What Da Cover Says: Visions of Taiwanis an anthology comic series focusing on the lesser-known land of Taiwan.
Featuring a range of new voices from around the world, each artist has made Taiwan their home and has a unique take on what it is truly like to be there. With seven stories in total,Visions of Taiwanis sure to have something for everyone.
There’s “Nineteen and Moving Along” by Erique Chong; “An Island of Inspiration” by Fabienne Good; “Some People” by Joel Fremming; “How Not to Get Your Scooter License in Taiwan” by Ray Hecht; “Green Island” by Bronwen Shelwell; “Walk & Talks” by Patty Hogan and Todd Allen Williams; and “ConSequential” by Jon Renzella.
Each story contains its own perspective about what makes life worth living in Taiwan, told with humor and depth. It’s not always easy and there are all kinds of experiences, but above all…
I am excited to share that my new comic anthology is free to download for this weekend on Amazon:
Visions of Taiwan is an anthology comic series focusing on the lesser-known land of Taiwan.
Featuring a range of new voices from around the world, each artist has made Taiwan their home and has a unique take on what it is truly like to be there. With seven stories in total, Visions of Taiwan is sure to have something for everyone.
There’s “Nineteen and Moving Along” by Erique Chong; “An Island of Inspiration” by Fabienne Good; “Some People” by Joel Fremming; “How Not to Get Your Scooter License in Taiwan” by Ray Hecht; “Green Island” by Bronwen Shelwell; “Walk & Talks” by Patty Hogan and Todd Allen Williams; and “ConSequential” by Jon Renzella.
Each story contains its own perspective about what makes life worth living in Taiwan, told with humor and depth. It’s not always easy and there are all kinds of experiences, but above all it is never boring…
I am pleased to announce that the first issue of my anthology comic Visions of Taiwan is now available on Amazon!
Visions of Taiwan is an anthology comic series focusing on the lesser-known land of Taiwan.
Featuring a range of new voices from around the world, each artist has made Taiwan their home and has a unique take on what it is truly like to be there. With seven stories in total, Visions of Taiwan is sure to have something for everyone.
There’s “Nineteen and Moving Along” by Erique Chong; “An Island of Inspiration” by Fabienne Good; “Some People” by Joel Fremming; “How Not to Get Your Scooter License in Taiwan” by Ray Hecht; “Green Island” by Bronwen Shelwell; “Walk & Talks” by Patty Hogan and Todd Allen Williams; and “ConSequential” by Jon Renzella.
Each story contains its own perspective about what makes life worth living in Taiwan, told with humor and depth. It’s not always easy and there are all kinds of experiences, but above all it is never boring…
What Da Cover Says: Ray Hecht recaps how he spent the year 2020 in Taiwan in the form of a short comic following on from his comic biography Always Goodbye.
What I Says: I loved this and I want more, a fantastic way to look back on the past, ya know when they do those specials on TV where they look back on events for a particular year? Well this is like that but with a much better narrator. The illustrations are great, it’s the style I like, pencil drawings and all writing is hand written, being a little rough around the edges gives it a bit of character.
2020 was an epic year (yeah I know 2021 is trying to top it) and Ray shares with us all the big events, some of which I had forgotten (the shock death of the black panther for one) and he…
In the mountains of Yilan, far from the confines of everyday life, people gather during the holidays to celebrate. Outlandish costumes are the norm. The fashion styles run from Mad Max-inspired outfits, to anime cosplay, along with colorful makeup and dresses for both men and women.
It’s time for the Turtle Burn, the official “regional Burn” of Taiwan. This is a spinoff of Burning Man, the world’s largest art and music festival held annually in Nevada. For one week a year, over 70,000 people camp out in Black Rock Desert to attend this seminal countercultural event. All over the world, there are also smaller regional Burns, and the Turtle Burn will be a more intimate affair, capping at 150 people.
Although the main Burning Man event was canceled last year due to COVID-19, the Turtle Burn did have a successful opening in 2019 and plans to continue annually. The latest will be from April 2 to April 5, over the Tomb-Sweeping Festival holiday weekend, at Shanlinciji campsite.
Wooden turtle sculpture is set aflame on last night of Turtle Burn, 2019.
The site is filled with several “theme camps,” which groups organize in order to spend time with likeminded friends and to pool resources together. One is the Tavern of Truth, headed by Kate Panzica, which holds a free bar to give drinks to everyone who strolls by.
“Educating both foreigners and locals on the Ten Principles is a net positive,” Panzica says. “I think it’s great for folks to explore themselves and what they want to be in the ‘default world’ as well as a Burn.”
The Ten Principles of Burning Man, written by late founder Larry Harvey in 2004, are: Radical inclusion, gifting, decommodification, radical self-reliance, radical self-expression, communal effort, civic responsibility, leaving no trace, participation, and immediacy.
Attendees gather around a flaming effigy on the last night of Turtle Burn 2019.
These guidelines help to make the event stay as ethical as possible, and people are encouraged to clean up after themselves and promote sustainable living. Radical self-reliance refers to how attendees must bring their own food, cookware, tents and other camping supplies. People are encouraged to contribute to the culture by building their own artistic creations, whether individually or as part of a group. And after the event is over, they must make sure to leave no trace by cleaning up all “MOOP” — matter out of place.
For four days the Turtle Burn will hold a variety of workshops and activities. The gifting principle doesn’t just refer to handing out free drinks or personalized jewelry, although that is also common. It can also be expressed by giving one’s time by hosting workshops.
