ACTIVE IMPERATIVE

This blog is a collection of things I've worked on, or work by my friends/folks I admire! Personal blog (reblogs and such) at xoraq.tumblr.com. Pronouns are they/them/theirs.

[dates-anthology]

The Dates 3 Kickstarter is live!

Speeding trains, galloping horses, long nights in the woods. All the trappings of adventure are waiting for you in the third volume of Dates! An Anthology of Queer Historical Fiction!

We Kickstarted Dates 1 in 2015, and Dates 2 in 2017, and now we’re back for round 3! With over fifty contributors and more rip-roarin’ adventure than ever before, Dates 3 is 300+ pages packed with comics, illustrations, and prose. All the stories feature queer characters living their lives to the fullest, and—best of all—there are no tragic endings.

Check out the Kickstarter page for more information and previews—and to learn about all the cool rewards you can get for supporting the campaign! We’ll also be posting more process work right here on our blog and our facebook page, and you can follow our twitter for daily previews and creator features. And even if you aren’t able to back the campaign, a reblog or share can make a real difference!

Are you ready? It’s time for an adventure.

[dates-anthology]

IT’S THE FINAL COUNTDOWN! There are just minutes left to back Dates 3—the campaign ends at 8:00pm EST!

Want more info? Check out our: Previews • Process tag • Bonuses

Back Dates! An Anthology of Queer Historical Fiction now!

[dates-anthology]

The Dates 3 Kickstarter is live!

Speeding trains, galloping horses, long nights in the woods. All the trappings of adventure are waiting for you in the third volume of Dates! An Anthology of Queer Historical Fiction!

We Kickstarted Dates 1 in 2015, and Dates 2 in 2017, and now we’re back for round 3! With over fifty contributors and more rip-roarin’ adventure than ever before, Dates 3 is 300+ pages packed with comics, illustrations, and prose. All the stories feature queer characters living their lives to the fullest, and—best of all—there are no tragic endings.

Check out the Kickstarter page for more information and previews—and to learn about all the cool rewards you can get for supporting the campaign! We’ll also be posting more process work right here on our blog and our facebook page, and you can follow our twitter for daily previews and creator features. And even if you aren’t able to back the campaign, a reblog or share can make a real difference!

Are you ready? It’s time for an adventure.

[dates-anthology]

The Kickstarter for this 300+ page volume of queer historical fiction comics, illustration, and prose ends at 8PM EST on MARCH 28th! You can still pick up some amazing bonuses and help us hit some stretch goals—back Dates 3 now!

[dates-anthology]

With JUST UNDER 47 HOURS LEFT, we’ve unlocked our first stretch goal—spot gloss on the cover and our FIRST CONTRIBUTOR PAY INCREASE! At $37,000 we print the bonus comic & increase contributor pay again—help us get there!

Back Dates! An Anthology of Queer Historical Fiction, Volume 3 now!

[dates-anthology]

Dates 3: Thumbnails!

We’re almost two weeks into our Kickstarter campaign for Dates 3 and that means it’s time to turn our chairs around and talk about “the process.” We’ve got thumbnails here from stories by Alan Capes & Shauntae Ball, Isabelle Melançon & Megan Lavey-Heaton, @erysium & Paloma Hernando, and @adamicoarts to give you a little taste of how they all do their thing! Over the next few weeks we’ll be posting more previews from each step of the process so you can see how these amazing stories transformed from sketchy jpeg caterpillars into 600 dpi grayscale tiff butterflies.

Support Dates! An Anthology of Queer Historical Fiction, Volume 3 on Kickstarter! 

[dates-anthology]

Dates 3 Bonus: The Intercontinental Postcard set!

Dates stories take place all across the world: from windswept heights to cozy valleys, and from nearby balconies to far flung plains. This is, of course, because queer stories stretch across all of these places—and we wanted to celebrate that!

For this postcard set, we invited seven Dates artists from Volumes 1 and 2 to create illustrations set on each continent… including Antarctica and (ahem) Oceania. Our incredible artists are:

Val Wise (Europe, Dates 2) • Noella Whitney (Asia, Dates 2) • Ingram (Africa, Dates 1 & 2) • Imas Esther (Oceania, Dates 1 & 2) • Grace Park (North America, Dates 1 & 2) • Dante Luiz (South America, Dates 1 & Dates 2 bonus) • Ayanna Johnson (Antarctica, Dates 1 & 2)

The postcards will be printed on glorious thick cardstock, and will have brief descriptions of the settings and postcard detailing on the back so you can mail them out if you so choose. Get ‘em as part of the Dates 3 Kickstarter, running until March 28th!

[dates-anthology]

The Dates 3 Kickstarter is live!

