Chad Diez is a name synonymous with quality black-and-white, action-packed artwork and absolutely enormous word balloons. Seriously, the Goodyear blimp is jealous of some of these monstrosities.

Bulbous dialogue carriers aside, Chad’s name can be found plastered on such strips as The Pet Professional (PP), Sophisticated Pig (SP), and the now defunct, Today: The Comic, a take on the day’s (or week’s) news that combined editorial storytelling with classic satire. Between skewering the biggest and brightest (I never said best) minds the world has to offer and pulse-pounding, teeth-gritting action, he has seen and done it all.

So obviously the next step is to focus on one specific aspect of subject matter A and dissect it down to the nth molecule. And that’s exactly what Chad has done with his newest project, Hedlinerz. As we found out yesterday, he’s vying for a piece of that sweet, celebrity news pie the Internets have been in love with for oh so long now. Britney, Lindsey, Paris, and all other nutjobs, you’re on notice!

When we left the conversation yesterday, Chad was talking up Hedlinerz and his goals for the seemingly simple little news and comic strip site. He had also just been informed about a certain webcomics enthusiast site and their desire to open talks about bringing him on as artist for their seminal but currently hiatused comic. Let’s jump in there, already in progress…

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After a lengthy and civil discussion about the distinct successes of webcomic vs. those in the print field, Scott Kurtz has set up a Talkshoe conference call to discuss things further.  So if you know something about webcomics or just want to prank a bunch of comic creators, here’s the info to get in on it:

• Phone number: (724)444-7444
• Call ID: 5786
• Time: 7:00 PM Eastern Standard Time

That’s right, it starts soon, so get a goin’!  And of course I don’t approve the idea of calling in just to prank, but just a fair warning, these guys are pros and will evicerate you should you call in to be silly.  Trust me.

And there’s talk of recording the whole thing, so we’ll try to have it in podcast form soon for those that can’t make it!

I interrupt this regular blog feed to announce that Johanna Draper Carlson, of the site, ComicsWorthReading.com, has posted an interview with Sam and Lilah creator and writer, Jim Dougan.  It’s got some very interesting tidbits about the Zuda Comics contestant, many of which I wanted to know during our recent ZudaWatch podcast!

So check the interview and don’t forget, the ZudaWatch starts right below me, just scroll down or click the above link and enjoy the ride!

In miracle news, webcomickers the world over are currently having a discussion about the success of the comic strip syndicates versus the option of making a living on the Web.

The miracle? I haven’t seen one mother dragged into this thing, and it’s been going on for a while now! At the heart of the discourse is a generational gap of sorts between those utilizing the traditional syndicate method and the fellas (and ladies, no discriminatin’ in these Internets) earning their keep via methods they themselves have set and followed.

The names involved are familiar ones: Rich Stevens, Dave Kellett, Scott Kurtz, Kris Straub (if Guigar joins in, we’ll have a full Voltron robot) Howard Tayler, Gary Tyrrell, Ted Rall, Eric Millikin, Dawn Douglass, and Danielle Corsetto, among many others. (All names link to strips, so take a look and I’ll be here when you get back). If you have any stake in the comic/cartooning world, you owe it to yourself to check this thread and maybe even voice your opinion.

Kurtz even goes so far as to suggest jamming all these folks into one podcasting booth via Talkshoe and hashing things out in person (er… sort of). Save the horrid B.O. that would result from so many bodies in such a tight space, that is one conversation I’d love to be in on. Hopefully he’ll make the whole thing available to the public, because I know I could always use another podcast to listen to.

And thanks to the Fleeners and The Daily Cartoonist for the setup!  Here at Digital Strips, if we can’t do it for you, we’ll watch someone else do it and then talk about it!

Greetings! Too much to talk about! Jump in! It’s Interest Piquers, the 03.25.08 Edition!

– First, and most egregiously, the ComixTalkers have uncovered a sinister secret behind a new comicking tool called Bitstrips. Apparently, through some fancy wordspeak, the Bitstrips crew can claim joint ownership of just about anything you create with their tools. Scope this quote, straight from their terms of agreement:

Anything, including any comic strip, character, scene and/or text, that You create and/or make publicly available for use and modification through Bitstrips Tools by Bitstrips or its users (“Shared Content“), shall be jointly owned by You and Bitstrips with You and Bitstrips deemed to be joint authors. Any Shared Content that is modified by a third party user of Bitstrips will be owned solely by Bitstrips.

Beware! Bitstrips will help you with your webcomic creating needs, but should you develop enough skill with that, you will owe them your soul.

Also, this can be used to make silly strips in mockery of the whole thing, like David Willis did here.

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