Greetings surface dwellers!
I’m writing this week’s dispatch from the dry bar in my dark, cold basement. This is what I am currently using as an “office” space in this house. Since I don’t drink, this is likely the only use this bar will every have.
As I write this, I’m waiting for my NyQuil to kick in, so let’s get to it!
COMIC STUFF
While this isn’t the comic I planned to share with you this week, it feels important that I share this instead:
This was page one of the four page short story I sold to an anthology called Comics From The Kitchen. This was my first published work, and because of that, it has a special place in my heart. On top of that, I got an email from the editor asking me to nominate it for a Ringo Award at www.ringoawards.com.
Now, I feel really uncomfortable nominating my own work for anything, and I already submitted my nominations BEFORE it was mentioned to me. However, YOU can nominate us from the Best Anthology award. Most of the comic awards only accept nominations from professionals in the field, BUT the Ringo Awards accept nominations from professionals AND fans. This means that you can nominate any comic that was published in 2024, even if you don’t think anyone has ever heard of it.
As for the book, I’m not sure how many copies are still out there. I moved shortly after I got mine, and haven’t had a chance to put them in my store to sell them, but they will be available one day. Hopefully before the end of this year.🤞
BEHIND THE SCENES
As for my contribution to the Comics From The Kitchen, I believe the rights have reverted back to me. I might include it in an ebook I plan to release by the end of the year. Rather than regurgitate what has already been published in a perfectly fine book, I want to rework some of the backgrounds (or lack there of) and redo the colours (because my master file lost all the colour data after I exported the one PDF I had, which ended up being used in the actual book.
When I first pitched the story, I was unemployed and didn’t have a lot going on. Just as I was starting the inks, I got hired for a marketing job that started in less than two weeks, AND we found out my wife was pregnant (and there were a lot of complications and trips to the ER.) With the deadline approaching I started cutting corners with the final art that I wasn’t happy with. This was one of those scenarios where DONE is better than perfect. Normally, I would just move on, but every time I see that book, I see things I could have done differently. If I end up reprinting the story, I may as well give it the Director’s Cut treatment.
IN THE NEWS
My favourite book, The Great Gatsby, is now 100 years old.
The Minecraft movie has been out for a week, and while the reviews don’t look great, that hasn’t stopped my oldest child from demanding we see it.
Amazing Spider-Man rebooted again with another #1 issue this week. Like all the reboots, it’s become exhausting, long time ‘fans’ hate it, but it is a jumping on point for new readers, so make of that what you will.
Adobe joined BlueSky and promptly received the Jimmy Fallon treatment. Maybe don’t over charge your users for decades, then try to replace their jobs with AI based off of their own work, and then expect a warm reception on a new social media platform? I don’t condone bullying, but honestly, this was the highlight of my week.
My NyQuil just kicked in, so that’s all for this week. Thank you again from reading last week’s newsletter. It had the highest open rate of all my newsletters to date.