Pics from Calgary Expo
We had a simply amazing time in Calgary last year. We've been to many Cons over the last two years and Calgary is definitely, if not the best, then right up there. We organizers were absolutely fantastic, the crowds amazing, and people were super-excited to see us there. So much so, in fact, that sold out of trade paperbacks by Saturday at 2pm and after that only had artwork and individual issues to sign (the latter of which sold out Sunday at 1pm).Thanks to everyone associated with the event for a great time. Thanks to the organizers, to the fellow artists and creators, to the organizers of the Joe Shuster Awards (which I missed as I was at our table but Conor attended), to the CBC for running our profile that very weekend, and for everyone who stopped by to chat with us. I've said it many time already but I'll say it again - one of the best parts of our time with Kill Shakespeare thus far has been being able to chat with fans and readers at conventions. We look forward to our next one - Baltimore in August!Here are various photos taken over the weekend.
Congrats to the RMSS class of 2011!
I was given the honour earlier today of speaking to my high school alma mater's 2011 graduating class. It was great visiting my old high school, Roland Michener Secondary School in South Porcupine, ON. For those outside of Canada, it's about a nine hour drive north of Toronto - and also the birthplace of Shania Twain as well!
I prepared a five-minute speech filled with as many cliched words of advice and inspiration as possible - all did in a rapid-fire manner that took only about one minute. I then encouraged the grads to follow one piece of advice: travel. Travel as much as possible to garner inspiration and education from different people, cultures and customs.Thanks to Miss Drummond and Mr. Mulroney for inviting me to take part in the event and best of luck to all graduates of RMSS - and all high schools everywhere!(The Timmins Daily Press front page story of the ceremony can be found here.)
Kill Shakespeare Profiled on CBC's The National
We just got back yesterday from a fantastic convention in Calgary where we made a ton of new fans and friends and sold out our books by mid-day Saturday! One of the reasons for our sell-out was the profile on us that ran on CBC's The National with Peter Mansbridge. It was a great almost-four-minute segment that featured interviews with us, Bayside Secondary School teacher Kent Allin, Bayside student Catherine Chokly and Soulpepper Theatre's artistic director Albert Schultz.To watch the clip, click on any of the images below (all taken from the segment) 0r here.
CBC National & The World at Six Profiles!
We have been fortunate to receive a great deal of media attention since the launch of our series last year. However, one of our biggest hits will be on air later this week.
The major Canadian television network CBC will be doing a profile of Kill Shakespeare on their flagship nightly news and current affairs show The National. It is scheduled to air this Friday (the 17th at 10pm) in a run-up to the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo and the Joe Shuster Awards (for which we are nominated for Outstanding Comic Book Writing). The news team, led by reporter Arisa Cox and producer Nigel Hunt, followed us as we did talks at Barbara Frum Library (Toronto) and Bayside Secondary School (Belleville). They also interview teacher Kent Allin and Soulpepper Artistic Director Albert Schultz.The profile will also be aired on CBC Radio's program The World at Six with Alison Smith. This program is schedule to air the same day - Friday the 17th at 6pm.
Please keep in mind that these dates and time are all subject to change, depending upon the events of the day. But if you're in Canada and around the television or radio tune in and find out more about Kill Shakespeare! We will also post links once everything goes live online.
Mosey on to Calgary!
Our creative team (myself, Conor and Andy B) will be appearing at the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo next weekend (June 17 - 19th). We're excited to take part in this event as it'll be our first time promoting our series to the Western Canadian market - and we've also heard such great things about this Con. It's the biggest in Western Canada and apparently people travel from all over British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and even Manitoba to check it out!
Also, I will be appearing at Happy Harbor Comics in Edmonton on Thursday, June 16th in a Mini-CCEE event. It will run from 7 - 10pm at the Jasper Avenue location and will include myself, Jim Zub (Skullkickers), Omar Dogan (Udon Studios) and Ray Fawkes (Apocalypstix).
Stars of HeroesCon!
I just wanted to take a couple of moments now that the crush of HeroesCon is over and bring you up-to-date on some of the coolest people and things I saw in Charlotte.Teenage Satan: This insidiously amazing idea percolated from the unholy trio of Stephanie Buscema, Marsha Cooke and Candis Cooke. Uh, Satan? In high-school? Yes please! (and these ladies are already scaring the system, the corporate muck-a-mucks made them take down their first trailer).
Ninjasaurus: Written and drawn by my doppelganger, Jason Horn, this web-comic asks what would happen if a dinosaur trained in the blacks arts of Ninjitsu? The answer: Lots of fighting (but surprisingly little biting).All City Studios: I never got a chance to chat with John Hairston, the man who does this amazing work, but his Galactus, Panda's and Shanti Babba-inspired work speaks for itself. If not for a very real fear of being murdered by my fiancee, and a total lack of funds, one of these babies woulda been mine.
