CGS Super Show 2013

Less than two weeks and Dan and I will be in Reading, PA for the CGS Super Show on Saturday and Sunday, April 6-7.  This is a great little show - basically, as they aptly describe, a large artists' alley - with great guests like Tim Truman, Lee Weeks, Fred Hembeck, Danielle Corsetto, Dave Wachter, Action Lab comics, and us!

Laid back and professionally run by the guys who create one of my favorite comics podcasts - Comic Geek Speak - you get a real chance to talk with these writers and artists, whether seasoned professionals like Truman and Weeks or newer ones trying to make their own mark like Action Lab, a company that has really made big inroads in their first year-plus of publishing.

Also, Uncle Sal is going to be there this year. If you've ever listened to a CGS episode with him and aren't one who is easily offended, then you know why this is a big deal.  I'm really looking forward to talking with him and picking up his book, Atomika, while down at the show.

And, finally, Wild Pig comics will be there with their 50-cent boxes - over 30,000 back issues from all eras, and they're all fifty cents each.  Hoping to find some good runs to bring home and add to the ever-building stack of comics "to-be-read."

All the information can be seen here, and if you're in the area you should definitely stop in.  $12.00 for a single day or $20.00 for the weekend.  And please, stop by the W27 table and check out what we've got going on (more of which I will be posting in coming days, as we get even closer to the show).

thanks,
chris

Unfashioned Creatures - a Frankenstein anthology

The next anthology where I will have a story published is the Frankenstein themed Unfashioned Creatures from Red Stylo Media.  There was an open call for submissions based upon the themes of Mary Shelley's novel (not the film adaptations).  This spurred me to finally read Frankenstein, after having it on my to-read list for too many years to count. The book was amazing, and I came away with a lot to work with.

The process for acceptance was rigorous and very worthwhile, having never gone through such a process before.  I had to query first, before I could pitch.  Then I had to send a one-page synopsis of my story idea for consideration, and once that was accepted, with notes from the editor, Enrica Jang, I got to work on scripting. 

My compatriots at the Comics Experience online workshop were invaluable in this regard, reading an initial draft that was not at all ready for an artist, at all.  From the great notes I received there, I got similarly insightful and helpful comments from Jang, who pinpointed trouble spots that I knew were there and offered suggestions that certainly elevated my contribution.  The script has gone through 5 drafts and is now ready to be sent to the artist, who is Gary Fitzgerald, someone I'm friends with on facebook and who has done some great work with Caryn A. Tate on her Red Plains comic, available at Topshelf's online anthology TS2.0, and with whom I've wanted to work for some time.

I'll be sharing those various iterations of my script through some upcoming process posts.  But, for now, I need to prepare for the CGS Super Show on April 6-7, where I'll be debuting a new chapbook and possibly printed editions of my Reading Watchmen analysis from the sister site.  More on that later.

chris

Indie Comics Horror #1

I am fairly horrible at promotion and such, but with recent events I will be trying to get back on the horse with regard to that and to this blog - but I make no promises.

This past Fall, I had a story published in the inaugural issue of Indie Comics Horror from Aazurn Press.  It was an older story of mine, but I was very happy to be involved with this issues, especially since there were a number of other creators involved from Andy Schmidt's Comics Experience online workshop where I have learned a lot about writing, and about my own writing in particular.

The funding process for any Indie Comics title is interesting, in that Gary Scott Beatty splits the cost of printing and placing of ads in Diamond's Previews catalog between himself and the various creators, which allows him to actually get these books into comic shops.  And once Diamond's invoice and payment come through, that money is divided evenly among all those creators who pitched in on the printing costs.  It's an elegant way to get a foothold into the Previews catalog and get stories by aspiring creators into comic readers' hands, and it works very well.  Gary is up-front about the entire process, and I would highly recommend it to anybody seeking an opportunity to get your finished 8-page story.

The story I placed with Gary - and I should add here that it isn't just a matter of being able to pay for the printing costs, but your story has to be accepted as well; if there were no quality controls, it would be pointless to put the books out because, if the stories aren't good, nobody will buy them and you won't get future orders from comic retailers - was "Minister to the Undead" with art by Dan Lauer.  You can check that story out here. But if you'd like to get a hard copy, and also get a bunch of other great horror stories as well, you should seek out the issue, which will never be reprinted or distributed digitally, according to Gary.  Copies are available at Midtown Comics and Lone Star comics for less than cover price ($4.95 for 48 pages).  Check it out, I think you might like it.

Thanks,
chris