Frank Santoro has been teaching up-and-coming cartoonists about the ins and outs of the creative process online for a while now -- on his blog, his Tumblr, his articles at The Comic Journal and his online correspondence course. Now he'd like to start doing it in person, but opening a school in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania called the Comics Workbook Rowhouse Residency -- and he's turned to crowdfunding to make it a reality.

"Our plan for the school is to create a dojo for students much like a martial arts academy," he says on his IndieGoGo campaign page. "The beginner student will learn from more experienced students. We run the school like a sports clinic. What's wrong with your swing? We can fix it. The dojo sparring sessions (so to speak) will be recorded and broadcast. We want to have a 'broadcast booth' and a radio show. We can interview veterans and rookies and make room for friendly competition in order to push the boundaries of what is possible in the artform. This is not your regular comic book academy. This is a ninja academy, a samurai school, a Jedi academy. I do a really good Yoda impression."

Santoro's offering several great rewards for contributing to the campaign, including gift certificates to comic shops, comics by Simon Hanselmann and Gary Panter, Connor Willumsen commissions and residencies at the school. The $29,000 he's looking for will be used to help buy the house next door to Frank and make improvements to it.

For more information, check out the IndieGoGo page or watch the video below.