Top Of The Lake to ya

Here we see the flipchart I produced at last weekend's Comic Art Masterclass in Scunthorpe, thanks to the brilliantly named Hayley McPhun both for the photo and for arranging the classes. As you can see I got to put a lot of detail into this one, largely as a result of the kids not turning up as early as we'd have liked (they came eventually, it was grand)

But when it comes to the disorganisation of a Comic Art Masterclass, today's class in Kendal has to take the mint cake. I'm sat in a hotel in Kendal, with Hev, all ready for two days of classes in schools, through which I've been able to pay my way to a weekend at the inaugural Lakes International Comic Festival, at which I'll be doing a class in the library on Saturday and interviewing the boys from Viz on stage at Brewery Arts.

I was quite proud of my forward planning, having lined up two days of classes way back in March, justifying the four hour drive to the Lakes which would have been a bit much for a one-off visit. And, as is my usual way, I double checked with an email on the day before I set off that everything was still okay. It wasn't.

Through some inexplicable cock up, through which the school hadn't received my email in March confirming the date, they were under the impression I wasn't coming so weren't prepared for me. Which might not be so bad under normal circumstances where, with a day's warning, all could be put right. But today the school, and most schools in Cumbria, is on strike. D'oh.

So, as it happens I have some writing to get on with, about which I hope to tell you soon, and I'll be doing that today. Could be sillier. Could be that I'm flying all the way to Belfast on Monday to teach at a school that's suddenly discovered it's booked me on an Inset Teacher Training Day. Yes it has. Sigh.