Richard Case: A fantastic comic artist who now works primarily in video games, Richard is probably best known for his work on Grant Morrison's run on Doom Patrol. He gave us this awesome sketchbook and was an all-around amazing guy.Jackie Lewis, Noelle Giffin, Jen Keith, Laura Truxillo: These were four lovely ladies we met who are all either in art-school, or just finishing who are working on their own projects. Check out this new talent and see what the next wave of female illustrators and comic artists is up to!
Heroes of Heroes Con!
Heroes Con this past weekend in Charlotte was amazing! A great time where we met a lot of new friends, old ones, made new fans, and had a fun time (Andy is only now catching up on his sleep...). Thanks to everyone that stopped by our table during the weekend and we hope to keep in touch with all of you!Over the weekend we snapped a number of pictures and here are some of the highlights...
TEENAGE SATAN!
We're very fortunate to know the talented and lovely Marsha Cooke - one of our favourite people in the world of comics. Well, Marsha has given us ANOTHER reason to worship at her temple of awesomeness as she, Stephanie Buscema and Candis Cooke have come together to create the awesome looking Teenage Satan!Check out the trailer below (and because Marsha is so bad-ass, she challenged mighty Warner by using Martin Solveig's "Hello" as this clip's original score. But after 17,000 views they made her pull it down. I get it, but BEWARE Warner - Teenage Satan has you on a list!)I'm also a little jealous that Marsha already has an entire suite of often web-games ready to go... just reminds me we really need get ourselves in gear on that front).Enjoy!
Life too boring? Maybe a zombie apocalypse will help.
Hey all,
Just taking a moment before we head off to Heroes Con to give a nod of the head to David Bishop one of the great guys behind the Renerd and Talking Dead podcasts and a web-comic creator of some note. As you can probably guess from one of the titles of those podcasts Dave is a zombie fan - a BIG zombie fan. Therefore it is no surprise that his webcomic Stranger is an interesting entry into the genre.It's early yet so I can't tell you TOO much about how Dave plans to make his zombie tale distinctly different, but I know we have a stuffed bear to reckon with.And Sean.Poor Sean.What I like most is the fact that David is very willing to let the art speak for itself. The first few pages of Stranger have no dialogue - we just get a growing horrific sense of how large the zombie horde in this world is - and how quickly they can mass.For the Kill Shakespeare fan who's been waiiting (in vain) for Zombie Iago I hope Stranger helps fill your insatiable lust for brains... braaaains....Conor
On our way to Heroes Con!
(Well, we haven't left yet... we're departing on Thursday morning...)Conor, Andy and I will be attending the famous Heroes Con this upcoming weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina. We're excited to attend because we've heard a LOT of great things about the event and they have a great roster of talent attending.
We will have a table in the small press section so if you're at the Con please stop by and say hello (and pick up a book if you haven't done so already). We're happy to meet everyone!
All positive reviews for Issue #11 (round-up)
With the launch of our 11th issue came a wide range of reviews for the issue. And we're happy to see that they are all quite positive - and all look forward to the release of final issue in July!
Starting off, we received a review by David Pepose at Newsarama (click on the image to go to the review). The site, of course, is one of the top out there for news and reviews in the comic and geek worlds and I must admit that I felt a little slighted that we had only received one review from them for the entire duration of our series. However, David has stepped up to the plate and put together a great review, with mainly positive and some slightly negative and constructive thoughts on our issue (and series). My favourite: "But for what is essentially a war comic that hits the literary fanboy button, this is an issue that will be appreciated by diehards and new readers alike."
Secondly, top comic website, ComicBookResources, posted another review of one of our issues last week (after having missed Issue #10). This is another positive - however, writer Ryan K. Lindsay also wonders if, with one of our plot points (that of a new side of Puck) we have "jumped the shark" ("There have been some creepy and imaginative visuals in the past, but Shakespeare’s multi-eyed soldier takes this book in a sudden and jarring direction. It’s a twist, and one not all will like, but it certainly provides a rich backdrop on which to paint this finale."). But overall he likes the issue and especially enjoys a scene with Hamlet and Juliet (one of my favourite moments in the entire series).
A small comic blog, Paradox Comics Blog, did a mini-review of our issue. Review Matt C gave us an 8/10 and said that "the whole thing sets the pulse racing through pure excitement as the denouement appears upon the horizon."
Perhaps our most loyal reviewer and interview, ComicBookDaily's Andrew Ardizzi, posted another very positive take on our series, stating, "The series has been tremendously well done up to this issue and barring an unfathomable gaffe in the final installment I would dare call it a comic book masterpiece."And finally, we love to shine the spotlight on new blogs and writers. One of which is Shaun Daniels of Horror Haven Reviews. He posted his first review of our series and stated that he really enjoyed it, stating, "Put down The Merchant of Venice or A Midsummer’s Dream and pick up Kill Shakespeare…it is Shakespeare for the 21st century."
Issue #11 is released!
Our penultimate Issue #11 (Once More Unto the Breach) is released today in comic book stores in North America (the UK and foreign locales will get their copies tomorrow)!
