Eimer's Top Reads of 2020

In early 2020, after posting my Top 9 Great Post Apocalyptic Reads way back in March 14, the place that I work sent everyone home to partake in mandatory WFH fun for the rest of the year. Which then turned into the beginning of 2021. And now, more than likely, it's looking like this WFH parade will extend well into the summer of 2021 ... if not probably beyond. 

With everything shut down, nowhere to go, and nothing to do, I thought Governor Dewine's Covid-19 Stay-At-Home Order would prompt me to sit back, cuddle up with a nice glass of whiskey, and read, and read, a read to my hearts content maybe even surpassing a personal record of total books read. 

Well, I was wrong. Except for the whiskey part. 

After March, the procrastination got worse. All of the things I wanted to do, I put off. And, pretty much, just started drinking .... anything I could possibly get my hands on. The depression transformed into gluttony, which transformed into sadness, then anger and finally acceptance. Finally, in the summer of 2020, I woke up from my doldrums, started working out again, drawing again, creating again ... and yes, even, reading again. 

With this newfound creativity, I was able to knock out a bunch of relevant, interesting, fun, topical books. Well, some not so topical but still nevertheless damn interesting. So here, folks, is my list of 2020 Top Reads, in no particular order:

Beastie Boys Book 

by Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz

Loved. Loved. Loved this book and not just because I'm a Beastie Boys fan. Well, that's probably half of it. But, it's just an inspiring story of three creative kids finding new sounds, meeting new people and pushing that imagination bar. From sampling, to writing, to music, everything that the Beastie Boys did was steeped in creativity, trying new things and just seeing what sticks. Making music was their platform, but having fun and creating great friendships was key to this fruitful collaboration between three bad brothers you know so well. From the days of Rick Rubin and Licensed to Ill, to sampling with the Dust Brothers in California, to returning to their musical instrument roots in Check Your Head, and beyond all the way to the death of MCA (Adam Yauch), the story is filled with a historical breakdown of music that inspired, warts and all creative process, and the inspirational, musical-minded folks they met along the way who helped shape these guys into the band that they became, and the fantastic experimental music they made along the way. It's a long book, but well worth the read. May even inspire you to get off your butt and do something, anything .. in the spirit of creativity.

The Library Book

by Susan Orlean

I never thought I'd find a book about a library so intriguing. Then, I found out that Susan Orlean, author of The Orchid Thief, was at the helm. In subsequent chapters, this immersive book takes you through the history of The Los Angeles Public Library as well as the hunt for the 'arsonist' who started the 1986 library fire that destroyed more than one million books. As a fan of my local library in Martins Ferry, as well as the Grandview, Columbus, Hudson, and Upper Arlington public libraries in Ohio (which I have visited, continue visiting, and borrowing with full gusto), I enjoyed this book which goes through the inner-workings of a library and brings back that warm, welcoming, nostalgic feeling that you get whenever you walk through its doors. Orlean weaves three distinct books into one; true detective, historical, and educational, which comes together for a really enthralling read.

Full Throttle

by Joe Hill

Wow! Joe Hill is pumping out some pretty, pretty, pretty kick-ass short stories. Check out 21st-Century Ghosts and Strange Weather. This collection contains a ton of goodies. Some of my faves include Wolverton Station, Faun, All I Care About is You, Mums, and Dark Carousel. The audio version did not include Twittering from the Circus of The Dead. So, I'm curious about that one. But, all in all, a great collection. But, by far, the most inspiring writing comes from the Prologue, which is titled 'Who's Your Daddy?' in which he waxes nostalgic about growing up around his dad and the many different inspirations for his eventual career in writing.

Borne

by Jeff VanderMeer

Thoroughly enjoyed VanderMeer's first book in the Southern Reach Trilogy (Annihilation). The other two books, not so much. But, I was intrigued that he decided to delve into science-fiction once again with Borne. Man, this is an odd book. The tone reminded a little bit of Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake. But, this book can stand on its own as an odd piece of post-apocalyptic sci-fi. I don't want to give too much away but VanderMeer's imagination is able to run wild with a humungous, angry lab-grown grizzly bear followed by an army of smaller grizzly bears, robots, bio-tech, destruction, mayhem, magicians and an odd little creature named Borne. Just an entertaining read from start to finish. It's an odd one. But if you're a sci-fi fan, you'll be happy you picked it up.

