C. Tyler's Scrapbooks...Comics & Other Stuff

Promo for the C. Tyler event on January 31, 2013

I had the fortune to attend a talk by CTyler about her trilogy of graphic novels, You'll Never Know: A Graphic Memoir. The event was sponsored by USC's Visions & Voices program last week. During the talk Ms Tyler described her process. So often we focus on the finished work, that it was a nice change of pace to hear her layout the eight year journey for her to discover her story, find its structure and get to the end. During this process Ms Tyler rediscovered her parents history, learned her mother was an artist in her own right and came to terms with her father's life long struggle with PTS from serving in WWII.

Tyler, who has a long career in comics, interestingly enough has had trouble reading since she was a child. She described how she can only read short passages at a time, yet she was able to tackle large volumes on the history of the war in order to research for her book. A large part of her research included archiving and collecting mementos (army surplus, war medals, etc.) as her book as she described it is just as much about the "stuff" or "things" we collect to mark the milestones in our lives as it is about the lives themselves.

With all the obstacles Tyler faced, from ailing siblings, a failing marriage, a dying dog, to the passing of her mother, the fortitude she showed in finishing her book is inspiring as much as it is humbling. Her secret? "Creating helps her cope."

Her experience is also a testament to being multi-talented. Tyler recalls constructing a custom studio by hand to all the specifications she needed to facilitate the completion of her book. Shelves for knick knacks, drawers for paint. Skills she learned from her father who was an avid maker.

C. Tyler engages USC Annenberg’s Henry Jenkins in an "illustrated" conversation

Tyler closed her talk, which was centered around photos documenting her process every step of the way, by recounting how last year was the worst and this year will be the best. As a sign of the good things to come, a new dog wandered on to her porch the first month of this year and decided to stay after her beloved Baby had to be put down the year before. She also had a new job offer to illustrate and write for the inside back cover of a weekly rag. Her section is called, "Tomatoes, it's about gardening, but it's really about relationships," she tells us. Oh yes, and "memory."

During the Q&A session an audience member asked how she "stays in shape" as an illustrator and writer. Tyler described the journals she's kept and still keeps since she was a girl and how writing about what she observes will always be a source of inspiration. More so than literature, because she was never a strong reader, she added after a question about which books were her source of greatest inspiration.

After the talk and Q&A, she hosted a show and tell of sorts with an assortment of knick knacks, notes and sketches from her book that she brought in a bright orange-red suitcase.

C. Tyler shows us her stuff...no really.

Tyler is a remarkable, quirky and rather tall woman, with whose work I didn't realize I was familiar with until she revealed her earlier pieces penned  for Wimmen comix, which I love and only just learned about a few years ago. It was a random outing on my part, as I'd only learned about the event the day before. But I'm glad I attended and the catered pastries in the lobby afterwards were a much appreciated touch.

Snacks and desserts at the end of the talk...I was starving and it was good

But don't take my word for it! Watch the full length talk here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTVmzeGxJa0