to attend, and the curated exhibitors showcase a wide variety of styles and formats, ranging from the DIY to the professional.

Obvious highlights of the 10th anniversary festival included the Hernandez brothers, Gilbert and Jaime (responsible for the 30-year run of Love and Rockets) coming together in Toronto for the first time in 20 years; gay erotica giants Maurice Vellekoop (Canada) and Gengoroh Tagame (Japan) showing original art side by side; genre-bending Japanese artist Taiyo Matsumoto in a whirlwind of panels, signings, gallery shows and more; appearances by the Finnish Comics Society and Australia’s Caravan of Comics; and Rutu Modan’s presentation on her highly anticipated new book, The Property.

Less obvious highlights, but no less integral to the experience of TCAF, were the many glowing faces of creators and fans in one place, interacting without monetary obstruction or line-ups or bodyguards. There are no celebrities from the TV show adaptations of popular superhero series, no $80 signatures on mint-condition rarities, and thus: no condescending collectors, no exclusionary attitudes. If your acquaintance with comic book nerds is limited to sometimes-too-accurate parodies (think: Comic Book Guy on The Simpsons), you’ll need to adjust your expectations to include the other end of the spectrum, the welcoming and enthusiastic community that is growing exponentially every year.

I’ve long been in love with comics, but I never identify as strongly with my community as when I’m at TCAF. There is no snobbery, no pretence for how you should look or act. Instead, you can be who you are, and approach any person or entity in comics with one assumption, one generalization of who they are: a kind, lovely person who just wants to celebrate the medium, and help you to do the same. That is the New Comic Book Nerd. I’m proud to count myself amongst them.

The post TCAF RECAP: Feeling the Love by Georgia Webber appeared first on carte blanche.

Photo credit: Margarita Osipian

This is the fifth installment in a series of 11 audio poems collectively known as “The Benjy Poems,” written and directed by Benjamin Hackman, and produced and engineered by Craig Saltz.

The Benjy Poems was adapted for the audio stage by the author and is based on a collection of poems by the same name. The poems were performed by their author, with additional voice talent provided by: Jessica Popeski, Benjamin Reinhartz, Caitlin Morris-Cornfield, Schön Faria, Sarit Cantor, and Bradley Benninger.

This project was made possible by the generous financial assistance of CUE. Poems in the series were funded by the Toronto Arts Council and the Ontario Arts Council.

“Benjy’s Vendetta” previously appeared online as part of a selection that won the Ted Plantos Memorial Award in 2011 from the Ontario Poetry Society.

The post Benjy’s Vendetta appeared first on carte blanche.

Andrea Stanford tells the story of how her upstairs neighbours ruined her Type A pregnancy planning.

“What not to expect when you’re expecting” was told live by Andrea Stanford at This Really Happened at the Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival on April 26, 2013.

The post What not to expect when you’re expecting by Andrea Stanford appeared first on carte blanche.

Photo credit: Margarita Osipian

This is the fourth installment in a series of 11 audio poems collectively known as “The Benjy Poems,” written and directed by Benjamin Hackman, and produced and engineered by Craig Saltz.

The Benjy Poems was adapted for the audio stage by the author and is based on a collection of poems by the same name. The poems were performed by their author, with additional voice talent provided by: Jessica Popeski, Benjamin Reinhartz, Caitlin Morris-Cornfield, Schön Faria, Sarit Cantor, and Bradley Benninger.

This project was made possible by the generous financial assistance of CUE. Poems in the series were funded by the Toronto Arts Council and the Ontario Arts Council.

“In Accordance with the Murder Pact” previously appeared online as part of a selection that won the Ted Plantos Memorial Award in 2011 from the Ontario Poetry Society.

The post In Accordance with the Murder Pact appeared first on carte blanche.

Even more difficult is trying to convince friends, colleagues, or relatives to pick up a favourite read without falling into the many traps of labelling we’ve laid for ourselves. “Comics” summons flashes of Archie and Sunday newspaper strips, or superheroes saving first world society from certain peril. “Graphic novels,” on the other hand, recalls quirky autobiographical tomes of adolescent ennui. Truth be told, comics can be all of those things, and more, but never by definition.

When naming the section of carte blanche that is dedicated to this medium (but wait, we’ve been caught by yet another trap! Even the word “medium” brings up a whole other debate—one which I’ll save for later), the term Graphic Fiction was chosen in an attempt to alleviate the content from readers’ bias, to allow it to speak for itself. It has been successful—but only for our readers. For the creators we seek to promote, it has caused confusion. When cartoonists (also called “comics artists”) see the words Graphic Fiction, their first thought is “Oh, graphic fiction, not comics” and they move on, breaking my heart as they go.

Even from this brief (very brief) discussion, it’s clear that readers and creators have widely different understandings of the terminology being tossed around. Here at carte blanche we are going to do our best to narrow the gap by adopting the term “Comics” as the umbrella to include all styles and types and genres of this wonderful medium.

The longer the terminology debate goes on, the less time and attention we have to celebrate the endless potential for creativity that the medium affords, and the brilliant creators exploring it even as I write. Set aside a few moments to explore the Comics section of carte blanche. You might find your own definitions redefined.

Georgia Webber is the Comics editor of carte blanche.

The post Introducing “Comics” by Georgia Webber appeared first on carte blanche.

Deni Y. Béchard tells the story of how his father tried to persuade him not to go to university.

“Robbing banks and writing novels” was told live by Deni Y. Béchard at This Really Happened at WordFest in Calgary, AB on October 9, 2012.

