Shredding, shedding & substances

(I also saw the Joker movie and went to another con)

Greetings! I hope this sentence finds you well-coiffed and caffeinated.

The thrill is alive with the smell of New York Comic Con.

Last weekend I was among the 200,000+ fans who tried to snatch some inspiration and an affordable sandwich at New York Comic Con.

Since launching in 2006, this event has essentially transformed into a cartoon mega-mall with terrifying bathroom lines. But if you venture into Artist Alley and/or carefully choose your panels, you can balance out the materialist devil on your shoulder with a sweet creative angel.

Thanks to all the cool cats and tentacled kitties who brightened the weekend for myself and my comics-loving kid!

Best-selling writer/cartoonist Jeffrey Brown and I met at a con in the early 2000s. Last weekend we saw each other for the first time in about 12 years! (We look exactly the same.)

betsy lerner + patti smith

I was psyched to attend a book event for SHRED SISTERS, the first novel from celebrated writer/editor/agent Betsy Lerner. Held at the historic Judson Memorial Church, Lerner and Patti Smith spoke about their longtime friendship and working relationship — and how earlier that day Smith had just turned in a manuscript for her new book, another memoir (!).

The conversation was moderated by Chloe Cooper Jones, another gifted writer — if I see her byline, I know I’ll be reading ‘til the last word.

SHRED SISTERS is available now, as are EASY BEAUTY (Jones’ memoir), Smith’s frequently updated Substack feed and, coincidentally, Lynn Goldsmith’s new book of Patti Smith photos, BEFORE EASTER AFTER.

Betsy Lerner (left) and Patti Smith at Judson Memorial Church.

from here to the great unknown

Lisa Marie Presley died before completing her memoir, so her daughter, Riley Keough, finished it for her. The result is one of the best audiobooks I’ve heard all year — and I do recommend you hear it, because Keough narrates it beautifully, as does Julia Roberts (who reads the parts by Presley).

FROM HERE TO THE GREAT UNKNOWN also includes audio from Presley herself, pulled from a series of previously unheard tapes she recorded about her life. It’s a more thoughtful, poetic (and even relatable) book than I expected, heavy with love and heartbreak.

the substance

THE SUBSTANCE is Cronenberg, Lynch, Araki, Stephen King, Heathers and Sephora tossed in a bloody blender and served with a sugary straw. While watching this film, I had a feeling the writer/director was exactly my age (which she is). I won’t give anything away, but I think this is my favorite movie of the year so far. See it on a big screen — and not on a full stomach.

I’m reading Caroline Blackwood’s 1976 novella THE STEPDAUGHTER, which was recently reissued via McNally Editions with a new foreword by Heidi Julavits. It’s about a middle-aged divorcée in New York City who rages against her children and au pair via letters in her head. It’s also funny.

and finally…

I saw JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX, and it’s not even so-bad-it’s-funny, it’s just a big snooze in clown shoes — although the Great American Songbook has haunted my nightmares ever since.

trudy on parade

Chris Mackar attended the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony last week, and guess who he caught with my book, TRUDY SELLOUT? I’m floored. You can still buy the book.

Whoa, it’s Tom Morello! (He inducted the MC5 into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame!)

Hey, it’s Jon Wurster - the funniest man in rock ‘n’ roll!

And wow, it’s celebrated music writer Annie Zaleski!

Thanks for reading — have a rad week!

go liberty,
amy blue
inquire | ingest | interview