Speeding trains, galloping horses, long nights in the woods. All the trappings of adventure are waiting for you in the third volume of Dates! An Anthology of Queer Historical Fiction!

We Kickstarted Dates 1 in 2015, and Dates 2 in 2017, and now we’re back for round 3! With over fifty contributors and more rip-roarin’ adventure than ever before, Dates 3 is 300+ pages packed with comics, illustrations, and prose. All the stories feature queer characters living their lives to the fullest, and—best of all—there are no tragic endings.

Check out the Kickstarter page for more information and previews—and to learn about all the cool rewards you can get for supporting the campaign! We’ll also be posting more process work right here on our blog and our facebook page, and you can follow our twitter for daily previews and creator features. And even if you aren’t able to back the campaign, a reblog or share can make a real difference!

Are you ready? It’s time for an adventure.

[dates-anthology]

Dates 3 is coming!

That’s right, the third volume of Dates launches on Kickstarter in just seventeen short days—on Wednesday, February 27th!

And y’all, it’s the most rip-roarin’, exciting book yet. Almost fifty creators have gathered to create nearly three hundred pages of exciting, queer-led adventure stories. Just like the previous volumes, Dates 3 is chock full of positive queer historical fiction from all over the world… but in this volume, that fiction might take place on speeding trains, tall mountains, or racing horseback.

Check out our full list of contributors HERE, follow our twitter HERE, and stay tuned for more previews!

[dates-anthology]

Dates 3: Adventure Lineup!

Dates 3 is rolling right along (tune in next week for our first round of process shots!), and it’s past time to announce our incredible lineup of contributors! We have fifty cool queer creators working on Dates this round, and we’re thrilled to welcome them aboard.

Dates 3: Adventure will feature comics from:

Ahueonao • Amet • Robby Barrett & Joe Corallo • Alan Capes & Shauntae Ball • Meg Coates • A D’Amico • Lauren Dombrowski & Cait Kay • Marie-Anne Dt • Mackie Garcia Martinez • G.C. Houle & Taylor Robin • Kelsey Leigh • Sonia Liao • Shaina Lu & Sunny Ôchumuk • Isabelle Melancon & Megan Lavey-Heaton • Cat Parra & J J Barnes • Fawn Perkins • Erin Roseberry • Sparklenaut & Basalisk • Grace Teoh • Jessica Treviño • Sarah Webb & Paloma Hernando

With illustrations by:

Sera Bell • Caroline Dougherty • Fanfi • Michelle Gruppetta • Shannon Kao • Haeji Lee • M. Liu • Anastasia Longoria • NOL • Ravi Teixeira • Schpog • Fleur Sciortino • stc019

Prose stories by:

Paige Allen (with illustrations by Jess Brown) • Svetla Rose • Lany (with illustrations by Beckett Thornber)

and a cover by Erica Chan, all edited by Zora Gilbert and Cat Parra.

Dates 3 is shaping up to be our biggest book yet, and we’re wildly excited about every single rumbling, rollicking, adventurously queer story in it. Stay tuned here on tumblr or follow our twitter for previews and process images as we work!

[zhgilbert]

Crowded #1 Fully Embraces Our Millennial Chaos - Women Write About Comics

Crowded #1 is a high-octane adventure that somehow manages to be intensely relatable and completely far-fetched. But like, in the good way.

My newest piece for WWAC is up! Read Crowded, y’all. 

[zhgilbert]

Marvel Rising: Reading Order #1 - Women Write About Comics

The numbering system on Marvel Rising is bonkers, but the story and art really are wonderful. Look no further for a comprehensive reading order!

A reading order for Marvel Rising! Marvel’s numbering system for this series is completely harebrained, but the story really is sweet. 

[zhgilbert]

Marvel Rising: Why Does Marvel Hate New Readers #0 - Women Write About Comics

Marvel Rising's absurd numbering scheme (four #1s!) is yet more proof that Marvel has no idea how to attract and retain new readers.

This week for Women Write About Comics, I wrote about Marvel Rising and how Marvel seems to be actively looking for ways to shoot themselves in the foot with regards to new readers! Marvel Rising is an INCREDIBLY cute and good book, and I’ve been gritting my teeth since the Alpha issue came out and I first saw the nightmare reading order in the back.

(there’s another article coming later today that actually lists all the books in the series, when they came out, and how you can get them!)

[zhgilbert]

The reading order is up! Find it right through here.

[zhgilbert]

Marvel Rising: Why Does Marvel Hate New Readers #0 - Women Write About Comics

Marvel Rising's absurd numbering scheme (four #1s!) is yet more proof that Marvel has no idea how to attract and retain new readers.

