Allison O'Toole
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allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Allison O'Toole
@allisonmotoole.bsky.social
2.5K followers 1.5K following 570 posts
Editor of Ignatz & Eisner award-winning books. Publisher of @balustradepress.bsky.social. Kickstarter Community Advisory Council Member. She/her.
icon by @sophiepaaslang.bsky.social, banner art by @mkchibs.bsky.social | learn more: www.allisonotoole.com
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allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Sham and Zain need money for school and for food; please share and donate to their father's campaign if you can. Abdullah was a professional soccer player and his career has obviously been derailed www.gofundme.com/f/save-me-an...
November 25, 2025 at 4:55 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Yippee!! Can't wait to dig into this first book from @bonedustpress.bsky.social !
An e-reader showing a grey scale cover of a book called The Traitor & The Wretch by Jasmine Walls and Rowan MacColl
October 14, 2025 at 8:41 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
I'm debuting a new zine at Little Ghosts Festival in Toronto this weekend!!! If you'd like a physical copy on fancy pink paper~ come pick it up! But for folks outside the city, you can grab it for pay-what-you-want at my Gumroad: allisonotoole.gumroad.com/l/monster-ki...
o you've seen The Shape of Water... A beginner's guide to monster kissing movies, by Allison O'Toole. There's a screenshot from the movie of a lady looking lovingly at a fish man in a tube A screenshot shows a beautiful woman in a tiara looking into a mirror next to a hairy Beast in a lavish, fairytale outfit. Beneath the image, text reads: This is not to criticize Jean Marais’s committed, animalistic performance, however; I just want to point out that he’s probably the gentlest simp in this whole zine. Belle notices this, too, even before she’s realized she loves him: “he’s more cruel to himself than he is to human beings.” He wants to hunt down deer and laps up water with his tongue, but she can see past his teeth and claws to the gentle man inside. And when that man makes his appearance at the end, he remarks that (like many of us) Belle seems to miss The Beast. 2. The Snow Woman (Tanaka, 1968) The Snow Woman is a gorgeous adaptation of a classic Japanese ghost story that was also featured in Kwaidan. The tale tells of a man whose life is spared by a yuki-onna (literally snow woman, a kind of spirit) on the condition that he never mentions her to anyone else. When a beautiful woman named Yuki shows up in town, he marries her and they have a son together. But anyone who knows folktales knows this can’t have a happy ending. This film is an expanded version of the story, with more time to explore Yuki’s humanity and the barriers to her having the normal family life she desires. She heals the sick, supports her artisan husband...
October 1, 2025 at 4:02 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Gonna be at LITTLE GHOSTS FEST next weekend!! So I'm working on a new lil zine....
A skeleton half-covered in a ghost sheet rocking out on a pentagram table while other creatures check out books and other wares. Text reads: Saturday & Sunday October 4 & 5, 12 pm to 5 pm: Little Ghosts Festival! Vendors, readings, panels, short horror films. Tranzac Club, 232 Brunswick Ave. Visit www.littleghostsbooks.com for more info So you've seen The Shape of Water... A beginner's guide to monster kissing movies, by Allison O'Toole. There's a screenshot from the movie of a lady looking lovingly at a fish man in a tube
September 25, 2025 at 11:09 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
I’m thrilled to share that I’m once again joining @kickstarter.com's Community Advisory Council for 2025!

I'm excited to work with other incredible creators across categories, and to represent the amazing folks creating comics on Kickstarter. Together we can make the platform better for everyone!
A black & white photo of a smiling woman with short hair and glasses. Text above the image reads: Kickstarter Community Advisory Council 2025. Allison O'Toole: comics.
September 10, 2025 at 5:42 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
I'll be at Fan Expo Canada today, talking about editing comics with @heatherantos.bsky.social and @hellocookie.bsky.social !! Come see our panel if you have burning questions about spreadsheets :)
Image text reads: 11:30 A.M. Editing for comics. Different comics editors discuss their roles in the industry, how they differ, expectations, and tips on how to break in. Bill Morrison, Heather Antos, Allison O'Toole, Stephanie Cooke.
August 24, 2025 at 12:38 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
My friend Abdullah was shot in the foot on his way to get aid. He has two young children, Zain and Sham, and they need to eat. Please donate if you can, no amount is too small!! www.gofundme.com/f/save-me-an...
A screenshot from an Instagram video of a man in a hospital bed with a cast on his foot. Text on the video reads "While I was on my way to get aid from the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, Netzarim Point, I was shot in the foot. Please help me and save my family so they can get food."