Recursion

by Blake Crouch

I'm a sucker for time travel books and this one definitely delivered. I would consider this a fresh take on the 'sometimes-tired' time travel genre. But this was a page turner. Great writing from Blake Crouch. This motivated me to snag his other book 'Dark Matter' and check out his scripted TV series 'Wayward Pines'. I just found out that this will be made into a Netflix series as well. Look, if you like sci-fi, time travel and just a different 'out there' supernatural story, this is a great book for you. 'Nuff said

Fire!: The Zora Neale Hurston Story

by Peter Bagge

In his later years, Cartoonist/Writer Peter Bagge (of 'Buddy Bradley' and 'Hate 'fame) has decided to turn his muse lens towards strong-willed, tenacious female character studies such as 'Woman Rebel', 'Credo', and finally 'Fire!'. In Fire!, Bagge tells the warts and all story of writer Zora Neale Hurston (best known for her novel 'Their Eyes Were Watching God'), who was a free-spirited black woman in the early 1900's when 'black' and 'woman' and 'free-spirit' were considered taboo by the white elite. It's a fun, entertaining, thoughtful ride with snippets of Zora Neale's life peppered across the pages in Bagge's famous cartoon style. I tip my hat to Bagge, a white male, who had the courage to take on the subject matter. Some may balk at a white man telling the story of a black woman. But, like I said, this is a story of a strong-willed woman who found success despite the obstacles thrown at her, which I think is an uplifting story that will inspire women and men of all ages. Looking forward to reading Woman Rebel and Credo in the near future.

Stranger in the Woods

by Michael Finkel

What a great book to read during the Covid 19 pandemic! The story is a true-life story of Chris Knight, who wandered into the woods in the early 80's and, pretty much, never came out until getting arrested 26 years later. The book makes you question what's important in this world. Getting likes on Facebook or Instagram? Or just enjoying life and the great outdoors as the day is here? Obviously we don't all have to be a hermit like Chris Knight and hide in the woods for 26 years, but there's some nice little snippets about enjoying life that I'll definitely take with me on my life journey. Minus all the burglary charges held against him and some of his personal psychological flaws, this Knight guy may be one of the smartest guys in the world. Stay tuned and I'll let you know in (hopefully) 40 years.

Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio

by Derf Backderf

Great book by Backderf. Lots of research and interviews went into this book, which follows the fateful days leading up to the killings of four students at Kent State in 1970. The history, the backstory and the character arcs (and of course the art), had me transfixed from the first few pages, then I was hooked. What a great undertaking to create this book. Hopefully he gets the awards and recognition for this. Personally, I didn't know much about the Kent State shootings, this totally filled in the blanks (and then some). Just a great story overall. If you liked this, I highly recommend Derf's other books, 'My Friend Dahmer' and 'Trashed' as well.

March - Book One

by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell

What an extremely appropriate book to read in 2020. About the life, story, and heroism of John Lewis. I knew a little bit about John Lewis, but this book is packed full of history, biography, and crazy racial injustices that didn't happen too long ago. It's amazing how far we think we've come, only to continue to be reminded that we've got a lot of work to do together as a nation to heal our wounds. With great story arc by Lewis and Aydin as well as fantastic artwork by Powell; I probably should've picked up this book sooner. But, I'm sort of glad I saved it for right here, right now. Looking forward to Book Two and Book Three of the series

Other Top Reads From Year's Past:

• Eimer's Top Reads of 2019
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2018
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2017
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2016
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2015
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2014
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2013
• Eimer's top Reads of 2012
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2011
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2010
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2009
• Rendezvous with Rama Review
• Read My FREE Novella of Short Stories
• American Gods Review
• Cash by Cash Review
• Walk in the Woods Review
• The Road Review
• The Mist Review

Eimer's Best Reads of 2017

     

To all of those unaware, I love Goodreads, a website/app that allows you to keep track of the books you previously read, books you want to read, and currently reading. It's a great book community site that, frankly, is a lot better than Facebook. It's been a real help for me when I enter a bookstore, or a library, or Amazon.com and my mind freezes and I can't remember what book I want to read next.

