Comics... Yeah!

If you follow me on Twitter or frequent the PKD Media site, then you probably saw the announcement yesterday that I’m the new writer on Exo-1 and the Rock Solid Steelbots! I am so thrilled to be even a small part of the PKD Media Universe. I have a lot of respect for Shawn Pryor – the mastermind behind PKD, and the creator and original writer of Exo-1 (along with Mercury and the Murd, Agents of C.O.L.T., and the PKD Black Box Podcast) – and what he’s done.

The internet is an amazing thing – especially for a geek niche community like comics. Growing up, the only friend I had who was into comics was Mark. Mark and I are still friends (and comics are still very much a part of our lives – I wrote a book about comics and he teaches a graphic novel course at George Mason University), but now I also have friends all over the world who are into comics thanks to forums and social networking sites. My friendship with Shawn is a perfect example. I met Shawn through Twitter, then in-person at the Pittsburgh Comicon earlier this year. In late spring, mutual friend, comic creator, and con organizer Zack Kruse invited both Shawn and me to be a part of the first Summit City Comic Con in Fort Wayne. It was there at the pre- and post-show parties that Shawn and I really had the opportunity to hang out and talk about writing and comics and all of the things that get us excited about the culture.

I knew I wanted to try my hand at scripting a comic. It seemed like a perfect challenge to step outside of the non-fiction, pop culture-based, and often nostalgia fueled writing I have done up to this point. In getting to know Shawn, I realized he is just such a genuine good guy. He makes comics because he loves them, and that comes through in everything he has done with PKD Media and I’m certain that is what we’ll see from Action Lab Entertainment. The problem is that Shawn never stops working, and he was stretched far too thin. So that perfect storm of our friendship, my desire to push myself creatively, and Shawn’s need to lighten his workload resulted in this opportunity.

I’m having a lot of fun writing these characters and am enjoying the challenges of finding their voices while making sure I stay true to the characters as Shawn intended, along with plotting and orchestrating scenes. I am looking forward to finishing this story and ultimately seeing it realized through Daniel J. Logan’s art. I am forever grateful to Shawn for giving me this chance. I couldn’t be more proud to be associated with Shawn and hope I do justice to these characters and this world he created.

Steel City Road Trip Redux

I really had a good time at the Pittsburgh Comicon last September. I got to meet Stan Lee and give him a copy of my book, I found some good deals, I got to hang out with Dave Wachter, and Tracy and the kiddo were there. At the time, we were fresh off our first big con experience, having just attended Wizard World Chicago a few weeks prior. I’m lucky that not only do Tracy and the kiddo appreciate (and share to varying degrees) my geek tendencies, but they also enjoy attending cons.

Traveling to Chicago on business evokes weird nostalgia and the feeling of something being just a little “off” because Tracy isn’t there with me in the city we love. And there were similar moments this past weekend at the Pittsburgh Comicon, newly returned to its traditional spring date. Especially on the con floor, talking to Dave, seeing some other creators we’d talked to here six months ago, or finding a title in a $5 trade paperback sale I thought one of them would dig.

None of this, however, is to take away from just how great a time I had at the con, this time travelling with John (you can find his take on the day over on his blog). He had hooked us up with the Science Fiction Alliance of Pittsburgh who offered to put us on the “How to Get Published” panel and provide passes to the con and all, so I was game.

As is tradition for me at a con, we first made our way to Dave Wachter's table to say hello, but he had a crowd surrounding him, so we decided to breeze by and run the perimeter of the floor. Circling, Pat Olliffe’s table caught my eye, and I asked him to sign my copy of Peter Parker #1. We had an interesting conversation about how poorly Marvel did in publicizing this title when it was published online only and how he was glad it was seeing a second life in print.

Next up was con headliner Roy Thomas. John was already in line when I caught up to him. He was really excited to meet Roy, and I overheard bits and pieces of the Star Wars conversation they had that was obviously enjoyable to both of them. When it was my turn, I had my copy of Marvel Visionaries: Roy Thomas hardcover signed by him and told him how much those classic Avengers issues meant to me. I had the Marvel Illustrated Books The Origin of the Vision, which reprinted Thomas’ Avengers #57, #58, and #83 in black and white. As a kid, those were some of the first back issues I remember buying at mall comic shows after reading that book because I needed to see them in color.