In the past, these workshops have included improv comedy sessions, where participants learn to play and practice their comedic skills, yoga classes for keeping fit, lip-singing performances, fashion shows on a makeshift runway and even impromptu puppet shows. Some camps contribute at meal-times, cooking pancakes or grilled cheese sandwiches to share with the entire community. At night, fire-dancers are a particular attraction of any Burn, dancing to the beat of electronic music and entertaining others as they express their craft.
Shanlinciji campsite overlooking the city of Yilan under a full moon.
“I was part of the Queen of Hearts camp,” said Michi Fu, sharing her experiences. “We had a shared costume closet with a full-length mirror to encourage radical self-expression through costuming. I sang with my furry, lavender bunny ears and turquoise silk robe and we all had hand-cranked ice cream.”
On the final night, tradition dictates that a wooden effigy is to burn. This started in 1986 at the very first Burning Man in San Francisco, as a symbol of how to keep the creative “fire” burning on even after the event concludes. At the Turtle Burn, a two-meter wide wooden turtle sculpture is scheduled to be set aflame. Dale Albanese, Taiwan’s official Burning Man contact, said of the installation: “There’s a sense of buildup and tension, and this sudden quietness and a collective shared spirit. You hear the oohs and the aahs at similar times. There’s a kind of shared attention. We’ve all been busy doing our own thing, and then there’s a pause. A reset. It’s also a moment to open up and say it wasn’t just about me.”
As 150 artists and performers gather their community together to continue the Turtle Burn tradition, they are also planning for next year and beyond. Tickets for this year’s event have already sold out but there is a waiting list. For more information, visit: turtleburn.com.
Preparing for Turtle Burn in 2019, attendees construct a communal dome space.
Traveling by motorbike from Chiayi city (嘉義) up to Alishan Mountain (阿里山) and surrounding villages in central Taiwan, during the Lunar New Year holiday
Feels like the time for one of those particularly reflective end-of-the-year retrospectives, doesn’t it?
Much has already been said about how unique a time it has been, without getting into the morbidity of the topic. Perhaps I cannot add so much. Suffice to say it’s been hard times for a hell of a lot of people. No doubt about that.
Just hope it’s not terribly naïve to be cautiously optimistic now that we will soon enter a new era…
Life is never easy, and there will be a lot of challenges ahead. That said, it simply has to get better.
Right?
Things seemed to have truly turned around, or at least started to turn around, just at the very end. Politically speaking, that is. Yes, things are by no means all better just yet. That will take a lot of work, but the worst is seriously over with back in the home country and that makes for some real reason to feel hope.
Anyways, personally life is good here in Taiwan and I am grateful to be here. I get to be part of a positive community, I get to work for a living (though I don’t love that part), and I even get to be creative and then share my creativity from time to time. This current year started out with a cancellation of a book fair, and then we all had to wear masks. Blech. I would have liked to promote my own books a bit more, make some progress in that field instead of hit pause. Yet I did get to do a book fair last month so that was cool.
I changed jobs this year, I participated in an unlicensed regional Burn event, and I only traveled in-island. I even voted.
I survived the holidays, and now there’s only one more all-night party to go to with which to ring in the new year and that’s gonna be a lot of fun 😄
Like everybody else out there, I have many goals for 2021. I need to catch up on my own prose writing and share a new novel when the time comes. Exercise, studying, I generally need to get it together personal growth-wise on so many fronts.
I also look forward to watching many movies after we’re all vaccinated and pop cultural life goes back to normal. I have much to read and series to binge.
So much to do indeed….
At least we have a chance.
Here’s to the rest of the world, maybe just maybe we’ll make it ~
I don’t know how to feel about the rush of current events.
There is obviously some very good news. It was long dragged out, but seems to be coming to a close, and celebrations are indeed in order. That feeling of relief as a dead weight is assuredly going to go, sooner or later. Incredible times, especially after so much uncertainty.
But it’s still a lot to process. I’ll spare any readers from all my obnoxious political opinions, well-thought as I’d like to think them to be, and just express how this state of affairs still leaves me anxious.
I’m no pundit. I have my perspective, and I like to read and review and share my thoughts, but there’s not really any reason people should listen to me.
That said, I simply cannot escape this terrible sense that tens of millions of my fellow countrymen are undeniably bad people. I had no idea it could get this bad. It’s not worth it anymore debating and talking about fake news and racial bias and social hierarchies and brainwashing etc. It’s a fact and here we are. They are bad people and there so many of them.
What is my country and the world going to do?
Well, turns out in the end, the good guys (or at least the moderate-not-that-evil guys) have won/will win. The fight for so many issues goes on, for healthcare and peace and freedom, no doubt about it, and at the very least there’s still a chance now… perhaps state of the world can actually survive at this rate and progress…
I voted from afar. Funny thing, as a matter of fact, it’s the first time I have voted for the winning team. It seemed an emergency so I had to. But I remain an American abroad, a privileged expat, incredibly lucky to live in the only country on earth to have defeated the pandemic. I do have to wear a mask everywhere, slightly annoying, and there’s danger from the mainland, but above all I am in the greatest social democracy in Asia and I am grateful to be here.
Been weird staying on the island for an entire year. No travel, no airplanes. No visiting relatives, no exploring new cultures. And yet right now I am far luckier than the vast majority of the planet.
To feel hope for the environment of this world, for the climate, for the very air, and to have so much reason to worry at the same time. It’s all come to ahead, and 2020 isn’t even over. It looks like the danger to democracy isn’t going anywhere in the next couple of months, plenty of anxiety is going to continue. At the same time, hope exists. Humans may, believe it or not, make it through this.
Going back to ‘normal’ or not, there is a future. If we can survive the grueling present.
This damn year. Let’s try to make it through this, everyone.
Ray-Comics 