August 9, 2025 at 9:49 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Just read EVERYTHING DEAD AND DYING #1 by @tatebrombal.bsky.social @thatjacobphillips.bsky.social @pipmartin.bsky.social & @adityab.net and I have CHILLS. Absolutely fantastic, character-driven storytelling, you won't want to miss it! Order by FOC on Monday, Aug 11!! imagecomics.com/comics/relea...
white cursive text reads "Everything Dead and Dying" with the names Brombal, Phillips, Martin, and Bidikar. Image is in calming pastel colours, a man on a peaceful farm milking a zombie cow
August 8, 2025 at 3:33 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
A side effect of this is that we've been calling Poppy "Special Agent Dale Pooper" (she's used to nicknames, she'll respond to basically anything)
A small black and tan dog sitting in front of a tree. She's got her mouth open and her ears are relaxed, she looks happy
August 7, 2025 at 2:34 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Listen idk why I'm engaging with this opinion piece at all but this is an absolutely smooth brain take on Howl's Moving Castle over at screen rant
None of this, of course, is unique to Howl’s Moving Castle. Studio Ghibli movies rarely ever take the time to fully explain their stories and worldbuilding, with films like Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke being prime examples, and they’re usually still beloved for their charm and the great execution of what little the audience can understand. That being said, it simply doesn’t work for Howl’s Moving Castle; the film sets up a far more detailed narrative than other Studio Ghibli films, yet it fails to deliver on it at every turn, so any attempts at relying on charm and whimsy don’t work when there should be far more work being put into fleshing out the story.
August 6, 2025 at 1:48 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Ok finally watched Ikiru
A picture of two men holding hands; they're meant to look friendly but they look very serious about their pose. The original text is in WordArt but has been pasted over with a more traditionally meme-friendly impact font, so the text now reads "Friendship regain with Akira Kurosawa, Kurosawa and Ozu both are my best friends
August 5, 2025 at 4:33 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Abdullah used to be a pro soccer player, and now he's begging for our help to save his children. Please share and donate if you can www.gofundme.com/f/save-me-an...
July 28, 2025 at 11:32 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Abdullah needs food and medicine for his kids, and he's been having a very difficult time reaching anyone to share or support his campaign. Please, please share this for him! www.gofundme.com/f/save-me-an...
A young girl embracing her baby brother A baby sitting on the floor with an empty can of formula
July 22, 2025 at 11:18 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Sary and Nada were able to buy flour for the first time in a while, but they don't know how long it will last! Please share and donate to their campaign so they can keep their family fed www.gofundme.com/f/aid-nadas-...
A young boy in the rubble of his home holding a sign that reads "Palestine tomorrow will be free"
July 22, 2025 at 11:15 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
I've also updated my last zine, Rogues Gallery, to PWYC. This one's an illustrated essay about why villains are hot, spotlighting some of my personal fav examples. allisonotoole.gumroad.com/l/rogues-gal...
Text reads: Rogues Gallery: notes on villains I'd like to smooch, by Allison O'Toole. There's a collage of men from different media properties over the years, including Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Loki from the MCU films, Sesshomaru from Inu Yasha, Mds Mikkelsen as Hannibal in the TV show, Tony Soprano, Norman Bates, Lestat de Lioncourt from the Interview with the Vampire TV show, the Phantom of the Opera (from the stage musical, not any of the film versions), and Lalo Salamanca from Better Call Saul. The boy collage is surrounded by hearts and doodles, including some versions of "Mrs." in different cursive fonts, like someone practicing her future signature in a school notebook Text amidst some doodles, including some little pink hearts and a super S: If you're Extremely Online (tm) like me, you've probably seen discussions about how the media we consume impacts our real lives. Stories can expose us to new viewpoints and experiences, changing how we understand ourselves or other people. Children are especially influenced by stories and whether they seem themselves reflected in them. Adults aren't immune to the effects of media--humans generaly lean through narratives more than data--but in general, I wish we could put more trust in grown-ups to differentiate between fiction and reality. One area I'm especially invested in is the alluring bad guy. Despite (or even because of) the terrible things they do, we can't stop writing fic and essays defending charismatic villains like Hannibal Lecter, Spike from Buffy, and all the babes in haute couture on Sailor Moon. This zine is about a small handful of my favourites and some of the reasons we find them so dang attractive. To start with the obvious: fictional characters don't have the capacity to cause real harm to real people. Stories with toxic viewpoints and messaging can be dangerous, but characters by themselves cannot--and a story is much bigger than individual characters. I think Online has reframed media criticism in the past decade so that stories become nothing more than a list of things that happen to a character. In this mindset, storytelling decisions must only be made to get characters from point A to B... (end of page).
