Friends of Lulu Announcement Tomorrow

Hi all,

Tomorrow Friends of Lulu will be making a big announcement. Hopefully, over the next few months, there will be many more to come.

I will be posting the press release on this blog, but I wanted to take the time now to say a few words.

I am just really grateful for the outpouring of support for this organization by my readers, and by this industry.

But, I am also bowled over by the efforts of both the people on our national and New York chapter boards. Over the last seven months I have witnessed them fit in around their work schedules many hours on behalf of Friends of Lulu -- making successful outreaches to other organizations, setting up panels, writing blog posts, reconnecting with old friends, updating our membership lists, brainstorming new initiatives, and even mentoring a young woman with a dream of becoming a manga artist.

There is still a lot that needs to be done, but I think even now we are in a solid place from which to build growth. This organization is healthy and focused.

As for me, my involvement with Friends of Lulu is a formative step on a continuing personal journey through comics. It has been and continues to be an extremely positive and cathartic experience for me. I have learned and continue to learn a lot -- not just by virtue of my "on-the-job" experience, but from the women and men I work alongside. Their enthusiasm for this craft continues to inspire me.

I started my blogging career from a position of frustration and struggle. A lot of that struggle was about wanting to create change. I wanted to create change but I didn't know how to do it in the world outside my computer screen. I talked to others about creating dialog and building bridges, but it was not something I knew how to do myself.

I'm not an expert, but I think I am better at doing this now.

And I've learned that the energy you put out there is the energy you will get back. I have watched the spirit of that frustration and struggle come back to me from completely different and unrelated places, with a vengeance, like some angry, irrational whirlwind. And the only thing you can do is learn from that -- learn that the energy you put out is the one you receive -- and grow from that.

I'm committed to growing. I'm committed to healing. I'm committed to Friends of Lulu. I'm committed to this industry. I'm proud of what I've done so far -- but without the help of people like my boyfriend, my fellow Lulu board members, my friends, and my regular readers, I could not have accomplished this. That's not just a line of spin -- there truly was no way in hell I could have done all this without that generous help.

Anyway, please consider joining or volunteering for Friends of Lulu. If you live in New York, we have a very active local chapter that would be happy to see you at their meetings and will make you feel right at home. And if you live in a state that does not have a Lulu chapter (which would be pretty much all the rest of them outside New York), feel free to contact us about information on starting your own.

Best,
Val