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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2m

"What was our first kiss like?"

"UHHH. Don't ask."

Reposted by Ariana Maher

Adam 🪿 @vexnir.bsky.social · 22h

That’s such a fluffy, sleepy pumpkin 🧡

#art #cozyart #caturday

Watercolor illustration of a bunch of colorful pumpkins, with a beige striped cat sleeping on top of them curled up into a ball, slightly resembling the round pumpkins itself.

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Reposted by Ariana Maher

EmmyKtz 🐙 The Pink Hydra @thepinkhydra.com · 1d

Devoured this book in one night flat. 😅 (Much like a certain too-hungry mage. 👀)

Going to (hopefully) add some thoughts here as I process them.

This was most definitely a 5-star read & a wonderful addition to the corpus of fantasy starring non-royal working-class characters.

Spoilers below!

EmmyKtz 🐙 The Pink Hydra @thepinkhydra.com · 1d

Shitty photo but the foil details on #traitorandthewretch do look amazing under a camera flash 😍

Happy release day @bonedustpress.bsky.social! So excited to finally curl up & read this tonight.

The Traitor & the Wretch, a paperback book by Jasmine Walls and Rowan MacColl, featuring black-and-white character art with silver foil details of skulls and daggers, is on a crocheted blue-and-green bedspread. A ginger and white cat is curled up beside the book.

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Reposted by Ariana Maher

Sebastián Píriz @sebastianpiriz.bsky.social · 1d

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Reposted by Ariana Maher

anker @thecojsz.bsky.social · 6d

my friend Jackson at @kitenda.bsky.social, a trans woman refugee in South Sudan, fell ill with malaria last week.

thankfully she's on the mend now, but i'm too broke rn to help her with her medical bills orz

if you wanna help out, every tiny bit counts!! www.gofundme.com/f/lgbtq-comm...

Donate to Support Freedom Spectrum of East Africa, organized by Anker Emil Novak-Tot

Donate to help 429 LGBTQ+ refugees establish a safe home for their commun… Anker Emil Novak-Tot needs your support for Support Freedom Spectrum of East Africa

www.gofundme.com

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 1d

I remember when I first saw a し～ん silent panel in a manga. I was so confused at first and then I learned what it meant and never forgot after.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 1d

Yeah! Exactly! I guess when I say design language, it's more like... different accents? Anyone can pick up a comic and figure out word balloons, SFX, etc, but different types such manga, euro and western print comics, webcomics, etc. have different design details that a reader has to adapt to.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 1d

That's awesome!

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 1d

That's why it tends to be a relief when I spot a review on a comic I've worked on and no one has anything to say about my lettering. I figure, if they don't notice anything, that probably means I didn't do a bad job. Which is good enough, in my books.

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Reposted by Ariana Maher

Push/Pull Seattle @pushpullseattle.bsky.social · 1d

Also! ICYMI! We got a big ol' Microcosm Publishing order in last week, along with a bunch of fun stuff from Free Period Press, including new coloring books! Lots of good stuff!! Go look!

Shelf full of various Microcosm titles on display, including several queer horror anthologies.

Various coloring books on display, including books called Queer Animals & Plants and Mushroom Daydream.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 1d

Congratulations @mythjae.bsky.social ! It's out and available in print and ebook!

Bonedust Press @bonedustpress.bsky.social · 1d

✨The Traitor & The Wretch is out!!✨

By @mythjae.bsky.social @skulkingfoxes.bsky.social & @fusspot.rip

Grab the ebook or the luxurious silver foil version from our website! (shipping in the U.S. only)
www.bonedustpress.com/shop

It's also available to libraries, so stop by and request a copy!

The front cover illustration for The Traitor & The Wretch drawn by the amazing Amy Phillips. The book is written by Jasmine walls and internally illustrated by Rowan MacColl

A photo of the exclusive paperback with shiny silver foiling on the cover.

A photo of a two-page spread, showing off one of Rowan MacColl's lovely illustrations

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Reposted by Ariana Maher

🌿Elaine Tipping🍃 @triaelf9.bsky.social · 2d

Oh yeah, it's a manga thing! I feel like I don't see it as much in new ones I pick up, but it could be generational depending on the artist. A quick search in Japanese shows ppl calling it フキダシの内側(に)しっぽ or フキダシの中にしっぽ which both basically mean "balloon with the tail on the inside"

Dave Kellett @davekellett.bsky.social · 3d

I’ve never seen this before! An *inward-indicating* word-balloon tail (that’s the speaker’s right arm descending below the word balloon).

FASCINATING! Does this tail technique have a name? Have folks seen it used elsewhere?? I have so many questions!!! (From HIRAYASUMI, book 3, pg 37)

Photo of HIRAYASUMI, book 3, pg 37… showing an inward indicating word balloon tail

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

I guess the opposite extreme of overthinking the audience's needs is applying absolutely no thought nor creativity at all. 🙃

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

Whaaaa tf?! That's wild.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

That's why consistency is so vital in my job. No one usually notices lettering if done well -- it's a subtle art. But inconsistent elements, just like the flipped manga art, can disrupt a reader's flow and take them out of the story.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

Yeah, they overthink things and underestimate human adaptability.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

Exactly! It happened recently with the introduction of vertical comics like webtoons. The design language to letter the comics had to shift around to accommodate the new format. The publishing/distribution changed format too. But Readers adapted quickly and with considerable ease.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

Her entire life so far is fascinating and it was wonderful to get to hear her stories. She also gave me advice on how best to work as a freelancer and maintain routines -- I keep up with my health with regular exercise and weight training in part thanks to her influence.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

When I learned how to letter, I realized that the mechanics may be straightforward, but considerable intent and creativity is needed for balloon placements. The composition of the panels and the art, the dialogue and story beats, have to flow in a way that feels natural to the reader subconsciously.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

Sorry to go on, but remember translated manga in the 90s, where they'd flip all of the art out of some fear that Americans wouldn't adapt to right-to-left reading? But readers adapted quick and wanted manga unflipped. The human brain is built more complex than folks give it credit for.

Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

You'd think that lettering is a straightfoward design process -- copy text, draw a balloon, draw a tail, bam -- but depending on the language, culture, creative production, publishing industry, and readership habits, the design language evolves differently and readers adapt to that.

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Reposted by Ariana Maher

Daryl @maconfleetwood.bsky.social · Jul 1

🇨🇦 It’s publication day! Use the link below to order your copy of TRUE NORTH and join me in revisiting the glorious first volume of #AlphaFlight! 🇨🇦

I’m incredibly proud of this book and can’t wait for you to read it!

#HappyCanadaDay

tinyurl.com/328werdr

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

She is so lovely. I got to chat with her during a podcast once and she left such a huge positive impact on me. I'm glad you got the chance to talk with her!

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

How you read a manga, a superhero comic, and a webtoon are different due to the different design approaches in the lettering. And if a letterer understands that, is consistent, and adheres to those different styles, a reader won't even notice that they've hopped from one design language to another.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

You'd think that lettering is a straightfoward design process -- copy text, draw a balloon, draw a tail, bam -- but depending on the language, culture, creative production, publishing industry, and readership habits, the design language evolves differently and readers adapt to that.

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Ariana Maher @airy.bsky.social · 2d

Yeah, the design language for manga and western books are different and I love that. When Aditya and I got to judge lettering for this year's AMA, we got to see a lot of folks letter translated manga in ways that were completely innovative in styles we don't tend to reach for in western design.

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