Well, I bring this up because, every year, I enter a reading challenge. It's sort of a motivator to kickstart my book-reading for the year. This year, I didn't do too shabby ...

That said, I came across a number of great books. Some good. Some bad. Most of which weren't printed in 2017. But, who cares, I'm playing catch-up with other decades (as you'll see below). Enjoy the list.

And, if you have time, send me the favorite book you've read in 2017. Of course, I'll toss it on my Goodreads 'to-read' queue. Links to Amazon.com if you're interested in purchasing.

Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance
Although J.D. Vance is from Kentucky and grew up in Middleton, Ohio. And although he had more difficult parental issues than I could ever imagine, his account of life as a 'hillbilly' and the economic struggles his family entailed hits close to home. Great autobiographical, warts-and-all account of Vance's youthful upbringing. On a personal note, I grew up in Martins Ferry, Ohio (near Wheeling, West Virginia). I had a great life. I have great childhood memories. I was also very fortunate to have both a mother and father and loving relatives that helped raise me. But, I also grew up with a lot of poverty. You could honestly toss Vance's story into my hometown and not miss a beat. The cast of real-life family characters in his book echoes a lot of families in my small town (including my own). Look, I echo Spurs coach Gregg Popovich's sentiment that if you're born white, you automatically have a monstrous advantage — educationally, economically, culturally, in this society. But, for whatever reason, it doesn't feel like it if you grew up in this part of the country. Regardless if you're black or white, right or left, you have to feel for a lot of the other people that are trying to make ends meet in the hollers of Appalachian America. Again, good read. Highly recommended.

The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins

Great modern-day fantasy novel. The begining starts off a bit slow, but give it time - you'll be happy you did. I admire Hawkins creative mind and this is definitely a unique idea - one that hasn't been rehashed that's for sure. Don't want to give too much away, but there's a mixture of gods, lions, packs of wild dogs, people getting burned alive and resurrection. Just an oddly fantastical book that I would recommend to my fantasy-loving friends.

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

From a writing and structure perspective, this book is uniquely written - shooting from past to present with narrative and character changes in truly a unique fashion. And, surprisingly, it all works. I'm trying to jar my brain for a book that's been written in this exact way, but I'm at a loss. Perhaps Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five minus the time traveling? No. Through each chapter, we learn more and more about the passengers of a plane that crashed into the Atlantic traveling from Long Island back to New York. We also learn more about our main protagonist Scott Burroughs - with the police, FBI and national media on his tail. Is he a hero? Is he behind the crash? Is he in it for the money? It's interesting how Hawley (of Fargo TV series fame) weaves this rather mundane story into a page-turner of a novel. Check 'er out!

How Starbucks Saved My Life by Michael Gates Gil

As someone that's (a) growing older, (b) currently going through career existentialism and (c) in the advertising field, this books hits home on a lot of different ways to me. Gill, is a much more successful advertising figure than myself and - after more than 15+ years at JWT finds himself out on his ass, due to seemingly two things (a) his big salary and (b) his age. Such is the life of a marketer. I've been told that 50-years old is the cut-off, termination point for many top creatives in the field. I guess old people can't be creative or something. They can't speak to the current purchasing generation, which I find is both insulting and bullshit. If this is the case, then I'm about 6 years away from searching for a new identity. Gill was as well. And, with his back against the wall, he decided to take a job at Starbucks - mainly for the insurance. But, in this transformation, from the man who had it all , to the man shilling drinks at a local coffee shop - Gill finds true happiness. This is a great read. Again, it hits home for me. But I think it could speak to people of all ages who are looking for something new, something different, something drastic change in their career.

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

For the past 20 years, I was dragging my feet on this book. "How could a book about a hermaphrodite be any good?" I would naively ruminate as I circled this book over and over again. Well, two thumbs up from three of my co-workers motivated me to give it a shot and color me impressed. This book is more than a person with male and female organs. It's a history lesson about Greece, it paints a picture of growing up in hustling-bustling pre-poverty stricken Detroit. It's filled with humor and action and fantastic dialogue. It's a wonderful, pleasant surprise! Should have read it about 20 years ago!

