Sneak peak at gameplay!
I hope that everyone had a fantastic holiday season and a great New Year's celebration! Here's to an amazing 2014!We will have a few interesting new items in the first half of this year but perhaps the most exciting one will be the Kill Shakespeare board game in May/June of this year. We will be putting together an pre-purchase awareness campaign next month but before that we're deeply immersed in the nuts and bolts of game creation. The early art by JK Woodward has been amazing and Conor and I are currently scripting some of the cards and missions for the game.However, the folks at IDW have been even luckier as two weeks ago they were able to do a very, very early play-test of the game. It's still quite rough with no art, set missions or some details missing but Jerry, Nate and Ted were able to get a feel for the game mechanics involved.Here are a couple photos from the very early play test. As mentioned, I'm so jealous!(Thanks to Nate Murray from IDW for sending the photos!)
Ophelia's Letter to Santa... (McSweeney's)
As I celebrate the holidays here in Canada with loved ones I figured I should post something quite funny my sister just showed me... Letters to Santa from Shakespeare Characters, created by McSweeney's a few years ago. You can check them all out here.
My favourite, from Ophelia:Dear Santa:How does my lord? I am fine. I believe ’tis possible you did not receive my wish list last year, or that it fell into unsavory hands and was rudely tampered with before reaching you, as all you brought me was a chastity belt and some granny underpants. I pray that this one flies to you untainted since this year hath really sucked. I wish for the following:— He’s Just Not That Into You (book and DVD)— “All About Me” Lock and Key Diary— National Geographic Flower and Leaf Pressing Kit— Coastal Deluxe Automatic Inflatable Life VestFingers crossed, Ophelia
We took our talents to South Beach! Errrr, Miami-Dade College Campus
As we move into the chill of December here in Toronto I thought I'd share some photos from our time in the sun this past month when I was able to represent Kill Shakespeare at the Miami Bookfair.
Miami is a special place for K.S. as, as a Bookfair, it represents a very different audience for us. When we first went down to the show four years ago we had one book and no sense of how "real" readers would respond. In addition we were sharing a booth with another comic creator and there were only four of us with tables at the show.Would anyone notice us? (Yes) Would people be offended by our title? (Yes!) Would Conor get a crazy sunburn (Yes!!)Now, four years later, we've seen our sales climb at each show and we've been invited to be part of an outreach program that sees the K.S. team go into schools across Miami-Dade and talk about art, writing and creative entrepreneurship.Those school visits are always a highlight and this year Miami upped the ante by having me deliver one of the Fair's "school keynotes" which saw me talk to 500 kids AT ONE TIME!
I was a little nervous to be facing that many students, but after getting them to chant "thank you Toronto" (for Chris Bosh, natch), and then sing the Canadian National Anthem (refreshingly they knew the tune and did not sing it to "O, Tannenbaum" as so many of my other American friends do), we got along fine.Aside from all that this year was extra special for two reasons:1) As many of you know we're passionate about expanding the reach of comics to those who, right now, ignore the medium. We've been working with Miami to expand the comic footprint at the show. Lissette Mendez, who runs the author track at Miami, is a MASSIVE comic fan and has long wanted to create a "mini con" in Miami. Lissette and the incomparable Eric Hitchcock at Diamond helped to spearhead a program that would bring comic publishers into the show.And lo'. Destination: Comics was born!Oni, Dark Horse, Zenescope and NBM/Papercuts were some of the flagship publishers who supported this pilot program - we also saw tons of big name comic creators including Gene Yang, Nate Powell and Paul Pope come out and sign in the Comics Courtyard -- which drew TONS of attention. 
A huge thanks to them and also to the amazing Joan Hilty - comic editor, creator and consultant extraordinaire who helped organize the entire event.And if that wasn't enough...2) We got to talk to an ENTIRE CLASS that was STUDYING Kill Shakespeare.Words cannot express how amazing it was to face 40 students who has all READ THE BOOK! The kids were super-engaged and asked some incredibly perceptive questions (we got hammered again on the good girl/bad girl dynamic of Juliet and Lady M., but they all seemed super intrigued to see what we do with Lady M. in Tide of Blood), and generally had an amazing time. I spent about 20 minutes after the class just hanging out and posing for photos.Below are a few more snaps from the trip -- you can see the rest here.-Conor
Ye Olde Black Friday Sale!
Yes, everyone is off to the races this year for Black Friday in the U.S. (and even here in Canada more and more every year)... So in that spirit we figured we would get into the spirit by offering our ShakesGeare tshirts on sale for the holiday season!
Starting today all of our tshirts purchased online are 20% OFF, or now $15.99 (down from $19.99). This sale will go for the next five weeks so take advantage of it now - they make excellent holiday gifts for the Shakespeare geek in your circle!Click here, or on the image of our Super Shakespeare Fighter shirt to check out our online sales site.
Pictures from that most latin of North American cities. The one that never sleeps - the one that starts with an "M"
... Montreal. I know, I know that I just got back from Miami and you want photos of Manatees and Martinis, but some of you have been bugging me for awhile about La Belle Province."Conor," you say, "Where are all those photos you promised from Montreal? You took like a dozen of you and the belly dancer alone!"And I had to confess that because I am technologically dumb I had somehow managed to save my Montreal photos in a strange directory that I could not find to upload them.But lo and behold! While taking photos for my time at the Miami Book Fair, I managed to save THOSE photos in the same place and this time, sitting along in my hotel room with nothing but tap water and angst, I managed to CRACK THE CODE.So here we go -- a small sample of the VERY delayed Montreal photos are here, as well as a video from the show of a hoarse-voiced me trying to pitch a girl on the merits of Kill Shakespeare, but all she's REALLY interested in is my celebrity look-alike...For all the photos cruise over to our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152150232089131.1073741855.132288909130&type=3The Miami photos and stories will be along in a day or so.Hugs,Conor
And now the video!
Kill Shakespeare flies off the stage!
I was very fortunate to attend the G33K Art Show this past weekend in Kitchener, Ontario. Not only did I have a blast on Saturday at my table, hosting two workshops and panels, and meeting up with some old friends, but I also was able to attend Friday's night's KILL SHAKESPEARE: REINVENTED, a multidisciplinary production of our stage show.Despite technical difficulties (the artwork files could not be projected) it was a very fun show, with strong performances by the voice actors and interpretations of three key moments (the enchanting of the dagger by the Weird Sisters, a battle scene, and the reverse balcony) by circus performers. The reverse balcony was especially inspired, and the music performed throughout was perhaps the best of any production performed (that I have seen myself).Kudos to director/producer/performer Miroki Tong, as well as dramaturge Eric Weiss and the whole cast and crew. A great night!Here are some pictures (most photos taken by Duncan Clemens):
Kill Shakespeare returns to Kitchener-Waterloo!
It's been a while since any of the Kill Shakespeare have done a signing in the Kitchener-Waterloo area so this weekend provides us a chance to return.While Conor attends the Miami Book Fair (such a rough life he leads...), Anthony will be attending the G33K Art Show in Kitchener, ON this Friday and Saturday.
Friday night will feature the Gala Opening of the show, at which KILL SHAKESPEARE: REINVENTED will be making its debut. Featuring voice actors, animation and (most importantly) circus performers (with fire), it should be the most inventive take on our story. The show is at 8pm and info about tickets can be purchased here, being held at Kitchener City Hall. Check out this video for a preview:And on Saturday I will be exhibiting at the show throughout the entire day (11a - 8p) and also conducting two workshops: "How to Pitch and Market Your Comic" from 1-2pm and then "What Goes Through Your Head? – A Panel about Art, Industry and More" with myself and good friend Scott Chantler.So if you're in the K-W area come out and say hello, pick up a book, tshirt or anything else - it'll be great to see you!