The other heavy hitters for me were Joe Sinnott and Herb Trimpe. Trimpe’s table was next to Roy’s, but he didn’t show up until after 11, so he was just getting settled as we were finishing up with Roy. There is so much good stuff I associate with Trimpe (I mean, the guy penciled the very first appearance of Wolverine!), but primarily he means “G.I. Joe” to me because of his beautiful work on issue #1. But I didn’t bring anything for him to sign and never made it back over to his table as the day progressed.

Joe Sinnott, on the other hand, was great. I approached him early with my copy of Avengers #250 and its great Al Milgrom cover he inked. Joe said he remembered the cover and that it was one of his favorites. We talked a little bit about that era (which he seemed to recall fondly), and I thanked him for the great memories. I stopped back at his table a couple of times throughout the day and again before leaving to admire and watch him work. He still has it!

After getting those few signatures out of the way, it was time to see friends and meet up with some new folks. Dave had a lull at his table by the time we made our way back around to him. I couldn’t resist picking up his 2009 Monsters! sketchbook and asking for a Fin Fang Foom headshot inside the back cover (that I knew the kiddo would love). I recently commissioned him to reproduce the cover of Marvel Team-Up #122. Although it’s not yet finished, he brought it to the show to give me a sneak peek at it. Oh, man. It’s gorgeous. I’m positively giddy about getting the final piece at Summit City Comic Con next month!

While hanging out at Dave’s table and scaring away all his legitimate business, John picked up the con preview of Dave’s Eisner Award nominated web comic, The Guns of Shadow Valley, complete with a done-on-the-spot back cover head sketch, and I finally got to meet Amber and visit with her a bit.

John and I then decided to work our way through the other tables and meet some of the other creators at the show. I stopped at the N3RDCAST table because my eye went immediately to Dave’s Guns of Shadow Valley contribution to the sketch jam piece they were giving away, but ended up chatting with Kwip for a bit about Deus ex Comica, and he bought a copy from me almost immediately. Always a cool experience to sell a copy of your book to someone who you can just tell will appreciate it. Just down the aisle from Kwip was Shawn Pryor. Shawn, who I only knew through Twitter, is one of the nicest guys you could meet. I picked up a copy of his Mercury and the Murd collection, which included a free CD of music. I’m really looking forward to seeing Shawn again at Summit City and hopefully having more time to hang out with him.

There were a few local forum friends in attendance outside of me and Dave, including Alec Berry and Mario Muscar. John and I spent quite a bit of time with Alec talking about the craft of writing and journalism as a career. Great kid. Wish I’d been that focused on my writing and had my creative head on straight when I was his age! I also met Bryan Deemer and Adam Murdough from Comic Geek Speak by way of the commission Dave is doing for me.

Our “How to Get Published” panel was right in the middle of the day, up against the “Legends of the Marvel Heyday” panel and belly dancing lessons, but we had a nice turnout and it was fun talking about my experiences as a self-published author. The other author on the panel, Paul Anderson, is a teacher who has also been published. Paul gave a nice rundown of some positive habits and techniques on writing and revising so that when you do submit to a publisher it’s polished and your very best work. John and I talked about how to leverage self-publishing/DIY options, the process to get self-published, and things to consider when headed down that path. We didn’t have a lot of questions from the audience, which surprised me given the size of the crowd (20 to 30 people), but it was another good experience to have under my belt.

The afternoon highlight was some bargain hunting and getting to catch up with Bryan J.L. Glass. I’ve known Bryan for a few years now, and his enthusiasm for the industry never ceases to amaze. We must have spent a good 20 or 30 minutes talking with him and Judy at their table about everything from movie and TV options to the state of cons, and got his impressions of the previous weekend’s C2E2 experience and some coy hints about the soon-to-be-officially-announced work for Marvel on the horizon for him. (And I am really looking forward to watching him play in that great big sandbox!)

A few weeks back, I picked up 30 or so issues of early ROM from my local comic shop’s quarter bins, and so now I have some holes to fill. (Nice to have a reason to go through the single issue boxes versus just flipping randomly through them.) I was able to find a handful of issues I was missing, along with picking up a trade paperback for the kiddo and a half-priced hardcover I was looking for.

