{"id":18440,"date":"2026-10-27T19:06:53","date_gmt":"2026-10-27T23:06:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/?p=18440"},"modified":"2026-10-27T19:06:55","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T23:06:55","slug":"episode-696-karl-stevens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-696-karl-stevens","title":{"rendered":"Episode 696 &#8211; Karl Stevens"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/virtualmemories\/Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Virtual Memories Show 696:<br \/>\nKarl Stevens<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_5433\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-18440-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/virtualmemories\/Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/virtualmemories\/Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3\">https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/virtualmemories\/Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/virtualmemories\/Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/?powerpress_pinw=18440-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/virtualmemories\/Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3\">Download<\/a><\/p><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_subscribe_links\">Subscribe: <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/4itPQhel9GzH3WK2iXr4Zw\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_spotify\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Subscribe on Spotify\" rel=\"nofollow\">Spotify<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/tunein.com\/podcasts\/Interviews\/The-Virtual-Memories-Show-p1091071\/\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_tunein\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Subscribe on TuneIn\" rel=\"nofollow\">TuneIn<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/feed\/podcast\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_rss\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Subscribe via RSS\" rel=\"nofollow\">RSS<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/subscribe-to-podcast\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_more\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"More\" rel=\"nofollow\">More<\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;I have 40,000 followers on Instagram, and I&#8217;d say 39,000 of those are people who like cats.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/a\/4669\/9781662665837\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"18442\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-696-karl-stevens\/attachment\/9781662665837\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?fit=1395%2C1645&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1395,1645\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"9781662665837\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?fit=525%2C619&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignright wp-image-18442\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?resize=280%2C330&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"280\" height=\"330\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?resize=373%2C440&amp;ssl=1 373w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?resize=526%2C620&amp;ssl=1 526w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?resize=768%2C906&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?resize=1303%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 1303w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?w=1395&amp;ssl=1 1395w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/9781662665837.jpg?w=1050&amp;ssl=1 1050w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 280px) 100vw, 280px\" \/><\/a>With <a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/a\/4669\/9781662665837\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PEPPER<\/a> (Toon Books), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/karlstevensart\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Karl Stevens<\/a> brings us the latest adventures of existentialist housecat, Penny, and her eponymous sister. We talk about the fun of making a sequel to 2021&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/a\/4669\/9781452183053\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PENNY<\/a>, the challenge of getting all the cats&#8217; markings right, how he found the right balance in the voices &amp; outlooks of his main cat-characters, how giving Pepper mystical powers allowed him to get away from drawing his apartment over and over, and how cat comics PULL. We get into his realist drawing style and the underexamined potential of realistic art in comics, his upcoming gallery show of oil paintings, how he might fuse his interest in comics and oils by exploring narrative genre paintings, his collaborations with other writers (and the cartoonists he&#8217;d love to write for), and how listening to music on vinyl gives him an excuse to get up from the drawing table and stretch every 20 minutes. We also discuss <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@SomethingFell-e6d\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Something Fell<\/a>, the page-by-page podcast he co-hosts about Dave Sim&#8217;s <em>Cerebus<\/em> comics to try to appreciate Sim&#8217;s art and storytelling modes, his recent focus on Pre-Raphaelite painters, his progress with finishing the last book of Knausgaard&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/a\/4669\/9780374534196\">My Struggle<\/a>, his thoughts on making one more big autobio book, life after having to say goodbye to Penny and whether he&#8217;s drawn her since, and a lot more. <a href=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/virtualmemories\/Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Give it a listen!<\/a> And go read <a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/a\/4669\/9781662665837\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PEPPER<\/a>!<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;When you&#8217;re making comics, you have to draw the words and write the pictures.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Fm4iX6owApY?si=cGLMi_b8qr3Wqe53\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s madness, this style that I&#8217;ve adopted for my career, to draw everything. . . . I feel like if I simplify, it&#8217;ll be cheating.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"width: 100%; max-width: 640px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 12px;\" src=\"https:\/\/embed.podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/episode-696-karl-stevens\/id531173075?i=1000798430166\" width=\"640\" height=\"160\" frameborder=\"0\" sandbox=\"allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;The idea of narrative painting is something I&#8217;ve been concerned with for a long time.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border-radius: 12px;\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/episode\/5ie1NVcGPFDL7uy6Huy23Q?utm_source=generator&amp;si=da9b454768774006\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-testid=\"embed-iframe\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/virtualmemories\/Episode_696_-_Karl_Stevens.mp3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Enjoy the conversation!<\/a>\u00a0Then check out\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/podcast-archive\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the archives<\/a>\u00a0for more great episodes!