Board Game Enlists Two Murderously Talented Artists
It was announced yesterday by IDW Games that award-winning artists J.K. Woodward and Dave Dorman have signed on to serve as artists for the KILL SHAKESPEARE BOARD GAME. We're excited to work with these talents on the design of the characters and worlds as we move forward with the game. We're currently in the design process of the game and have enjoyed working with everyone thus far - IDW Games, Pandasaurus Games, designers Thomas Vande Ginste and Wolf Plancke. It's going to be a really fun game and experience!
You can read the IDW Games press release here.
The Kill Shakespeare boys want to help you get cheap Geek gifts, Toronto!
Next Wednesaday, November 27th, Anthony and Conor are going to be part of a great even at the Silver Snail in Toronto that could get you 25% off on almost ANYTHING in the store.
It's all part of a special Kill Shakespeare Black Friday sale starting on Wednesday the 27th!I know, I know, it's crazy, but it's true. George, Nicole., Kody and the rest of the Snail team have invented a special Shakespearean time machine that will let you get an extra special discount on Wednesday TWO DAYS BEFORE Friday.I'm frightened too.But if we all band together at the Snail ( 329 Yonge Street, just North of Dundas Square) from 5-9pm on Wednesday then I think we can overcome this blatant disregard for the rules of time and space.So WHAT HAPPENS ON WEDNESDAY? I'm glad you asked - even in that loud voice.From 5pm to 9pm Conor and Anthony will be signing copies of the NEWEST Kill Shakespeare book - The Tide of Blood! We'll also have copies of Volumes 1 and 2 for sale as well as all our ShakesGeare. AND, as a SPECIAL BONUS, you can help playtest a prototype of our mobile game ADD INSULT TO INJURY!That's right, get down with your bad Shakespearean self and face Othello, Hamlet, Falstaff and Richard 3 in a battle of wits that is sure to end with blood on the floor.AND if you buy ANY Kill Shakespeare merch the Snail will give you a 25% discount on pretty much ANYTHING in the store!How can you lose? Plus with the Black Canary cafe on site you can sip some coffee, or hot chocolate and grab a tasty treat as well.Or just come and say hello, we love that too!Hugs,The guys.
Kill Shakespeare and Adaptations!
Conor and I had the privilege of visiting the DRA490 class (The Theory of Adaptation) at the University of Waterloo this past Monday to chat with the students about our adaptation and interpretation of the Bard's characters in Kill Shakespeare, our approaches to the various incarnations and future plans. It was a great session and one led by our mentor and dramaturge, the great (and apparently super-dreamy) Dr. Toby Malone.
Thanks to everyone that attended and I look forward to hearing more about the various projects the students are working on!
Comikaze 2013!
A ComicCon in L.A. is an interesting thing. You'd THINK there would be more celebrity culture at a show here in the heart of the entertainment world, but actually its just the opposite.Or, as one of the great organizers of the show told me "Chances are I can see these people on my way to lunch."Because of that Comikaze is jammed full with the weird and the wonderful; this was a much more horror, steam-punk, and gothic show then I am used to seeing. While at the same time the panels are packed with attendees looking to go "mainstream" as they learn the ins and outs of writing and creating from Hollywood vets who generously give their time to help the next generation make magic with their minds and fingers.And of course there were tasty food trucks. L.A. is the MECCA of food trucks, I wish I had been thinking properly - I could have given you all in-depth views of all the tasty street food I've been partaking in. Maybe in my next update - as I'm here for three more days before I wing my way back to Toronto.All in all Comikaze is on the cusp of some pretty intriguing things. The show was well-organized, with a central stage that really tied the floor together. In previous years fans had apparently had some complaints about knowing what was happening when and being able to get into the show easily, but this year all the kinks had been ironed out. Impressive in that Comikaze started THIS decade (I know, no comic show in L.A.? Weird....)As mentioned the panel hosts were impressive, including development execs from some of the top production companies in the city, the art was top notch and I even got to mingle with my good friends from IDW -- Kahlil, Mike, Rosalind and Chris -- listening to them banter about sneaking up on Kill Shakespeare editor Tom Waltz to scare him as a Hollywood prank had me pining for the camaraderie of a great office.
