SPLIT
To read Split, just click on the "covers" below. I've divided it into three parts, mainly to make the download a bit faster and easier. The book is in PDF format, so you will need Adobe Reader to open them up. You can download this program for free at: www.adobe.com/products/
(Even if you don't want to read Split, I'd recommend getting this if you don't already have it. It's a very handy application.)
The easiest way to view Split is to download it onto your computer. Right click on the "cover" of each part, (or Control-click if you're on a Mac), then choose "Save linked file to desktop" on the pop-up menu.
Because Split contains one story on the left hand pages, and one story on the right hand pages, it's pretty important that you read this comic with both facing pages on the screen at the same time. To set Adobe Reader's display to do so, in the control bar at the top of the Reader window, choose:
View--Page layout--Facing (for Reader 7 and earlier)
or View--Page display--Two up (for Reader 8)
Last note: The content of Split is intended for mature readers. If you are under the age of eighteen, please ask one of the adults who takes care of you for permission before you read it.
Short Cartoons:
(These comics are in HTML format.)
A Clear Solution: Chris Albrecht has traveled to Madison, Wisconsin, to pick up his son, Nothan, who has just flunked out of the university. But Nathan does not want to go home. (18 pages)
Quick, Convenient Repairs: A salesman travels to a remote motel to make a pitch in a blend of comedy, surrealism and science fiction. (12 pages)
A Disconcerting Request: A light story about a guy who asks his friend for advice in dealing with some romantic issues. Nudity. (13 pages)
Razbliuto: This is a short companion piece to "A Disconcerting Request," and it has a similar situation and themes. Razbliuto is a Russian word for that special feeling we retain for one we were in love with but are no longer. (3 pages)
Curiosity, or The Cabinet of Dr. Calamari: A short, surreal, wordless story. Some of my best graphic work to date. (I think). (6 pages)
In the Desert: What would have happened if the rebel angels landed on Earth instead of in Hell? (I ripped off the basic idea of this story from Clive Barker's play, A History of the Devil, which my theater company did in the fall of 1998 (I think)). (18 pages)
Unnatural Leaves: In a small medieval village, a tree suddenly grows leaves that have words on them. How will the villagers react? Is it a sign from God, or a trick of the devil? (10 pages) (Note: The writings on the leaves were adapted from The Book of Beasts, a Latin bestiary that was translated by T.H. White and published by Dover Books in 1984.)
Mr. Totenbaum's Bird: This was my first cartoon, and my first published cartoon. It appeared in a poetry magazine out of Milwaukee entitled Nerve House in the spring of 2007. The magazine has since gone under, which is too bad, because it was cool. (2 pages)
Untitled: This image came to me while I was visiting friends. I don't have much to say about it. This was originally published in the literary magazine, The Raven Chronicles.
Divided by Doubt: This is another promotional item my first attempt at using collage in comics. I'll be handing out a paper copy of this strip at conventions. (1 page)
Completion of a Tree: I don't usually do gag cartoons, but this popped into my head one night while I was having dinner with my wife, kids, parents and parents' friends. The restaurant had a paper tablecloth and they gave out crayons to everybody (not just the kids.) I used a ball point pen, though, and drew the sketch that became this cartoon. I thought that would be the end of it, but I couldn't get the image out of my head, so I drew this, more complete version.(1 page)
Postcards: Handpainted on postcard size, stiff watercolor paper, each is one of kind. I'll be selling these for $5.00 a piece at fests and expos. If you see one you like, send me an email, and we can arrange something. (My scanner is kind of crappy for color, by the way. The originals look better.)
Pin-Up: I did this drawing to work on my wash technique. It turned out pretty well, but my crappy scanner didn't pick up all of the tones. I did the wall with paintbucket in Photoshop. (1 page)
Self Portrait 2: This is just a practice piece I did to work on my watercolor technique. It turned out okay. I was surprised by how much the paint obscured the original ink lines. (1 page)
Promotional Postcard: I did this painting to put on a postcard that I could hand out at conventions or mail to people to promote my web site. I thought combining a collage with the painting would be less work than painting something inside the frame the woman is holding. I was wrong. (1 page)
By the Sea: This is an erotic (but not x-rated) drawing, with a bit of whimsy thrown in just for grins. (1 page)
Street Scene: After I finished "Unnatural Leaves," I hit a dry spell, creatively. To keep up my drawing chops, I took a few snapshots around Madison, chose my favorite one, and did this drawing from it. (1 page)
Bird-Man: This is an old drawing. It's the first pen and ink I tried to do that turned out really well. (1 page)
Short Stories
(Before I started doing comics, I wrote some fiction. Below are my three best stories. (Note: These stories are in PDF. See notes on Split to get Adobe Reader if you don't already have it.))
The Monkey's Ribbon: A man alone in his house broods over his wife's disappearance. His elaborately constructed self-delusions unravel when his wife's boss appears looking for her. Originally published in the journal, Pangolin Papers.
Eating the Egg: This story is a parody of the postmodern obsession with references. The form is stolen from Nabokov's Pale Fire. It was published in the anthology Fugue, and was my first published story.
The Enemy: This is a pretty straightforward story (nothing really weird about it, in other words) about a young boy's rivalry with a young girl who saves him from bullies.