Exclusive first look at Sherlock Holmes vs Harry Houdini (via Bleeding Cool)
Just saw that BleedingCool.com has posted a few of the pages from our upcoming new comic series with Dynamite Comics, SHERLOCK HOLMES vs HARRY HOUDINI! You can check out the artwork at this link. We're quite excited about how this series is shaping out - we're in the midst of writing the latter issues and the artwork is coming in for the first couple issues. Should be great.
It's not too late to pre-order your copies at your local comic shop - go in this week and use the pre-order code of AUG141286. It'll be out in mid-October so only a month away!
Kill Shakespeare @ FanExpo this weekend!
While I refuse to acknowledge that the summer will be ending soon and the autumn beginning, I do recognize that one of the events that marks the countdown to fall is one of my favorite comic-cons, FanExpo Canada in Toronto. It's our hometown crowd and we always have a blast catching up with fellow Torontonians as well as meet our fans and earn new ones along the way.And yes, we will be attending this year's show, which is this weekend (Thu,Aug 28 - Sun, Aug 31) at the Metro Convention Centre in downtown Toronto.You can find us at Table P31 all weekend with books, issues, tshirts, stories and jokes. Yes, jokes! Come and say hello!
Page #1 of The Mask of Night #3
We're quite chuffed about the next issue of THE MASK OF NIGHT, released next Wednesday (the 27th). And in anticipation of it, here's a side-by-side image of the final inked Page #1 by Andy Belanger and the final colored lettered page (coloured by Shari Chankhamma, lettered by Chris Mowry). What do you think?
Mask of Night #3 is out next week (Aug 27th)!
Yes, the headline is correct... After a slate of very positive reviews for Issue #2, our third (and penultimate) issue of THE MASK OF NIGHT is out next Wednesday (the 27th)!(And yes, it's also an exciting day as it's my birthday... But I digress...)Here are the two covers for the issue... Which one do you like best?
Board game at Gen Con this weekend!
If any of you are attending Gen Con this weekend we are not... But IDW Games is! And at the show they are demonstrating our board game for the attendees... Check out this picture of our fan Michel Villeneuve making us jealous!
"It's a Hah-vahd bah." Pics from Boston Comic-Con!
I got back from Boston on Sunday night after a whirlwind stop through one of my favourite cities in the U.S.This was my third time attending the Boston Comic-Con and every time I go it gets bigger and better. It was great to see so many fans from the previous shows as well as meet new ones, sell/sign books and have people check out our swag.And thanks to everyone who attended my "How to Pitch Your Comic" workshop on Sunday. The vibe in the room was great and I enjoyed chatting with those that stopped by my table afterwards.Here are some pics from the weekend:
Three Days in Boston (this weekend)
It's a busy week for us with prepping the final issue of The Mask of Night (Andy Belanger's artwork is really amazing, and the issue should really allow for colorist Shari Chankhamma to shine as well), putting together the hard cover Backstage Edition, doing some work on our upcoming Sherlock Holmes vs. Harry Houdini series, and a bunch of other things. As well, I'm gearing up for one of my favourite shows...Boston Comic-Con 2014!
I will be at Table D709 the entire weekend. It's great as I'll be seated next to fellow Canuck creator Ramon Perez and amazing artist Marcio Takara. You can access a floor plan for the show here.I am also reprising my How to Pitch Your Comic workshop on Sunday at 11am in Waterfront Ballroom 1 (full event schedule here). It was a packed crowd last year and I received a great response and they asked me to return, which I am honoured to do. If you're trying to break into comics it's a great way to learn the ins-and-outs of the pitching process.So if you're in Boston please come and visit - last year was a great time and this year should be even better!
Hard Cover BACKSTAGE EDITION to come in October!
We're quite excited to announce that the long-awaited BACKSTAGE EDITION, which collects the original twelve issues of our tale, will be released in October of this year to comic book shops (and book stores)! With a leather hard cover, annotations by some of the top Shakespeare scholars in North America, an original Kill Shakespeare story, and original artwork designed by Andy Belanger, it's perfect for the biggest fans of our series!This is just a mock-up of what the cover will look like (we'll have it finalized in the next month):
You can pre-order copies at comic book shops this month (go now - order code is AUG140500!) or pre-order it online or with a book store. We're excited to see it first-hand in the very near future!
First Pages of The Mask of Night #2
With only a couple days before the release of The Mask of Night #2, here are the first three pages for your reading pleasure...
Our New Project!
Though we tend to blog almost exclusively on our Kill Shakespeare ventures, I figured that I would put a mention here of an upcoming comic book series that Conor and I are working on - and has just been announced this morning!Conor and I will be working with Dynamite Comics on SHERLOCK HOLMES VS. HARRY HOUDINI, a new five-issue series debuting this October in comic shops around the world!Looks like BleedingCool.com got the scoop on the series and posted the press release here. It appears as though they have my name wrong (I guess I'm now Spanish...?) but other than that it's great to see the news become public.And here is one of the covers - really cool!
Both Conor and I are quite excited about the series (I'm a big fan of the BBC Sherlock of recent years) and I can't wait for everyone to read it when it comes out!
Cover B of THE MASK OF NIGHT #2 Revealed!
Yesterday I posted the first cover THE MASK OF NIGHT #2. Today I'm posting the special sub-variant cover (aka really rare), created by artist J.K. Woodward for our upcoming Kill Shakespeare board game.Guilty or innocent? What says you?
The Mask of Night #2 cover!
It's scary how quickly time passes... We're now only two weeks ago from the release of The Mask of Night #2 (due in comic shops on Wednesday, July 23rd)!We've been pretty busy in the last couple of weeks with finalizing the rest of this mini-series (as well as some other things that will be announced soon) but we're excited to present our second issue of the series, picking up with Captain Cesario and his lover Viola, harboring Hamlet, Juliet, Othello and Shakespeare, and at the mercy of the Lavinia, Titus' main vessel. It's a tale of mutiny and love and should be one of our finest.Here is the first cover of the issue, done by our own Andy Belanger:
Check out the issue in two weeks at all comic book shops around the world!
Happy Birthday Conor!
Today (July 1st) is Kill Shakespeare co-creator Conor McCreery's birthday! So if you have a moment leave him a quick birthday note below, or on our Twitter or Facebook pages! Special points for those that leave him a note in iambic pentameter...
Happy birthday Conor!
Toronto Launch Event this Wednesday!
Now that we're back from L.A. Conor and I will be returning to our old stompin' ground of Toronto's Paradise Comics this Wednesday (the 26th) for a signing of the first issue of our new series, THE MASK OF NIGHT! It's where we have our first signing of our original series, as well as our sequel (The Tide of Blood) last year so we're looking forward to returning and hanging out with Doug, Pete and everyone else at Paradise.
We're signing from 4-7pm that day so come by and visit us and check out our new series!
The Mask of Night is revealed tomorrow!
Conor and I are currently in LA for meetings but being here will also give us a chance to celebrate the release of our new series, THE MASK OF NIGHT!The award winning series returns with a high seas tale of pirate battles, vengeance and lost love. Hamlet, Juliet, Othello and Shakespeare become pawns in a deadly game of survival between the legendary masked pirate Captain Cessario, his first mate Viola, and the new terror on the water, Titus Andronicus’ forbidding war ship The Lavinia.
Look for it in comic shops across North America tomorrow - Wednesday, June 18th!
First Page of The Mask of Night
With just over a week before the release of Kill Shakespeare: The Mask of Night #1 (released next Wed, Jun 18th) we're excited to release this first page of the issue. You can check out the amazing artwork by Andy Belanger (with colouring by Shari Hess) here:
This first page of the series introduces a brand new character into our story - the masked pirate Captain Cesario, who has a very interesting backstory and tie-in to one of Shakespeare's most beloved characters.Keep checking back for more sneak peaks!
Kill Shakespeare in New York!
It feels like such a long time since I've attended a convention (when in reality it's only been about six week or so)... But that (self-perceived) drought ends this weekend as I'm attending Special Edition: NYC!
This is a new convention and an extension of the uber-popular New York Comic-Con held every year in October. I figured that since I'm currently staying in New York I should check out the show and bring with me copies of our three volumes as well something brand new - copies of the first issue of The Mask of Night before it's even released (released next Wednesday, June 18th)!I will be at Table O2 all weekend so come by and visit!The show is on Saturday (the 14th) and Sunday (the 15th) at the Javits Centre North (for those that have been to NYCC before it's where Artists Alley always is). It'll be a smaller and more intimate show so I'm really looking forward to that aspect, as well as hanging out with some really talented fellow artists and creators.So come on by and check out the show!
Where it all began
I was going through my files recently and discovered this - the original treatment for Kill Shakespeare, written so many years ago. Wow. How this one doc changed my entire life and put me (and us) on this crazy and amazing ride...
Cover #2 for The Mask of Night!
Two days ago I previewed Cover A of the first issue of our new upcoming mini-series THE MASK OF NIGHT. The reaction online was really positive - people got excited about the art (by Andy Belanger) and the series.Today I'd like to post a preview of our second cover (Cover B), this time by renowned artist J.K. Woodward. J.K. was brought on by IDW Games to create the art for our upcoming board game Kill Shakespeare: The Board Game, and the art was so good that we decided to include it on the covers for the new series (which is a tie-in to the game). Here is the cover designed by him:
The Mask of Night revolves around Viola, the heroine from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. In our take she has become a bloody pirate and her discovery of Hamlet, Juliet, Othello and Shakespeare leads to a series of events that challenges her, her love, and her devotion to the sea.J.K.'s done a great job here of capturing Viola in action and I think will become a very popular piece of art in the Kill Shakespeare canon.Look for The Mask of Night #1 at comic shops on Wednesday, June 18th!