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

Great read. Merging two stories 50 years apart - one illustrated, one written - into one beautiful story. Not going to give away the ending, but, now, I would love to head to the two museums highlighted in the book and check out the creations that they discuss. Again, highly recommended. Almost could be compared to The Invention of Hugo Cabret in the sense that this book is a mystery that unfolds like the peels of an onion as each chapter continues.

Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier

Fantastic illustrations. Believable teenage dialogue. And a strong storyline. Highly recommended for everyone. Kids and adults.

Hypercapitalism by Larry Gonick and Tim Kasser

I'm not a big business type of guy. Financially, I understand how the world works, but that's just about it. Sometimes I need a visual representation to get me through some of the heavy topics of life. In this case, capitalism. Kasser's book is good. But with added illustrative representation by Larry Gonic, it's a fantastic read. It reminds me of Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics but with Capitalism. Kasser and Gonic take you through a history of capitalism in our country and around the world followed by it's steady rise into hypercapitalism. But it doesn't stop there, they also highlight ways to reverse the trends of corporate greed, low pay, and gluttonous buying. All in all, a great read - even for those people who have a hard time grasping these heady concepts ... like yours truly. 

11/22/63 by Stephen King

Great book. Originally I thought this was going to be a yawner. A big slog through the JFK assassination. But, man, it turned out to be a suspenseful thriller, a history lesson on Lee Harvey Oswald and the fateful day, a romantic novel, plus a little science-fiction dabbled in - all in one. It's long. You've been warned. But, nevertheless, it was a thoroughly enjoyable read. One piece of feedback. The narrator kept saying the word 'obdurate' and 'harmonize' over and over again. I get that he was trying to set this up for something to come in the novel, but that's very minor. Stephen King never fails to surprise me though. Just a big fan of his writing, even when I think I'm going to hate it.

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells

Quick, fast read. There are better time travel books out there, but you have got to tip your hat to the imagination of H.G. Wells. He laid the groundwork and the inspiration for all of the other time travel books and movies that you see today. If you've seen the 1960 film, then - pretty much - this book will be very familiar (with the exception to the size and features of the two creatures). All in all, it's a pretty bleak look into the future. But, again, hats off to Wells and his fantastic vocabulary and writing style.

Other Top Reads From Year's Past:

• Eimer's Top Reads of 2016
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2015
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2014
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2013
• Eimer's top Reads of 2012
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2011
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2010
• Eimer's Top Reads of 2009
• Rendezvous with Rama Review
• Read My FREE Novella of Short Stories
• American Gods Review
• Cash by Cash Review
• Walk in the Woods Review
• The Road Review
• The Mist Review

12 Inspiring Books About The Creative Process

  

Based on some sound advice from copyranter, I picked up an advertising book called ‘When Advertising Tried Harder: The Sixties: The Golden Age of American Advertising’ by Lawrence Dobrow. The book is good. It highlights the exact moment when the ad agency as you know it today formed … a creative director, a copywriter and an art director working in unison to create great ideas in both form and function that answers to the goddamn brief (most of the time).

The book inspired me! My next idea (which I cannot share right now due to legal mumbo jumbo) pushed the creative bar. Working with a talented team of writers and designers, we pulled off the impossible, and put together a half-decent ad concept, which spawned an entire look and feel for the website, printed collaterals, emails, and banner ads. Yay!

I wanted to pay it forward by sharing 12 books that have catapulted my occipital cortex to creative greatness; 12 books that talk about the turmoil, the struggle, and the internal strife that affects every creative person. The creative process. The damned, gut-wrenching, glorious creative process.

Whether you’re a writer, actor, designer, painter, Lego builder, cartoonist, bartender, or even a garbage man—I'm certain you'll get some tiny creative nuggets from each of these books that will inspire, or reaffirm, the way that you approach a new creative concept. (Complete with links to Amazon.com.

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

King gets personal with some tidbits about his life, his drug addiction and his accident (which almost killed him)—complete with some nuggets about his creative process and how he hates when people use adverbs.

