28th January 2012 / Appearances / Coldest City / Pre-order
Two brief announcements, primarily for UK people:
— Next Saturday I’ll be joining Kieron Gillen and Doug Braithwaite, the geniuses behind Marvel’s JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY (and a host of other stuff, of course) for a signing at Travelling Man Newcastle.
That’s Saturday 4th February from 3-6pm. Do come along and see us if you’re around.
— You can now pre-order Limited Signed Bookplate Editions of THE COLDEST CITY, with new art from Sam and signed by us both. These editions are only available from either Page 45 or Travelling Man, and stocks are very limited, so order quickly. There are direct links to both stores’ pre-order pages at thecoldestcity.com. The Page 45 link also has a very kind and mostly spoiler-free review of the book, if that interests you.
(Yes, Americans, we’re working on making some available for you too. Watch this space.)
— [ADDENDUM] In my haste to post, I forgot to add that I also did an interview last week, with Laurent Jardin of French site Merlanfrit. Laurent has translated much of the DEAD SPACE series into French, so naturally we talked mostly about videogames. It’s a good one, and you can read it here (ou, vous pouvez lire la traduction Français ici).
20th November 2011 / Appearances
Thought Bubble is over for another year, and once again I had a great time. Thanks to everyone who stopped by, and to everyone who helped me raise money for Movember. The final tally is £120. Woo!
The Saturday night party was epic, as ever, and my DJ set garnered some, shall we say, strong reactions… To the dozen people who got what I was doing and banged their heads, I thank you. And so, as promised, here’s my short-but-sweet setlist, which I call “Hardcovers”.
Get the Party Started Zebrahead
Small Town Boy Paradise Lost
Love Will Tear Us Apart Flowing Tears
Fade to Grey Atrocity
I Kissed a Girl (Power Metal Version) Katy Perry vs Andy Xiong
Lucretia My Reflection Warrel Dane
Disco Inferno Ten Masked Men
Policy of Truth Disown
Dancing Queen Glow
Confide In Me Angtoria
Later, Kieron Gillen and I tag-teamed our way through a short set to finish off the night, and closed the place down. Here’s what I played during that section:
I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor Almighty vs Belle Lawrence
Echo Beach Gabriella Cilmi
Smooth Criminal Alien Ant Farm
Electricity Apoptygma Berzerk
…And I look forward to seeing the photos you were all taking during the last song of the night. You know which ones I mean.
16th November 2011 / Appearances / On Sale / Wasteland
WASTELAND Book 06, “The Enemy Within”, goes on sale today. This collects issues #26-31, the most recent story arc, which is of course the one that was horribly delayed over the past eighteen months. But here it is at last, and now we can get back on track. Here’s the solicit:
After the Sand-Eater attack, the city of Newbegin is in turmoil as the Sunner rebellion gathers strength and Marcus seems to lose interest in the council. Follow the next six months through the eyes of Jakob, Skot, Yan, Dexus and Golden Voice, with a chapter dedicated to each point of view in this latest collection of the series that Comics Should Be Good called, “A masterpiece”!
This arc was somewhat of an experiment, with each chapter covering the same period of time in Newbegin, but through a different character’s eyes — including Yan, who has never been a POV character up till now. I’m very pleased with how it all came out.
If your store doesn’t have the book in stock, you can order it with the comic store code AUG111159, or you can find it through a book store with the ISBN 978-1934964309.
More Thought Bubble details
As mentioned in the previous post, I’ll be at Thought Bubble in Leeds again this year. The convention has grown so much, and so quickly, that this is the first year it’s being held over two days, both Saturday and Sunday. Success that’s well-deserved, I’m sure everyone would agree.
As previously noted, my table is #34 in Saviles Hall (that’s the same hall as previous years, if you’re a regular). Turns out I’m at the back-right of the hall, on a row with Emma Vieceli, Kieron Gillen, Jamie McKelvie, Adam Hughes and Jeff Lemire. That’s one hell of a line-up, and should at the very least ensure people can find me — just look for the enormous Adam Hughes line, and the rest of us will be hidden somewhere behind it…!
