Lackadaisy Flimflam

Ongoing Adventures of Answer Pile

More responses to things from the Ask…thing.  In case there aren’t enough words here already, there are more of them after the break.

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Q.  writetimetodraw asked you:
I just finished an internship at the Erie Canal Museum, and while I haven’t dug around much just yet, figured you would be an excellent resource to answer my nagging question. Was the Erie Canal involved in the bootlegging of liquor in the ’20s? And if so, how much? Thank you so much! <3

A.  That sounds like an interesting gig!
As for bootlegging by way of canal - absolutely.
The US-Canada border around the Great Lakes was the biggest hot spot for smuggling liquor into the country during Prohibition.  The bulk of the trafficking took place across the Detroit River, but pretty much all of the connecting waterways were put to use, and as you might imagine, a good deal of it was shuffled off into New York.  That would be where waterways like the Niagara River, the Oswego Canal and Erie Canals became useful.   Rum-runners were known to have traveled the canal with contraband hidden among their cargo, or strapped to the bottom of the boats.  Towpaths alongside the canal were used to move liquor, defunct offshoots of the canal were put to use, and in the winter, runners were known to drive right on the ice in some areas, or even pull sleds loaded with liquor.  The are a number of former speakeasies - roadhouses, mansions and restaurants - along the waterways in upstate New York too.

If you want to know more about the illicit liquor trade in and around Lake Erie, I suggest looking up the Purple Gang, and characters like Rocco Perri and Stefano Magaddino (a bootlegging undertaker, coincidentally).

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Q.  changeling007 asked you:
Do you title your comics with actual words, or do you just kind of roll around on the keyboard until you produce something vaguely pronounceable?

A.  I alternate rolling around on the keyboard and mashing it with my face.  That’s how I write dialogue too.  ‘Pronounceable’ doesn’t really figure into the technique.

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Q.  grimogretricks asked you:
Ever since the absolutely *fantastic* recent update I have been wondering what nationality Bobby is. He uses Britishisms in his speech- is he in fact British or Irish or is he just American? I am Scottish myself, which might be part of why I’m curious. I want to know what accent to imagine!

A.  Thanks - I’m glad you liked the update!
He’s British (but as someone who’s been living in the States for a while, he also seems to have added some Americanisms to his lexicon).  He had so much narrating to do, I decided to back off any heavy phoneticizing of his dialogue for fear it would be all the more daunting to read.

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Q.  2- (is submitting multiple questions in short succession frowned upon? I hope not.) Do you use 3-D modeling software for reference for your backgrounds? The perspective is always so perfect ^.^ (and I don’t want to imply that using software is “cheating” =P it’s no more cheating than using an eraser or Photoshop, just wondering and trying to use 3D software in my own art)

A.  No, it’s fine as long as it’s not the same question over and over again. =)

My perspective isn’t perfect.  I frequently get called on perspective errors, or I notice them myself after the fact and have to go back and fix them.  I use a ruler and guidelines, but as a matter of drawing habit, I start absentmindedly eyeballing things too, and that tends to be where I slip up.  Anyway, I am familiar with the method of using software like Google Sketch-up to work out background perspective, and I generally have no qualms with that either - in fact, with tools like that freely available, there’s probably no excuse for screwing up your perspective these days.   As someone who uses 3DS Max on a near daily basis, I should probably at least start checking my structural pencilwork against a rough model.

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Q.  jenzhan asked you:
Hey Tracy, I absolutely love your comic and all the crazy faces that your characters make. I am curious though: did Viktor ever enjoy working with Mordecai? They have an interesting colleague relationship judging from that terrifying smile comic.

A.  Well, I think he enjoyed quietly provoking Mordecai into a fit of confusion on occasion, but ‘enjoyed’ might be a bit of an overstatement for their working relationship on the whole.  I suppose I would say they had a certain amount of mutual respect, and perhaps an off-kilter camaraderie born of shared misanthropy.  You know, sort of like Waldorf and Statler…if you were to replace endearing geriatric antics (geriantics!) with callous violence.

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Q.  I’m assuming we’ll find out their names soon enough, but what’s Elsa’s husband and brother called? Also, I’m assuming the husband’s British, are Elsa and her brother British as well?

A.  Bobby is Elsa’s husband, and Abelard is her brother.  Elsa and Abelard are American.

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Q.  Is the poem Rocky recites in “Dithyramb” your original work? I love it and want to recite it for school. If that is okay you?