So a huge thank you to IDW for helping support us logistically at the show and also Keith, Teddy, Regina and Sadie at the show who all worked tirelessly to make our experience and so many others -- special.Also a big thank you to Robert Elrod, the super amazing horror illustrator who served as my Square mule for the show, and Ambrose & Ambrose - the father-son art team that kept me stocked with lollipops, lemonade and also learned my sales pitch well enough to cover for me during panel and bathroom breaks (my bladder REALLY thanks you, guys)
And of course I also had the chance to meet some great creators like Kit Kendall....
and DJ Kirkbride the co-creator of the fabulous Amelia Cole series (published by IDW and Monkeybrain), as well as Eisner winner for his work on the Popgun anthology.
And because all those photos weren't enough -- MORE PHOTOS (head to our FB page to see the whole set).
Los Angeles, Stan Lee and "The Logo"
With Anthony still recovering from his whirlwind two week trip through Ol' Blighty, Conor has stepped into the breach (once more) to take Kill Shakespeare West -- to Stan Lee's Comikaze show.The red-headed member of the team will try to keep California's punishing rays from burning him to a Crips crisp during the show which kicks off at 1:00 PM on Friday and then starts at 9:00 am on Saturday and Sunday.
For our West Coast fans this is your chance top get a copy of the NEWLY RELEASED Volume 3: The Tide of Blood as well as get your hands on our hot new "Shakespeare Fighter t-shirt" a shirt that is selling so well Conor had to steal our on-line inventory just to make sure he'd have some to sell in L.A.
The Kill Shakespeare Booth is in Artist Alley booth 935 - AA935 in the program.Come out and see Conor, have a chat, grab a book. or shirt, and come revel in a geeky great time this weekend!
Oh, and because Anthony and Conor are HUGE basketball nerds -- how could either take a trip to L.A. and not come away with a photo outside the Staples Centre, especially one of Lakers star Jerry "The Logo" West?
The Stage Show Returns Next Month!
It was just announced earlier this week that on Friday, November 22nd our KILL SHAKESPEARE: LIVE GRAPHIC NOVEL stage show will be put on in Kitchener, Canada. The opening night celebration of the G33K Art Show, the show will be directed and produced by the multi-talented Miroki Tong. From what Miroki's told us it's going to be an interpretation of the graphic novel like no others before it - it's going to involve some circus arts, illustrations and potentially some animation. Should be great!I will also be attendance at the opening night show (Conor will be attending the Miami Book Fair that weekend) and will also be appearing at the show on Saturday, November 23rd to sell/sign books and tshirts as well as conduct a Pitching and Marketing workshop for attendees.
If you live in the Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge-Guelph area and have not had an opportunity to see our show, please come out and check it out. It'll be great to again visit the K-Dub area, at which Conor, myself and artist Andy Belanger spent a good amount of time (Conor and I for university, Andy for his youth and high school years).You can purchase tickets by clicking on the poster.
England loves Kill Shakespeare!
