Diana’s Show on Paltalk!

by Geoff on June 6, 2011 at 10:58 pm
Posted In: Blog

UPDATE 6-7-2011: Diana’s show is going live today, but the time has gotten pushed to 1:30pm est. Hope you guys tune in!
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Tomorrow, June 7th at 1pm est, Diana will be hosting James Corbett, Celebrity Hair Stylist on Paltalk channel. To tune in live, just click the video box below!

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Art Contest Update

by Geoff on May 8, 2011 at 3:55 pm
Posted In: Blog

Ok, all the entries are in, and Emily is working very hard to pick the winners. I can truthfully say I don’t envy her – the amount of submissions and their incredible quality is going to make naming the winners a tough challenge to say the least! Personally I was overwhelmed by all the creativity put forth, and can’t thank you all enough for taking the time to enter.

Which ones are your favorites?

Click to check out Category 1 (personal avatars) and Category 2 (riffs on the Hot Mess characters) – let us know what you think!

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FIXED!!

by Geoff on April 21, 2011 at 5:29 pm
Posted In: Blog

Wow, I can’t believe what a tiny little programming change will do. As many of you noticed (and commented on) we were having an image-size problem with our comics. For whatever reason (i.e. my ineptitude), the comic images were being shrunk by WordPress by about 1%, causing them to be a little blurry. Our wonderful programmer Nick fixed it today, and I can’t believe how clear the pictures look now! Thanks Nick!

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How To Make a Webcomic & Site Update

by Geoff on April 1, 2011 at 5:13 pm
Posted In: Blog

Hi Everyone, Geoff here with a couple of site updates.

First, thank you all again for continuing to vote for us over at TopWebcomics – Hot Mess topped out at #68 last month and with your help, I think we can do better.

Now on to the important business:  I want to announce that I’m going to be writing a semi-regular blog series called HOW TO MAKE A WEBCOMIC where I’m going to share the things I’ve learned working on Hot Mess.  It’ll be a open look into the process of creating and maintaining a comic site, and aimed to help anyone who is thinking of putting their toes in the water get to the point where they’re ready to jump in.  It will be my own personal guidebook to the world of webcomics.

My honest hope is that first-time creators out there can use my posts as a tool to help you avoid the many (oh so many) pitfalls that I feel into to – or at least be aware of them – as well as highlight some of the successful paths I took.  If nothing else, I think it will get your brain going and get you excited about creating your masterpiece.  I love this medium, and I do think it’s the future of comics.  There’s no better time to start one up than right now – everyone has an equal chance to get their work out there and seen!

I’m thinking this series will be at least 13 parts long (I know, right?  Who knew there was so much to think about when making a funny-book?), and my plan is to have the first one post next Friday, then weekly after that.

So, we’ll see you next week with new strips, and this Sunday will be a Funday!

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StupidFox has his own Stupidsite

by Geoff on March 28, 2011 at 3:07 pm
Posted In: Blog

Emily Chan, artistic mastermind behind the look of Hot Mess, created another series called StupidFox (as if most of you didn’t know). And now, that silly StupidFox has his own site. Personally, I think her work there is brilliant, elegant, and consistently funny.
You can see it HERE!

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No Girl Left Behind

by Diana on March 23, 2011 at 7:14 pm
Posted In: Blog

Lots of emails and discussions about not only the current Hot Mess plot line, but also my about my post which tied current sexting trends together with peer pressure and the entertainment industry (we do personally answer as many emails as we can!). A lot of readers made a lot of great points about bullying, sexting, girl-on-girl violence (and yes, emotional violence still counts as violence), and the role that popular culture and electronics have to play in all of the above.