Zen In The Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury

Through these essays, Bradbury weaves little tidbits of his personal life combined with diligent practices that he used to transformed himself into one of the best short storytellers in the biz.

Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull

You know what I hate? Books written by successful businessmen that talk about their successes and never about their failures. Catmull, one of the founders of Pixar and the current President of Pixar animation and Walt Disney Animation Studios, does the exact opposite. This book is filled with failures, mistakes, blunders and the like that happened to Pixar.

Adventures in the Screen Trade: A Personal View of Hollywood and Screenwriting by William Goldman

Many of you millennials may not know William Goldman. At the time, he was the hottest screenwriter in Hollywood as well as a respected and published author. Here, check out his Wikipedia entry if you don’t believe me. In any event, Goldman talks about the industry, his process, his successes and, more importantly, his failures. He even shows you how he goes about adapting his own short story into a screenplay. If you like this, then you should also check out his follow-up, Which Lie Did I Tell? MoreAdventures In the Screen Trade.

How I Made A Hundred Movies And Never Lost A Dime by Roger Corman

I read this book about 16 years ago and it still resonates with me to this day. Corman talks about his creative process and his go-for-broke film-making style. He’s like a film-making MacGyver, figuring out how to use all the pieces and parts of his films to make money--with great back stories about his films.

Private Parts by Howard Stern

You may not think you’re going to get anything out of this book, but you will. Creatively, Stern pushed the bar in his industry so much that he had to invent the rules in order to break them. Lots of good stuff here that will motivate you to shoot for the moon - and hopefully land among the stars.

Will the Real John Callahan Please Stand Up?: A Quasi-Memoir by John Callahan

Callahan became a quadriplegic after an auto accident when he was 21. After that, he transformed his angst into cartoon form – with extremely controversial results. Personally, I thought they were funny. But, a lot of people didn't share my same feelings. This memoir that talks about how he vanquished his inhibitions and just drew whatever morbid muse sparked his fancy.

Chuck Amuck – The Life And Times Of An Animated Cartoonist by Chuck Jones

Chuck has an ego, but that’s okay. He also has a bit of a chip on his shoulder. Again, okay. After you read this memoir, you’ll understand a bit more about this ultra-creative man who dreamed up most of the Looney Tunes characters you’ve grown to love. There are tons and tons of entertaining stories on his successes, failures and battles with the powers that be - not to mention basic office life at Warner Brothers studios. Highly recommended.

Completely Mad: A History Of The Comic Book And Magazine by Maria Reidelbach

This is a blow-by-blow history of Mad Magazine including stories from the usual gang of idiots who contributed to the inspirational, best-selling magazine of my youth. Great stories about editor Harvey Kurtzman and eccentric publisher William Gaines (who also created the oft-repeated, never duplicated Tales from the Crypt series).

Live From New York: The Complete, Uncensored,History of Saturday Night Live as Told by Its Stars, Writers, and Guests by James Andrew Miller

Just some great inside stories from the cast, crew, directors, guest stars and writers. In addition to the history of the show, you get a first-person account (from the creative people themselves) on the entire creative process, how skits are written,  how they're chosen and, finally, how they’re performed, etc - with backstories galore. Sadly, Eddie Murphy refused to be interviewed for the book (asshole).

Rebel Without A Crew: Or How a 23-year Old Filmmaker with $7,000 Become a Hollywood player by Robert Rodriguez

Just an inspirational story about how a budding filmmaker made his own path and put together some dough to make a small movie for a small Mexican market and how it just exploded. Rodriguez goes through everything here from how he sold his body to medicine for production money, to his screenwriting process, all the way to filming and post-production – and finally instant success. It’s a road with a lot of bombs, failures and potholes, which I love to read about.

The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind The Original Film by J.W. Rinzler

If you're a fan of STAR WARS, or a fan of the film-making process, you'll love this book. It's a long book with very small text. But it kept my enthralled from beginning to end. Great behind the scenes pics and inside scoops on the heartbreak, the triumph and the creativity that was poured into this film. This is the definitive book on one of the most important movies of all time. Highly recommended.

