Here Comes Part the Third!
Comic-Con is twenty days away and… wait, that can't be right. Twenty days? Seriously? Adding a June convention really messes you up, I think. Man, that's not enough time.
It always pays to have new product at the show, so in addition to having Love and Capes #11, I'll also have Powerful Women #3. I know I thought I had my cover design done, but now I think not. I'm torn between using the Zatanna image and the Marvel Girl image. Zatanna would be my first brunette (previous ones were Poison Ivy and Supergirl) but Marvel Girl would be my first Marvel character. Anyone have any opinions? I've got until Monday morning to decide.
If you want to see the Marvel Girl image complete, click the preview and see it embiggened. I think it came out pretty well, actually.
The Forth Worth Horny Toad
In the midst of finishing Love and Capes #11, and the wacky Harvey Awards announcements (still reeling from that) and everything else, I took on a cover for the Fort Worth Weekly. It featured the mascot of a DFW school, the horny toad, graduating and being faced with a stack of bills. I love doing these covers. They're so much fun to draw, and always such wacky subjects. They're a great opportunity to cut loose.
Click here, or click the image to see a larger version of the cover. To see a "virgin" version, with no copy on it, click here.
It's Been an Ego Gratifying Day, Fer Sure
If people are going to compare me to Grant Morrison and have me come out ahead, I may just develop the Shatner-esque ego I've been accused of.
The Mocha of Victory, Part 11!
Hey, I just finished Love and Capes #11, and you know what that means. It's time for the Mocha of Victory! Since I swear working on this book is aging me, and because of how fast I needed to get it done, I decided to accompany the mocha with the Golden Age Flash.
And Done. Now I Can Start Again!
Last page done! Woo. In fact, woo and hoo!
This issue will lead into the big wedding issue in #12. Not that I'm showing the last page, but I will say, it's the first time the last page has had a full eight panels on it. In previous issues I've had a half splash or even a full splash. The ending of this issue isn't as "big" as previous issues, but that's fine. It's the calm before the storm.
Now to package this thing up and get it to the printer.
2009 Harvey Nominees Announced and… Great Googly-Moogly!
Wow! I've been nominated for not one, but two Harvey Awards. I've been nominated for Best Letterer for Buzzboy, which is cool enough, but I've also been nominated for Best Cartoonist for Love and Capes. That's fantastic. Amazing. And humbling. I'm up against some great competition, too. But hey, it's an honor just to be nominated. And yes, I am practicing saying that.
The awards are given out (well, I'd say earned) at Marc Nathan's awesomely awesome Baltimore Comicon in October. All of the cool kids will be there. You should be there, too.
Almost There, Stay on Target
Yeah, I like name checking and putting in some in-jokes here and there. Why I didn't think of making a Rick Castle joke sooner, given that Abby owns a bookstore, I'll never know. Well, it could be that Castle came out only while I was working on #11, and page 23 has the first bookstore scene in the entire issue. That could be it, but I still feel like I missed a boat.
Just one page left.
Get Your Jokes Ready
It's a horny toad. You'll see more of him later in the week, but he's been what's taking up my day today. Why? For what? Well, you'll just have to stay tuned, won't you?
Twenties One and Two
My friend Sean suggested I change the pacing of one of my jokes on page 21. I'd be upset if he wasn't right. In fact, the suggestion was something that I was toying about doing myself. I expanded one joke, and finished off with a cut line from an original draft.
All of this makes little sense, I'm sure, since I'm not showing the page. But it gives you an idea of how this process works. And will work over the next two pages until this bad boy is done. Man, am I looking forward to that.
So, now, our heroes are back on Earth. Why's the Crusader flying from an aircraft carrier? What adventure did he just have. Even I don't know. Make your own story.
The Famous Blackjack Page
Page 21 is done. Well, done-ish. The more I think about it, the more I think I need to move a few things around to really make it sing. I do the plots in advance, but sometimes they take on a life of their own. For instance, this whole "In Leandia" segment was originally going to end pages ago. I think it's working well, and now can't imagine doing it in less.
Yes, much thinking will be done. I'll try to fit that in between Secret Project X, a new cover for the Fort Worth Weekly, and, of course, a trip to see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. You have to have your priorities.