After goodbyes to friends, including the opportunity to have a longer-than-expected chat with Amber over at Joe Sinnott’s table, the day ended for John and me with a nice ride home and a conversation that could only be had by two old friends, wandering from 3-D technology to politics to everything in between. It was the perfect end to a great day of comics, friends and heroes.

Deus ex Comica: The Eight Day Tour

Busy week or so on the horizon for Deus ex Comica...

Last weekend’s C2E2 experience (or lack thereof!) has me really jazzed for the Pittsburgh Comicon this Saturday. Although I don’t have a table at the show, I am scheduled to be on the “How to Get Published” panel in Room 3 at 2pm. It should be fun to chat about the book, as well as get a chance to visit with friends.

Next Thursday, April 29, I’ll be talking about and reading selections from Deus ex Comica at the Nordonia Hills Branch of the Akron-Summit County Public Library as a part of their Meet the Author series. That kicks off at 7pm and will be followed by a question and answer session.

Then on that Saturday, May 01, I will be in Willoughby signing copies of Deus ex Comica and visiting with other comic book fans as a part of Comic Heaven’s Free Comic Book Day celebration! I’ll be there from 12-3, but the fun lasts all day, with a store sale planned, along with various super heroes and Star Wars characters (I hear there will be biker scouts!) all in attendance.

I'll have copies of Deus ex Comica: The Rebirth of a Comic Book Fan with me at all these appearances for anyone interested. I appreciate everyone who supported me and my little book over the last year. If you’re around for any of these events, please feel free to stop by and say “hello.” It’s always great to meet and hang out with other comic fans!

• April 24, 2pm-3pm: "How to Get Published" (Room 3), Pittsburgh Comicon, Monroeville Convention Center, 209 Mall Boulevard, Monroeville, Pennsylvania
• April 29, 7pm-8pm: Nordonia Hills Branch (ASCPL), 9458 Old Eight Road, Northfield (330.467.8595)
• May 01 (Free Comic Book Day!), 12pm-3pm: Comic Heaven, 4847 Robinhood, Willoughby (440.942.6960)

If you're unable to attend any of these events but would still like to pick up a copy of Deus ex Comica, Lulu is offering free shipping on the book with the use of coupon code FREEMAIL305, now through May 01. And, as always, the book is available through Amazon and signed copies are available direct from me. Thank you, again, to everyone for your support!

Pittsburgh Comicon Events News

The Pittsburgh Comicon events schedule was published earlier this week, and there are some fun panels on the docket. Everything from the amazing Gene Colon to Buffy-verse bad boy Camden Toy, from a CGS trivia showdown to a star-studded “Legends of Marvel Heyday” roundtable!

I’m also excited to see my buddy John Booth doing a panel based on his book Collect All 21: Memoirs of a Star Wars Geek sponsored by the Science Fiction Alliance of Pittsburgh. Look for it to be a fun, nostalgic trip from original trilogy to prequel trilogy and what it means to our generation to have “grown up Star Wars.”

Immediately following John’s solo panel, I’ll be joining him and others for a discussion called “How to Get Published” in Room 3 at 2pm. I’m looking forward to talking about the experience I went through publishing Deus ex Comica: The Rebirth of a Comic Book Fan – willing to discuss everything from the writing process to publishing options to promotion, and anything else the attendees might throw at us regarding getting your manuscript into your audience’s hands!

Incredible folks like Joe Sinott, David Mack, Roy Thomas, and Herb Trimpe are all scheduled to appear at the con. I’m looking forward to hopefully meeting some of these industry icons, along with the opportunity to say “hello” and visit for a while with my friends Bryan J.L. Glass and Dave Wachter!

Should be a fun way to pass a weekend! If you’re in the area, I hope you’ll come out and support the industry and a couple of regional authors!

Farther Afield

I took Deus ex Comica to Virginia for George Mason Unversity’s Fall for the Book Festival last year, and it’s time to take the book outside of Ohio again...

First up, I am going to be on the “How to Get Published” panel at the Pittsburgh Comicon Saturday, April 24! I attended this con as a fan last year in September and was able to give a copy of Deus ex Comica to Stan Lee, now this year I will be on a panel with John Booth and Paul Anderson. I don’t have details on what time my panel will be yet, but will add that to the “2010 Author Appearances” schedule on the blog and will certainly be tweeting about it as soon as I know.

