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A Note From the Creator

Two vultures are perched atop a branch running horizontally across the page, above the author note:

"A Note From the Creator
This visual diary was produced during a very busy year.

It starts in January 2021, when we were still very much in that strange first year of the pandemic.

6 months earlier I had taken part in SAWâ€™s Graphic Novel Intensive. It was such a strange time and our little group really leaned into each other as we made comics and tried to make sense of it all.

Time felt more expansive and there was room to create. But that feeling didnâ€™t last long as I made the decision to finish a degree I had started years prior.

My interest in regenerative agriculture was the impetus for my leap back into university life. But the juggle of school, job and family slammed me back into a hurried existence that left little time for art. On a whim, I started drawing daily pictures with quick, dry accounts of the day. I guess the idea was to help me remember the year as well as force myself to work on my weak drawing skills. They were never intended to be in the public eye and would have been approached quite differently hadâ€¦"

"â€¦I known they might. It was my friends at SAW that saw some value in these pages and prompted their publication.

I do believe their merit lies in the evidence that even small attempts at something over time amount to something much bigger.

While this diary is far from being considered in the realm of comics, the act of drawing the steadfast march of life over the course of time could probably be considered sequential art.

There was so much more life happening beyond these pages, but these little sketches helped stave the ever present artistsâ€™ guilt to create. I even hated doing them most days but it felt important that I was doing something.
- Kim Laurenti, May 2023"

Two vultures are perched atop a branch running horizontally across the page, above the author note: "A Note From the Creator This visual diary was produced during a very busy year. It starts in January 2021, when we were still very much in that strange first year of the pandemic. 6 months earlier I had taken part in SAWâ€™s Graphic Novel Intensive. It was such a strange time and our little group really leaned into each other as we made comics and tried to make sense of it all. Time felt more expansive and there was room to create. But that feeling didnâ€™t last long as I made the decision to finish a degree I had started years prior. My interest in regenerative agriculture was the impetus for my leap back into university life. But the juggle of school, job and family slammed me back into a hurried existence that left little time for art. On a whim, I started drawing daily pictures with quick, dry accounts of the day. I guess the idea was to help me remember the year as well as force myself to work on my weak drawing skills. They were never intended to be in the public eye and would have been approached quite differently hadâ€¦"

"â€¦I known they might. It was my friends at SAW that saw some value in these pages and prompted their publication. I do believe their merit lies in the evidence that even small attempts at something over time amount to something much bigger. While this diary is far from being considered in the realm of comics, the act of drawing the steadfast march of life over the course of time could probably be considered sequential art. There was so much more life happening beyond these pages, but these little sketches helped stave the ever present artistsâ€™ guilt to create. I even hated doing them most days but it felt important that I was doing something. - Kim Laurenti, May 2023"

Author: Kim Laurenti
Kim Laurenti has lived in the humid subtropics of South- West Florida most of her life and is the author of Hold Still published by SAW and can be purchased here: https://www.sequentialartistsworkshop.org/books-for-sale/hold-still-by-kim-laurenti
Website: https://www.instagram.com/kim_laurenti/?hl=en
Tags: Diary Comics, non-fiction, slice of life

Published On: April 17, 2024

Two vultures are perched atop a branch running horizontally across the image, above the bolded text, "A Note From the Creator"

Kim sits at her desk, facing away from the reader, working on a painting by the light of a desk lamp. A board is standing upright in front of her, with a photo taped to it; paints and a cup of water sit on the desk to her right. “December 26.”

Kim’s hand holds a little flower; in front of her is a sheet of paper covered with other little flowers of different types. Next to it is a pair of small shears. “December 21. Collected flowers for Mom’s gift. Cleaned, worked, readied, cooked.”

Kim is crouching over the large pile of mulch, which is giving off steam. “December 14. Land remediation talk after work. Mulch pile is smoking :)”

Kim is sitting on one knee, other knee perpendicular to the ground, as rummages through a shelf of papers in front of her. She is dressed in all black, wearing glasses, and has on a neutral expression. “December 8. Worked. Not sleeping great, Mom picked up Enzo from school so I got to see her and Ali after work.”

