108: totally fishing for booze
Hullo.
You may be relieved to discover that I’m not wearing shorts. I’m on a plane. That would be inhuman for everyone.
Once and Increasingly Near Future
SDSEEME
Experience
44
Matt&Kris&Chip
Batchap
Byyyyeeee!!!
****
This is the last week for retails to put their orders in for ONCE & FUTURE. It’s the main reason why I’m over at SDCC, to generally yap about what we’ve been up to. If you want a copy, speak to your retailer.
Boom have done a lovely trailer.
Watch! Dan and Tamra’s art looks most lovely.
And here’s four preview pages. This is basically the first two scenes with Bridgette and Duncan, so this is a little quiet, but does speak to their characters.
I’ve just finished an issue of this before writing this newsletter, and I’m enjoying writing Bridgette and Duncan enormously. It’s definitely filled the Doctor Aphra shape in my heart, in terms of doing blackly funny adventure fiction. In this case, with a lot of horror notes.
Can’t wait for you lot to read it.
*
I’m at San Diego! Or I will be in exactly eight hours, if this little screen is to believed. Don’t let me down, little screen. I believe in you.
As well as doing the aforementioned press I’m also turning up to panels, doing signings and lying by the pool and reading Dorian Lynskey’s excellent book about 1984. Come see me! Except at the pool, unless you’re bringing me a Margarita.
THURSDAY
12-12:40: Signing at the Marvel Booth
1-2pm: Image Comics: Bone-Chilling Insight into the Bestselling Horror Comic Book Series
Panel where myself and other folk talk about Horror in our Image comics.
Room: 23ABC
2:00-2:50pm: Signing at the Boom Booth.
8pm: The CBLDF Party, where Tula Lotay, myself and friends will be DJing and trying to stay awake from Jetlag.
FRIDAY
3-4pm: BOOM! STUDIOS: DISCOVER YOURS Panel
Panel where myself and other folk talk about our lovely Boom books.
Room: 32AB
4-5pm: RULES OF MAGIC WITH BEN BLACKER
Panel where myself and other folk wonder if I can perform the act of magic to get from 32AB to 25ABC in time.
Room: 25ABC.
SATURDAY
1:00-1:50pm: Signing at the Boom Booth.
5:00p.m. - 6:00p.m: Rolling the Dice: Where Comics & Role Playing Collide
Panel where myself and other folk talk about the danger sof comics and RPGs colliding, and how if they reach a sufficient critical mass they’ll explode.
Room: 28DE
SUNDAY
12:00-12:50pm: Signing at the Boom Booth
3–4pm: Signing at the Image Booth
After San Diego I’m staying in the US for a few days. Most relevantly, I’m in San Francisco at Comix Experience on the Wednesday where I’ll be doing a signing and then doing a (private() audience with Comix Experience’s book club. You’ll have to join to get into the latter, I believe. Here’s the lovely flyer…
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See folks there!
The comps for WicDiv 44 arrived, which means that the issue will be out next week. As in, July 24th. It’s the
end of our main story, before the epilogue that’s issue 45. Sorry it’s been so long, but it’s unavoidable. We’re proud of it. Jamie, Matt and Clayton have done wonderful stuff.
This is also cue for me actually writing my notes for issue 43, which I haven’t done yet. That this has landed in SDCC week does not exactly make this easy.
THE WHITE TREES is Chip Zdarsky, Kris Anka and Matt Wilson’s new book. It’s cut off order for issue one is on Monday. This is what it’s like…
I suspect you want to speak to your retailer. We are in a Mithril Age of Fantasy Comics and we must cherish it.
I am mainly writing “Mithril Age” to troll my anti-Fantasy friends, I’ll admit, but it has a certain something.
Ellis and Hitch’s Authority was the atom bomb that actually got me to go into comics weekly. As such, I am highly excited to see them Getting Back Together to do The Batman’s Grave, a new 12 issue Maxi Series over at DC.
I’m a little confused, as clearly the Batman’s grave. Deadpool isn’t grave. Batman is grave. I know how comics work. I am a grown up.
I meant to finish that issue of Once & Future I mentioned upthread on Monday, before I got ready for SDCC. That I’ve only just got it done says a lot about how much prep SDCC actually takes. I even had a moment on Monday where I sighed, and admitted I probably need a PA, which is a terrible confession. Part of me thinks “You used to be able to handle this” but putting aside I Am So Old I Don’t Need The New FaceApp Filter, I also suspect I’m the frog who hasn’t noticed the water is now boiling. When things are going well there is a lot of things. It’s a good problem to have, but it’s still a problem..
Been an interesting week. Lots of DIE news, the most public facing of which was that DIE was the #1 best selling trade of June. Number one with bullet and all that. The orders for DIE 6 are also in, and they’re basically better than I’d have ever hoped. I’ve written that, leaned back as far as this seat will allow, put a hand under my chin and sighed. I feel if I say more, I’ll sound terrible, but if I don’t say more, I sound ungrateful. Thank you, retailers and readers – this is an amazing level of support.
DIE is going well – Stephanie’s into issue 9, issue 6 is at the printers, 7 is going through lettering draft and I need to do a script polish for Clayton to letter 8. That’s a lot of numbers I know. As this is another 5 issue arc means that I need to both write the conclusion by the end of the month and sdo a tight break down of the next arc. At least I have a title for it, right?
Right – better stop so I can scoot over to the next thing on my TO DO list for this flight. See SDCC folk shortly. Make sure there’s a margarita for me.
I’m saying this margarita thing, because when I mentioned Diet Coke a couple of ones back, people kept on buying me Diet Cokes, and I’m totally fishing for booze.
(Er…l don’t actually do this. I wrote it jest and then had an image of what could actually happen. Please, never take me seriously.)
Kieron Gillen
Over the Atlantic
17.7.2019