Scenes from a FanExpo
We had our first full day at FanExpo Canada today. It was a really, really busy day with lots of people stopping by our table - some brought copies for us to sign, some came to buy copies they couldn't find at stores, some found out about us today. We love attending conventions like these that allow us to chat with readers, Shakespeare fans, and everyone else.Conor and I also moderated an interesting panel regarding the current state of comics and where they are going. We had Scott Chandler, Willow Dawson, Ramon Perez, Cameron Stewart and Andy Belanger on the panel, which also saw some interaction with the audience. Thanks to everyone that came out.We look forward to one final day here - hopefully we'll have a chance to get away from the table and check out everything else at the convention. In the meantime, enjoy these photos that we were able to take today...
Graphic Novel Reporter Grills us!
We've always hoped that Kill Shakespeare becomes the sort of comic that people who don't usually read comics can pick up and enjoy. And part of that is getting educators and librarians to see both the value of Kill Shakespeare AND the value of comics as a unique medium that not only spans both literature and art, but also introduces a level of complexity in forcing the reader to work out how those two pieces inform each other.John Hogan is the editor of the very excellent Graphic Novel Reporter who, as part of Bookreporter.com, has an audience that spills nicely into those teachers and librarians.So enjoy our little chat with John, learn about who Anthony DESPERATELY wants to play Hamlet, and watch me use words that I probably don't actually understand ('contextualization?', really Conor?).All the reporter-y goodness can be found here.
An addition to the Kill Shakespeare family!
It takes a lot of people to make Kill Shakespeare a success. Some are obvious, Andy B. for art, Ian for colours, Kagan on covers... but that only touches the tip of the ice-berg. There are literally dozens of people who are helping to support Kill Shakespeare and recently one of our faves experienced a pretty fantastic milestone.Jethro Bushenbaum is the KSE accountant - he's talented, he's super cool (the coolest accountant EVER) and now -- he's a DAD!
So, it is our honour to officially welcome the SUPER-cute Henin Bushenbaum to the Kill Shakespeare world ('cause her folks already did a fine job of doing the OFFICIAL-official introduction to the WHOLE world a little while back).As you can see from the pics below she's already ridiculously adorable (erasing Papa's fears of perhaps having an "ugly baby" -- cause we all know how much THOSE suck!)
And as a little aside did you know that a Hennin (extra 'n') was a popular conical-style hat worn in medeival times and also in early colonial America?No you did not, and neither did I until Henin came along... see she's teaching us already!
Issue #5 Cover - Hamlet is Lost!
With Issue #4 successfully in comic book stores at the moment, we'd like to take a look ahead at our upcoming issue. Kill Shakespeare 5: O Coward Conscience is a great issue with some fantastic artwork (which we will be profiling in the coming two weeks). For the moment, here is the cover of Issue #5, done with precision by Kagan McLeod.For fun, try to spot all of the characters Kagan has put into the trees.
Another shameless plug for local cartoonists
Because we like spreading the word about the weird and wonderful things that local T-dot cartoonists are getting up to we bring you s0omething that qualifies on all accounts -- MILLER & MULLET.If you love vaudeville humour mixed with a certain amount of human suffering, terrifying imagery, pratfalls, and are not afraid of clowns then this may be your next fave web-comic.There is also a web-series but I haven't been watching that yet - although I'm gonna guess it'll be kinda surreal.ENJOY - this link will get you started with the comic.
We turn a heretic into a believer!
We've been fortunate to recieve a few pretty decent reviews so far - but this latest one may be one of the most special. It isn't just because the reveiwer gives us 10's across the board, it isn't just because the reviewer sees Kill Shakespeare as complex and intriguing. It's because when this guy first heard about Kill Shakespeare he HATED the idea. He absolutely LOATHED it. He made Kimberly Cox look like our #1 fan!!!So the fact that once he was able to delve into the work we were able to convince him that we really are on to something -- well that's really satisfying!You can read the review here.
Check us out at FanExpo Canada!
We will be attending FanExpo Canada this upcoming weekend, which coincidentally falls on my birthday weekend! FanExpo is one of the largest comic conventions in North America - either the third or fourth largest, depending upon who you talk to. It's a lot of fun and if you live in the city and have never attended a comic convention before, you should really check it out! I would recommend purchasing your tickets in advance, though - last year I was shut out one day because the line-up was around the corner. It made for quite the sight - a number of costumed people lined up on Front Street!...