Don’t forget to pick up your copy of the first Thought Bubble Anthology while you’re there, and remember that I’ll be donating 20% of my takings to Movember. Of course, if you want to make a separate donation, just click the ‘tache over there on the right…
10th November 2011 / Appearances / Interviews / Wasteland
There’s a new interview with me at Comic Book Resources, talking about WASTELAND. Think of it as an adjunct to the previous press release concerning the $1 issue, new schedule, and so on. This interview goes into more detail on the whys and wherefores, and gives some hints as to what’s coming up in the future. Worth reading.
Next weekend, November 19-20, I’ll be at the Thought Bubble Festival in Leeds. I’ll have a table throughout the weekend — #34, in Saviles Hall — and will be donating 20% of all takings to Movember, which I’m taking part in this year. (Warning: link contains dodgy moustache pics.)
I’m also on a panel, “The Best Thing I’ve Read All Year” with Kieron Gillen, Paul Cornell and doubtless whoever else we can drag up on stage. That’s 1pm Sunday @ Bury Theater.
Don’t forget you can also pick up a copy of the Thought Bubble Anthology at the show.
Oh, and if you’re attending the Saturday night party, bring your earplugs because I’m also DJing there. And I have a very special setlist lined up. Muahahahaha, etc.
23rd October 2011 / Appearances / On Sale / Shang-Chi / Videogames
SPIDER-ISLAND: THE DEADLY HANDS OF KUNG FU #3 goes on sale this week. This is the final part of the story, and features some nice treats for fans of the Immortal Weapons.
The jaw-dropping villain revealed! A conspiracy of horror exposed! Shang-Chi, master of kung fu, uncovered a monster threat to humanity’s very existence in the midst of the Spider-Island infestation… but can he stop it in time?
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed writing Shang-Chi. He’s one of the few characters I’ve lobbied Marvel for, and I’ve been talking to them about doing a standalone Shang series for a while. Fingers crossed it’ll come to pass, but for now I wave a sad farewell to The Master of Kung Fu.
(This is also the last book I worked on with editor extraordinaire Alejandro Arbona before last week’s bloodletting, which makes me doubly sad.)
The order code is AUG110600, and you can read a three-page preview at Comic Book Resources.
Also, a couple of appearances to announce:
First, I’m doing a short signing at the MCM London Expo this weekend. I don’t have a table at the expo this year, and will unfortunately only be around for one day. So if you want to catch me for any reason, make a note: Saturday 29th, 1-2pm @ The Comic Village signing table.
And the day before that, I’ll be on the Writing Games 2.0 panel at the London Screenwriter’s Festival, along with top-flight writers Steve Ince, Andy Walsh and Ed Stern. I’ll also stick around for the Q&A afterwards, so if you’re attending the festival, come up and say hi. This one is Friday 28th, 5-6pm @ Regents College.
6th August 2011 / Appearances
…At least, that’s how Gillen described it. He may or may not have been tweeting from the dancefloor.
So aside from a little schedule-buggering (both Kieron and I had to cut our sets short for the unexpected and insistent arrival of the house DJ), and a minor technical difficulty that delayed Kieron’s start, last night’s set went well. A good time, and much shape-throwing, was had by all. Here’s the obligatory setlist:
The Imperial March (Metal Version) Jonathan Davison
Fucking Hostile Pantera
Devour Shinedown
Oxyacetylene Cubanate
Chrome VNV Nation
Spitfire Prodigy (request)
Doctor? Orbital
Headhunter 2000 (Apoptygma Berzerk Mix) Front 242
It’s Goin’ Down The X-Ecutioners
Knight Rider (Metal Version) Sylvain Cloux
New Radio Bikini Kill
Ingrid Spalding Rockwell
Feuer Frei! Rammstein (request)
Perfect Mask Paradise Lost
Liberate Disturbed
Halo SOiL
The Majority Mammal
Game Of Thrones (Metal Version) WhiteNoise Lab
That should have been the finale, but due to those technical difficulties, I also played:
Genius Pitchshifter
4th August 2011 / Appearances
Travelling Man, the excellent UK chain of comic/game stores, is twenty years old this week. Which is kind of amazing. TM have been very good to me — one of my first signings was at their York store almost ten years ago, and they’ve been a strong supporter of my work ever since.
Anyway. Naturally they’re having a party to celebrate, held tomorrow, Friday August 5 at the Fab Cafe in Leeds. Predictably fellow scribe, psychonavigator, and all-round boogie lover Kieron Gillen is DJing.