I am also going to be at the Summit City Comic Con in Fort Wayne, Indiana, on May 22! This single-day show is being put on by my friend Zack Kruse and the great folks from DCBS. I’m very excited to be a part of this event and have an opportunity to see a lot of my Midwest-based friends in the process.

On the more immediate horizon, and after the success of my author visit at the Learned Owl in Hudson in mid-February, I’m now looking forward to reading at the Northwest Akron Branch of the Akron-Summit County Public Library Thursday, March 04 (time and details below). If you’re in Northeast Ohio, please feel free to stop in, listen to some readings from Deus ex Comica, take part in the conversation afterward or just say “hello!”

So I am still on-track with my goal to average no less than one book-related event per month in 2010 and there's more to come!

• March 04, 6.30pm-7.30pm: Northwest Akron Branch (ASCPL), 1720 Shatto Avenue, Akron (330.836.1081)
• April 24, TBD: "How to Get Published", Pittsburgh Comicon, Monroeville Convention Center, 209 Mall Boulevard, Monroeville, Pennsylvania
• April 29, 7pm-8pm: Nordonia Hills Branch (ASCPL), 9458 Old Eight Road, Northfield (330.467.8595)
• May 01 (Free Comic Book Day!), TBD: Comic Heaven, 4847 Robinhood, Willoughby (440.942.6960)
• May 22, 10am-6pm: Summit City Comic Con, The Grand Wayne Center, 120 West Jefferson Boulevard, Fort Wayne, Indiana
• June 27, 10am-4pm: Akron-Canton Con, Chapparells Community Center, 2418 S. Arlington Road, Akron
• July 10, 2pm-3pm: Firestone Park Branch (ASCPL), 1486 Aster Avenue, Akron (330.724.2126)

Steel City Saturday

Fresh off our trip to the Wizard World Chicago Comic-Con last month, we made the short drive east this weekend to the Pittsburgh Comicon. I was sort of on the fence about the show originally, but figured it could be a fun time, and Tracy and the kiddo were up for it so I figured, “Why not?”

Stan Lee, "Marvel Legend" in capital letters, was the guest of honor. When he was first announced months ago, I thought that was pretty cool, but kept it to myself and decided not to pay the extra forty bucks to get his autograph. Weeks later, I mentioned it to Tracy in passing and she was incredulous that I had not signed up to meet him, get his autograph, and give him a copy of Deus ex Comica! She pointed out that Stan is getting up there in age and this might be the only opportunity I have to do this. So I purchased my autograph ticket online when I ordered the con passes for all of us and figured I’d see what happens.

We got on the road around 8 Saturday morning, getting us to Monroeville (east of downtown Pittsburgh) around 10:30. By the time we grabbed a bite to eat and got into the con, it was just after 11. The Stan Lee autograph deal was set up so that you were assigned a number when you purchased your ticket, and they were going to call groups of 100 people at a time to queue up to meet The Man. Of course, nowhere on the online receipt was the number you were assigned, so I had no idea what lot I would be in. Turns out I was in the 200’s, and when we checked in at the con, they told me they were already up to the 300’s. It worked out great for me though, because they told me to skip the queue and head right to the end of the line up at Stan’s table.

They wouldn’t let Tracy come up with me, but I took the kiddo. The line moved very quickly, and Stan was friendly and talkative and personable... just like you'd expect! After delivering a copy of my book, I thanked him for all of his influence and the happiness he’s brought us while he signed my hardcover copy of Marvel Visionaries: Stan Lee (which I picked up for a mere $2 at the Chicago con courtesy of the awesome folks at InStock Trades!). Stan had a brief conversation with the kiddo about their mutual love of comics, and it was over. The whole encounter probably lasted no more than a few minutes start-to-finish, but it was a wonderful way to start the con!

Afterwards, Tracy made an IKEA run while the kiddo and I made our way to the con floor. We worked our way around the outer perimeter and over to Dave Wachter’s table. Always good to see Dave. He was busy at work on sketches and visiting with passersby. I was happy to hear he was selling a lot of copies of The Guns of Shadow Valley preview comic (and glad to see postcards of his awesome Deus ex Comica cover art out on the table).