This week for Women Write About Comics, I wrote about Marvel Rising and how Marvel seems to be actively looking for ways to shoot themselves in the foot with regards to new readers! Marvel Rising is an INCREDIBLY cute and good book, and I've been gritting my teeth since the Alpha issue came out and I first saw the nightmare reading order in the back.

(there's another article coming later today that actually lists all the books in the series, when they came out, and how you can get them!)

[dates-anthology]

DATES 3 SUBMISSIONS EXTENDED TO JULY 15!

Hi all! To celebrate our PRISM nomination for Dates 2, we’re extending Dates 3 submissions to 11:59PM EST SUNDAY, JULY 15th! That means you have one extra week to get your pitches in. 

That also means acceptances will go out by August 5th (not July 29th), and the long-term schedule has shifted very slightly. Our schedule page has already been updated.

Thanks, all!

[zhgilbert]

Pokémon Quest is cute, but the narrowness of its features makes the game feel sparse and distinctly mobile-oriented. It doesn't seem to belong on the Switch

I wrote about Pokémon Quest and how it's, well, it is what it is. Read it at Sidequest!

[dates-anthology]

DATES 3 SUBMISSIONS ARE OPEN!

Dates is an anthology of queer historical fiction that has three rules:

All the stories have queer main characters.

Everything is set before 1965.

There are no tragic endings.

In 2015, Dates 1 gathered over 30 creators to produce more than 25 joyously queer stories and illustrations, and in 2016 Dates 2 did it again—but with longer stories, and a theme of progress.

Now, we’d like to invite you to go on the adventure with us. Dates is back with volume 3, and we want to fill it with your ADVENTURE stories! Submissions are open from now until July 9th, so take a look at our submission guidelines, and learn more about the project so you can get those pitches in!

Dates is a paid anthology, funded through Kickstarter. For volume 3, we’re looking for comics, illustrations, and prose around the theme of adventure. Production will take place through the fall and winter of 2018, and we plan to Kickstart in February of 2019.

If you’re not an artist or a writer, you can still get involved! Help us out by spreading this post far and wide—by reblogging, sharing on twitter or facebook, or by shouting from the rooftops!

Thank you all so much. We can’t wait to see what you come up with.

[dates-anthology]

Just THREE WEEKS LEFT to submit your QUEER HISTORICAL ADVENTURE STORY PITCH! All you need to be considered is a pitch and a portfolio, so go check out the submission guidelines and send in your idea!! Open submissions close at 11:59pm EST on July 9th.

We’ve gotten some INCREDIBLE submissions so far, but we want to see yours too. Send in your pitch!

[dates-anthology]

DATES 3 SUBMISSIONS ARE OPEN!

Dates is an anthology of queer historical fiction that has three rules:

All the stories have queer main characters.

Everything is set before 1965.

There are no tragic endings.

In 2015, Dates 1 gathered over 30 creators to produce more than 25 joyously queer stories and illustrations, and in 2016 Dates 2 did it again—but with longer stories, and a theme of progress.

Now, we’d like to invite you to go on the adventure with us. Dates is back with volume 3, and we want to fill it with your ADVENTURE stories! Submissions are open from now until July 9th, so take a look at our submission guidelines, and learn more about the project so you can get those pitches in!

Dates is a paid anthology, funded through Kickstarter. For volume 3, we’re looking for comics, illustrations, and prose around the theme of adventure. Production will take place through the fall and winter of 2018, and we plan to Kickstart in February of 2019.

If you’re not an artist or a writer, you can still get involved! Help us out by spreading this post far and wide—by reblogging, sharing on twitter or facebook, or by shouting from the rooftops!

Thank you all so much. We can’t wait to see what you come up with.

[dates-anthology]

Dates is Back for Volume 3!

Dates! An Anthology of Queer Historical Fiction is back, now for volume 3! Submissions open in one week, on May 6th!

Dates 1 told short, cheerful stories about queer folks throughout history. The rules were—and still are—these:

All the stories have queer main characters.

Everything is set before 1965.

There are no tragic endings.

Dates 2 kept to those rules and grew with them, with longer stories and a theme of progress. With our next installment we’re looking to go on a journey: Dates 3 is all about ADVENTURE!

And we need you, and your stories—comics, illustrations, and prose! Check out our submissions guidelines to find out more about Dates 3 and get those gears turning. Open submissions start May 6th and last until July 9th, so get your pitches ready. We can’t wait to see them!

[zhgilbert]

We're doing Dates 3!! Submissions start in early May!

[zhgilbert]

Why I Game: 2017 was a whopper of a year, but immersing myself in tabletop RPGs with my friends helped keep it all of it bearable—and helped us tell stories that we probably couldn't have otherwise.

My new piece for Sidequest just went up! In it, I wax very poetic about friendship and collaborative storytelling. Give it a read!