The truth is, we’re not talking about easy black or white subjects.  These things are all tied together in complex, subtle ways, and for most of us a lot of these attitudes and fears that we have start to form at a very, very young age.  Luckily Jodi Wing, author of the groundbreaking book, The Art of Social War, reminded me about an essay she wrote that really sheds some light on the subject and put it in a very different context:

No Girl Left Behind:

Hollywood, and more specifically the entertainment industry, is a battlefield of a very specific sort. There is a logic to the work and corresponding social life here, but it is a logic that would be illogical anywhere else (except for maybe that other famed ‘company town,’ Washington DC.) It is a terrain filled with very unusual freedoms, restrictions and advantages, and I wrote 100,000 words about them all in my debut novel, The Art of Social War (HarperCollins). In fact, I was interviewed by my esteemed friend Diana Falzone multiple times, for the satire is based on Sun Tzu’s Art of War, and is essentially about (I like to say) Very Bad Behavior & Girl-on-Girl Crime.

↓ Read the rest of this entry…

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If you like Horror Comics… All About THE HORROR OF COLONY 6

by Geoff on March 22, 2011 at 4:50 am
Posted In: Blog

Here’s one of my favorites. They just don’t update enough for me, because I’m greedy. Now, granted, I’m a guy who watches A LOT of terrible horror movies. But it’s not because I like them! I’m just always hoping for the gems… the diamonds in the rough. And that’s what I’ve found in “The Horror of Colony 6” (starts here!!!). It’s got everything I like – deep space adventures, wily viruses, and lots of great characters. Love it, and if you like to be scared, you will too. This is the latest page:

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Self-portraits

by Diana on March 17, 2011 at 6:27 am
Posted In: Blog

It seems every day there is a new Hollywood starlet who is exposed… literally… to the world due to pictures of a very private nature being leaked.  It doesn’t take a brain surgeon to figure out that the most likely culprit sharing the pics are the guys receiving (or even taking) them.

I would love to say to all the girls out there: “Just don’t sext,” and let that be that, but in this highly digital world today where everyone (even my grandmother) has a phone on her camera, I know that’s not reality.  It’s just so… there.  And easy.  And the temptation to experiment is really tough to fight sometimes.

Some of you will ignore my advice with comments like, “Ummm, look at Vanessa Hudgens or Rihanna?” It’s true, today starlets can live down unexpected indecent exposure incidents, frankly because they seem to be so commonplace.   After all, we live in a media culture where pretty much all press is good press – a very sad truth.  Most of you will not grow up to be pop stars or actresses but I believe most of you will go on to college and/or follow your career dreams. With the constant access to information on everyone you can imagine, it’s so important to think before you sext.  Always remember: The internet is forever. Literally.

Plus, do you really think Vanessa wanted her privacy violated in that way?

I get the allure of sending a sexy pic, but what happens when the guy you were in love with for five minutes turns out to be a jerk (and possibly worse) and shares something you valued as sacred?!   The ramifications can be felt when you apply to school or a job years down the line. Keep personal private.

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Miracle Cat

by Geoff on March 15, 2011 at 5:28 pm
Posted In: Blog

An incredible picture coming out of Japan today that I just had to share.  Somehow, this little guy (or gal) was able to scramble to safety.  I truly hope he made it up all the way.

Obviously, my first thoughts are with the people who have been irreversibly effected by this tragedy, but something about this photo gives me hope.

If you’re in a position to help or send aid, I think the Save the Children organization is as good a place as any.

FYI, I made a $50.00 donation in the name of Hot Mess fans – I hope you don’t mind.

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Update Tomorrow!

by Geoff on March 9, 2011 at 9:23 pm
Posted In: Blog

Been dealing with a couple of site issues, but a new strip should be up late today or tomorrow… it’s a pretty good one; methinks you will like it.

UPDATED 3-10-2011:  The site issues continue – we’ll post as soon as we can fix them!  I have these darn strips, and I really want to share!

FINAL UPDATE 3-13-2011 – Ok, FINALLY, we’ve gotten the site under control.  Since this week’s pretty much a wash, we’ll be back posing strips on schedule in a couple of days – but in just a minute, I will be posting a special Funday Sunday… stay tuned!

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