Conor, myself, Andy and Ian will be at the convention for most of the weekend as Special Guests. Swing by our table - we're at table P36, right in the midst of artist alley. We'll be stationed with the rest of the Transmission-X folks, which should be fun. Conor and I are also moderating a panel - "Drawing Ahead: The Future of Comics", which will feature Andy B, Ramon Perez, Cameron Stewart, Scott Chantler, Willow Dawson and Max Douglas. We'll be looking at the evolution of comics distribution and trends to look for. Should be a great panel.Check out the FanExpo this weekend - should be fantastic!
Publisher's Weekly Profile
One of the highest profile publications in the publishing industry is Publisher's Weekly, which is read by most people in the industry not only in the U.S. but many other countries. We were very fortunate last July to be profiled by Calvin Reid, which was the kick-off for a great amount of publicity and interest in our project. Most importantly, we were able to use Calvin's title "Why Are Two Canadians Out to Kill Shakespeare" as the subject line for all introductory emails since then - it's such a strong and intriguing way to kick off a discussion!We had a pleasant breakfast conversation with Calvin on the final day of Comic-Con in San Diego late last month. We talked about a number of things beyond Kill Shakespeare - the content and hopes for the Scott Pilgrim film, digital distribution models in publishing, and a number of other topics. Calvin is a true fan of comics and has some great insights into the past and future of the industry.Our profile, with the title of "Killing Shakespeare for Fun and Profit", can be read by clicking on the photo of us with the Publishers Weekly crew (taken at Book Expo America in May of this year).
A Shamleless plug for a new friend!
The Kill Shakespeare boys love the sense of community in the comic world and so we're going to make a more concerted effort of introducing you to some of the young hungry creators we're meeting.
Richard Fairgray is an incredibly cool guy and a neat story. When we met him he was busy shoving a pen into his eye-socket... no, he isn't a Jim Rose devotee but a comics creator. It just so happens that Richard is almost 100-percent blind.Has he let that stop him? Hell no. In his native New Zealand he's a well-regarded comics writer AND artist (yeah, I feel humbled. Richard can't see and he's ten-times the artist I am). And he also has a cool new project called Blastosaurus that is getting some Hollywood love. It's sorta TMNT but with dinosaurs, a young idealistic boys and, well, blasters...Anyway his personal story makes him stand-out even more, but checking out his work I'm sure you'll agree his work succeeds on its own merit. Besides who can't like a dude who has a graphic-novel based on one of film's most famous legends - the Wilhelm Scream!
"KILL SHAKESPEARE did something that no English teacher ever could"
We have received a LOT of very positive reviews of late (I'm still buzzing from the one that mentioned the term "genius", though not sure if we deserve it...) but it's always great to get another one - this time from AintItCool.com. We received a positive review of the first issue back in April but this time the review is for our fourth issue - and the three leading up to it.Perhaps the best line from the review: "What I do want is writers who know how to dream and artists who brush with their souls. To that end, KILL SHAKESPEARE is a smashing success."
Check out the review by clicking on the image.
Letters like this make it all worth it!...
Conor and I received the email below earlier today. It's emails that this that make this project so worthwhile for us - having people tell us how much they love the series. It's also great that so many Americans have caught the series Slings & Arrows, a great Canadian television production. Thanks to Dana for her email, and we hope you continue to read the series!Just wanted to drop a line to say how much I'm enjoying this. The story is great, as well as the artwork. As a theatre actor I've had a love/hate relationship with Shakespeare over the years. Currently, between this and recently devouring the series Slings and Arrows. I'm in love again! Even reading Hamlet again just for funsies. Thank you so much for renewing my spirit!Much loveDanaSacramento, CA
"Pick this up and support one of the more creative books out there."
Our first review for Issue #4 is a strong one. Walter Richardson from Multiversity Comics has posted a strong review of our latest issue (now available at stores) and you can read it by clicking on the image.
"The essence of this book can be favorably compared to chocolate and peanut butter."
Issue #4 was released yesterday and we have our second (!) rave review! Noel Bartocci from Broken Frontier gives us a very high grade and some great quotes (perhaps we can use them as blurbs for future issues)! My favourite is this:"The essence of this book can be favorably compared to chocolate and peanut butter. Two great tastes, taste great together. Shakespeare’s massive library of characters juxtaposed with the more modern hero structure (Joseph Campbell, anyone?). That an idea that seems gimmicky works this well and has this much vitality is a credit to the creators."You can read the full review by clicking on the - yes, you guessed it - image of chocolate and peanut butter...