We're really happy with this issue as is really drives the story forward towards our final issue (of this arc), which will be released in late July/early August. The early reviews are really positive, including a great review at Newsarama.So if you'd like to purchase a copy, swing by a local comic book store (you can find the closest to you at this link) - and let us know what you think!
Issue #11 Artwork
After the fantastic work by Andy Belanger (pencils and ink) and Ian Herring (colours) - as well as the lettering by Chris Mowry - in our Issue #10, it might be tough to top it for our next issue, due out this week. Well, I'll let you and all of the readers be the judge of that, but I think that the artwork in this issue is just as strong!Here are some early images from the issue (Issue #11: Once More Unto the Breach). You can also check out a preview of the first six pages of the issue at this link.
It's all worth it because of letters like this...
After a really long week of working on our script, prepping Issue #12 and other various Kill Shakespeare business, I'm really burned out and look forward to Canada's Victoria Day long weekend. However, no matter how hectic things are, it all becomes worth it when I receive an email like this, as I did yesterday from a young reader and fan:Dear Anthony,How can i get a hold of volume 2? Your comic changed my life! What made you want to write this? What was your inspiration? You have heightened my passion for shakespeare that much more, further emphasizing my passion to become an English teacher. Thank you! You guys do incredible, incredible work. SUPER FAN! Alec
Issue #11 Covers
Our Issue #11 is being released next week (Wednesday, May 25th) and in anticipation of this, we will be releasing images from the issue over the next week...First off, let's take a look at the two covers for this issue. The first is another fantastic cover by our artist Kagan McLeod, who had fun working with the concept of theatrical masks.
Earlier this year we held a Cover Contest, encouraging new comic artists their first opportunity to get their art in this issue. The eventual winner was Alex Perkins, a Toronto-based artist who put together a great cover with a very cool mood to it.
Images from Conor's Sun TV Interview
Conor had a ten-minute segment on Sun TV's Charles Adler Show this evening and it went amazingly well. Charles was quite interested in not only Kill Shakespeare but our successful attempts to introduce the Bard to a new audience as well as the relevance of comics today.The actual interview is not available online at this point but you can check out some of the following images:
Conor on Sun TV tonight!
For those in Canada, Conor will be on the new Sun TV tonight. Featured at around 6:40pm EST (or so), he will be discussing Kill Shakespeare, the Bard in general, and the new Stephen Marche book How Shakespeare Changed Everything. If you're around, check him out - and let us know what you think of the interview!
All Over Toronto This Weekend
After last weekend's appearance in Boston, we will be making a number of appearances in Toronto this weekend (May 7th and 8th).Saturday is Free Comic Book Day, an initiative in which most comic book stores in North America distribute free copies of various books to anyone coming into the store. We will be at the Silver Snail (367 Queen Street West) from 10am - 1pm to sign copies of books and give away a few free copies. It's also the Snail's 35th anniversary so it should be a good time.
We will also be at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF) both Saturday and Sunday. One of our favourite conventions/festivals, TCAF has a very indie flavour to it and features some cool guests (including Darwyn Cooke). We will be there Saturday from 9 - 5 and Sunday from 11 - 5, hanging out in the Transmission-X area (you can find a map of the show here). The show is at the Toronto Reference Library (789 Yonge Street) and is free for everyone.
Retailer Profile: Million Year Picnic (Boston)
One of the great things about beginning our trek on the convention scene is that it gives us not only a chance to visit different cities and meet existing/new readers and fans, it gives us the opportunity to check out some great retailers that are at the forefront of influencing readers about our title.This past weekend Andy B and I were in Boston. I had spoken to Dave Kender from the Boston Comics Roundtable and one of his first suggestions for us was to check out Million Year Comics, located right in the middle of Harvard Square. It's a cool shop located on the lower level of the building and reminds me a lot of our excellent The Beguiling shop here in Toronto.
Million Year Picnic is run by Tony Davis, a really cool cat (a jazz term, influenced by the music he was playing that day) that's been at the story for over fifteen years. He watches over a store that has an excellent range of product - everything from the latest Marvel and D.C. titles to indie fare like our title, and even rare stuff like Matt Groening's Life in Hell books, which Groening had come in and signed himself years ago.
I then saw Tony (as well as Sergio Leon, who was also at the store when I stopped by) all weekend at the Comic Con. He's a true comic fan and someone who really puts together a great store in the area. If you're in the Boston area and would like to read some cool stuff, go visit the store!
Photos from Boston Comic Con
This past weekend Andy Belanger and I traveled to Boston to attend the Boston Comic Con. It was our first trip there (both to the Con and the city) and it was a blast. We met some great people, had some good food, and followed in the footsteps of Mark Zuckerberg (watch out, Conor...).Thanks to everyone who swung by our booth to meet us - the fans, the new readers, the media, the retailers, the costumed superheroes. The greatest thing about working in the comic book industry is having the opportunity to meet directly with the people who are reading your series and hearing what they like and don't like (thankfully, it's been much more of the former instead of the latter...).Here are a few pictures from the weekend:
