Northwest Press

Massive Comic-Con Wrap-Up!

// July 27th, 2010 // 2 Comments » // Glamazonia, Teleny and Camille, The Mark of Aeacus

What a weekend! More like a week, actually…

I’d been tending to a lot of things over the last few weeks, trying to complete a lot of projects in time for Comic-Con in San Diego. I didn’t finish and bring everything I’d been working on, but it was still an amazing lineup of neat stuff.

I saw the Teleny and Camille books in person for the first time on Thursday, and they look stunning. I was hoping that the cover would turn out as lustworthy as Jon’s graphic novel, and I wasn’t disappointed. Visitors to the Prism Comics booth snapped them up, and I got complimentary copies into the hands of a lot of people whose work I admire. The book is available right now through Last Gasp and soon through some other distributors, and will be in Diamond’s September Previews catalog. Ask for it at your local shop!

In addition to pushing Teleny at the Prism booth, I was able to promote the book on an all-star panel on the 23rd annual Gays in Comics panel, moderated by Andy Mangels. It was also during that panel that Geoff Johns asked me if he could keep my sample copy of The Mark of Aeacus #2. (What was I going to say? “No”?)

Yes, the second big project was the long-awaited second installment of the erotic vigilante book that Mark Brill and I co-create. There were a few hundred copies of MoA #2 waiting for me at the hotel when I checked in, and they looked gorgeous. In addition to the first and second book and the t-shirts, I also ordered up some temporary tattoos with the Mark on them, and was branding people right and left with them all weekend. (I’m not quite ready for a permanent Mark on my neck…)

I also brought a companion volume, The Myth of Aeacus, which is an illustrated storybook recounting the Greek mythology that the modern story is rooted in. The book is drawn by none other than multiple Eisner Award winner Eric Shanower, and it’s beautiful.

Both books will be available shortly on the Prism Comics website and also here. (If you buy them from me, I’ll toss some tattoos into each order. Mythic powers await!)

The next big project was a brand new t-shirt for Glamazonia, the Uncanny Super-Tranny, Justin Hall’s superpowered heroine. The bold orange shirts were a big hit, as was the new minicomic, Glamazonia: JFKiller, which we printed up especially for the show. The mini features a story from the forthcoming Glamazonia collection from Northwest!

While I was hawking Glamazonia products, the Prism booth was visited by none other than Kids in the Hall‘s Scott Thompson, who was promoting his forthcoming Danny Husk graphic novel project. We’re best friends now.

There was a lot more going on at the show, including demos of a new app for the iPad, but I have to keep a few mysteries to keep things spicy. More news very soon!

New Mark of Aeacus for Comic-Con!

// June 25th, 2010 // 2 Comments » // The Mark of Aeacus

To those long-suffering Mark of Aeacus fans who have been patiently waiting for a new issue, I am pleased to tell you that your wait is almost over.

Class Comics and Northwest Press are co-publishing the second installment of The Mark of Aeacus, which will be debuting at Comic-Con International in San Diego next month. This issue reveals the secret origin of the strange powers that Jack has been given, and introduces a mysterious foe determined to put an stop to the Bearer’s brutal brand of justice.

The cover’s just been finalized, and I’m letting you lucky folks take a peek…

WonderCon Wrap-Up: Saturday & Sunday

// April 6th, 2010 // 1 Comment » // Misc, The Mark of Aeacus

As always happens, I took fewer pictures as the weekend wore on, because I got busier and busier and tireder and tireder. But I’ve got a lot of fun stories and a few snaps to share.

Marc Andreyko came by the Prism booth with a big grin on his face, holding a small, black “1 Year Later” sketchbook. He said that all of the DC folks had gotten these sketchbooks when DC launched that event in 2006 but, as a writer, he didn’t really know what to do with it. He decided to get Manhunter sketches.

The latest piece to grace the pages of the book was this one by Ethan Van Sciver. Hardly a sketch, it’s a real work of art!

Sina Grace came by a few times during the weekend to mix and mingle and to sign copies of Books with Pictures and Cedric Hollows in Dial M for Magic. The boy is a fashion plate, a flirt, and a heck of a lot of fun!

I wish I had some more exciting pictures to share with you of Prism’s social event at the Pilsner Inn on Saturday night, but I was too focused on hearing about new projects and enjoying cocktails and mingling with all the queer nerds. It was quite a successful event; we filled the place up!

A bunch of us headed next door to Chow to get some dinner (I’d been eating nothing but snacks and Vitamin Water all day and was ready for something with more nutritional content than beer) and saw this interesting sight outside.

Stefan Salinas came by with a brand new book, a thick, elaborate graphic novel called Within the Rat, and he wore his rat chapeau in celebration of it.

Kenne Morrison is the writer of a new series called Night Patrol, which he signed and sold at the Prism booth on Sunday.

I did a few TV interviews for news outlets that escape me, and on Sunday I called in to record a podcast episode with my dear, queer pals the Comic Book Queers. We talked about digital comics, upcoming new Mark of Aeacus books, and Prism Comics. Time flew by; before I knew it we’d talked for a whole hour and the show was almost over!

When the final bell rang, we packed it all up and shipped it out. All in all, the best WonderCon that Prism Comics has had to date, and certainly something I’ll look forward to again next year.

WonderCon Wrap-Up: Friday

// April 3rd, 2010 // No Comments » // Misc, The Mark of Aeacus

Hey lovelies!

I’m waiting in the iPad line at the San Francisco Apple Store, so I’ve got some time to share some tidbits about how the first day of WonderCon went.

As always, I spent almost all of my time at the Prism Comics booth. It’s like the queer comics drop-in center at every con, so the con pretty much comes to me. Convenient!

Storm came by to sign copies of his minicomic Princess Witch Boy, which was sprinkled with a hint of glitter and faerie magic.

I stepped in for an absent Patty Jeres to moderate the “Queers, Comedy and Camp” panel, featuring Joey Alison Sayers, Ed Luce, Sean Seamus McWhinny, Rick Worley and Brian Andersen. I asked the crowd to help me take a new Grindr photo to replace the censored Iron Man one. Just to be safe, I had them say “bible study” instead of “cheese” to make it extra wholesome.

At the end of the panel, I got to make the announcement that the recipients of the Queer Press Grant this year were Ed Luce and Eric Orner. See how happy he is here? Or maybe that’s just lack of sleep catching up with him.

Robert Triptow stopped in to sign and sell copies of Gay Comix and regale us with tales of his adventures over the past year. He had to fly in this year, because he moved up to Oregon, and was obviously happy to be back in town. I know the feeling! I love Seattle, but SF always feels like home when I come back.

Jeff Krell was here promoting his Jayson books and translations of Rälf König comics. His latest book, Jayson Goes to Hollywood, is a convention favorite and is already sold out here! I’d recommend heading to his website and ordering a copy or you might miss out.

Jon Macy showed up at the con with not one but two gorgeous graphic novels: Teleny and Camille and Fearful Hunter. Teleny is an adaptation of an anonymous erotic novel reportedly written by Oscar Wilde and his circle, and Jon’s produced a masterpiece. Hunter is the first in a series of fantasy romance/erotica stories with druids, werewolves and all kinds of freaky and awesome stuff.

The only other booth I made it to was the Hungry Tiger Press booth, to check in on Eric Shanower and David Maxine. Turns out they drove up from San Diego for the show this time, so they were running on fumes, but still managing to entertain visitors with tales of Greek warriors and the magical land of Oz.

Adorable overload! Justin Hall brought this Wonder Bear shirt to the con and it was an immediate favorite. It’s apparently part of a line of bear images including a bear luchador and a “cowbear”. If this shirt was any cuter I think my head would explode. Want!

That’s about all for Friday. Saturday was off the charts! I’ll write some about that tomorrow.

Mark Brill is an amazing artist!

// March 28th, 2010 // No Comments » // The Mark of Aeacus

Just finished inking page 20 of 24 (the finish line is in sight!) and wanted to post a little note to talk about how great Mark’s pencil work is. Regardless of my fluency in Photoshop, the fact that the writer of the book with no comic book art credits is able to take his pencils and clean them up to look like inkwork is pretty astounding.

Yes, I am a tracer. A good tracer, but still.

And just when I start to get cocky and think I’m some inking wunderkind, I come across a background that he didn’t flesh out completely and realize that it’s not me that can draw, it’s him.

2008 Queeries Roundup!

// March 24th, 2010 // 1 Comment » // The Mark of Aeacus

I don’t think I ever linked to this; this is the announcement of the winners of the 2008 Queerie Awards, given by the Comic Book Queers. The Mark of Aeacus won for best Queer Indie book!

Pleased

// March 18th, 2010 // No Comments » // The Mark of Aeacus

Pencils are done on the second Mark of Aeacus book, the inks are half-done, and the color is getting there. Cracking the whip to get the interior art wrapped up by the end of this month so a finished book can hit shelves in July for Comic-Con.

Anyone who’s put together their own comics, especially with collaborators, can appreciate how lengthy the process can be. I didn’t expect it would take quite this long to follow up the first book, but hopefully you’ll find the second installment worth the wait.

And surprise of surprises, I’m actually doing digital ink work on the book! Mark’s pencils are so gorgeous, and while cleaning them up and turning them into “inked” pages isn’t effortless, I’m definitely in the “tracer” category, here. I just find Mark’s intended line and run with it, and it’s always perfect.

I’ll be at WonderCon in San Francisco at the start of April. Track me down at the Prism Comics booth and I’ll give you a preview of the completed issue 2!