An EPIC, EPIC of KILL SHAKESPEAREAN EPICNESS - in four parts (To borrow from Scott Pilgrim) .
The ENTIRE Kill Shakespeare team (including that 'wascally wabbit' Andy) take part in a mammoth interview with Joe Wilcox at Oddly Together.Joe is a great journalist with year's of experience - it may be the first time we've been questioned by a guy who also cover's Microsoft's earnings.There are four parts to the awesomeness -- each one bite-sized and tasty.
Act 1 -- Enjoy as Andy gets to be the pitchman for the first time in a live interview. Thrill to how he says the series is about Shakespeare's characters playing with themselves. Gasp as Anthony and Conor reveal themselves to be Bert and Ernie on acid (those aren't two pillows....)
Act II -- Anthony gets us on track and explains what the heck this series is actually about. And he explains how Kimberly Cox may still be trying to kill us.
Act III - This was a real, real treat -- a WORLD-EXCLUSIVE sneak preview of art for issues #5, 6 and beyond. If you are a Kill Shakespeare devotee (as we know you are) you wanna check this clip out for sure!Act IV - We get philosophical here and ask a big question for Bardolators: Was Hamlet a suicide-case? Did he actually LET himself be killed in the play? And does that make him one big fat coward???All told we had a great time chatting with Joe, and we really hope you enjoy the interviews as much as we did making them!
Proof that we have "Ambition" (we told ya')
The Kill Shakespeare boys were honoured to be part of a campaign run by IMPACT and the Canadian Youth Business Foundation called "I am My Ambition". It's designed to help young entrepreneurs (lie us!) inspire other Canadians to take a risk and start their own business.
Unfortunately for us the audio on Anthony's mic wasn't working well so the video is short on his very excellent observations, but still you get to see how fast Conor talks in meetings -- Woah! Slow down Speed Racer!Click here to see the video and here to check out this excellent organization that might be able to help you with your first (or next) business.
Issue #4 - Selected Artwork Previews
Released this Wednesday, August 4th, here is a selection of artwork from the issue. Artist Andy B had a blast introducing two of the most important characters to our story, Othello and Juliet. Artwork is by Andy Belanger and colouring by Ian Herring. For a full-size version of the images click on each.
Issue #4 - Preview of first two pages
As we finish off our week o' meetings in LA, Conor and I have begun to prep for the release of Issue #4 next week (August 4th). We're really happy with this issue as it introduces Juliet and Othello and is an issue full of action with some great artwork by Andy B. As we move towards the release date we'll be putting more images on the website so continue to look for that.Here are the first two pages of Issue #4...
Issue #4 Cover Art - Enter Juliet. Enter Othello.
We are a week away from the release of Kill Shakespeare #4 (release date is Wednesday, August 4th) and we are excited to see what the reaction of readers will be to our interpretation of Juliet. She makes a great appearance in this issue - as does Othello. This issue is filled to the brim with action, action, action.Here is the great cover art by Kagan McLeod.
SDCC Day 3: An impromptu video improv...
On Friday evening at Comic-Con we dined with John Hogan and Carol Fitzgerald of BookReporter.com and GraphicNovelReporter.com... The evening started out really cool as we ate at a family Italian restaurant by the name of Doppa De something (Conor made fun of the fact that all Italian sounds like that). We dined with great people like Gina Gagliano (sp?) at First Second Publishing, teacher Bill McGrath, and librarian Eva Volin.Eva dragged us away from our dessert that evening to do a quick video hit - which has just showed up on YouTube. You can watch the video here.And because we had done so many interviews that day, those that know us will see that Conor and I switched roles for this interview (Conor's idea, I must admit)... It made sure that we didn't answer in the same media bites we normally would...
SDCC Day 2: Chillin' on a yacht...
We spent a bit of the afternoon earlier today hangin' on a yacht, just hanging with uber geek Jeff Katz from GeekWeek.com and a host of others. We talked about Comic-Con, comic books, film, business, rock and roll, and everything else. Jeff is a great guy and tells it like it is - very refreshing in any entertainment industry.Watch live video from geekweek on Justin.tv