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Friday, September 3, 2010
TRUE PORN: Volume 2 Released in October
New York City book release and signing at Bluestockings, Sunday, October 9
 Gainesville, Florida, October 3, 2005: Comic book and graphic novel publisher Alternative Comics has announced the October release of the eagerly awaited True Porn volume 2 (ISBN 1-891867-89-X; Diamond Code: JUL05 2571) comics anthology of autobiographical stories. The book of all new comics is on shelves of finer comic book specialty stores starting Wednesday, October 5 and wide distribution in bookstores throughout the world starting Monday, October 17. True Porn volume 2 Co-Editor Robyn Chapman will join a number of contributing cartoonists for the New York City book release and signing at Bluestockings on Sunday, October 9 starting at 7pm. Admission is free. Bluestockings is located at 172 Allen Street between Stanton and Rivington – see: http://www.bluestockings.com/
“Come see the newly remodeled Bluestockings,” said True Porn volume 2 Co-Editor Robyn Chapman, “It’s new and improved, but Bluestockings remains a vitally strong center for radical, feminist, fair trade, and sex positive activism. They also have one of the best collections of zines in the city, and the have been a great supporter of True Porn from the very beginning.”
The critically acclaimed anthology of autobiographical sex stories edited by Robyn Chapman and Kelli Nelson returns for this second volume of funny, heart-breaking, and crazy all-true comics! Featuring some today's brightest cartoonists, True Porn volume 2 is chockfull of the real-life exploits of Sam Henderson (Magic Whistle), Rich Tommaso (Perverso!), Glenn Head (Snake Eyes), Hope Larson (Salamander Dreams, Flight volume 2), Kaz Strzepek (Redingk Weekly), and dozens of other great talents. From the highs to the lows of our most basic urge, True Porn volume 2 is frank, honest, and tremendously entertaining! Cover by Chester Brown (Louis Riel). For more information about True Porn volume 2, see: http://www.indyworld.com/tp
From Publishers Weekly, October 3, 2005
True Porn: Volume 2
Edited by Robyn Chapman and Kelli Nelson. Alternative Comics, $19.95 paper (248p) ISBN 1-891867-89-X
Readers will be disappointed if they are attracted by this title because they expect the quick gratification that pornography provides. The pleasures here are far more human and interesting. The creators of these 46 vignettes claim to be sharing parts of their personal sexual experiences, and with so many people involved there are bound to be many types of sex, depicted in many forms of comics storytelling. There are bits of comedy, tragedy and all the human landscape between those poles. Especially striking are Manning Leonard Krull’s self-mocking account of threesomes he hasn’t taken part in, Ed Malys’s jagged depiction of his tendency to fall asleep during sex and Hope Larson’s wistful glimpses of all the facets of intercourse that her partner doesn’t notice. Sex seldom gives these people easy release from their tension. In fact, satisfying their immediate needs turns out to be only part of what they want—even though each participant has trouble figuring out what more there could be. That’s what makes this such a fascinating anthology—though the comics artists represented are revealing themselves in graphic detail, they recognize that sex is both mundane and mysterious. (Oct.)
From Village Voice, September 30, 2005
'True Porn' Comics Bare All
Panel sex: Telling stories of boredom, ecstasy, impotence, and onanism
by Rachel Kramer Bussel
I'm a comics virgin. Aside from Betty and Veronica, the Sunday funny pages, and the occasional Diesel Sweeties visit, I've looked at precious few, which is perhaps why True Porn caught my eye. The anthology popped up in stores like Toys in Babeland, featuring artists even I'd heard of, like Potential creator Ariel Schrag (name-checked in Le Tigre's "Hot Topic") and Michelle Tea collaborator Laurenn McCubbin. The stories ranged from hot and sultry to awkwardly endearing.
United by a "love for voyeurism," True Porn editors Robyn Chapman and Kelli Nelson have produced True Porn 2, published by Alternative Comics. These artists probe the erotic, frustrating, sad, or simply odd places sex takes us. If you're looking only for 38DD breasts, nonstop orgasms, and XXX action, True Porn is not the comic book for you. Why? Because that's not what real-life sex consists of, at least not all (or probably even most) of the time.
What I like best about True Porn is that even if the details differ, I can recognize myself in it. From the uncertainty of lying next to someone you've just had sex with but may never see again to the most erotic phone sex imaginable, it's all there, a wonderland of sex that is much more "true" than "porn." Not only do True Porn and TP2 offer crash courses in the world of alternative comics, they also show the complexity of sex.
What rules governed the stories they accepted? Chapman explains, "It had to be true, and about sex. Not about sex acts. We never tried to define sex. If you think something is sex, we'd probably agree. Making out counts; masturbating counts; abstaining counts; simply thinking about sex counts. In general, our stories range from somber to hilarious. Any titillating, pornographic aspect is secondary to the story being told." Working on the project has made Chapman, who's studying at the Center for Cartoon Studies in Vermont, re-examine her attitudes toward sex. "In [the first True Porn], I wrote about losing sexual interest with a boy I deeply loved. Our breakup was pretty devastating and fairly recent when I started drawing the comic. It's probably the most personal thing I've ever written, and not just because I'm naked on half the pages," she says. "Back then, sex was something sacred. Now I think it can be sacred, or boring, or fun. It can be whatever you need it or want it to be."
