This is the sixteenth edition of The Voice In Your Head Is Mine. The date is August 31st, 2020. If you're receiving this email and have no idea what's going on, well, fuck. I guess I blew it. Or maybe you blew it. Either way, you're here and this is Zac Thompson's weekly newsletter.
It’s the late morning on Monday. I had a really early call this morning for something that looks like a promising opportunity for 2021. I was feeling bagged after that but decided to power through and get a cold bike ride in this morning. I’m now writing this in the throws of cooling down. Sweaty keystrokes abound.
Spent most of the weekend researching for a new thing. This is always the part of the writing process I love most. There are no wrong answers in research, no wasted time, every explored path provides a wealth of new story ideas - the hard part is shaving everything down into a workable story. That’s today’s workload and I’m still feeling amped on the idea, so that’s good!
LONELY // RECEIVER
This week marks the release of Lonely Receiver #1. I couldn’t be more thrilled for people to read the book and dive into the neon-soaked world Jen and I built with letterer Simon Bowland. I don’t think I’ve ever released something that feels more reflective of my personal voice. It’s a colorful, flashy book hiding a simmering darkness. Think Nicholas Winding Refn and David Cronenberg but mixed with the sensibility of an Alex Garland flick. I’m pretty confident in saying there’s nothing like it in comics right now.
And you don’t have to take it from me. The fine folks at Comics Bookcase said:
“Lonely Receiver might just be the new gold standard for modern romance comics, combining complex and compelling relationship dynamics with a fascinating interest in artificial intelligence. There really isn’t anything else like this story being done with monthly comics, and that makes this book a can’t miss title this week.”
That’s it. I’d be thrilled if you checked it out this week. I know things are insane right now, so please only go grab it if you can do so safely.
And if you’ve pulled it at your local store but can’t go grab it safely, message me. I’ll find a fix for you.
The Sacrifice
This weekend some friends alerted to the fact that Andrei Tarkovsky’s The Sacrifice was leaving Criterion Channel tomorrow. So I got up early yesterday morning and decided to escape the depressing outside world for Tarkovsky’s special kind of depressing sadness.
After watching a handful of Tarkovsky films, I’ve noticed a recurring theme of obtuse melancholy. This sense that something in the world is off, and while the world itself may be beautiful, this longing to fix it can consume us and (at times) ruin us. The Sacrifice perhaps takes this to its logical extent.
The film centers around Alexander, a middle-aged intellectual who attempts to bargain with God to stop an impending nuclear holocaust. It’s all filmed in a single location (more or less) with extremely long takes and insightful conversations that border on philosophy.
It’s beautiful and haunting in equal measure. The long takes are unrivaled, the camera feels like a window to another world. Like you’re missing ten other stories that are taking place just beyond the frame. It’s playful in incredibly inventive ways but also evokes a feeling that you’re stuck there with Alexander. Lingering in his pain, caught in the soft light of the shore, forced to face the same fears.
It really captures this anxiety we’re all feeling right now. There’s a massive sense of unease that’s infected the entire world right now. And try as we might, no individual has the tools to fix it. The chaotic state of the world begs to be reasoned with. And The Sacrifice is about exactly that, finding a way to reason with the unknowable complexity of tragedy. And the things we’ll do to keep some semblance of peace. What are we willing to give up in order to keep our comfortable lives? And will the act itself change us?
It’s only on Criterion for one more day but I can’t recommend it enough. If you’ve got 2.5 hours tonight, make it work. You’ll be better for it.
Hirō Isono
Hirō Isono was a Japanese artist born in 1945. In the 90’s he worked on the art direction of video games like Secret of Mana. He also published several books throughout his life. But everything he ever worked on reflected his one true love: the forest.
I’ve become obsessed with Isono’s work over the past week. He’s e a huge source of inspiration for a new project. His ability to invoke nature’s serene magic is baffling.
Genre
A little aside about writing. I’ve long be fixated on genre, not as a sort of approach to writing but as a tool of communication. I believe the best stories cannot easily be slotted into a single genre. This is pretty true of all my work and I imagine will continue to be true going forward.
When it comes to genre, I believe in the utility of examining the tropes and trappings in order to build and outline stories. There’s a real economy to understanding the rules and tendencies of a certain type of story. If only to know if you’re working with or against these things.
But I suppose what I’ve been picking at is that genre isn’t much more than a sales tool at this point. You should have a clear idea of who your story is for and the audience who may enjoy it but your story doesn’t have to be just one thing. It shouldn’t be just one thing.
In my opinion, people are consuming culture faster than ever. Which means they are more familiar with the conventions of genre than ever. So with that in mind, you should always endeavor to tell stories that can be slotted into more than one category. If anyone at any point tells you that your eco-sci-fi-body-horror story is insane and can only be science fiction or horror - they’re wrong.
Lean into your weird influences, there is no objectively right way to tell your story. Just the way you want to tell it. With that being said, a Western in space isn’t exactly a new or novel concept. Find ways to take things that work about different genres and make them speak to one another. Tell a story that shows Westerns in conversation with Science-Fiction. The places where they overlap and the places where they don’t. Explore that space, get reflexive with it and I promise you’ll find something great.
Genre should be freeing, not limiting. The moment you feel like you’re confined into telling a story that occupies only a certain tried and true track - fucking jerk the wheel and take that story off a cliff. Just to see what happens.
Tiny Scab
This week’s playlist is all I’ve got. Enjoy:
Goodbye
The world continues to barrel towards insanity. Do everything you can to center yourself and focus on your local community. Enact positive change in your immediate vicinity. Continue to educate yourself and detangle your perspective from White Supremacy.
Stay informed, stay healthy, and keep fighting. Give yourself the downtime you need from life online. Twitter and social media are not the real world.
And, if you can, enjoy the final days of Summer. Be good to yourself, have empathy for others, lead with respect and kindness. Be a good human.
That’s all.
Z