Tag Archives: Disunity

Post-Turkey Roundup

Whew. Almost didn’t contribute to the Goodness of Words this month. I blame, well, myself. But that’s a good thing! It should confirm your sneaking suspicion that I’ve been toiling away, processing words in the pursuit of storytelling.

Most keystrokes as of late have been dedicated to the Millarworld Annual Competition. My entry was a short story set in the Starlight universe, featuring Duke McQueen — a character designed to explore the nuances of classic science fiction. We shall see how I fare; winners’ll supposedly be announced by the end of December, so I will be sure to post my submission soon after that.

Rotating off of the back burner is a new scripting method for disunity #3. Ron and I are going to try a Marvel-style format as we move forward. (The good ol’Stan-Lee method!) It should speed up our process a bit. My first pass should be done come this weekend, though my playthrough of StarCraft 2 might dictate otherwise.

Since this has turned into a to-do list of sorts, I might as well add lettering the inked pages for Dismal Signals to the pile. In the spirit of suspense, I’ll keep the black-and-white art to myself until I’ve thrown words on’em. The big question is whether or not I should seek out a colorist.

While I’ve been wording it up, Fahriza has been killing it on the coloring front. I’ll let his latest page speak for itself, a WIP treatment for one of Ambrosia #1’s two-pagers:

It’s crazy how much Noah’s art pops after seeing it fully rendered. I am very much looking forward to sharing more of this project as February approaches.

Luckily I’ve got plenty of room to test my mettle in the meantime. The second issue of disunity was published via comiXology Submit last week. So far reviews have been relatively positive, and hopefully I’ll have plenty to share come next month. Just as I start to think I’m getting this writing thing figured out, I realize I am flying blind when it comes to the art of (shameless) self-promotion.

Words are Good is an extension of said initiative, to an extent, but I’ve been thinking about ways to expand my use of WordPress — if for no other reason than to keep the fingers moving. My goal for 2015 was to write more, and I have written. Next year I think the plan’ll be to maintain my level of productivity while adding a lot more reading and reflection into the mix. Words are good, after all.

With one hour to spare, I bid November adieu. My parting gift is a brief preview of disunity #2. Enjoy!

Pleasantville

Recent studies have shown that I am only able to update this here blog of mine once per month. Today I’m here to confirm this evidence. And here is the news:

The search for Ambrosia‘s colorist has concluded! After receiving samples from a handful of very talented candidates, Noah and I decided to move forward with Fahriza Kamaputra. It is great to see the last piece of our creative team fall into place!

First glimpses of Ambrosia with colors

We intend to have enough pages ready by February to take the project to Kickstarter. Check out our introduction to Ambrosia as well as the first of many Ambrosia updates to get a taste for what’s to come.

My focus for the next week or two will be a submission for the Millarworld Annual. Most of the time I am rather standoffish about entering contests of this sort, but the chance to write my take on Duke McQueen is too tempting to shy away from.

Dismal Signals is moving along nicely as well. Finished inks are due any day now from Mr. Roque — I am eager to start throwing words on them pages! Not sure where this story’s headed yet. It may be the first short I shop around for publication consideration in anthologies and whatnot.

Dismal Signals, page 1, inks WIP

I completed the lettering for disunity #2 last weekend, which means it is a final edit away from being sent to ComiXology Submit. It can be a while before the issue is actually published, so check back here for an official announcement (and extended preview). The first issue is still available for free, via this link, and embedded below.

Reviews, Previews, and Other News

Forgive me Blog-Father, for I have slacked. My last submission was nearly a month ago and these are my updates. This is not to say I haven’t been flexing my typin’ fingers however.

I’ve joined the team of contributors over at Full Access Magazine, a print publication focused on the rock-and-roll scene down here in Florida. My first appearance was the September issue, with one article, though I’ll have four interviews in October’s release.

It is a refreshing exercise, to be pursuing journalistic endeavors again — I hadn’t since my college days. While the bands I’ve had the privilege of speaking with are not necessarily my sound of choice, I have immense respect for any artist who manages to make a living off of their creations. Next month’ll feature Three Days Grace, Breaking Benjamin, Iration, and The Cruz Brothers. Stay tuned!

Earlier in the month, Disunity #1 launched on comiXology ($1.99) and ComicsFury (for free), though I have made it available for direct download via this link. We’ve shopped it around for reviews and it would seem we’re doin’ alright for a pair of first-time indie creators:

Lettering for issue two begins this week, and we’re hoping to release by the middle of October. Last but not least, check out the pencil sketches for my latest collaboration, Dismal Signals, courtesy of the talented Rowel Roque:

Disunity #1 Preview

The last of my three projects in production at the moment, Disunity takes place in an unstable reality where a wormhole leaves monstrosities stranded on Earth, and has been doing so for the last 200 years.

What follows is a preview of our first issue, which is headed to comiXology sooner rather than later. Number two should be on the way soon!

Juggling is Fun

For anybody wondering where the words went, my flash fiction efforts have been placed on hold for the last few weeks. Do expect some prose to pick up again come September.

In the meantime I am proud to announce that Ambrosia, a passion project cooked up by myself and a life-long friend, Noah Graham, is headed to Kickstarter come February 2016.

We’ve created POV Comics to serve as the imprint for what will be the first of many collaborations. Our social media accounts soft-launched last week in anticipation of next year’s crowdfunding campaign. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for the latest on Ambrosia and POV!

Yet juggling one ball isn’t very fun. Productivity is best served with a side of bedlam, at least in my kitchen. To raise the stakes I’ve taken on two side projects as well: Firstly I was hired as the editor for Tesla Stormborn, a graphic novel inspired by the autobiography of Nikola Tesla. The second endeavor is a collaboration with Blotch Comics as co-writer for their flagship title, Disunity.

Expect more on that latter book later this coming week. Issue one is just about wrapped up and I should have the content for number two finalized this evening.

Since this update has turned into a bit of a humble brag, I might as well end it on an even braggier note. Back in May I entered a “Blind Date” competition on reddit, where users registered as either an artist or a writer. Teams were randomly paired together and tasked with creating a 5-to-8-page comic in two months.

I don’t think I’ve seen sixty days fly by so fast. We ended up with our backs against the wall come the deadline, electing to try me out as a letterer (for my first time ever) and sacrifice the color we originally envisioned for the pages. In the end, of the 40 teams to register, only 11 finished. My script, Dismal Signals, won Best Story/ Writing.

Expect this blog to converge more with my other creative efforts moving forward. Between here, POV Comics, and BlackShipBooks.com (a pop-culture site I write for and help manage), there are enough plates spinning to work up a sweat. Now let’s see if I can’t keep’em rotating fast enough to say balanced.

Worst-case scenario I crash and burn. Catastrophe is entertaining too, eh?