A.  It is, and sure!  I’d be very honored.

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Q.  since you have an affinity for music (as for most arts), do you actually play anything/sing yourself?

A.  Sadly, no.  I love music, but I don’t have any skill for producing it.  It’s strange because among my family there are singers, songwriters, rock musicians, jazz musicians, folk musicians, even an accordion player…and then there’s me.  I draw.

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Q.  kaybros asked you:
Not a question, more of a gushing adoration: The dialogue in the newest pages. I have never read anything more perfect in my entire life. ANYTHING. And I’ve read widely and omnivorously. Thank you eightythree billion for this incredible comic.

A.  That’s being far too kind.  My comics are unforgivably wordy.  But thank you - both for the comments and for taking the time to read it all. =)

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Q.  How did you learn to draw? I want to know your secret

A.  I’ve secretly spent a lot of time and energy practicing and working to get better at it. 

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Q.  What do you think is the most ridiculous ship?

A.  HMS Pork n’ Beaner

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Q.  How ARE you? Last I read (here, obviously), you were fairly falling apart. Heath update, I demand one!

A.  I had the flu and lingering unpleasant vestiges of flu through the first half of January, but I’m good now.  Thanks for asking!

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Q.  Are we going to learn much about Atlas? The comic and its characters revolve around him, yet we only know his reputation as an intelligent, chivalrous, respected business man.

A.  The story will divulge more about him, but part of the point is that he’s gone and really only exists as the other characters perceive him in memory.  Also, the comic has revealed that not all of the characters have such a high opinion of him.

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Q.  On deconstructing fictional names: I know some of your characters’ monikers come from real cats or the heritages you’ve written for them, but I think there’s more going on. I’m thinking of Mordecai (“Mor-” meaning “death”), Asa not-so-Sweet, and Atlas, holding the weight of the world. I’ll admit the thing that sticks in my craw most is that a “lacy heart” is a valentine- whose?! So, without asking for spoilers, exactly how relevant are the names to the plot? Are they just benign little jokes?

A.  They’re relatively benign…but as you’ve largely already pointed out, not completely arbitrary. =)

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Q.  Did Rocky have any other friends as a kid?

A.  No. Generally not for more than ten minutes at a time, anyway.  That burden honor fell exclusively to Freckle.

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Q.  On your Lackadaisy “Expressions” page, one of Mordecai’s drawings shows him with an unusually pained expression. It doesn’t seem to be disgust, because he appears to be holding himself as well. Is he having stomach cramps, or is it another type of discomfort?

A.  Someone said “irregardless,” and it pained him.

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Q.  Victor Vasko? Rocky Rickaby! Mitzi May!??!?! If it were not for Ivy Pepper and Atlas May, I would of Assumed you Allocated An Allotment of Amoral Alias Alliterations upon us intentionally.

A.  Sound supposition. ‘Sedgewick Sable’ and ‘Serafine Savoy’ certainly seem to suggest a sinister surfeit of similar serial syllables.

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Q.  So, will Nico and Serafine ever do anything else in the story than get rid of Mordecai´s dirty laundry?

A.  Well, I’ll answer that by saying there’s a reason Volume 1 went a little bit out of its way to explain what it is they’re good at doing.

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Q.  vallarioisdashit asked you:
So, a while back you drew lil’ Viktor holding a yolk. My question is, what do Slavic cats use for beasts of burden?

A.  Oxen, mostly.

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Q.  Hi Tracy! This isn’t a question, but I wanted to tell you what happened today. I was excited about your update this morning (which ROCKS), so I wore my Lackadaisy club pin when I went to class at my university. In my first one another girl also had a pin! We noticed each other and got really excited. Afterwards we went out for coffee and talked about the comic and how much we love it and you. <3 Best way by far to start a semester! Thank you for everything you do!

A.  Aww, gee.  If the comic had anything to do with friendships being made, consider me honored and pleased as punch (and pie).
Thanks for sharing that!

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Q.  dubiousradical asked you:
I’m sure you get this a lot, but do you draw non lackadaisy related things?

A.  All the time, although it’s mostly for my day job, and so I can’t always share it in public forums.

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Q.  After reading the comic, I am wondering about the origins of Nina McMurray. She reminds me so much of the women that I met at Sunday school, that I’m wondering what your inspiration was.