So, now it's your turn. Do you have any recommendations that aren't on this list?

Hidden Treasure Trove of Past Eimer Editorials

So, sometimes, I like to Google my name and see what comes up.

Hey! It's not a narcissistic past time at all (well, sorta), but more of a litmus test to ensure there's plenty of positive and not a lot of negative when people are looking you up online.

I try to tell this to all of the new graduates I come across who are looking for a job.

Google yourself and get rid of the negative shit. It's easy. And it's important. I mean, I wouldn't want a prospective employer to come across this picture of me on my honeymoon. (Well, in hindsight, I guess linking to said picture on an open blog is not going to help my employment opportunities, either.)

But I digress.

So, I was Googling myself and came across a link on Google that contained scanned-in newspapers from Westland News circa 2004. I started browsing and came across three editorials that I wrote for the newspaper at the time. Despite some type-os (damn you, editors!!), they're pretty entertaining reads. They brought back some very fond memories of the Suburban News Publication news crew.

During that time, I didn't make much money, but boy did I have fun writing and collaborating with a smart, talented and well-educated team.

So, without further adieu, please enjoy my SNP editorials covering a Canadian fishing trip, javelin in Ohio and deer hunting (and enjoy the good-looking youthful face, by the way):

The Summer of Stephen King's IT.

Way way back in the summer of 1987, I was a frustrated, angst-ridden puberty-stricken 14-year-old boy (almost 15). My freshman year at Martins Ferry High School was coming to a close. And, with no driver's license, no cable TV, no girlfriend and no life.

I basically had zero plans for my summer - except, of course, catching up on summer movies and walking the streets of Martins Ferry with my closest buddies looting various homes for liquor and beer.

Well, actually, there was one thing that I was going to do that summer, and that was read Stephen King's IT, which as I recall took the entire summer thanks in part to my virgin novel-reading abilities and it's immense length (1,138 pages, which translates to more than 100,000 words).

I was so mesmerized by the book that I took time out of my busy summer to draw and ink the following picture:

I believe it's the first time the portly Ben meets Pennywise the clown face to face. Note the cold breath air, the 'husky' Buster Brown jeans, the cinema-verite eyeball a' la Salvador Dali's short film Un Chien Andalou (even before I knew what the hell Un Chien Andalou was.)

And, let's not forget, my personal representation of Pennywise, which sort of mimicked the evil clown made famous by Tim Curry in the 1990 craptacular made-for-TV movie.

I would seriously be remiss of me to not point out my awesome use of perspective in relation to the bridge, the little cabin, the road, the creek/river and the clown.

In any event, after finishing this homage, I had high hopes of creating an eventual graphic novel of the book. I remember highlighting pages in my paperback book, which would make great layouts.

Sadly my great vision never came to fruition due to self-diagnosed teenage laziness. More than likely, I decided to focus my energy on the unending search for girls and booze during my summer of love Stephen King's IT.

Two months. Three rejections.

It's funny.

After I finished editing my children's book for mass consumption, I thought the hard part was over and the easy part was coming up:

"Send it to a literary agent who would take one look at it, call me up and tell me that I am the Steinbeck of Children's Book Literature."

And continously praise me for my innovation and geniusness (is that even a word?).

Well, as all writers know...it's a tough road to hoe. I assumed I would just send this story out and people would be clamoring for the chance to turn this story from my head into a bonafide children's book - with movie rights to come in a couple weeks.

Not the case.

I've since sent my 'exclusive' story out to two agents and one publishing company.

To surmise all of their feedback:

- You've got a great story here
- But its not for us
- There are a lot of great ideas out there.
- We have to pick and choose the great ones.
- But we may be wrong.
- We encourage you to try other publishers and agents.
- Blah, blah, blah.

I agree. Living the life of a copywriter and cartoonist, you learn to live with rejection.

It feeds the fire.

That why, I'm going to keep sending it out for representation. I believe in this story. I think it needs to be told. I think it's fun.

But, if nothing happens within a month or so, I just may have to rethink my strategy and do this one on my own.

Maybe a version1 with my drawings.

Then, down the line, a version 2 with a professional illustrator's drawings.

