Midcareer Artist/Author Tip: Save a copy of any interviews or reviews about your work because who knows if the outlet where that was published will completely collapse
I'm really grateful I'm sorta shameless enough to archive copies of interviews and especially nice reviews of my comics because if I hadn't, this particular interview with the British Library would just be gone forever. I've put up a copy in the Alexander Comic website, so at least this piece of my webcomic's personal history is intact and accessible.
Late last year the British Library experienced a huge data breach / cybersecurity attack that completely evaporated the digital archives. Blog posts, the manuscript/illumination archives, web pages, exhibition catalogues, ... they are still down months later. It's wild to me that such a thing can happen to a PUBLIC infrastructure - a NATIONAL library and archive!!! Decades of information gone like that. Its been months and months of barely anything coming back online.
As an artist from outside the UK, I literally CANNOT access any of the European manuscripts of the Alexander Romance in their collection - meaning the British Library as a resource is impossible for Book Two. Which is wild cos the Library was like almost 50% of the bibliography and art references for Book One.
As someone whose dayjob is to build, manage and audit workflow / data infrastructure this stuns me in disbelief at how lax the library was about backing up their website and digital infrastructure. They don't even have offline, offsite copies?? I'm talking about basic things here, not even the high level security and data engineering stuff. (all this being said with the knowledge that the British Library itself keeps getting their budget cut)
Anyway idk, this whole thing is a big lesson on archiving things online (and always backing up your stuff). Cos the Internet isn't forever apparently.
235 notes
·
View notes
What shall we do with the Demeter....
What shall we do with the anxious sailors,
what shall we do with the anxious sailors,
what shall we do with the anxious sailors,
early in our journey?
Let them pray though the mate yells,
let them pray though the mate yells,
let them prayt though the mate yells,
early in our journey
Ho ray and up she rises, ho ray and up she rises,
ho ray and up she rises, early in our journey.
What shall we do now Petrofsky's missing,
what shall we do now Petrofsky's missing,
what shall we do now Petrofsky's missing,
eight bells into the night?
Don't tell the mate, just nod sadly,
don't tell the mate, just nod sadly,
don't tell the mate, just nod sadly,
eigth bells into the night.
Ho ray and up she rises, ho ray and up she rises,
Ho ray and up she rises, eight bells into the night.
What shall we do with the thin stranger,
what shall we do with the thin stranger,
what shall we do with the thing stranger,
amidst the rain-storm?
Search the boat from stem to stern,
search the boat form stem to stern,
search the boat from stem to stern,
amidst the rain-storm!
Ho ray and up she rises, ho ray and up she rises,
Ho ray and up she rises right amidst the rain-storm.
What shall we do if there's no stranger,
what shall we do if there's no stranger,
what shall we do if there's no stranger,
after having searched her?
Take a breath and be thankful,
take a breath and be thankful,
take a breath and thankful,
after having searched her.
Ho ray and up she rises, ho ray and up she rises,
Ho ray and up she rises, after being searched here.
What shall we do if another man vanish's,
what shall we do if another man vanish's,
what shall we do if another man vanish's,
rigth after his watch.
Double the watch for the men's safety,
double the watch for the men's safety,
double the watch for the men's safety,
in the Bay of Biscay,
Ho ray and up she rises, ho ray and up she rises,
Ho ray and up she rises, in the Bay of Biscay.....
33 notes
·
View notes