I just returned to Toronto last night after an amazing 10 days in England and I'm still on a bit of a high. Those that know me know that I love the city of London. And after three trips there in the last 18 months I love it even more - and have been discovering that the country is starting to love Kill Shakespeare as well!I've already posted photos from my appearance at the Lakes International Comic Arts Festival and then my talk/stage walk at Shakespeare's Globe.Concluding my trip, I attended the MCM London Comic-Con at the ExCel Centre on London's southeast. I had attended the May version and, having enjoyed it, returned for some more. It was a great weekend - we sold completely out of books, sold most of our tshirts (again, apologies for those that really wanted our Shakespeare Fighter shirt, which sold out immediately), I hung out with some amazing people, did a great talk (and very well-attended) on How to Pitch and Market Your Indie Comic Book, and had a lot of fun.I have so many people to thank for this past weekend. First off, the organizers of the London Comic-Con, especially Gary Howe, for making my stay possible. Thanks to Emma Vieceli (and Andrew Ruddick) for also helping to coordinate my appearance and the talk. Thanks to the witty and fun Serena Obhrai for serving as hostess through the week (and make sure to check out her new comic series Elysia, available early next year!). Thanks to the boys at Traveling Man for helping to get my books to me. Thanks to Mike Holman, Scott Hatfill, Ben Cornish and everyone at Diamond for coordinating everything on the distribution side. And thanks to everyone who swung by the table (and my talk) to say hello, learn about KS, and chat! I love London!Here are a selection of photos from the weekend:
All the World's the Globe Stage!
It has been an amazing time here in England and one of the highlights was my experience last night (Tue, Oct 22).I was invited by Dr. Farah Karim-Cooper to speak to her Shakespeare adaptation class about Kill Shakespeare, our interpretation of the characters, our next steps, etc. It was a great chat and we discussed everything from feminism to Game of Thrones.Thanks to all the students who came out to the class.And then afterwards Dr. Karim-Cooper offered me the opportunity to hop on stage. The stage wasn't in use that evening so they turned on the lights and let me walk the boards. It was a simply amazing experience and one that I will never regret! I couldn't hide my glee and felt better when Dr. Karim-Cooper mentioned that Dr. Stephen Greenblatt, one of the world's top Shakespeare academics, had a similar reaction.I am still on a high from this, 24 hours after the fact.Here are some photos from the day:
Swimming with fun at Lakes!
I've forgotten how much of British culture revolves around the pubs... I'm currently sitting in the only place with WiFi in Kendal city centre, a pub where I'm picking up northern British slang indirectly...I just finished the Lakes International Comic Arts Festival earlier today. The first (hopefully annual), it was a fun event in the beautiful Lakes district that brought some of comics' top talents (Ed Brubacher, Charlie Adlard, etc.). I was fortunate to be a last-second addition to the Clock Tower stable of talent for the weekend.Thanks to everyone that came out to the event - those from Kendal and those around the district. Thanks to Julie and Jenny, the chief organizers, who added me to the roster. Thanks to Owen and Emma for introducing me to the show. And thanks to Mike Holman at Diamond Comics UK who helped arrange for books to come (and Jon Harrison from Forbidden Planet who brought them).Here are a selection of photos from the weekend... Enjoy!
Kill Shakespeare in England!
One trip ends, another begins...After a hugely successful New York Comic-Con I'm heading to England for a week-and-a-bit to take part in some fun events over there.First off is the 1st ever Lakes International Comic Arts Festival in Kendal (northern England). It's a brand new initiative and I was added as a last-minute artist guest. I will be in the Comics Clock Tower all weekend (Sat, Oct 19-Sun, Oct 20), a cool spot at the show. I'm looking forward to seeing how the show is this year - and I've heard such amazing things about that part of the country!
I will then return to England to do a talk at Shakespeare's Globe for Dr. Farah Karim-Cooper's class (and other guests). I'm pretty chuffed (British term, I believe...) for this one - I was in awe when on tour of the Globe last year (my first visit) and this should be a great time.
Finally, I will be appearing at the London Comic-Con on Fri, Oct 25 - Sun, Oct 27th. I attended the show back in May and it was a great time with great sales, so I'm really looking forward to attending again.
As you may or may not be able to tell, I really like England and am looking forward to the trek again. It'll be great to see friends like Emma Vieceli, Andrew Tunney, Yishan Li and others - at either show. I'm also really chuffed to see Punchdrunk's latest production, The Drowned Man (attending on Wednesday).
Hopefully I'll see my British fellows while I'm there!
