The Writer's Block

Magic of Myths: season two artwork

2012-01-28T21:20:00.002Z

And now, the Magic...

Work on Magic of Myths: season two has begun in earnest, so while I write the script, Sergio is currently creating the designs for the new characters who will star in the book, and giving the established cast a little polish. He's already redesigned Eve, who has gone through a few changes since season one... take a look, over at http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/more-magic-of-myths-season-two-artwork/.

You can buy Magic of Myths: season one, here (http://cbrotherson.blogspot.com/p/magic-of-myths.html) - and there will be a pre-order scheme and previews of season two in the coming months before its summer 2012 launch.

Tick tock goes the Clock

2012-01-25T17:19:00.005Z

Ok, on to Clockwork Watch…

As you may know, we broke our IndiGoGo funding target of $10,000 (thank you so much if you donated or supported us!) which meant we could go full steam ahead with our plans. We were also very grateful to be selected as the best IndiGoGo comic book project of 2011: http://www.indiegogo.com/blog/2011/12/year-in-review-indiegogos-2011-best-ggf-creative-campaigns-1.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+indiegogo_atom+%28IndieGoGo%3A+Blog%29

A nice start, indeed.

The first step is to launch The Arrival – a graphic novel and the main opening of the Clockwork Watch story. I’m currently tweaking the script (as well as adapting the follow-up, Breakaway) while Jen works hard on the artwork. You can read all about our work behind the scenes over at Anachronauts Digest: http://www.clockworkwatch.org/. Clockwork Watch creator, Yomi Ayeni, has done a few entries, as has Jen and I’ve started some entries posts on the writing side of the project.

Yomi also did an interview with Transmedia Talk over here: http://workbookproject.com/culturehacker/2012/01/21/transmedia-talk-39-clockwork-watch/, where he chats about the whole project in more depth.

Yomi is having a lot of meetings about Clockwork Watch, which is likely to be the biggest project I’ve ever worked on, so expect a ton of information and news about this soon. If things start falling into place, you’ll see Clockwork Watch in a fair few locations in the coming months...

Bayou Arcana: Volume 1. Songs of Loss and Redemption news

2012-01-22T19:11:00.001Z

Let’s kick things off with a little Bayou Arcana, shall we?

As you may already know, Jen and I have been working on Irons in the Fire for an anthology called Bayou Arcana. Bayou Arcana: Volume 1. Songs of Loss and Redemption is a gothic horror anthology set in a fantastical swamp (in the American South) – you can read more about it here, but the good news is that British newspaper The Guardian featured it in a recent news story covering UK comic books, female creators and the gender gap in the industry. Bayou Arcana has a rather unique set up of being created by all-male writers and all-female artists, so it’s getting noticed by a lot of people and organisations, such as MTV and several other newspapers and magazines across the globe.

You can read the article here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/dec/28/women-comic-book-sexism. And the good man Lee Grice (from Small Press Big Mouth) scanned in the pages from when the article was printed a few weeks back:

Bayou Arcana is available for pre-orders by our publisher, Markosia, so if you pre-order it before 1st April 2012 you can get £3 off the cover price (£14.99)! This one is going to be popular, folks, so make sure you get your pre-orders in now by heading over to

http://www.markosia.com/wordpress/titles/bayou-arcana-songs-of-loss-and-redemption/.

There’s more to come on Bayou Arcana soon.

Sign of the times

2012-01-19T13:36:00.001Z

Well, 2012 is here and I'm trying to catch up with the several big projects on my plate. Which is why this 'Happy New Year' is a tad delayed. Sorry.

But despite being only several weeks old, 2012 has been... Well....interesting, shall we say. I'll get to that in the following posts. Stay tuned...

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-23T23:03:00.000Z

Sorry for the lack of updates during December - the work is coming in thick and fast, and between that and Christmas, spare time suddenly became a thing of the (ghost of Christmas) past. But the good news is that 2012 will see the launch of several big projects that have been in the making during 2011, and represent an important milestone in my comic book writing.

I'll create full blog post about it soon, but in the meantime have a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Thought Bubble 2011 - in pictures

2011-11-21T23:37:00.002Z

Whew. What a weekend.

Thought Bubble was brilliant fun.In fact, I'm still very much trying to catch up with everything - it'll take me a few days to take in the great new people met (hi guys! You're all amazing!), various books I bought, biz cards traded, new opportunities made and so on.

In the meantime, I'll leave you with two things - the first is a brilliant (as always) write up by my super talented artist partner-in-crime Jennie Gyllblad, who has created a fantastic account of our experiences over the weekend right here. Not only is it funny, it's also a very accurate description of what happened... drunks, awkward moments and all.

Secondly, a few pictures for you to look at, taken over the two days.

To everyone we met/passed by our table/had a chat with - a big THANK YOU for being so lovely. You made Thought Bubble as great as it was and hopefully we'll get to catch up again soon...

Thought Bubble 2011

2011-11-19T09:16:00.001Z

Well, here we are in sunny (I think it's sun. It could be mustard or something) Leeds, at Thought Bubble. Myself and my artist partner-in-crime Jennie Gyllblad are over in the Royal Armouries on table 67, armed with sweets, books (Skal, Magic of Myths and a couple other comic related goodies), artwork and... erm... a lucky bird. If you're around, please do swing by and say hi.

Also, we're swiftly approaching the final days of our crowdfunding effort for Clockwork Watch - a new perk has been introduced, where you can own some of the original artwork from the forthcoming graphic novels, The Arrival and Breakaway. Please contribute if you can, as every little bit helps in making this project take off! You can find the page here: http://igg.me/p/38052?a=221140&i=shlk.

Magic of Myths returns!

2011-11-12T17:42:00.002Z

Yep, Sergio and I have been so happy with the response to our fantasy series that we’ve dedicated ourselves to continuing the series. Magic of Myths: season two is in the works and will be released during summer 2012. You can read all about it over at the official site, where you can also subscribe to keep up to date with all the latest Magic of Myths news: http://wp.me/pSxcG-86‎

I’ll also be attending the Thought Bubble comic art festival on 19/20 November, so come on over and say hi.