In any event, onward and upward.

Field of Beans

I've talked about my many different jobs on this planet.

However, I forgot to bring up my short stint as a Children's Book Illustrator.

And, yep, I totally forgot about it until now. Can you believe that?

Waaaaayyy back in 1998, I illustrated a children's story called Field of Beans for a small start-up children's book publishing company in Columbus called Berry Books.

Take a gander at it right here.

The cool thing about this particular project was that I thought up the actual look and feel of the characters. In fact, the publisher (Curtis Paulson) liked my characters so much, he kept them around in other books.

Another cool thing: According to the website, a total of nine books have been printed and distributed in every state and several countries.

Eat your heart out J.K. Rowling.

Granted, I didn't make a ton of money off of this project (I think it was about $600 for about 70+ hours of work including meetings, revisions, sketches, etc) and the final product isn't that spectacular. But, this particular experience not only helped hone my illustrating/cartooning skills, but it introduced me to the wonderful world of Photoshop - and its endless possibilities.

In any event, when I talked about writing and illustrating my own book, I had totally forgotten that I already have one in the coffer. Cool!

So, in addition to this new copywriting job, and the book illustrator job, I now have had a grand total of 37 jobs - in almost 38 years.

Yay me!

Submitted my Children's Book Story.

Well, today could be the day that changes everything for Eimer's future.

Why?

I just submitted my children's story idea to a publisher.

Now the waiting begins.

I talked about it a little here, and here. But I'm really not going to give too much away until I sign some sort of contract with someone.

Okay, how about this? A year from now, if no one bites on this book, I'll publish it on this blog for all to see - and steal.

Sound good? Not to me.

Hopefully, someone will snag up this story. It's just too good to be tossed into the freebie bin.

We'll see.

My Facebook Account. To Delete or Not Delete?

So,I've had a Facebook account for about a year and a half. It's great, I get to hit some of my close friends with some not-so-kind sarcastic jabs. I also get to post some impromptu movie reviews and talk about the books that I'm reading, which is more than likely boring to everyone on my friends list.

However, there are a couple things about Facebook that I find unsettling, which is making me question whether or not I should even have an account:

EVERYONE'S SO GODDAMN NICE.
I'm sick. Sick I tell you. Of everyone clasping hands and singing Kumbayaa to each other on Facebook. 'You're kids are so beautiful.' 'I'm sending you a hug.' What happened to good old fashioned smart-ass sarcasm? I haven't seen it on Facebook. Even some of my friends, who are the biggest sarcastic assholes in the world, are as nice and mellow as little kittens. Frankly, this fakeness is beginning to wear on me.

WHEN FRIENDS ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS.
It's been nice getting in touch with my childhood friends and seeing what they look like and what they've been up to. But, I'm a little uncomfortable sharing every single thing that I'm doing on the face of the planet with a guy (or girl) that I hung out with in first grade. People change. Ideas change. Stuff changes. Life changes. That first grader that I used to play Godzilla with could have turned into some sort of serial killer and, worse yet, a pedophile. Who knows!! I'm not Ashton Kutcher, I'm not trying to get a million friends so I can brag to the world. In fact, I'd prefer less friends. I tend to enjoy more discreet fireside chats compared to a megaphone on the steps of the State house.

PEOPLE PUTTING THEIR KID'S FACES UP IN PLACE OF THEIR OWN.
Look I know you love your kids. I'm sure they're fantastic and great. But what is the necissity of tossing their picture up on your Facebook profile page. Sort of defeats the purpose doesn't it? It's your page, not your kids. Let's just stop the nonsense.

UPLOADING PICTURES OF YOUR KIDS.
Look I'm a fan of showing off your kids. I think my kids are the cat's meow. But I'm rather hesitant tossing their photos up for the whole world to see (i.e. note the pedophile example above). I'm not saying that I'm famous, but I would hope to give my kids some sort of discretion prior to their teenage years. And, I'm not free of sin. Yes, I post photos of my children to my FLICKR account, but I'm now in the process of going back and protecting their images so just anybody can view them. My opinion is that these kids will have plenty of times to embarass themselves in grade school and high school. I'm going to try to avoid people 'finding' photos of my daughter in the bathtub for all the world to see. I dunno, that's just me.