The kiddo almost immediately went into the “con mode” he established in Chicago: He found a vendor selling the digest-sized Marvel Adventures trade paperbacks for $2 each, promptly bought a half-dozen of them, and happily wandered the floor with Tracy and me leading him around while he kept his nose stuck in a book, popping his head up to join the conversation when he'd see some artwork that caught his eye or someone dressed up as a character he liked.

I was disappointed that Michael Golden, Arthur Suydam, and David Mack were cancellations. I had taken my single issues of G.I. Joe Yearbook #1, Fantastic Four #554 “Skrull variant,” and New Avengers #39 for each of them to sign, respectively. But Greg Horn, Ron Frenz, Gary Friedrich, and Terry Moore were there, and that was pretty damn exciting in and of itself!

I had previously met Greg Horn at Wizard World where I had him sign my signature jam piece, but this time I took Ms. Marvel #25 with the great Skrull cover he did. It was pretty cool because when he saw what issue I was asking him to sign, he was like, “Aw, there’s a great story behind this cover. You wanna hear it?” Like I’m going to say anything other than “Yes!” to that question. According to Greg, the cover of issue #25 was supposed to be of Ms. Marvel battling a Skrull Ms. Marvel, but Greg suggested a close-up of a Skrull Ms. Marvel with a finger to her lips to because he felt the battle cover would give away that Ms. Marvel isn’t a Skrull. (A variation on the “multiple Ms. Marvels battling” cover was used on the next issue, because by then it was revealed and no longer a spoiler.) On top of that cool little tidbit, he said the issue #25 cover led directly to his awesome “Who Do You Trust?” campaign I fell in love with that led up to Marvel’s Secret Invasion event!

I saw Ron Frenz at the Screaming Tiki Con last year, but for Pittsburgh, I brought Amazing Spider-Man #258 from the many issues of Frenz’s I have in the Original Collection for him to sign. He was really nice to chat with and talked up the kiddo, too, which was cool. I think Gary Friedrich has been at every con I’ve been to, but like with Frenz, this was the first time I took something for him to sign: Uncanny X-Men #45, a great Cyclops-centric tale written by Friedrich I picked up when I was collecting comics back in the '80s. Last up was Terry Moore. I had him sign the Runaways: Dead Wrong hardcover I snagged on sale at the show.

I met local artist Jeremiah Witkowski at the Screaming Tiki Con last year, and since become friends on Twitter and a fan of his You, Me + Steve web comic. (I actually mention both Jeremiah and the web comic in Deus ex Comica) It was cool to see him again and refresh our memories to put a face to the tweets. He gave the kiddo a signed Darth Vader sketch card and I picked up a copy of his book collecting 25 or so pages of You, Me + Steve goodness. Jeremiah is such a great ambassador to the Pittsburgh Comicon, I swear if the organizers knew what they were doing they have him on payroll!

It was also nice to chat with Michael Sangiacomo and Bill Pappas. I thanked Michael for the nice write-up he gave Deus ex Comica in the Cleveland Plain Dealer on Free Comic Book Day earlier this year. And we chatted about the state of mid-sized, regional cons and challenges of self-publishing and book promotion and all that good stuff. I hadn't seen Bill (who had hosted me for an in-store book signing, also on Free Comic Book Day) in a while, so it was good to catch up with him.

Apart from meeting and visiting with folks, I did some bargain hunting, too. (Actually, although this didn’t feel like I needed to attend the con multiple days, it seemed just the right mix of artists and creators and sales for a one-day visit.) It was Saturday, no doubt the busiest day of the con, so there weren’t any bargain basement prices, but there were plenty of vendors with half-off collected editions. Everything I bought was on sale for 50% or better. I didn’t go crazy, but picked up nine books I’ve been wanting for a while now, including the new Darwyn Cook Parker: The Hunter book, Annihilation Conquest Book Two and Dead @ 17 Ultimate Edition trade paperbacks, the oversized hardcover of Fallen Son, and Frank Miller’s Absolute Dark Knight (which was the best deal of the day for me, getting the seller down to 60% off retail). Good stuff all around!

Late in the afternoon, we made our rounds and said good-bye to Dave and Jeremiah, then headed for the Ohio border and home. It was a long day with nearly five hours in the car – more for Tracy with her detour from the con to IKEA and back – but we had a lot of fun (and we got the added bonus of seeing nature up-close and personal when we got home). I’ve got no complaints on the day, after all, it’s not every day you can say you gave a copy of your book to Stan Lee!