Thanks for all your support!

Clockwork Watch gains a little Olympic-sized assistance

2011-11-07T17:36:00.017Z

We’re very pleased to announce that one of the adverts in the first part of Clockwork Watch’s story, The Arrival, is going to be an Olympic 2012 project on behalf of a country in the Commonwealth. There are a few slots left open, so if you have a business that’s suited to Steampunk, host events, design Steampunk gear or even want to weave your product / brand / events into our story, do get in touch!

We’ve also received the first batch of Clockwork Watch badges and patches which are part of the perks available to those who help fund the project:

Spread the word and join in the fun right here: http://igg.me/p/38052?a=221140&i=shlk

Making friends with Jonathan Ross

2011-10-30T14:37:00.000Z

Now here's an Unseen Shadows update you may not have been expecting...

Barry Nugent, novelist and mastermind behind the whole Unseen Shadows universe, has got TV presenter and writer Jonathan Ross to pen the introduction to the forthcoming Unseen Shadows anthology, Tales of the Fallen.

The anthology is already gathering some well earned and justifiable praise within the independent circuits, so it's fantastic to get someone like Ross to write the foreword. While Stolen (an adventure/crime story written by myself and artist Cormac Hughes) won't be in this edition, we have got a two page art preview in there, and the stories that made it into the book are superb - they would be, with the likes of Cy Dethan, Nic Wilkinson, Rob Carey, Dan Thompson, Vicky Stonebridge and many other excellent talents behind it.

So, you've no excuse now - make sure you pick up a copy of Tales of the Fallen at this year's Thought Bubble convention or pre-order your copy right here.

Clockwork Watch update

2011-10-14T19:54:00.034+01:00

And now for some Clockwork Watch news:

- Did you know you can be part of Clockwork Watch and get your face into scenes from the first part of the story, graphic novel The Arrival (adapted by myself and drawn by Jennie Gyllblad? All sponsors that have donated above $40 will be incorporated into the artwork of The Arrival or Breakaway as characters in the story. YOU are about to become part of your first comic and a transmedia story - so head over to http://igg.me/p/38052?a=221140&i=shlk and pitch your sponsor! Once you do, kindly send your photographs to "characters@clockworkwatch.com" and please include your name, address and a contact number - we MAY need to get in touch.

- General costume sketching has begun!

If you want to see more, pop over to http://jenspiration-now.blogspot.com/2011/09/clockwork-watch-it-begiiiins.html

Unseen Shadows update

2011-10-11T18:12:00.001+01:00

Lots of stuff to report about Unseen Shadows, so let's jump straight to it:

- Stolen, an adventure/crime story written by myself and artist Cormac Hughes, is coming along nicely, with more excellent artwork pouring in as I type. There will be a few extra previews to show you soon, but there are a lot of exciting things happening behind the scenes which will be revealed as well in due time.

- The first Unseen Shadows anthology, Tales of the Fallen, is going to launch at this year's Thought Bubble convention - and it's looking rather sharp. Take a look:

"They are murderers, martyrs and mercenaries in the no-man’s-land between adventure and crusade – soldiers of fate and fierce honour, bound together in mystery, darkness and blood. Their enemies are shadows haunting the outermost borders of a darkening world, and as night approaches the shadows grow long.

"They are the Fallen, and these are their stories."

Tales of the Fallen will launch on 19 November 2011 at Thought Bubble in Leeds. You can read some previews at the official Facebook page.

- Sticking with Thought Bubble, there will be an Unseen Shadows panel held during the festival. On 19 November 2011, 12:00pm to 12:45pm in the Alea Cinema Room, you can Meet The Team That Expanded The Universe. Here's the blurb from the site:

"Learn how the self-published cult hit novel Fallen Heroes became the epicentre of one of the biggest transmedia experiments in the UK indie arts world comprising comics, prose, audio, live action and including trailblazing talent from all creative fields."

- There is plenty of Unseen Shadows audio to sink your teeth into as well. You can listen to the first seven minutes of Empire of Blood - The Audio Drama, here, while the audio book version of novel, Fallen Heroes, can be enjoyed here. It's all for free, so make sure you enter the shadows...

Ringing in the...

2011-10-07T19:36:00.002+01:00

You may have noticed a few changes on the site of late…

Yep, The Writer’s Block has gone through a little revamp. There’s still plenty of work to be done as new features are added and refinements made, but I hope you like the changes so far. Feel free to offer feedback as I'll take any comments on board.

One of the big additions to the site is the menu bar near the top of the page which will detail various projects I’m attached to. It’s a work-in-progress, so there’s plenty more to come, with pages on Clockwork Watch, Unseen Shadows, Bayou Arcana and various other published stories to be added – but in the meantime, you can buy fantasy miniseries Magic of Myths: season one directly from me by clicking on the relevant tab. There’s also the option to purchase the super cheap digital version for £1.50 as well.

There’s plenty more to come soon, so why not stay up to date by subscribing via the menu on the right of this page?

Become a vital part of Clockwork Watch!

2011-09-12T16:44:00.000+01:00

Today we launch the funding for The Arrival, our first graphic novel in the epic transmedia project that is Clockwork Watch.

Drawn by Jennie Gyllblad and adapted by myself from filmmaker Yomi Ayeni's original script, The Arrival tells the story of a world struggling with technological and social change. New models of clockwork servants become ever-more advanced and human-clockwork hybridisation is the talk of the town; the clockworks are becoming more human, and not all humans are as human as they think they are...

You can literally become part of this experience spanning comics, film, theatre, games and more. Head over to http://igg.me/p/38052?a=221140&i=shlk for more info and please donate if you can, to help give this massive project life. And if you've not already done so, spread the word of the official Clockwork Watch: The Transmedia Experience Facebook page.

Love, Like, Live Clockwork Watch!