A.  Well, I was raised in a very Catholic family, went to mass every weekend without fail whether I liked it or not (I didn’t) until I moved out of my parents’ house, attended CCD classes for eleven years, and then went to a Catholic college where many of my professors were nuns.  One of them in particular employed a sort of old school manner of divinely inspired meanness, and had a reputation for one-on-one verbal lashings that brought students to tears.  I imagine if she could have gotten away with smacking the understanding of endocrinological biosynthetic pathways and love for the Lord into us with a yard stick, she would have.   Anyway, these things probably had something to do with Nina’s character.

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Q.  acehades asked you:
Hey, i was wondering what Breed of Cat is Zib if you don’t mind me asking?

A.  A jazz cat - alley cat mix. ;)

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Q.  Just out of curiosity, what’s Mordecai’s love-life looking like?

A.  …like the alkali flats.

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Q.  Hi Tracy. One thing I’ve wondered occasionally is how do you feel about the ‘fan work’ that your readers produce? You sometimes feature fan art and cosplay, so I assume you’re happy with those forms, but what about people who write fanfics and kink meme drabbles or even role-play online using your character cast? Does it bother you at all, or are you just happy that people like your characters enough to do these things?

A.  I’m very flattered by all such things, and I’m generally happy when anyone takes an interest in the story, setting, or characters, in whatever form that manifests.  Fan fiction is a little bit of an intellectual property danger zone, though - moreso than fan art or cosplay, I feel.  If, for instance, I imply or foreshadow something in the comic, and then someone essentially beats me to the punch by writing a piece of fan fiction extrapolating on those story elements, it can put me in a rather problematic position - especially so if I’ve spent any amount of energy promoting this piece of fan fiction.  It starts to look as though I might have borrowed story material from the fan fiction author, and I either have to rewrite my storyline to avoid any strong resemblances to something someone else wrote about my own creation, or potentially face having to credit that someone else for my ideas.
I don’t rail against fan fiction because, on one level, I think there’s something rather lovely about the sharing of creative embers.  But I know there are legal precedents for situations similar to the one I described above too, so I think it’s at least a little pragmatic to maintain some ignorance and distance.

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Q.  If you could, would you ever consider being a full-time comic book artist? I know they don’t pay very well, but if you can get your corner in the market, like people like Skottie young, I figure you can make a living out of it. I think your stuff is quality enough ;)

A.  Thanks.  That’s very kind.  I would love for Lackadaisy to be my job, but even if it can be deemed to have quality, quality does not necessarily equate with marketability.  I have a small audience… scant business sense to boot.  What business sense I do have tells me I’d need to be more confident, vastly more practical, and a little bit more mercenary than I am to pull that off. 

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Q.  Rocky is a gin-runner as we all know… but does he actually drink alcohol (and does Mitzi approve)?

A.  No one approves of Rocky drinking, not even Rocky.

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Q.  who’s pocketwatch is on the front page?

A.  The comic provides a clue to whose watch it is.  It’s a little oblique, but I’d rather not spoil it, in case anyone feels like figuring that out on their own.

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Q.  If Rocky were dressed in clothes according to current day fashions, would he be trendy or not?

A.  I think he’d be a bit of a dandy, albeit a little off the mark, and a little too…loud.

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Q.  Do you think it will ever be possible to get the comic stocked at Barnes and Noble? I went and asked if they could order it for me - they said yes of course - and then the guy at the counter said he got asked about your comic fairly often, which I found surprising. What do you think?

A.  Wow - That’s good to hear!  I would love to see Lackadaisy on a shelf at Barnes and Noble someday, but that seems a little out of reach right now.  I haven’t dealt with it directly, but all indications I have are that the company’s comics or graphic novels buyer isn’t terribly interested in making that purchase.
Borders actually did place an order for the books…just in time to declare bankruptcy and go out of business.
Books-a-Million is engaged in some sort of business dispute with Diamond (the book’s distributor), so that option is out for the present too.
It’s very frustrating, but the comic’s chances for exposure in the bookseller venue are totally at the mercy of corporate shenanigans. I’m thankful there’s an internet to turn to instead.

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Q.  How would you feel if somebody were to ask for critiques on their work either online or in person? Would you take the offer or would you decline?

A.  In person, at conventions and such, I’m happy to oblige.  I make attempts to be helpful in the same capacity when approached about critiques online too, although these days, I do apologetically fall short of responding to every such question that comes my way.