The post Robbing banks and writing novels by Deni Y. Béchard appeared first on carte blanche.

Back by popular demand, This Really Happened returns to the Blue Metropolis International Literary Festival with its special brand of riveting true stories and kick-ass raconteurs on stage. Come hear stories about reinventions, reincarnations, and major rewrites. Get your tickets early as last year’s event sold out!

April 26th, 2013 8pm – 10 pm at the Hotel Opus, 10 Sherbrooke West, Montreal

Come hear:

• Felipe Castaneda on getting drafted in Colombia
• Lesley Buxton on a daughter’s diagnosis
• Jeff Gandell on being hot for teacher
• Michelle Syba on a trip to the jungle with her mom
• Matt Goldberg on a surprising outcome of a rite of passage
• Joshua Levy on a swim across a lake
• Andrea Stanford on becoming a mother in chaotic circumstances

The post This Really Happened at Blue Met 2013 appeared first on carte blanche.

Last time I was in Paris, two men travelling on my train got into a fight when one dared address the other using tu.

“Vous m’avez tutoyé, monsieur! Vous m’avez tutoyé!”

A face was slapped. A beret was knocked askew.

Their hullaballoo over tu reminded me of the time I was at my Montreal gym and asked a fellow if he’d finished with the bench press.

“Avez-vous terminé?” I said.

Looking vexed, he replied, “Pourquoi tu me vouvoies, ’stie?”

If you haven’t lived in Quebec long, you might foolishly think Quebec French and French French, c’est du pareil au même.

They aren’t the same diff. As a writer, you must understand this.

Say you publish a novel in English that creates enough buzz that a publisher in France—call it Éditions Les Nombrilistes—buys French rights. You’re thrilled: your franco friends can discover what a creative artiste you are.

Les Nombrilistes hire a Frenchman named Didier to translate your Mile End novel, The Fractured Hipster. Sadly, Didier has never set foot in Montreal.

When Le branché débranché comes out, your young protagonist, Julian, buys his cigarettes chez l’Arabe, goes out with a nana, wears pull-overs and baskets, washes his clothes at a pressing, and eats myrtilles and pastèque. He swears by yelling, “Putain de merde!”

Quebecisms—dépanneur, blonde, chandail, espadrilles, buanderie, bleuets, melon d’eau, câlisse—appear nowhere in your book. Didier and the Nombrilistes have Gallicized both Montreal and Julian to death.

If this erasing of Quebec colour and culture happened to Leonard Cohen’s Les perdants magnifiques and Mordecai Richler’s Le monde de Barney, it can happen to Le branché débranché.

Should you be upset? Would Michel Tremblay be peeved if that pregnant fat lady next door, in her English incarnation, watched the telly, travelled on the tube, ate crisps and swore by screaming, “Bollocks!”?

How to ensure this tragedy doesn’t befall your hipster? Consider doing what Ann-Marie MacDonald did for Fall on Your Knees. In her contract with French publisher Flammarion, she specifically requested a Canadian translator, someone who can render an English Quebec story more faithfully.

If your publisher still foists Didier on you, insist he preserve your novel’s Quebec colour. If your French is weak, have a Québécois friend read Didier’s translation far in advance of the pub date.

Remind the publisher that if the book is too France-ified, the Quebec press will lampoon it and Quebec readers ignore it.

Les Nombrilistes and Didier might insist les Français will be perdus and even démoralisés if they come across a word like dépanneur.

Tell them that when you read a book set in, say, New Zealand, you don’t expect to understand every expression either, but the context usually helps you make a good guess.

Tell them one of the joys of reading is discovering a new culture.

Tell them les Français desperately need to learn that.

And if they still argue with you, you may need to slap a few faces and trample a few berets.

The post Translating Montreal: Where Blueberries Are Not Myrtilles by Neil Smith appeared first on carte blanche.

Photo credit: Margarita Osipian

This is the third installment in a series of 11 audio poems collectively known as “The Benjy Poems,” written and directed by Benjamin Hackman, and produced and engineered by Craig Saltz.

The Benjy Poems was adapted for the audio stage by the author and is based on a collection of poems by the same name. The poems were performed by their author, with additional voice talent provided by: Jessica Popeski, Benjamin Reinhartz, Caitlin Morris-Cornfield, Schön Faria, Sarit Cantor, and Bradley Benninger.

This project was made possible by the generous financial assistance of CUE. Poems in the series were funded by the Toronto Arts Council and the Ontario Arts Council.

“Benjy in the Supermarket” previously appeared as audio in The Collagist #38, and online as part of a selection that won the Ted Plantos Memorial Award in 2011 from the Ontario Poetry Society.

The post Benjy in the Supermarket appeared first on carte blanche.

Photo credit: Margarita Osipian

This is the second installment in a series of 11 audio poems collectively known as “The Benjy Poems,” written and directed by Benjamin Hackman, and produced and engineered by Craig Saltz.

The Benjy Poems was adapted for the audio stage by the author and is based on a collection of poems by the same name. The poems were performed by their author, with additional voice talent provided by: Jessica Popeski, Benjamin Reinhartz, Caitlin Morris-Cornfield, Schön Faria, Sarit Cantor, and Bradley Benninger.

This project was made possible by the generous financial assistance of CUE. Poems in the series were funded by the Toronto Arts Council and the Ontario Arts Council.

“Benjy’s Education” previously appeared as text in Canadian Literature, as audio in The Collagist and online as a part of a selection of poems that won the Ted Plantos Memorial Award in 2011 from the Ontario Poetry Society.

The post Benjy’s Education appeared first on carte blanche.