More Stolen artwork for your pleasure

2011-09-10T20:30:00.003+01:00

Fancy some more artwork from Unseen Shadows story, Stolen? Well my artist partner on the story, Cormac Hughes, is happy to oblige. Here's a sneaky peek at page 2...

Stolen - Page 2(unlettered)

For more, keep an eye on the official Unseen Shadows Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Unseen-Shadows/45883763762, and follow us on Twitter via @Unseen_Shadows.

The latest on Clockwork Watch

2011-09-08T20:00:00.002+01:00

Clockwork Watch is ticking along nicely…

With Jennie drawing up concept artwork every week and concept creator and writer Yomi preparing an onslaught of news to unleash, our romantic Steampunk thriller Clockwork Watch is on the verge of revealing more of itself in the coming weeks. An IndieGoGo page is being set up for the first chapter of the story, The Arrival, with more news to come on how exactly Clockwork Watch will unfold.

Here’s a quick look at some of Jen’s lovely work so far:

You can find plenty more here: http://jenspiration-now.blogspot.com/search/label/Clockwork%20Watch

The official site is being worked on, but in the meantime you can stay up to date via the official Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/ClockworkWatch

Enter the Shadows

2011-09-05T09:00:00.006+01:00

Want to get all the latest on the Unseen Shadows universe (where Cormac’s and my story, Stolen, will be proudly published) without lifting a finger?

Then join the Unseen Shadows Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Unseen-Shadows/45883763762

And follow us on Twitter via @Unseen_Shadows.

Please spread the word!

Magic of Myths finds an extra home

2011-09-03T12:03:00.006+01:00

Don’t think I’ve forgotten about Magic of Myths in all of this recent excitement…

Currently on sale in Birmingham from the legendary Nostalgia and Comics, those a bit closer to London can dive into the first volume of Sergio’s and my fantasy miniseries thanks to Gosh! London, which is now selling Magic of Myths. Recently relocated into Soho, you can find Gosh! London's shop at:

1 Berwick Street
London W1F 0DR
http://www.goshlondon.com/find-us/

There you’ll find Magic of Myths sitting on their independents shelf. Be quick if you want a copy, as there’s not many left. A massive thanks to Gosh! London for supporting the book.

Keep reading the official Magic of Myths site for more information on where you can pick up a copy, and all the latest news on the miniseries. And if you want to buy a copy via mail, you can put in an order over at Indy Planet [http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5310].

Grab a copy and let us know what you think!

Stolen - artwork preview

2011-09-01T21:02:00.001+01:00

With gamescom kicked squarely in the arse (well, either that or it’s stopped kicking me in the face… these concepts are easily confused), I’ve got enough time for a few quick updates. I’ll drip feed them in the shallow pretence that it’ll make the site look a little less sparse in the busy coming weeks. Hurrah!

So, the script to Stolen – a story set in the Unseen Shadows universe – is done, and the Unseen Shadows creator and novelist, Barry Nugent, is happy with it, which in turn makes me very happy. And the wonderfully talented Cormac Hughes is currently working hard on transforming the script into something visual and pretty that will look much nicer on the page than my black-ink-on-white-paper ramblings.

In fact, here’s Cormac right now with some rather nice artwork...

Stolen - Page 1 (unlettered)

You can see some character sketches and more over here: http://unseenshadows.com/2011/08/19/see-the-first-page-and-early-character-art-from-stolen/#more-749

Running like Clockwork

2011-08-11T20:45:00.001+01:00

So, I mentioned before two big forthcoming projects - the first being Stolen, set in the Unseen Shadows universe.

Now it's time for the second.

I'm very pleased to announce that I've been signed up to write a graphic novel adaptation of a MASSIVE transmedia project by filmmaker Yomi Ayeni, called Clockwork Watch. The general concept behind Clockwork Watch is the creation of a huge world that spans across film, comics, theatre, games, Augmented Reality and more. The overarching story is a romantic thriller set in the world of Steampunk, where a scientist falls in love with his research subject - a beautiful robot. However, their love affair and her life are threatened by the values of the Victorian era they are living in, and a man with a lifelong grudge.

The first step in this new world is the graphic novel, The Arrival, which is being adapted by myself and my talented oft-artist partner-in-crime, Jennie Gyllblad. So we're creating the entry point for Clockwork Watch - a colossal honour in itself.

Like Stolen, this project has been bubbling behind the scenes for months now, so it's great to finally have it in the open. There are even more things happening that we can't talk about quite yet, but we can show off some of Jennie's lovely artwork so far...

You can see more here: http://jenspiration-now.blogspot.com/search/label/Clockwork%20Watch

Lots of very exciting announcements to come - and one so huge, you may not believe it. I know I'm still trying to take it in...

Next step - stealing an artist

2011-08-07T21:41:00.003+01:00

A bit behind the curve here due to so much work and gamescom at the moment, so apologies for the lateness of this one.

In case you've not seen, one of my latest and biggest projects to date - Stolen, a thief thriller story set in the Unseen Shadows universe - has nabbed an artist. Stand up and take a bow, Cormac Hughes! This talented young man dropped this rather nice sample in mine, and project head/author Barry Nugent's inbox and we were duly impressed:

So now it's full steam ahead. Lettering will be handled by the superb Paul Mclaren. More news as it comes - and don't forget to check out the official Unseen Shadows site for all the latest Unseen Shadows info, including an excellent sounding radio play. There's tons to come...

Stealing a bit of time

2011-07-19T20:32:00.001+01:00

Sometimes, things just work out.

Case in point: remember the secret projects I referred to in the last blog post? Well, the cat is out of the bag for one of them.

On Monday 18th July 2011, I was announced as the writer for a spin-off comic book in the Unseen Shadows universe. You can find out more here. No release date or main details yet, but we'll let you know more soon.