Kim sits at her desk working on a landscape design. A wall clock and two potted plants decorate the background by the window. “December 2. Finished compost bumper sticker and worked on final design. Online class.”

Two people are lounging back on a couch, holding remote controllers and looking ahead, presumably at a TV or monitor. One of them has tattoos, gauges, a nose ring, and facial hair; the other has their hair tied back in a ponytail. Someone is in the background, possibly Kim or her mom, heading off-panel. “November 25. Friday. Worked on school assignments until 5 a.m. and David came over. We all went to mom’s (played Jackbox and ate Chinese).”

Kim is lying on her side, spooning her dog and smiling softly. “November 20. Worked. Enzo slept over Mom’s. She drove him to a party after.”

A close-up of a flowering orchid tree branch. “November 14. Sunday. The bees are buzzing all over the orchid tree. Beautiful weather.”

Kim is sweeping outside in front of a fenced enclosure, behind which two wolves prowl. There is a palm tree to their left behind the fence. Kim is wearing long sleeves and jeans. “November 8. Volunteered at the wolf sanctuary. Biochar workshop at class.”

Kim’s dog, Molly, is lifting her chin up while getting head scratches from someone off-panel. Kim notes with an arrow, “Molly was doing a weird lip thing.” “November 7. Sunday. Finished second draft in permaculture class. Ali came by. Time change. It was a rare cool day.”

Kim is squatting low to the floor in front of her mushroom monotubs, looking closely at the one directly in front of her. “October 27. Volunteered at the wolf sanctuary. Enzo went to Sammi’s powder puff game.”

Enzo is getting his hair cut; both he and the barber are wearing masks for Covid. Enzo is wearing a barber cape, jeans, and sneakers; the barber is wearing an apron over a t-shirt and pants. “October 21. Wrote a paper for civic engagement. Cleaned, had class. Enzo got a haircut.”

Kim is turned away from the reader, sitting on the floor with legs stretched out and working in front of an empty mushroom monotub. She is drilling a large hole in the side of the tub. This panel is much more minimal than most in the series, with just a white background. “October 15. Set up mushroom monotubs before work. Mixed oyster and wine cap spawn grain into substrate (separately). Worked until 6 p.m.”

Tony is standing out his house in a large pot meant for a planted tree. He is shoveling soil from a wheel barrow into the pot. There is a pile of dirt behind him, and an already potted tree off to his side. “October 9. Worked. Planted the Venus mango tree.”

Enzo is standing next to a bed and bending down to reach something on the ground. “October 3, Sunday.”

Kim is standing outside, using a fire extinguisher on what looks to be a bush in front of her. She looks calm. “September 26.”

A view of a classroom from Kim’s perspective. A man with a goatee wearing a button down shirt stands behind a podium with a desktop computer, speaking to the glass. There is a projector on a stool in front of him, displaying an image of a rocky formation and body of water on the screen on the back wall. Two men sit in the desks in front of Kim, leaning in and listening. “September 20. Our group had its first presentation today. I had dreaded it, but we did well and now it’s over with.”

Enzo is standing in the kitchen, holding Tonks the cat in his arms like a baby in a front-facing carrier. He is smiling softly. “September 14. Made turkey meatballs before work. Crappy work day. Class after with quiz.”

Kim is reading from a book opened to a page full of pictures of different kinds of mushrooms. She is lounging, wearing comfy pants and sitting with her knees up. “September 8. Ordered mushroom cultivating supplies after doing some research. Worked until 7 p.m.”

Kim tends to a rack of bananas hanging from a rod in her house. “September 7. Felt crappy again. Made a big wall calendar to help manage time. Had class today.”

A zoomed in view of hands holding a plant’s steam with a leaf attached. In the background are more leaves and plants. “August 27.”

Kim stands among banana trees outside. She is looking down, where a rack of bananas lies at her feet. “August 21. Worked. Blue java rack fell prematurely.”

From behind, we see Kim bend over as she steps into her bathtub. She is naked. “August 15. Sunday. Painted. Bath.”

1. Rory sits in the corner of a large sectional couch, holding her phone close to her face. She is covered in pillows. “August 9. Worked. I had planned on meeting Mom and Rory at the pool after but it was closed. Told my work I’ll need Mondays off (class).”

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