I’ve received a Fulbright Fellowship for the academic year beginning this September to work on a project about American Archaeology in Cyprus (America 250!) and my own coming-of-age at the turn of the millennium 25 years ago in Cyprus. My host will be CAARI, the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute, where I stayed in the past.

More details soon!

Painting by my dad Tom Fawkes of the library at CAARI from his visit in 2001. Photo of a card from Russo Lee Gallery, Portland, OR

In April I spent 5 days at Trailerblaze, a residency for cartoonists hosted by fearless Kelly Froh (founder and organizer of Short Run comics festival in Seattle) and I was lucky to be part of the 10th year. I flew to Portland in time for my dad’s 85th birthday, and he drove me to Seaview, WA where we had an evening to celebrate. The next day he dropped me off at the Sou’wester lodge for Trailerblaze, where I spent days drawing, evenings of meals together and in the sauna. Such a delight to get to know these cartoonists, and now I’ll follow their work forever. In my sketchbook: childhood memories and fears.

After a weekend in Seattle I flew to Chicago for 3 weeks in residence at Ragdale. I shared a ride from the airport with Chloe Benjamin whose new novel is coming this fall — look out for Understory! I was back in the same beautiful room as in 2024, but in a very different frame of mind— the circumstances of my life have changed so much. More on that another time.

My new editor Mary Cash at Holiday House sent welcome feedback on my middle grade book (Asara of Thera, still not an official title) just as I arrived, so I spent a week editing, re-writing and drawing according to her positive comments— with new enthusiasm for this project. I spent another week inking about 20 pages, so now I may be about half-way done with inking— one of several steps in the process of finishing this book.

Again I delighted in conversations with artists and writers from all over, and time in the prairie, especially the tour with Jess. It rained on my sketchbook as I drew.

Now I’m getting ready for a month in Greece, first to Kenchreai for two weeks to work on drawing pottery for a big new land and sea survey, then to Crete where I have the honor of the Harriet Boyd Hawes Fellowship to research Late Bronze Age textile and pottery production at the Institute for the Study of Aegean Prehistory. This research will help give Asara of Thera more depth of detail, and I hope become the beginning of a new project about young craftspeople in Crete. More soon!

At the annual meeting of the American Society of Overseas Research I held a roundtable workshop, inviting archaeologists to write and draw about their research and discoveries. Participants had several minutes for each panel, to draw about a significant discovery or idea, then to situate that thing/concept in time and place, and to tell a story about it. There was an all-star cast of participants, including Lindy Crewe, director of CAARI, Mireille Lee, director of the Foundation for Ethical Stewardship and Cultural Heritage, Eric Cline author of 1177 BC and his colleague Assaf Yasur-Landau, and other archaeologist-artists. I was impressed by how they were each able to tell a story on a single page.

This was one of several events and workshops this year! Also pictured: a workshop at the University of Vermont’s Cartooning Lab; a talk at the Parthenon in Nashville, TN where I also gave a drawing workshop at Vanderbilt University; and a sketch from my visit to Skidmore College, where I also gave a talk about the making of graphic 1177 BC and a drawing workshop.

Winner of the 2026 Paper Rocket Publishing Prize!

Get your own copy of Mudhouse, the comic I drew at Mudhouse residency by supporting the Paper Rocket Kickstarter. I’m so happy this project is in the powerful capable hands of Paper Rocket!

Published in Narrative Magazine, a comic about how the Nav system in my EV knows more than I’d like to admit.

Read the comic in the Cartoon Issue of SevenDays VT, published July 9, 2025 HERE!

After having a great time with my neighbor Debra at as many protests as I could this winter/spring I pitched this comic for the yearly Cartoon Issue to editor Dan Bolles at SevenDaysVT. I interviewed my neighbor Debra while on a walk, drafted this comic, showed it to her for her input, edited again for clarity and correctness, turned it in, and left for Italy (with my dad and kids) and Greece (for the archaeology at Kenchreai and Mud House Residency) for two months. I returned to VT just in time to see it in print. Attending these protests, especially with Debra’s humorous, practical, and hopeful-depsite-all attitude, and standing/marching together with so many people willing to brave the cold then rain, gave me energy and the feeling that resistance is worth it, and necessary for change. The fight against the current regime needs documentation in print, not only on the internet, and am glad for the chance.

I’m proud to be in the issue with CCS alumni (students in my Thesis Seminar class) Clover Ajamie and Kristin Shull, as well as national cartooning heroes Harry Bliss and Alison Bechdel. Both have new books, You Can Never Die and Spent, which I’m reading side by-side with the joy and delight of inhabiting their worlds for the moment. The endpapers of Spent show the same red chacos and blue hokas I wear—another way of walking in Alison’s (cartoon) shoes.

The last week of July 2025 Jo Knowles and I will teach a week long workshop in creating comics about growing up. This is the sixth year (I think) we’ve taught together, and every time it’s a wonder— and how not? We spend most of each day together talking about, drawing, and sharing stories about pivotal times in our lives. Who will be there? In the past we’ve had students from all over the country and of all ages, and we create an atmosphere that’s kind, humorous, and encourages the kind of courage it takes to write about not the easiest times— growing up!

Available to preorder now from you favorite local bookshop for pickup on May 27, 2025!

I’m proud to have illustrated Jo’s new middle grade novel, a story about 10-year old Maple who draws comics in response to stresses in her life– hey, that sounds familiar! Jo has an amazing ability to speak of deep emotions through the details of daily life, and to bring humor and imagination to difficult times. Some scenes I loved drawing include Maple as Captain Ladybug flying to a recycling center to dispose of the kitchen timer that torments her during math tests, Maple rolling down a hill in a barrel (I tried this when I was a kid, not recommended), Maple’s dream treehouse, and scenes of a “portal potty,” Maple’s dad’s means of escaping to Dadlandia, where he’s free from responsibilities of family.

The chance to make these illustrations grew out of teaching Coming of Age Comics together with Jo at CCS for five summers in a row, continuing this year. I love this week, and learn new aspects of story telling from Jo every year. Registration is open for Coming of Age Comics summer of 2025— a week packed with exercises designed to get to the heart of stories of growing up.