It means I'll be writing a full length story using one of the main characters from Barry Nugent's popular supernatural adventure novel, Fallen Heroes, which you can check out here: http://unseenshadows.com/novels/unseen-shadows-book-1-fallen-heroes/. This is a book which became a bestseller on Amazon last year, which is a hell of an achievement, and worthily so - it's a fantastic story which mixes horror, adventure, crime and drama, wrapped up in some lovely prose and superb set pieces. Waterstones said this about Fallen Heroes:

“It reads like a TV series, with cliff hangers at the end of most chapters, and larger than life characters with big egos and quick wits. The book as a whole draws on many popular culture references & influences, and is easily compared to ‘Sin City’, ‘The Da Vinci Code’, ‘Heroes’ or ‘Buffy’ – there really is something for everyone and I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone that enjoys reading or watching Sci-Fi/Fantasy.” Waterstones

So you can imagine my joy when Barry accepted my pitch for the character of The Hand, a wise-cracking thief who plays a massive part in Fallen Heroes. Barry enjoyed Magic of Myths and was generous enough to provide the foreword for it, but I can't say I expected things to move like this. And to add an extra element of trepidation into the blender, Barry had already amassed a very talented and proven creative team for the other spin-offs. So my story has a lot to live up to with such esteemed company.

Pressure? Me? Pah! ;-)

After months in the works, it's great that this is now in the open and moving. And while there's a lot of work to do, as the Joker famously once said: "I'm a lot happier."

I'll leave you with a bit of blurb from my story, titled 'Stolen':

Stealth, skills and style – the life of Ben Ashodi, AKA The Hand, is one hell of a ride. A talented escape artist and professional thief for hire, The Hand teeters on a precarious high wire, balanced between a career of criminality and a strong sense of morals.

Although when responsibility over his past actions catch up with him, it soon becomes clear there are some things even this master escapologist cannot get away from…

Shhhhh...

2011-07-12T22:56:00.000+01:00

Sorry for the radio silence of late - you can usually take that as a good sign.

In this case, it's a really good sign.

It's just a shame I can't say much about it right now...

There are a few projects in the works which have come somewhat out of the blue over the past few months and they're starting to move in the right direction, however I can't say anything about them yet. Needless to say, they're very, very exciting and when the time is right, you'll hear all about them. In the meantime I've a few other things I'll be blogging about in the near future. Stay tuned, Bat-fans. There's a lot of good stuff on the horizon...

X-Men: First Class – spoiler free review (or essay, in this case)

2011-05-27T17:14:00.007+01:00

X-Men: First Class hurts.

Not in that physical, 'bouncer removing you from the cinema for smuggling in a mobile phone' way. But in the 'wow, this is what X-Men 3 could have been' way if director Matthew Vaughn hadn’t walked away from it.

In short, X-Men: First Class is bloody good.

In long? Well, that's what all those words below are about to go into…

My thoughts on the third movie of the X-Men saga are numerous and you can read them here (http://www.comixfan.net/forums/showthread.php?t=39073), but for the sake of clarity and relevance:

X1: Good, if flawed and dated
X2: Brilliant
X3: Enjoyable nonsense, but easily worst of the bunch

So I came to X-Men: First Class hoping for something which could match my expectations of X2, or at least avoid the relative mess of X3. My faith in the creative team of Vaughn and writer Jane Goldman had yet been shattered after the largely excellent fantasy romp of Stardust and the surprisingly fun Kick Ass. And here, again, they do a fantastic job where in all reality they should have fallen flat on their faces given the stupidly difficult task at hand.

"X-Men! Welcome… to die!"

Vaughn had to create a film mired in canon and coming off the back of a critical mauling, with a shifting production team, a swiftly re-written script and less than 18 months to film the entire thing (apparently principle photography started in August 2010). And yet, First Class remains one of the most tightly structured, coherent and well rounded superhero movies ever made.

X-Men: First Class brings together the story of how Erik 'Magneto' Lehnsherr and Charles 'Professor X' Xavier first met, formed the X-Men and eventually became bitter enemies. Using the 1960s Cuban Missile Crisis as its frame, the tale whips along at a breathless pace, taking us through the Holocaust, Cold War paranoia, the Civil Rights Movement in America, mutant powers, developing friendships and the consequences of violence both explicit and implicit. But it never feels bloated, nor does it lose you for its 2 hours running time. This is lean storytelling that manages to be coherent, exciting and deep, while battering through its narrative with punk rock efficiency. Nothing is wasted.

Given the large number of characters, it's only natural some get a little left by the wayside in the wake of the story's main focus – the relationship between Erik and Charles, played by a wonderfully good Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy, respectively. Measured and convincing, they perfectly capture the mannerisms of their counterparts from the previous films (Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart) while adding some ticks of their own, making them incredibly fun to watch. Jennifer Lawrence also turns in a great performance as Raven 'Mystique' Darkhölme, acting as the foil between the two and ultimately, their conscience.

"Peace? Peace was never an option."

When combined with the film's main villain, Sebastian Shaw (ably played by the talented Kevin Bacon, who thankfully makes a rare appearance without his usual co-star – his naked butt), X-Men: First Class' strengths really come out. It's easily the most thematically solid movie of the four, playing with concepts of what it means to seek and exact justice and the scar inducing issues of prejudice and paranoia – with several key elements recurring through the film, such as man vs monster (when one blurs into the other and how a monster is created by the actions of others), racial pride vs fear and war vs peace (as the mutants themselves become metaphors for weapons of mass destruction more dangerous than the Cuban Missile Crisis itself).

The most prominent symbol in the movie is also the most devastating – a single Nazi gold coin. Used at several junctures in the story, it manages to become a massive collection of metaphors in itself, showing us greed, intolerance, fear, corruption and violence, both symbolically and literally. It's a permanent and powerful motif in First Class, acting as a reminder that Charles and Erik (as well as Erik and Shaw) are two sides of the same coin, while also representing the circular nature of violence. And, as comic book writer/columnist Rich Johnston correctly pointed out, it also acts as visual opposition in a grand game of noughts and crosses, Erik's round nought/coin vs Charles' X/cross – War Games, indeed.