Seeking an "upbeat and positive" tone was one of their goals. "We knew we had some sober, even sleazy, pieces, but we didn't want a general air of ugliness," says Nelson. "The great majority of sex is enjoyable and recreational. We were very careful with the cover of both books to parse a sexuality that's perfectly commonplace but still exciting."
The cover of TP2 features a scantily clad woman peering through a peephole, a mostly accurate image for a collection sharing everything from "the highs to the lows of our most basic urge," as their promotional blurb puts it. It's the lows, or at least the in-betweens, that provide the best moments. Illustrator Laurenn McCubbin contributed "Perfect" to the first volume, a story about having sex with a gorgeous woman while her husband watches, then falling for her and having to walk away. There's a wistful "I should've known but it was worth it anyway" quality to her piece. For McCubbin, publishing it had some unexpected results. "I used to be pretty open about my life and sexuality," she says. "The only challenge came later, when people started telling me how much they liked my story. It kind of freaked me out at first, thinking, 'Wow, all these people have seen drawings of my boobies.' I hadn't taken that into consideration."
I'm not really sure whether Suicide Girls' Daniel Robert Epstein's assertion that "cartoonists have the most fucked-up sex life" is true, but the ones whose work is printed here take full advantage of the sex that got away, laughing at themselves or assessing what they might've done differently. If you're looking for something to exercise your mind as much as your libido, TP is perfect because it perfectly captures the confusion and uncertainty caused when longing and fantasy mix with reality. Ed Malys writes in "Yawn" about how sex makes him sleepy (clearly not the most attractive trait), while Nelson's "Sex Toys Made Me Crazy" looks at the pressure to have the perfect solo orgasm. Sex is not readily available 24-7, and neither is orgasm, but these authors aren't seeking solace or answers. Instead, they've turned their art into catharsis, taking time to laugh at (or about), mock, or simply isolate a moment in their sexual histories, rendered as absurdly, accurately, or adorably as they (care to) recall. TP addresses many of the sexual dilemmas people face: Am I normal? Why won't she sleep with me? What will the first time I (insert wild sex act here) be like?
These cartoonists, like the best short-story writers, often leave us hanging, and it's with a sense of disappointment that I turned to the next story, eager to know what happened next. Tasked with saying a lot in a small space, they've managed to tease out the key elements of their encounters (and also draw naked body parts in all their spread-eagled glory on occasion). Some, like Sharon Lintz's Pornhounds, chronicling her various smut-publishing forays, are only tangentially about sex. Comedian Liam McEneaney wrote about applying for a job in a porn shop to be a jizz mopper (really) at a smut shack. He had Chapman draw it for him. His one complaint? "My biggest beef, no pun intended, is that at the time when the story takes place, I was something like 450 pounds, and in the story I don't look that fat at all. Trust me, I was way more disturbing to look at. I look too cute!"
Manning Leonard Krull's "Ménage à Duh" is my favorite piece. He portrays himself as a lovably dorky punk rocker, complete with mohawk, tattoos, and piercings, who manages to evade three different threesomes with hot girls—his thought bubbles ("Fuck fuck fuck stupid stupid stupid stupid") and cluelessness are amusing and adorable, showing the other side of "every man's fantasy." If you've ever thought, "I can't believe this is happening" in bed, True Porn will show you that you're not alone.
From Columbus Alive, September 28, 2005
by J. Caleb Mozzocco
True Porn 2
You’ll have to dig up the late Supreme Court Justice Potter “I’ll know it when I see it” Stewart to find out if the 48 short stories that comprise True Porn 2 (Alternative Comics) are pornographic, but I don’t think they are—it’s not like they exist exclusively to cause arousal. Plus they’re real, mostly autobiographical tales told by comics creators, and as anyone who’s ever been to a comics convention can attest, the only thing less sexy than seeing a bunch of comics creators naked would be seeing a bunch of comics creators naked and doing it.
Just kidding—I’m sure there are some sexy comics creators out there. There are even some sexy stories in this book, but most of them lean toward the funny, the romantic or the heartbreaking. This is comics we’re talking about, after all.
The rules are incredibly simple: The story has to be about sex, and it has to be true. So you’ll see little kids working through misinformation, teenagers exploring, coming-of-age stories, coming stories, lame bachelor parties, cats and dogs doing things that would make the Farrelly Brothers blush, and the book’s editor Robyn Chapman’s failure to get laid at a sex party.
Obviously, given the nature of the material, this book isn’t for everyone (I found one or two of the stories a little too icky). But it’s a solid anthology, with a great good-to-bad story ratio, offering a nice cross-section of alternative comics talent and human sexuality among artists. Think of it as the Kinsey Report for cartoonists.
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A Comic-Con without the Captain