June 12, 2025 at 2:43 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
I've added my newest zine as a PWYC PDF to my Gumroad store! It's a short zine about some of my favourite strange museums. allisonotoole.gumroad.com/l/museum-zine
A black and white cover of a zine. There is an ornately patterned (clearly hand-traced) frame around a white text box that reads, in hand-lettered font: The Seven Most Peculiar Museums I Have Visited (so far) by Allison O'Toole There is a black and white line drawing of an ugly baby from a Renaissance painting (honestly, my illustration looks less upsetting than the original) in the bottom left corner. Otherwise, it's just text, which reads: My partner, Jeff, and I met on a trivia team. We love to hang on to fun facts about pop culture, but also about the weird world around us. This means that I’ll stop and read every historical plaque in my path; during the writ-ing of this zine, I learned that we live near the apart-ment where the “last Grand Duchess of Imperial Russia” died. When we travel, I want to try new food, visit historic landmarks, and see natural landscapes, but no trip is complete without a few museums! I love to learn, but as an editor, I’m interested in curation and the way infor-mation is presented. How do the pieces in an exhibit speak to each other, or enhance our understanding of a subject, especially across multidisciplinary lines? We all enjoy collecting snapshots of ugly babies in Re-naissance paintings in art galleries, but some of the most memorable museum visits are the ones that take an unusual approach to subject, presentation, or both. When I come home, strange museums are often the ex-periences I most want to tell people about. So this zine is a bit of a travellogue, focused on some museums I’ve visited and my particular memories of them. Some were chosen because of their subject matter, and others for the unique sensations I had when visiting; in all cases, I felt like I had sidestepped daily life was visiting a weird little pocket of a slightly differ-ent reality.
June 12, 2025 at 2:43 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Arkan just witnessed bombs landing just outside his home, he's scared and hungry. Please help his family, share and donate! www.gofundme.com/f/aid-nadas-...
June 6, 2025 at 11:06 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Abdullah is desperate and has been having an impossible time finding people to donate to his kids who need food and medicine; his son Zain needs allergy treatments, and they can't even afford bread. Please share and donate as widely as you can! www.gofundme.com/f/save-me-an...
June 6, 2025 at 11:00 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Thank you to @jasonloo.bsky.social who recommended I trace for the illustrations, it made my life easier!! You can cheat and still make bad art even without AI 😎
A poor black and white line drawing of a weird-looking baby
June 5, 2025 at 3:02 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
New zine debuting at TCAF this weekend!! It's a sort of travelogue about weird museums I've been to. Available in yellow and pink!! I even did drawings in this one!!
Two small booklets, one pink and the other yellow, titled The Seven Most Peculiar Museums I have Visited (so far) by Allison O'Toole
June 5, 2025 at 3:02 AM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
HEY KIDS I'll be at TCAF this weekend, selling my wares and hyping up @balustradepress.bsky.social !!! Come find me on the hockey rink, no skates required! I'll also be hosting TWO panels at Word Balloon Academy on Friday: Networking for Introverts (10:40) & the Indie Publisher Roundtable (4:00).
The background of this image shows the ice at a hockey arena; it's got marks from people skating on it, and the blue and red lines to denote zone boundaries. In front of the background is a pale brunette with glasses wearing a green and pink regalia scarf. Next to the figure is text that reads: TCAF June 7-8. Hockey Rink, South side, Table 231.
June 2, 2025 at 10:49 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Cute!!! Same hat lol
May 28, 2025 at 8:24 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Abdullah is having trouble reaching anyone to donate to or share his campaign. He only started it recently, to help his children stay in a rented home. Please share and donate if you can, they are desperate! www.gofundme.com/f/save-me-an...
May 18, 2025 at 10:22 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
Take the fictional characters quiz and post the first four you know: openpsychometrics.org/tests/charac...

I am a white woman in a romantic entanglement
Pam Beesley from The Office Leslie Knope from Parks and Recreation Sally Albright from When Harry Met Sally... Marianne from Portrait of a Lady on Fire
May 18, 2025 at 10:07 PM
allisonmotoole.bsky.social
lmao
Screenshot of text: Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism The Beat, edited by Heidi MacDonald and others, https://www.comicsbeat.com ICv2: The Business of Pop Culture, edited by Milton Griepp, icv2.com INKS, The Journal of the Comics Studies Society, edited by Susan Kirtley (Ohio State University Press) SOLRAD: The Online Literary Magazine for Comics, edited by Daniel Elkin, www.solrad.co (Fieldmouse Press) (this part is circled) Zdarsky Comics News, edited by Allison O’Toole (Chip Zdarsky)
May 15, 2025 at 5:54 PM