If there are any problems with X-Men: First Class, they're fairly minor. For a start, Shaw's big evil plan is a bit poorly thought out. It reminded me of Deacon Frost's supposed master plan in the first Blade movie – not very clear, a fair bit short sighted and the reality of it not quite matching the moustache twiddling machinations of the maniac plotting them. Which may well be the point, but at the same time it took me out of the film a tad. As did the occasionally trite nature of trying to pack so many "ah, so that's why...!" moments into the movie for fear of never having the chance to create a follow-up (they will). Some of the inclusions come the film's end are unnecessary and come off too neat for the sake of completeness. It's a similar criticism I have of the wonderful theatre production, Wicked, where I thought it went out of its way to answer every single motivation and character genesis for The Wizard of Oz. Same with First Class, which almost bends over backwards to offer explanations to every facet of Charles' and Erik's relationship, something which will only become more complex as more movies are created.

First Class also lacks scenes with the visual flash and flare offered by X2, such as when Nightcrawler storms the Oval Office or the jaw dropping madness of Wolverine and Deathstrike stabbing the merry hell out of each other in a brutal ballet. While the set pieces in First Class are fantastic, it would have been interesting to see what Vaughn would have done with the anti-gravity fight scene he dropped after seeing Inception.

But these are easily forgivable missives because First Class arguably manages to be the more accomplished movie of the quartet through its strong themes and very relatable human tale, dressed in gaudy superhuman clothing. Is it as good as The Dark Knight? No. But it's on par with X2 as the best X-Men movie made, and easily among the better superhero flicks created. And the cameos (both stealth and overt) that fans will notice are inspired, with one in particular firing off the most hilarious use of "go f*ck yourself" since Anchorman.

X-Men: First Class is top draw. A remarkable achievement against heavy odds that could have been a agonizing experience for all concerned. Instead, it's merely the birthing pains of what will hopefully be a new era for the franchise...

Post Bristol - the weekend of win

2011-05-19T13:04:00.002+01:00

First up, a quick apology – my last entry ("I have a dream…") wasn’t actually what I wrote when I last left Blogger. What was published was actually a draft of my original post, which I re-wrote and saved after, yet somehow Blogger took my old version anyway, which is why some of it probably was a little messy. In any case, sorry for any confusion.

And now, the news.

Despite the injured ankle, knee and toe, despite one printing company screwing me over at the last minute, despite my copies of Magic of Myths nearly not arriving on time… the comic convention in Bristol was incredible. A truly amazing experience. Met so many brilliant, new people, had a great time with my lovely girlfriend and friends and even in the face of my nervousness in selling Magic of Myths, everything went really well.

Jen, my friend and artist partner for Butterflies and Moths, shared a table with me (thanks to the very kind Simon Gurr who offered to share in the first place) and has created a great illustrated write up of the experience here: http://jenspiration-now.blogspot.com/2011/05/bristol-expo-2011-weekend-of-awesome.html

Magic of Myths sold a nice few handfuls of copies, which was relieving (given at the start I was uncertain if anyone was going to buy it and I'd go back home with all the copies I arrived with) and everyone was really friendly and supportive – which was great, as I'm not afraid to say I was bricking it, especially during the first couple hours! A bit of context - this has been a dream of mine for many years. Magic of Myths was a story which had been knocking around my skull since about 2003, and represents the fulfilment of a desire I've had since I was about 5/6 years old – to have written a 'full' comic book to sell. And all of a sudden, here I was, sitting on a table, trying to sell one. Fear and paranoia are pretty much standard coating for thoughts like: "what if I don’t verbally bring the story across?" "what if they spend the money and hate it?" and so on.

And yet, it all came together. And I'm really grateful for everyone who helped make that such an amazing experience.

What made it all the better was that all my friends with selling stands did really well, the general atmosphere was fantastic and lots of plans were made for the future. Thank you so much if bought a book, had a chat at the table or just came over to say hi. If you're still looking to buy a copy, please head over to the Magic of Myths site which will tell you where you can buy it from. Any problems or questions, just drop me a line.

Along with Magic of Myths, three other projects I'm working on had a little boost, too. Firstly, Jen and my Bayou Arcana story, Irons in the Fire, got some positive feedback, especially on Jen's artwork. The whole anthology is looking superb so far, and the man behind it all, James Pearson, has some very clever ideas to make it really sing. Definitely something to look out for.

The second project is Butterflies and Moths. Yes, I know I've been banging this drum for a while now, but after a productive chat with Jen things may progress a little quicker than we originally realised. Can't say more than that right now, but when we finalise something you'll hear about it.

The third one I can say even less about, but Faceless (think Robert Ludlum meeting Joss Whedon and Guy Ritchie in a dark alley and making a beautiful fiction baby together) got a jolt in the arm as well. Needless to say, I'm very excited if things will develop as it’s very early days and anything can change, but…

Right, this post is long enough! Expect some more bits and pieces soon…

I have a dream...

2011-05-14T00:00:00.030+01:00

...well, I have many dreams. And some of them I could never repeat in public. But in the spirit of keeping this post relevant, I'm happy to announce that one dream has been fulfilled: mine and Sergio's miniseries graphic novel, Magic of Myths: season one is now on release for you to buy!

Weighing in at 62 pages, the £7.99 fantasy adventure story comes complete with sketchbook art designs, pin-ups and the full script and commentary to one of the six chapters. Not bad for the first season of a miniseries, we'd say.

Where can I buy Magic of Myths: season one?
Well, you have several options:

You can buy a copy direct from our stand today at the Bristol Comic and Small Press Expo. Corey will be selling the book on Table 16 in Hall 3 (here's a map for you: http://www.thefallenangel.co.uk/spexpo/BICSPE%20layout%202011.jpg). We'll only be here today (Saturday), so be sure to come over and say hi if you can. If you're reading this via my Facebook feed, chances are Facebook has posted it too late for you to come over. In which case...

You can buy a copy from our online vendor, Indy Planet. Simply go here (http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=888&products_id=5310) and you'll be able to purchase Magic of Myths: season one, which will be delivered to your door via post.

Want to go into a physical shop? Nostalgia and Comics, one of Britain's longest running comic book shops, will be selling the book in a few weeks. You'll also be able to reserve a copy there if you ask a member of staff. If you subscribe to this site (simply put your email into the subscribe link on the right hand side) we'll let you know when stock arrives, so all you need to do is pop in and pick up your copy. You can find them here:

14-16 Smallbrook Queensway, B5 4EN
Phone: 0121 643 0143

They have a Facebook page as well:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=79701585171&ref=ts#!/group.php?gid=79701585171&v=wall

Fancy a digital copy? Well, we've a few things in the works, so expect info about digital versions coming very soon.

This isn't the end of Magic of Myths - there's plenty more news to come soon. If you get a copy of season one, let me know what you think - and thanks as always for your support.

Meanwhile, down in the Bayou...

2011-05-03T10:15:00.031+01:00

Just a little break from Magic of Myths...

Jennie Gyllblad (my artist partner on graphic novel Butterflies and Moths) has done a little more artwork for our forthcoming short story for anthology Bayou Arcana. Our tale, Irons in the Fire, is nearly done, barring a few more pages of script and half the artwork to be done, so here's a sneak peek of the first couple pages... they're rather nice, I'm sure you'll agree:

Expect more on Irons in the Fire and Bayou Arcana in the coming months.

Countdown...

2011-04-28T13:02:00.004+01:00

Magic of Myths: season one is so close to release (14th May, in case you didn't know) that you can expect a fair few of my future posts to be talking about it (sorry). As my first major non-anthology book to be published, it's been both hard work and pleasure in equal measure.

But we've tried to make sure you get value for your £7.99/$12.99. So, to that end, you're not just getting a story, you're also getting a whole range of extras as well. Magic of Myths: season one includes:

A foreword by Barry Nugent, author of acclaimed novel Fallen Heroes and columnist from Geek Syndicate
Six chapters of graphic novel story
Two full-page pin-ups of artwork
An eight-page sketchbook by Magic of Myths artist Sergio Calvet
The full script to Magic of Myths #3 ('Fairy Tales'), along with commentary from the creative team
An afterword from Dann Lundie, publisher/owner of Futurius Comics

Head over to the official site and you'll be able to read half of the book's tale and all sorts of columns and info on it. And if it takes your fancy, please do subscribe to the site and we'll keep you updated on future news in the run-up to the book's launch.

The Magic is building

2011-04-25T23:25:00.009+01:00

"...And you're back in the room."

Illness: over. Much needed break: under (going).

Several days into my time off and the last vestiges of illness, along with the stresses of work are melting away. Which is just as well, as there's plenty to do. But let's get things back on track.

Mine and Sergio's forthcoming miniseries graphic novel, Magic of Myths: season one, is on the verge of release now, with a May 14^th 2011 launch. At a wallet friendly price of £7.99, we'll be launching the book the Bristol Comic and Small Press Expo, selling it on the show floor for Saturday only. The very kind and talented Simon Gurr has offered to share his table for the launch of Magic of Myths: season one, so you can come over on the day and buy a copy from Table 16 in Hall 3 (here’s a map for you: http://www.thefallenangel.co.uk/spexpo/BICSPE%20layout%202011.jpg) as well as buy some fabulous artwork from another amazing artist, Jennie Gyllblad (who is working with me on our graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths).

We'll also be selling Magic of Myths: season one at the wonderful comic book shop Nostalgia and Comics, online vendors, and a couple other places as well. Hopefully a few digital options will be available by that time, too.

What is Magic of Myths? Well, it's a fantasy adventure following a young lady called Eve as she's plunged into a bizarre magic world and forced to complete five tasks to return home. Check out the back of book blurb below and you can read half of the story (issues one to three) for free over at the official site.

More news to come on this and another project in process, soon.

Expletive happens. And everything else, too.

2011-04-08T17:09:00.000+01:00

Just a quick one, sorry - my planned updates for the past few weeks have been a bit waylaid, between Magic of Myths finally hitting the printers (more on that soon), lots of work, emergency babysitting for two days straight (which was actually a strange, and at times, life-affirming pleasure, despite the constant worry, lack of sleep, nappies etc) and also the same sodding illness which struck me nearly four years ago. To say it's brutal would be an understatement. Sleep and food were pretty much a distant memory for the past three days.

And now my eyes ache from too much screen-time, so like a tired old man, I'm out of here.

Catch you on the flipside soon, hopefully.

The first of... well, not so much 'many', more 'a few'

2011-03-07T18:50:00.005Z

So, what to start with first?

Hmm.

As you’ll probably know by now if you’ve been following this blog and the official Magic of Myths site, most of my time of late has been taken up by the miniseries I’ve been creating along with Sergio Calvet, Magic of Myths. It’s virtually complete, but I’ll go into the ins and outs of that project in another imminent blog entry.

So what else is there?

Well, a few things. The first is that last year I was signed up to write for another anthology due for release later this year/early next year, called Bayou Arcana. It’s a collection of stories set around a mystical Cajun bayou, covering all sort of subjects, from the plight and lives of escaped slaves in the deep south to the mythology and lore swirling around in the swampy environment that surrounds them. Expect stories with ghosts, demons, monsters and bounty hunters, as well as expected topics such as prejudice, racism, loss and redemption.

This came about when the man behind Bayou Arcana (and writer of its universe), Jimmy Pearson, gathered up a small selection of creators from the now defunct Insomnia Publications and asked if they wanted to be part of this intriguing project. After a few ums and ahhs, I jumped on-board with a story idea and much to my delight, Jimmy loved it and Jennie Gyllblad (my artist partner on graphic novel Butterflies and Moths) also joined.