Perhaps not as predictably, so am I.
Kieron and I — plus, I assume, the other creators attending such as Andy Diggle, Leigh Gallagher, Barry Kitson, Moore + Reppion, etc — will also be doing a short signing around 7pm, before moving on to the important business of tunes and booze.
All disco dance must end in broken bones.
Now, unless you happened to live in Bath in the late ’90s, and attended the tiny goth/metal clubs therein, this will be your first chance to, erm, experience my DJing. Though not the last — assuming I don’t get lynched tomorrow, I’m also doing a set at this year’s Thought Bubble Festival.
So do pop along if you can. Should be a great laugh.
28th July 2011 / Appearances
I’ll be appearing at the Manchester MCM Expo on Saturday 30th, i.e. in two days’ time. The Manchester show is a new offshoot of the MCM London event, which I’ve attended several times, and thoroughly enjoy. Also, Manchester is local to me, and I’m all for encouraging cons that don’t require a five-hour train journey…!
Like the London event, MCM Manchester will have a Comic Village, where I can be found at Table C9. Look for the big red banner with my name on it. You’ll also find great creators like John McCrea, Leigh Gallagher, Al Davison, Marc Ellerby and more in attendance.
(I have no idea what, if any, panels are taking place or whether I’ll be on them. Right now I’m operating under the assumption that I’ll be at the table all day.)
MCM Manchester takes place at Manchester Central (the old GMEX) on Saturday 30th July, from 9.30am – 5pm. Hope to see you there.
14th July 2011 / Appearances / Shang-Chi / Wasteland
As predicted last year, I’ll be attending San Diego Comic-Con next week. I’m looking forward to catching up with a whole bunch of people I haven’t seen since 2009, and propping up the late night bar as ever.
I’ll be signing for both Oni and Marvel, and also sitting on Marvel’s SPIDER-MAN panel on Friday, to talk about Shang Chi’s role in SPIDER-ISLAND.
N.B. I’m going to be running round like a madman all weekend, and by Sunday I’ll be on my way back to Blighty — so to get something signed, or just have a chat, the appearances listed below are the only times you can be certain to catch me.
Here’s my schedule, with times and booth/room numbers.
Thursday
12.00-12.45: Oni Press, #1833
4.00-5.00: Marvel, #2329
Friday
11.00-12.00: Marvel, #2329
1.45-2.45: Marvel Spider-Man Panel, Room 6DE
6.00-6.45: Oni Press, #1833
Saturday
10.00-10.45: Oni Press, #1833
3.00-3.45: Oni Press, #1833
…And that’s about all you’ll hear from me until after I return. Hope to see you there!
1st December 2010 / Appearances / Daredevil / Shadowland / Videogames
DAREDEVIL #512 goes on sale this week — alongside SHADOWLAND #5, and together they round out the main storylines of the Shadowland event (All that remains is SHADOWLAND: AFTER THE FALL, an epilogue which goes on sale next week).
Years of acting as the Guardian Devil of Hell’s Kitchen have taken their toll on The Man Without Fear. Hell’s Kitchen lies in ruins, and it is up to the people of New York to start anew and begin rebuilding. In this last chapter of his story, will Matt Murdock at last find final redemption for the events of SHADOWLAND?
This was a hell of an issue to write, and even a little emotional at the end. The issue code is SEP100605, and I hope you all enjoy it.
A quick round-up of other news:
— Sega have announced BINARY DOMAIN, a new videogame from the creators of the Yakuza series, to be released in 2012. So now you can probably guess why I was in Tokyo earlier this year…
— While I was down in London for Thrilling Wonder Stories II, I made time to pop in and be interviewed for the We Are Words + Pictures show on London Fields Radio, talking to host Michael Leader about comics, games, writing, and heavy metal, though not necessarily in that order. It was a great show, with a fantastic playlist (biased, moi?) and some lovely coffee to boot. You can hear it online at Mixcloud, download it from the WAW+P site, and read Michael’s show notes at his own blog. You can also follow WAW+P on Twitter.
— Finally, the guys from Geek Syndicate filmed me hawking my wares at the recent Thought Bubble, all in the pursuit of naked capitalism. (Wish they’d told me one of my collar points was askew, but you can’t have everything…)
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