<\/p>\n<p>Lots of ways to follow <em>The Virtual Memories Show<\/em>! <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/the-virtual-memories-show\/id531173075\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">iTunes<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/4itPQhel9GzH3WK2iXr4Zw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Spotify<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/vmspod.bsky.social\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">BlueSky<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/vmspod\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Instagram<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCXoLbP-9GbhHJZpCQP5TR5A\/videos?view_as=subscriber\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">YouTube<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/virtualmemoriespodcast.tumblr.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tumblr<\/a>, and <a href=\"http:\/\/virtualmemories.libsyn.com\/rss\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">good ol&#8217; RSS<\/a>!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>About our Guest<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Karl Stevens is an artist whose work is said, per <em>The Boston Globe<\/em>, to &#8220;blend and blur high art and low\u2026 the result is a singular visual and storytelling experience&#8221;. His graphic novels include <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wowcool.com\/products\/whatever\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Whatever<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spitandahalf.com\/product\/the-lodger-by-karl-stevens\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Lodger<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/touchebooks.com\/failure-karl-stevens\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Failure<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/a\/4669\/9781940398747\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Winner<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/a\/4669\/9781452183053\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Penny<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/a\/4669\/9781787739130\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mother Nature<\/a> in collaboration with Jamie Lee Curtis and Russell Goldman. He is also a regular contributor to <em>The New Yorker<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Go listen to our <a href=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-327-karl-stevens\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2019<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-434-karl-stevens\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2021<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-549-karl-stevens\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2023<\/a> conversations.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"18443\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-696-karl-stevens\/img_4309\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?fit=2548%2C2557&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"2548,2557\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;1.78&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;iPhone 16 Pro&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1792432651&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;6.7649998656528&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;640&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.025&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"IMG_4309\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?fit=525%2C527&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-18443\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?resize=525%2C527&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"525\" height=\"527\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?resize=618%2C620&amp;ssl=1 618w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?resize=438%2C440&amp;ssl=1 438w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?resize=170%2C170&amp;ssl=1 170w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?resize=768%2C771&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?resize=1531%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 1531w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?resize=2041%2C2048&amp;ssl=1 2041w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?resize=100%2C100&amp;ssl=1 100w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_4309.jpeg?w=1050&amp;ssl=1 1050w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 525px) 100vw, 525px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Credits: This episode\u2019s music is <\/em>Fella<em>\u00a0by <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/may4th\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hal Mayforth<\/a>, used with permission from\u00a0the artist. The conversation was recorded at Karl&#8217;s home on a pair of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4e78Reu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Shure Beta 58A<\/a> microphones feeding into a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3Q9Br0z\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Zoom PodTrak P4<\/a> digital recorder &amp; interface. I recorded the intro and outro on a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3cGZ1Em\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Heil PR-40 Dynamic Studio Recording Microphone<\/a> feeding into a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3Q9Br0z\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Zoom PodTrak P4<\/a>. All processing and editing done in <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3RwlQsW\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Adobe Audition CC<\/a>. Photo of me &amp; Karl by me. It&#8217;s on my <a href=\"http:\/\/instagram.com\/vmspod\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">instagram<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Virtual Memories Show 696: Karl Stevens &#8220;I have 40,000 followers on Instagram, and I&#8217;d say 39,000 of those are people who like cats.&#8221; With PEPPER (Toon Books), Karl Stevens brings us the latest adventures of existentialist housecat, Penny, and her eponymous sister. We talk about the fun of making a sequel to 2021&#8217;s PENNY, the &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-696-karl-stevens\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Episode 696 &#8211; Karl Stevens&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18441,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"audio","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[22,26,4,40,1183,18,23],"tags":[8263,713,8261,4963,800,2020,2360,8259,8262,402,841,7126,8260,1730,378,2483,8241,2658,3855,2956,1488,8216,8258,816,7127,3868,174],"class_list":["post-18440","post","type-post","status-publish","format-audio","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-art","category-comics","category-literature","category-music","category-podcasts","category-politics-implicit","category-rembrandt","tag-blake-butler","tag-chris-ware","tag-colin-blanchette","tag-cullen-murphy","tag-dave-sim","tag-david-sedaris","tag-dylan-horrocks","tag-ed-park","tag-elizabeth-siddal","tag-frank-miller","tag-gary-panter","tag-jamie-lee-curtis","tag-jean-pleyers","tag-jerry-moriarty","tag-jim-woodring","tag-jonathan-ames","tag-karl-christian-krumpholz","tag-karl-ove-knausgaard","tag-karl-stevens","tag-keiler-roberts","tag-kriota-willberg","tag-martin-vaughn-james","tag-matthew-klam-2","tag-pete-bagge","tag-russell-goldman","tag-summer-pierre","tag-tom-spurgeon","post_format-post-format-audio"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4C7K-4Nq","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":14462,"url":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-434-karl-stevens","url_meta":{"origin":18440,"position":0},"title":"Episode 