So, now we’re in the middle of a short story called Irons in the Fire, a tragic tale of a man trying to find peace and freedom in a world which refuses him it – both on an incidental and personal level. I’m currently scripting the tale, but Jen has already done some rather amazing artwork:

You can check out more lovely artwork over at her site. And if you want to read more about Bayou Arcana, excellent comic book site Small Press Big Mouth has run one or two articles on it, which are well worth a read.

What else? Well, some rather nice opportunities have turned up, although I can't say too much of them yet – but I’ve been asked to possibly write another story as part of another franchise, which was a very pleasant surprise. Nothing may come of it, but we’ll see – there are a lot of projects I have bubbling on at the moment, including a very unusual vampire satire series and strange prose fairy tale...

Next – some release news on Magic of Myths: season one, which is coming together very nicely. Stay tuned…

"What’s new? Lots new."

2011-02-21T17:47:00.002Z

Don’t worry, I’ve not abandoned this site – quite the opposite, in fact, as there’s been a fair bit happening that I’ve just simply not had time to put on here yet. But I’ve a few things in the works to keep this site a little more active in the future.

In the meantime, this is me waving, not drowning. There will soon be fresh updates, to tell you about:

- The next big anthology story I’ve been signed up to do for this year along with sensational Butterflies and Moths artist, Jennie Gyllblad

- The launch of Magic of Myths: season one (with the brilliant and prolific Sergio Calvet) – my first major creator owned project, along with all the plans and promotion that are coming with it

- A couple video appearances I’ve made over the past six months which you’ll likely embarrass me about

- And a few other bits and pieces.

Give me just a little more time/And our love will surely grow…

Roll credits

2010-10-23T12:31:00.029+01:00

It’s been a while since I’ve done this, and with a few more people coming to the site of late with the recently released stories, now is a good time to take stock and bring you up to date on everything that’s going on.

I’ve been lucky enough to be writing comics for publication since 2007 and been even more fortunate enough to have been a) published every year since and b) paid for it during my early ventures. It’s been full of ups and downs, as often the case with any creative industry, and continues to be so – but I’ve met and worked with some brilliant people along the way, with a lot of things moving in the right direction, albeit very slowly.

So, where are things right now? Well, here’s a potted list of fiction credits both past and forthcoming, for easy reference:

Story: The Teams (military drama, ongoing series)

Published: Currently unpublished (work conceived 2006/7)

Role: Script writer/co-plotter (work-for-hire)

Story: Bad Luck Inc. (sci-fi drama, 13 page short story, visualised and drawn by artist Yui Marr)

Published: Tales from the Plex Vol. 2 (2007, 2010 reprint) and Tales from the Plex #5 (2010, reprint).

Role: Co-creator/writer

Buy it here

Story: War Chronicles (sci-fi, ongoing series)

Published: Currently unpublished (work conceived 2007)

Role: Script writer/plotter (work-for-hire)

Story: L33tspeak (comedy strip, visualised and drawn by artist Stephanie O'Donnell)

Published: Tales from the Plex #1, #2, #3, #4 (2008)

Role: Co-creator/writer

Buy it here

Story: Live fast… in the cockpit of WipEout HD (sci-fi videogame fiction, prose)

Published: eu.playstation.com/Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (2008)

Role: Writer

Read it here

Story: Butterflies and Moths: Fragile (magic realism drama, 12 page short story/prelude, visualised and drawn by Ariyana Vidya)

Published: Layer Zero: Choices (2009)

Role: Co-creator/writer

Story: A Twilight's Promise (drama, one page short story, visualised and drawn by Ariyana Vidya)

Published: Tales from the Plex #13 (2009)

Role: Co-creator/writer

Buy it here

Story: Magic of Myths (fantasy, six issue miniseries, visualised and drawn by Sergio Calvet)

Published: Self published online and forthcoming graphic novel (2010, 2011 respectively)

Role: Co-creator/writer

Read it here

Story: The Twilight Cleaner (horror, 12 page short story, visualised and drawn by James Daniels)

Published: Survival Stories (2010)

Role: Co-creator/writer

Buy it soon from here

Story: Butterflies and Moths (magic realism drama, graphic novel, visualised and drawn by Jennie Gyllblad)

Published: Was to be published by Insomnia Publications, currently being pitched

Role: Co-creator/writer

I also have several ongoing projects which have yet to be revealed but should be in the coming 12 months. If you want to request samples, just drop me an email/comment and I’ll get back to you.

Survival Stories - out now!

2010-10-16T10:00:00.000+01:00

The Sleepless Phoenix: Survival Stories anthology has launched at the British International Comic Show (BICS) today, featuring stories from the likes of Martin Conaghan (Burke & Hare), Ben Bates (Sonic the Hedgehog), Jim Boswell (KiCk!), Peter Forbes (Oz: Fall of the Scarecrow King), and more, as well as including horror short The Twilight Cleaner by myself and artist James Daniels. You can check out the previews right here: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/910305588/the-sleepless-phoenix-comics-anthology/posts and a preview of The Twilight Cleaner below:

The Twilight Cleaner

By Corey Brotherson and James Daniels

Page one
(click to enlarge)

Page two
(click to enlarge)

Page three
(click to enlarge)

You can buy Survival Stories at BICS or by dropping me an email or leaving me a comment. Thanks for all your support!

Surviving

2010-10-12T22:24:00.073+01:00

So, we're launching a new book in a few days.

I've mentioned this before, but perhaps haven't mentioned it quite enough. The Sleepless Phoenix: Survival Stories anthology will be launching at the British International Comic Show (BICS) this Saturday 16th October, playing host to a massive array of talent. You can read all the backstory at the site, but the most important thing is that Survival Stories is going to come swinging out of the gates with 192 pages of tales from all kinds of genres and styles, from the likes of Martin Conaghan (Burke & Hare), Ben Bates (Sonic the Hedgehog), Jim Boswell (KiCk!), Peter Forbes (Oz: Fall of the Scarecrow King), and more. Popular and respected British writer, Mike Carey (Lucifer, The Unwritten, X-Men Legacy) said the book is "a kaleidoscope of graphic stories - mostly in the darker colours of the horror palette, but all the better for that." - so it can't be too bad, right?

