Upcoming Events!

There are a lot of events that I am involved with in the next month leading up to the release of Leo Geo and the Cosmic Crisis!  It's a busy month, and it's only going to get busier as November 5th gets closer!  The first two events take place at the MICE convention in Cambridge, MA this weekend, which I am SO excited for!

Comics Carousel
MICE, Cambridge, MA
2-3pm | Saturday, September 28
Host R. Sikoryak brings a special edition of his long running comics/performance series to MICE. Featuring readings and projections by Jon Chad, Jess Fink, Sophie Goldstein, George O’Connor, Kriota Willberg, and R. Sikoryak!

Making Mini-Comics!
MICE, Cambridge, MA
11:15am-12:30pm | Sunday, September 29
How does your comic become a book? If you thought that a book is just made up of a cover, back cover, and all the business in-between, think again! Explore a variety of folding and book construction techniques and make your own unfolding, choose-your-own-adventure minicomic!  This workshop is great for kids!!

Pen & Ink Workshop
Howe Library, Hanover, NH
2-4pm | Sunday, October 6
Learn about pen and ink illustration in this workshop with local cartoonist Jon Chad for adults and teenagers in grades 9 and up at 2 p.m. on Sunday, October 6. Participants are encouraged to bring their own pen and paper, but materials will be available for those who do not have their own.
http://thehowe.org/interior.php/pid/2/sid/1/eid/3053

Creating Graphic novels for Kids
New York Comic Con, NYC
12-1pm | Sunday, October 13
I'm going to be on an awesome panel with some amazing kids comics creators!  Description: Join seven great graphic novelists who make comics for kids – Andrew Arnold and Alexis Frederick-Frost (Adventures in Cartooning), Jon Chad (Leo Geo) Jimmy Gownley (Dumbest Idea Ever), Sheila Keenan and Nathan Fox (Dogs of War), and Paul Pope (Battling Boy) – for a fun, interactive look at all their newest books! Moderator: Chris Duffy (Fairy Tale Comics, Nickelodeon Magazine).  Location: 1A17

I'll also be doing a signing and giveaway of Leo Geo and the Cosmic Crisis before the panel at the First Second booth!
 
Also, next week, I'll be announcing a fun preorder offer that I'm going to extend to people who preorder Leo Geo and the Cosmic Crisis!  Stay tuned!

New Minis for SPX

If you thought the wild MEZMER was the only new mini I was bringing to SPX, you would be happily mistaken!  I was hoping that I would have copies of Leo Geo and the Cosmic Crisis to share with you all at SPX, but it looks like it won't be out in time : (  So, I redoubled my efforts to have some fun new minis!

First up is Leo Geo and the Long Snake!  This is a re-drawing of the original Leo Geo comic I drew back in 2007 when I was trying out the idea of a continuous visual canvas.  Up until now, I've only had the one hand drawn version on my shelf.  No longer!  Now, you too can see Leo go through a snake and not understand how a snake's anatomy works!

The next book is a little mini about one of my favorite MEZMER characters, Bluebell!  It started out simply as a book about Bluebell flying around and having fun, but it morphed into a story about how she met Ferls.  It's also about body positivity!!  It comes in this little ziplock bag with an original drawing from Bluebell to Ferls.  I drew 60 of these and had an absolute blast!

It's Bluebell!

The last book is Bud Sinclare's Death Speech.  Bud Sinclare is a ferocious denizen from the world of MEZMER!  He appears at the end of the MEZMER book that I've put together.  The only way that you can get your hands on this mini is to check out the second issue of the Dog City anthology!  I don't know if "issue" is the right world, though; since each is a box with over a dozen different components!  It's the real deal!!  This box set was put together by some students of mine, and it is really out of this world.  The first issue came out in spring and is already SOLD OUT!  Get it while it's hot!

Basewood Kickstarter!

Hey guys, my super-bud Alec Longstreth has just launched a Kickstarter to print his amazing book Basewood in the states!  This book is absolutely beautiful!  The detail is incredible (and we know how much I enjoy drawing detail), and the story is really compelling!  If there was any Kickstarter that you might consider backing (besides the PAPA pinball Kickstarter from earlier this year), it should be THIS ONE!  Alec gave me permission to reblog this blog post about the project:

My Kickstarter campaign to get Basewood professionally printed has launched! This has been my big project for the last couple of months, and I'm very excited to finally send it out into the world. You can get all the details over on the Basewood Kickstarter page.
 
Obviously, I need to get this information out to as many people as possible in order for it to be successful, so I would really appreciate everybody's help spreading the word. There is a Phase Seven Comics facebook page, but technically I'm not personally on Facebook, so any posts in that realm would be greatly appreciated.

Also, to celebrate this launch, I have put the entirety of Basewood up online for people to read (for FREE!) Hopefully this will let people check out the book and encourage them to back the project.
Readers of this blog are already familiar with the massive effort it took to draw Basewood. It was ten years of my life, and I'm really hoping this campaign will be successful so that I can get the book printed the way I think it deserves to be presented. We'll see how it goes!

 

images and bog post copyright Alec Longstreth

Leo Geo and the Cosmic Crisis Advance Copies!

Ooooh!  Ahhhhhh!  I've been so busy getting ready for the new semester here at CCS that I was totally blindsided by a package of these beauties in the mail!  It's so amazing to see the final form of something I love so much!  November 5th can't come soon enough!

I have some really fun news for you guys next week, so thank you for bearing with me while I get my ducks in a row!

Secret Summer

I'm really busy right now, so just a quick check in.  I'm working on a couple of projects that I have to keep the lid on for now, but I have a couple of images to share.  I've been working on a pretty exciting minicomic project that I CAN'T wait to talk about, but in the meantime, its construction is draining every last drop of strength from my body...

 

Metal Metro leads a group of aid workers to the robot conflict site from the night before.

Bad Mask Roll Call 6

Assemble, members of the international mischief coalition!  BAD MASK!  Things are busy as always here in Vermont, but here are some crooks to occupy your Wednesday!

 Areo Mask / Avia Mask: A master of the aviary arts, Areo has an indeterminate number of birds at his command.  Some he uses for reconnaissance, some for transportation, and some for attack.  Because his abilities can be applied to a wide variety of departments, Areo Mask was put in charge of the Adaptive Response Provisional Unit.  He is also the brother of Acro Mask.

 PH Mask: A disgraced professor from the University of Texas, PH Mask is an experts in extreme acids.  Using Bad Mask's advanced chemical division labs, PH Mask has been able to create acids whose acidity goes beyond the measurable PH scale.  One in particular, the Hyphonis, cannot be extinguished once exposed to oxygen.

 Xento Mask: Eruido 244 came from the Planet Xento to Earth in 1994.  Attached to crime as one of Earth's great pastimes, Eruido threw in with Bad Mask.  His advanced intellect and fast reflexes make him an exceptional agent.  Xento Mask, despite his love of crime as a hobby, firmly believes in the Space Code of Certain Secrets (SCCS) and has forbidden himself from disclosing any information on advanced Xento technology, Metatron Trade Routes, etc.

Pinball Poster!

Hello!  Normally, when I do work for the Professional and Amateur Pinball Association, I have to wait a month or two until the event happens to let you guys know about it!  This poster I did for the 16th World Championships was released right away, though!  I'm super pumped!  I'm working on some more pinball goodies, as well as MEZMER pages (I'm up to 60).  Sorry I've been so imcommunicado on the web, but there's too much fun stuff happening!

Also, if you live in the Pittsburgh area, you should ATTEND PAPA 16!!