We never slept - well, because it was New York...
I'm back in Toronto, finally catching up on everything from this past weekend. The New York Comic-Con was amazing - so much fun and we burst through to break our sales record - by quite a bit, actually. We sold out of our new Volume 3 on Saturday afternoon, and Volumes 1 and 2 early on Sunday.In addition, our tshirts flew off the table and our new Shakespeare Fighter design was a HUGE hit.Thanks to everyone who made it such an incredible weekend for us - the organizers of the show, REEDPop (especially Jenny Martin), our hosts (Vanessa, Eric, Stephanie), Oliver and Mike from Mad Scientists (helped store and deliver our tables), everyone from IDW, and most importantly, everyone that swung by to say hello!Here are a few pictures from the weekend.
Happy Birthday Keith!
Today is the birthday for our amazing teammate, (former) intern, editorial assistant and comics guru, Keith Morris! Please take a moment and send him a HUGE HAPPY BIRTHDAY greeting via his Twitter account, if you can.
Keith has been working with us for over two years and has done an amazing job, helping us with everything from grunt jobs (thanks for the Jamba Juice at our Paradise Comics signing!) to graphic design (his ads have appeared in every issue of The Tide of Blood) and recently amazing work as an editorial guru/art talent scout. He's an amazing guy to work with and a huge part of our recent success.
It's Official: Kill Shakespeare board game to be released in 2014!
We are proud to announce that we have signed a deal with the newly-formed IDW Games and Pandasaurus Games to develop a Kill Shakespeare board game, which is slated for release in late-spring 2014!
IDW approached us a few months ago with the idea of our title being one of the first board games under their new division, which will feature games based on some of their best-selling properties. We immediately jumped at the opportunity - a good number of our fans have been suggesting this to us over the last little while and the timing is going to work out perfectly for us.There are still many details to be worked out but we will keep you updated over the next 6-8 months as we further develop the game and may be looking for people to give us suggestions and feedback on what we can do. So stay tuned!The official press release: IDW Opens New Division: Introducing IDW Games! IDW Publishing Partners With Pandasaurus Games To Launch IDW Games San Diego, CA (October5, 2013) – As IDW Publishing looks forward to celebrating its 15th year as a leader in the comic-book industry, they are proud to announce a partnership with board-game giant, Pandasaurus Games, for the launch of a new division, IDW Games. “We’re well known for diversity at IDW, in the world of entertainment and comics,” said CEO &PublisherTedAdams.“With all of the great properties we publish, it seemed natural that a lot of them would make fantastic games. We’ve found the perfect partner in Pandasaurus Games to help us make that happen.” “We at Pandasaurus Games are thrilled to be working with the talented team at IDW to develop incredible games built on the amazing worlds of their comics. The wealth of creative talent that IDW has worked with is unmatched.More than that, their comic books create living breathing worlds that drip theme and beg readers to dive into headfirst. We can't wait to help bring these worlds to life for gamers everywhere. Pandasaurus and IDW are committed to working hand in hand with world class designers and artists to build original experiences from the ground up based on the living worlds created in the pages of IDW comics," said PandasaurusPresident/Founder Nathan McNair. IDW Games will specialize in high-quality big-box games developed around several of IDW’s key properties, beginning in the late spring of 2014 with Kill Shakespeare and 30 Days of Night. Readers and gamers alike will now be given the chance to battle the Bard or the vampires of Barrow, Alaska in these tabletop games developed by the same game designers that brought us the critically acclaimed fan-favorite,Yedo. “We're incredibly excited to move into tabletop gaming and give fans a way to spend even more time with their favorite titles. This is a very strong pair of games to launch right out of the gate, and over the next few months we'll be making more major announcements that should have the gaming community buzzing,” said IDW New Business Development Director Jerry Bennington. IDW is home to many exciting titles so look forward to the release of more details in the coming months, including new game announcements that are sure to excite both fans of IDW titles and tabletop gaming.