Comments on: MY GOD! It’s full of WANK! http://adistantsoil.com/2009/12/01/my-god-its-full-of-wank/ The Official Website of A Distant Soil, the legendary graphic novel series from Image Comics. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:48:16 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: One Day I’ll Be Drawing Comics for Big City Publishers, and All You’re Ever Going to Be is Mean | A Distant Soil by Colleen Doran http://adistantsoil.com/2009/12/01/my-god-its-full-of-wank/#comment-8993 One Day I’ll Be Drawing Comics for Big City Publishers, and All You’re Ever Going to Be is Mean | A Distant Soil by Colleen Doran Sun, 08 May 2011 19:26:17 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=4820#comment-8993 [...] doesn’t like to admit bullying is a problem, or sexual abuse at conventions is a problem, or fannish politics are a problem, or that is has any problems at all. While most fandoms are very [...] [...] doesn’t like to admit bullying is a problem, or sexual abuse at conventions is a problem, or fannish politics are a problem, or that is has any problems at all. While most fandoms are very [...]

]]> By: Colleen http://adistantsoil.com/2009/12/01/my-god-its-full-of-wank/#comment-2735 Colleen Sat, 05 Dec 2009 02:28:16 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=4820#comment-2735 Thank you very much for these candid comments. If my hand didn't hurt so much from drawing all day, be assured I would have a lot more to add here. Fan politics and gossip: ah, that takes me back. If it makes you feel any better, I don't know of any pro who doesn't have the most outrageous rumors circulating about them. I really hate this sort of gossip, but there is nothing you can do about it except comfort yourself with the knowledge that people don't gossip about people who aren't worth gossiping about. It's a measure of where you sit on the totem pole. The higher you sit, the more they gossip about you. It's a sign you have something they want. Even if what you have is nothing more than personal happiness. And if they can't have it, they don't want you to have it, either. Thank you very much for these candid comments. If my hand didn’t hurt so much from drawing all day, be assured I would have a lot more to add here.

Fan politics and gossip: ah, that takes me back.

If it makes you feel any better, I don’t know of any pro who doesn’t have the most outrageous rumors circulating about them.

I really hate this sort of gossip, but there is nothing you can do about it except comfort yourself with the knowledge that people don’t gossip about people who aren’t worth gossiping about.

It’s a measure of where you sit on the totem pole. The higher you sit, the more they gossip about you.

It’s a sign you have something they want. Even if what you have is nothing more than personal happiness. And if they can’t have it, they don’t want you to have it, either.

]]> By: Marina http://adistantsoil.com/2009/12/01/my-god-its-full-of-wank/#comment-2730 Marina Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:29:10 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=4820#comment-2730 This just reminds me of why I always go to conventions with friends. The one thing I am grateful for is that now if I get hit on by a lech I can deal with it with grace and not fall into the self esteem trap as easily as I used to. It still can get me but at least now I can crawl my way out of the emotional sewer easier. My Gender Women Studies classes have helped a lot with my confidence. I just hate seeing exploitation like that. It makes my skin crawl. I think the classes I'm taking now might do well in high school to help young women know how to deal with this sort of thing. Of course someone would then say "But you discuss sex so its BAD!" Yeah its bad to discuss sex and exploitation in a high school classroom but you're supposed to just let it slide when you step out the door because "That's how it is." The fact is its not right. Its just wrong. This just reminds me of why I always go to conventions with friends. The one thing I am grateful for is that now if I get hit on by a lech I can deal with it with grace and not fall into the self esteem trap as easily as I used to. It still can get me but at least now I can crawl my way out of the emotional sewer easier.

My Gender Women Studies classes have helped a lot with my confidence. I just hate seeing exploitation like that. It makes my skin crawl. I think the classes I’m taking now might do well in high school to help young women know how to deal with this sort of thing.

Of course someone would then say “But you discuss sex so its BAD!” Yeah its bad to discuss sex and exploitation in a high school classroom but you’re supposed to just let it slide when you step out the door because “That’s how it is.”

The fact is its not right. Its just wrong.

]]> By: mamid http://adistantsoil.com/2009/12/01/my-god-its-full-of-wank/#comment-2722 mamid Fri, 04 Dec 2009 10:39:51 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=4820#comment-2722 I guess I should clarify this... All those rumors happened when I was at the "just becoming legal, but not able to drink stateside" 16-20 and I'm about 9 years younger than you too. I went to my first convention, alone, at 16 and arrived late Sunday. A friend of mine still laughs at how a dare came up for a guy to remove my bra within 30 seconds without taking off my shirt, or lifting it for that matter. He wasn't able to do it. Then I was counter dared to do the same thing and did. I don't think he realized I was 16. There is still a missing gap in the safety of teens/young adults at conventions, and it spills out into other segments of fandom/escapism. It drives me batty to think that there are girls who are 15 who are of age to consent in one state/province, yet in another can't consent. I know when I was 17/18, I had some old perverts follow me around wanting to exploit me and tried to. Some of the offers were akin to a John's offer. I still see some of those old fen around and they just make me shudder about what they are doing with the girls who are just blossoming. Thankfully now the laws are far more strict than they were way back then. I guess I should clarify this… All those rumors happened when I was at the “just becoming legal, but not able to drink stateside” 16-20 and I’m about 9 years younger than you too. I went to my first convention, alone, at 16 and arrived late Sunday. A friend of mine still laughs at how a dare came up for a guy to remove my bra within 30 seconds without taking off my shirt, or lifting it for that matter. He wasn’t able to do it. Then I was counter dared to do the same thing and did. I don’t think he realized I was 16.

There is still a missing gap in the safety of teens/young adults at conventions, and it spills out into other segments of fandom/escapism. It drives me batty to think that there are girls who are 15 who are of age to consent in one state/province, yet in another can’t consent. I know when I was 17/18, I had some old perverts follow me around wanting to exploit me and tried to. Some of the offers were akin to a John’s offer. I still see some of those old fen around and they just make me shudder about what they are doing with the girls who are just blossoming. Thankfully now the laws are far more strict than they were way back then.

]]> By: mamid http://adistantsoil.com/2009/12/01/my-god-its-full-of-wank/#comment-2721 mamid Fri, 04 Dec 2009 10:26:12 +0000 http://adistantsoil.com/?p=4820#comment-2721 oh.. and 6 - I rarely drank, even then. I didn't have my first hangover till I was nearly 30 and out of the convention scene for a few years at that point. Lastly, one of the rumor mills was that I caused such a huge scene, which I never figured out what the scene was, that I was banned from this one convention for life, yet the very next convention, someone had passed a photocopied piece of my work off to them to use in their program books for a convention I was banned from(?!?!?!?!). I stayed away because of the rumor. I should have gone to it and pointed at the program book and told the concom off about not having one of the artists they printed be able to attend yet they printed the artwork. I could have given a few hundred signatures that con. I used to have a copy of that program book, not that it matters anymore. I haven't heard of it in, oh, over a decade now. oh.. and 6 – I rarely drank, even then. I didn’t have my first hangover till I was nearly 30 and out of the convention scene for a few years at that point.

Lastly, one of the rumor mills was that I caused such a huge scene, which I never figured out what the scene was, that I was banned from this one convention for life, yet the very next convention, someone had passed a photocopied piece of my work off to them to use in their program books for a convention I was banned from(?!?!?!?!). I stayed away because of the rumor. I should have gone to it and pointed at the program book and told the concom off about not having one of the artists they printed be able to attend yet they printed the artwork. I could have given a few hundred signatures that con. I used to have a copy of that program book, not that it matters anymore. I haven’t heard of it in, oh, over a decade now.

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