FARMVILLE.
This is simple. I don't care how many cows, chickens or cobs of corn you won in Farmville. Don't care. Don't want to know. Next.

STOP THE BRAGGING.
Not sure, but it seems like Facebook is a place for everyone to one-up each other in the 'look what I'm doing now' department. Wow, you're at Yellowstone! You're in New York City sniffing coke in a bathroom? Cool! You're on a gay cruise with Rosi O'Donnell. Sweet! To be brutally honest, save my close circle of friends, I really don't care what everyone is doing. And, frankly, I don't feel like being jealous of all your exploits. This is probably one of the biggest reasons I'm thinking about deleting my account. Truth be told, I don't want people to know where I am and what I'm doing, save for about 20 of my closest friends.


Well, there you have it. My buddy at work made a New Year's resolution to delete his Facebook account on January 1, 2010. He waited a couple weeks. But he finally did it. I may follow suit. There's only so many hours during the day. And I prefer long writing in this blog more so than quick snippets of what movie's I've watched, what books I've read and what bar I'm currently drinking a 32 oz. Coors Light draft in. (BW3 in case you really care).

Truth be told. Facebook just isn't doing it for me. And, down the line, I think other people will slowly come to this realization as well.

So, if you want to get to know good old Brad, stop by this blog, or if I'm truly interested I may even send you an email. I'm 100% sure, you're going to get a lot more here than my Facebook account.

Children's Book Written. Now It's Time To Draw.

Well, after seven different versions, I finally finished my children's book. Now, it's on to the sketching part of it. I've given myself a rough deadline of end of February with some wiggle room to March 14 (daylight savings time).

I'm not going to give too much away, but the main idea is about the environment and recycling. But it's funny. No preachy Al Gore stuff. So you can let your mind wander from there.

In the meantime, I've got a couple other good ideas that I also began to write. One has to do with snakes and the other, sledding. Like I said, I'm not giving too much away because, well, then, what's the point?

That's it for now. I'll keep you posted and, possibly, include some of my sketches as I venture forward. The image you see above is a very, very rough draft of a child in my first story, which was drawn during my jury duty stint in the Summit County Courthouse (another insane story).

More Eimer in 2010

Anyone that has a had a kid (or kids) knows that the first two (or three) years are the toughest.

Literally, you have to give up everything to take care of these little bundles of joy. Unless, of course, you're a shitty father or mother.

In any event, the past three years (my wife and I had two kids in less than two years), I've put a lot of stuff on hold in my life including writing, cartooning, running and reading. Oh yeah, and hanging out with friends.

Don't get me wrong, I know that my life is never going to be the same. Hell, that's probably half the reason I signed up for Parenthood. I know there will be challenges, obstacles and problems ahead. There will also be fun times too!

I think having these little munchkins running around the house has revived the creative juices and passion to create. So create I will.

In 2010, I've started a number of projects and set a couple personal goals for myself. Some of the stuff I want to complete in 2010 are, as follows:

• More cartoons (I want to get back to the drawing board so to speak)
• Publish a short story (somewhere, anywhere with exception of this blog)
• Complete a children's book (I have a great idea and I plan to both write and illustrate)
• Finish a novel (I've got three, yes three, started. All good ideas. I want them to be grand
• More posts (Believe it or not, I want to write more Eimer Debris entries. I feel this blog has helped hone my writing skills which leads me too...)
• More 'Stories from Ghetto Kroger' (there's a lot more inside my head)
• Read even more books (this past year, I was able to read 50 books. I feel that this has also motivated me to get my ass in gear)

Daunting task? Yep. But as I get older I have to challenge myself to not fall into the dead-end dumpster of mundane. Everday I'm seeing a little more and more free time pop up. Not much mind you. But enough to keep my creative juices flowing.

And, I should add, as we speak I'm coaching my kids on their creativity. I'm challenging them to create new things, draw more, play more, imagine more...and watch less television.

I've got the creative whip a crackin'!!!! It's good to be back.

Here's to a great 2010...........for me!!!