By Zack Quaintance — When you’re running your own Kickstarter (as I currently am!), you become acutely aware of how many excellent comics are being made through this indie-enabling crowdfunding platform. When I came across Holy West, I was so impressed that I immediately thought to myself — now this is what a Kickstarter comic should be. It really is that good and well put together.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — Here at Comics Bookcase, we are unabashed super fans of artist Dave Chisholm. We really enjoyed his monthly series from Scout Comics, Canopus, and we were blown away by his forthcoming graphic novel, Chasin’ The Bird: Charlie Parker in California. Now, Chisholm has another monthly book due out this fall.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — We’re back today with a new small press preview (after some time off from the feature), and I’m absolutely thrilled that it is Drew Morrison’s Brokenland No. 2, a comic that tackles introspective environmental comedy with a style of artwork that is among the most striking I’ve seen on Kickstarter in some time.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — Today for our newest small press preview, we have a look at a great new YA graphic novel, Breaks 2: Truth and Dare, by creators Emma Vieceli and Malin Rydén. Published by Soaring Penguin Press, this book is as its title implies a sequel to Breaks, Volume One, which was first released in 2017.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — I think it’s fairly safe to say that the comics market is just brimming with fantastic artists, as capable as they are innovative. As such, we’ve seen an influx as of late in projects that tell a single story or present a series of stories around a singular theme — illustrated by a group of artists doing short work. And today we have a new one of these projects to share with you — Jack the Radio: Creatures.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — Journalism and American comic books have been inextricably intertwined since comics first entered the mainstream American consciousness in earnest in the 1930s. There’s a few reasons why. Journalism’s primary medium at the time was print periodicals, just like comics, and as such, there was a lot of cross pollination between the folks who worked it both, which led to plenty of journalism on the pages of comics. This, of course, is most famously manifested in Superman, with the characters of Lois Lane and Clark Kent.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — I recently came across a really interesting graphic novel project on Kickstarter, and it’s called We Live Here! A Graphic Novel about Detroit Housing Justice. The concept is that the book is tied together around the theme of the intertwined waves of urban revitalization and opportunism that are sweeping/have swept through Detroit in recent years. It’s a graphic novel story in which the author bases the scenes on the page on interviews with members of the activism group, Detroit Eviction Defense (DED). And it’s one of the more thoughtful and fascinating comics projects I’ve come upon in some time.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — It always feels like there are too many good projects on Kickstarter, with too many great writers and support talented artists to keep up with…which is to say I particularly enjoy Kickstarter projects that give me a chance to interact with the work of a large group of creators. Today’s small press preview is certainly one of those. I’d like to introduce all of you to Howl, a community comic written by Tom Abbosh that aims to hire a new illustrator for each chapter of the book.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — Today’s small press preview is Monitor, a new sci-fi comic that launched for sale online in early April. The book is buy Moscow-based writer Damian Wampler, along with artist Elisabeth Mkheidze and colorist Lukasz Juskiewicz. It is a blue-toned sci-fi adventure romp that incorporates familiar tech elements and questions of today, including data, privacy, and whether being forever connected via the Internet means overall giving up some freedom.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — This isn’t a new or insightful statement, but the breadth of new comics being made these days is really stunning. For example, I recently read Spitting Image, which was published by the Nashville Review, a literary magazine out of Vanderbilt University in that city. Spitting Image is the work of writers Brittany Matter and Heather Ayers, and artist Sally Cantirino. In this story, they’ve collaborated for a tale that spans 10 pages.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — Today’s new SMALL PRESS PREVIEW is Barking by Lucy Sullivan, which was published this month by Unbound Books. The book is ethereal and haunting, and it uses stunning comics art to get at serious themes and questions. Born out of creator Lucy Sullivan’s own mental health crisis, the book is a winding journey through that experience, told as powerful allegory.
Read MoreToday we’re featuring Palomino by Stephen Franck, and it’s a story that combines the largely-forgotten California country rock scene of the early 1980s with a classic Los Angeles neo noir crime story. That’s one hell of an interesting pedigree of themes, history, and ideas. And that high level of interesting is certainly bore out in the preview artwork that’s been revealed on the project’s Kickstarter (live now), which you can also just go ahead and check out below.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — I am so pleased to bring you today’s small press preview, which features Two Swords Til Mercy from writer Brentt Harshman, artist J. Paul Schiek, colorist A.H.G., and letterer LetterSquids. The writer and artist on this book are a couple of my favorite up and coming creators to follow on Twitter, both effusive with praise for other creators and open with insights into their own careers and processes.
Read MoreScent of May is a new comic from writer Mark O. Stack and artist Kaylee Rowena, and its official description is…a Jewish golem woman created in 1920 spends 100 years on a journey to reveal her soul through her relationships with other women and theatre.
Read MoreCONTENT follows a young alien as he attempts to solve his planet's first murder. Except he doesn't really know what murder is.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — There were no new direct market comics today, and this was the first Wednesday in my lifetime that I can remember that happening without a holiday or some other long-planned reason for delay. Today’s absence of new books was due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the resultant shelter in place orders, and the ripple effect it’s having on the economy. All that said, there are still plenty of excellent comics out there for fans and readers to find and support.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — As of this writing, it’s unclear whether any new comics will be available this coming Wednesday. The coronavirus pandemic has shut down most major American cities, and that shut down includes printing companies that pump out the weekly physical books, as well as Diamond Comics Distribution, which is basically the sole comics distribution mechanism in North America. Publishers could (and still might) but their books online digitally, but it remains to be seen whether they actually do that, presenting as it does a risk of alienating comics retailers who see digital as a threat to their business.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — When I think of Kickstarter comics, I think of White Ash, the comic series from writer Charlie Strickney, artist Conor Hughes, and colorist Fin Cramb. White Ash is a fantasy comic set in a modern day mining town in rural Pennsylvania. It has some loose commentary about places like that, but the main engine for the book is a story of forbidden love.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — Since launching our first ever small press preview last week, there’s been a suprisingly robust reaction to the idea. Although I suppose, this shouldn’t be all that surprising. I’ve known for a while there is a veritable sea of excellent comics being made outside the direct market, primarily coming to us from crowd-sourcing platforms such as KickStarter.
Read MoreBy Zack Quaintance — We’re starting a new feature today called Small Press Preview, which is exactly what it sounds like…a preview of the many many small press comics that reach out looking for reviews or other coverage. Sooo, the goal here is to showcase one of these projects every Friday, to share pages and process art and pitches and anything else small press creators would like to share.
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