434 &#8211; Karl Stevens","author":"Gil","date":"May 11, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Virtual Memories Show 434: Karl Stevens Cartoonist & illustrator Karl Stevens rejoins the show to celebrate his new book, Penny: A Graphic Memoir (Chronicle Books), in which Karl explores the inner life of his eponymous cat Penny. We get into the challenges of realistically drawing a tortoiseshell cat (and writing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/art"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2021comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C497&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2021comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C497&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2021comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C497&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2021comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C497&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2021comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C497&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16234,"url":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-549-karl-stevens","url_meta":{"origin":18440,"position":1},"title":"Episode 549 &#8211; Karl Stevens","author":"Gil","date":"August 9, 2023","format":"audio","excerpt":"Virtual Memories Show 549: Karl Stevens \"I think of my books as films on paper, so once I got into this project, it was a lot easier than I thought it'd be.\" With MOTHER NATURE (Titan Comics), artist Karl Stevens adapts a graphic novel from an eco-horror screenplay by Oscar\u2122-winner\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/art"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2023comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C513&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2023comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C513&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2023comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C513&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2023comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C513&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2023comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C513&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13335,"url":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/covid-check-in-with-karl-stevens","url_meta":{"origin":18440,"position":2},"title":"COVID Check-In with Karl Stevens","author":"Gil","date":"May 7, 2020","format":"audio","excerpt":"Virtual Memories Show COVID Check-In: Karl Stevens Cartoonist Karl Stevens checks in from Boston, to talk about how his life hasn't changed all that much during the pandemic (outside of one COVID case in his co-op). We get into how he's trying to find unique humor for gag comics, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/art"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/covidkarlcomp.jpg?fit=1200%2C511&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/covidkarlcomp.jpg?fit=1200%2C511&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/covidkarlcomp.jpg?fit=1200%2C511&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/covidkarlcomp.jpg?fit=1200%2C511&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/covidkarlcomp.jpg?fit=1200%2C511&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":12347,"url":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-327-karl-stevens","url_meta":{"origin":18440,"position":3},"title":"Episode 327 &#8211; Karl Stevens","author":"Gil","date":"July 1, 2019","format":"audio","excerpt":"Virtual Memories Show 327: Karl Stevens \"I wanted to be an artist but I didn't know how, and comics were so accessible that I latched onto that.\" It may be a fine line between comics and art, but Karl Stevens' fine line crosses effortlessly between them. Karl & I talk\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/art"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlcombo.jpg?fit=1200%2C444&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlcombo.jpg?fit=1200%2C444&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlcombo.jpg?fit=1200%2C444&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlcombo.jpg?fit=1200%2C444&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlcombo.jpg?fit=1200%2C444&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16488,"url":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-568-the-guest-list-2023","url_meta":{"origin":18440,"position":4},"title":"Episode 568 &#8211; The Guest List 2023","author":"Gil","date":"December 19, 2023","format":"audio","excerpt":"Virtual Memories Show: The Guest List 2023 It's time for our year-end Virtual Memories Show tradition, now celebrating its tenth anniversary: The Guest List! I reached out to 2023's pod-guests and asked them about the favorite book(s) they read in the past year, as well as the books or authors\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/art"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_6720-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C633&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_6720-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C633&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_6720-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C633&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_6720-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C633&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_6720-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C633&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17535,"url":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-639-keiler-roberts","url_meta":{"origin":18440,"position":5},"title":"Episode 639 &#8211; Keiler Roberts","author":"Gil","date":"May 19, 2025","format":"audio","excerpt":"Virtual Memories Show 639: Keiler Roberts \"My comics have never been about me in the way that memoirs or diary comics are about the person. They're snapshots, things I want to remember. It's a way of looking at life that isn't about identity.\" She may be able to quit cartooning\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Art&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Art","link":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/art"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/keiler2025comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/keiler2025comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/keiler2025comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/keiler2025comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/keiler2025comp.jpg?fit=1200%2C480&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/karlstevens2026comp.jpg?fit=2000%2C800&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18440","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18440"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18440\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18444,"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18440\/revisions\/18444"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18441"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18440"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18440"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18440"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}