Mark of Aeacus DRAMA!

// May 5th, 2009 // No Comments » // The Mark of Aeacus

Jack waxes philosophical.

Having worked with the nonprofit Prism Comics for years now, I’ve learned to hold my tongue and try to act constructively, even when all I want to do is cut loose. Sure, it’s not as satisfying as stomping my feet and wailing, but 90% of the time that just makes the problem worse.

The heart of the matter is the challenge of reaching the audience for The Mark of Aeacus.

Mark and I had originally planned to self-publish MoA, or to approach a small publisher who wouldn’t be scared off by the strong sexual content. When I showed the finished book to Patrick Fillion at Class Comics, I wasn’t sure they would go for it, since it’s downright tame compared to their other offerings, but Patrick said they were very interested. Class got it solicited in record time and the first installment hit store shelves back at the end of 2007.

From the beginning, I knew that since this would be a different book from the other ones Class publishes, it would be tricky to market. (I even thought they would have to start a “non-explicit” imprint to really make the point that it was a new animal altogether. What a turnabout that would have been!)

For the past two years, I’ve been pushing MoA up and down the west coast, appearing at Comic-Con, WonderCon, APE, Emerald City, trying to connect with readers, while Class has working hard on distribution channels and new media options.

And though we’ve gotten a good reception from a core group of readers, it’s frankly been a struggle.

On top of that, pulling together the second issue proved more challenging than Mark or I expected, which has slowed the book’s momentum even more. I recently did WonderCon and Emerald City Comic Con, but armed with the same book I’d brought a year ago, it was hard to keep my energy up.

But over the past few months, we’ve really gotten on the ball. Meetings have happened, pages have taken shape, and we’ve only got a handful of pages to complete. Book two is tight! A dense plot, a lot of story, Mark’s art is better than ever, and I think it’s more than a worthy successor to the first issue.

So what’s the problem?

The fact is that the book still stands on the border, for better or worse, between “mature” and “adult,” and it’s hit home yet again just how much of a challenge we are going to have reaching readers with it.

The good news is that Class is definitely in our corner; we had a little “Aeacus summit” this past weekend and Class reiterated that they love the book and are committed to making it a success. When you know you’ve got support, it’s easier to get excited about overcoming obstacles. We’re all going to be working together twice as hard in the coming year to make The Mark of Aeacus a success, and I think we’ll be able to do it.

If you’re reading this, you’re probably at least a bit interested in this odd little yarn we’re spinning, and we’re going to need your help. We’ll be thinking of new ways for you to help spread the word online, and I hope you’ll pitch in a little and help spread the word.

And to those readers out there who haven’t picked up the book…

If you’re a mainstream comics reader who shies away from adult books, try and look at MoA as a challenging miniseries that has a great story to tell, with mature content that’s integral to it. When you root a story in Greek myths, you’re steeped in sex and violence, and rather than sidestepping it, we’re going to face it head on.

And if, up to now, you’ve only been a fan of adult comics, try and stretch your horizons a bit and give MoA a try. You might not get “the money shot” you’re used to, but our hope is to provide something that’s exciting and engaging and pushes the boundaries more than ordinary comics. Think of this as the kind of gay action thriller you’d never get in the theater, but always wished you could.

The best is yet to come! We hope you’re on board for the rest of the ride.

Mark of Aeacus mo…men…tummm…

// March 21st, 2009 // No Comments » // The Mark of Aeacus

Pencils from Mark of Aeacus #2!

Mark has set a deadline of early April to finish all the pencil work, which will be inked by Max Banks, who’s previously inked The Tick. We settled on this panel to share as a special preview.

If you want to see more of Mark of Aeacus #2, you can stop by and visit us at the Emerald City ComiCon on April 4th and 5th, where I’ll not only be promoting Mark of Aeacus, but also helping out LGBT comics organization Prism Comics!

OMG! Eric Shanower meets Aeacus!

// February 24th, 2009 // No Comments » // The Mark of Aeacus

A while back, I had chatted with Eric Shanower, illustrator of The Age of Bronze, friend, and all-around-groovy-guy about collaborating on a mythology storybook. It would take these ancient tales and retell them in a modern voice, recounting all the fucking and betrayal and bad behavior just like you might do in a Facebook blog post.

The idea was to do a 16-page storybook—with an art panel for each—that followed the life (and death) of judger-of-the-dead King Aeacus, who got the ball rolling long ago when he crafted The Mark of Aeacus and sent it up from Hades.

Of course, I knew Eric—being as busy as he is with being an actual comics artist with real paying work—would have to fit this project in around the edges, as it were. It’s been gestating.

But I was happily surprised to get some pencil artwork in my email box yesterday morning! I’ll share some of the work as soon as it’s clean and approved for preview; it’s comic, lively, and brings this dusty tale to life with the fun and bite I was hoping for.