Lauren Sharp and Michael Moreci have been among some of the creators who have made sure this could come together to happen, and will be among a selection of creators at BICS helping launch and sell the book. If you're at BICS stop by our stand, say hi and check out the anthology. If you want to buy a copy, please get in touch and you can order through me.

What's that, you ask? You want to see some previews? Well, take a look right here: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/910305588/the-sleepless-phoenix-comics-anthology/posts.

Oh, yeah - Survival Stories also has a 12 page story by myself and James Daniels, The Twilight Cleaner. It's a British based coming of age vampire story with a little... well, buy a copy and find out for yourself...

The Twilight Cleaner

By Corey Brotherson and James Daniels

Page one
(click to enlarge)

Page two
(click to enlarge)

Page three
(click to enlarge)

The update relay

2010-10-09T22:02:00.001+01:00

My head is spinning. Not literally, but it's spinning nonetheless.

I have no idea why. It could be overwork. It could be too many things happening at once. It could be me taking in too much Breaking Bad right now (which is, in my opinion, one of the best written shows on TV and highly recommended).

I honestly have no idea why.

But there are lots of things happening, so whatever is clouding my head into a jumbled mess I'm going to just have to try and find that Moment of Clarity and get on with it.

(But I'm not giving up Breaking Bad. No no no, I'm appropriately hooked).

So, what we have coming on this site is a rush of updates in the coming weeks. The first is an update on mine and Sergio's miniseries, Magic of Myths. We recently discovered the great news that the Magic of Myths ebook sampler has broken 5,000 views and still climbing each week. It's a wonderful surprise and motivates us even further towards the release of the Magic of Myths graphic novel, early 2011. Thanks for all your support - the series wouldnt be where it is without your backing and there will be more to check out at the end of the year.

What's next on the agenda? A little something called Survival Stories. Stay tuned...

The catch-up hangover

2010-09-11T12:00:00.004+01:00

Butterflies and Moths, page 1 - by Corey Brotherson and Jen Gyllblad

With gamescom, stag dos, weddings, and various trips making the past couple months something of a blur, I’ve finally had time to sit down and gather my thoughts for a few seconds. Although the funny thing about reflection is sometimes you stare too long and don’t get anything done…

Right, let’s see if I can order these chaotic thoughts of mine.

Firstly, you may have seen in recent comic book news that the publisher (Insomnia Publications) of mine and Jen’s forthcoming graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths, is no longer around. There have been a lot of issues cropping up about the publisher over the past few months, most of which came to light most recently. I won't go into it here, but you can read about it at the following sources, in order:

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/05/25/martin-conaghan-resigns-from-insomnia-publications/

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/05/26/insomnia-publishing-calls-resignations-spring-cleaning/

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/07/05/how-to-get-your-rights-back-burke-hare-a-case-study/

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/07/17/insomnia-publishing-to-cease-publishing/

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/08/20/insomnia-publications-finally-gets-put-to-sleep/

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/08/31/pond-life-by-martin-conaghan-12-putting-insomnia-to-bed/

It’s a long and fascinating (not to mention painful) story; a cautionary tale of how not to run a comic book publisher. Sigh.

So, where does it leave Butterflies and Moths, and mine and James’ vampire short, The Twilight Cleaner (which was due to appear in Insomnia’s newest anthology Layer Zero: Survival)?

Butterflies and Moths, page 6 - art by Jen Gyllblad

Well, Layer Zero: Survival was declared dead. And The Sleepless Phoenix: Survival Stories arose in its place, featuring many of same creators looking to get their work out there. Which is where The Twilight Cleaner will now be published. The anthology will go on sale next month at the British International Comic Show (BICS), where a number of the creators (myself included) will be on-hand to sell and sign the book. We had to raise a fair bit of cash to get the book on the road, but the target has been fulfilled and so the anthology is ready to go to the printers. If you want to pledge something or check out more information on the book, pass by here: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/910305588/the-sleepless-phoenix-comics-anthology. The likes of Lauren Sharp and Michael Moreci have really pushed this whole thing onwards at an early stage, and deserve massive credit for getting it off the ground, along with many others who have promoted the book hard to reach its pledge target. Expect more information on the book closer to launch, and if you’re visiting BICS, do feel free to stop by our stand and have a chat.

The Twilight Cleaner - art by James Daniels

Graphic novel Butterflies and Moths is another story altogether. Jen and I are currently polishing off the first chapter and preparing it for a few pitches. We’ll see where that takes us. We’re not taking the news of Insomnia’s demise as a negative – we’re still going to push on with what we can and hopefully see it through to the end.

In other comic book related news, I managed to interview Steve Niles (of 30 Days of Night fame) at gamescom 2010 for the newest F.E.A.R. title. A really nice and terribly supportive guy – you can read the interview here: http://uk.playstation.com/ps3/news/articles/detail/item302581/F-3-A-R-writer-interview/

Oh, and while I’m here, I got my copy of Futurius’ The Darkling in the post recently, and it’s lovely. And I’ve got a guest appearance in it, bizarrely enough! You can buy it here: http://www.indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3911. Futurius also re-released Tales from the Plex 2, which features my very first published story, Bad Luck Inc. with artist Yui Marr. You can buy that here: http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/futurius-tales-from-the-plex-2/12552541

Finally on the four colour front, Magic of Myths has been doing well. With the first three free issues done, Sergio and I are hard at work on the final three issues to launch the eventual mini-graphic novel in the next 6 months. The ebook has clocked over 1,000 visits and continuing to rack up hits, which is great to see – you can check it out over here: http://www.myebook.com/index.php?option=ebook&id=39996. Meanwhile, the official site will be offering previews of the forthcoming graphic novel and news in the run up to its release. Pop over and say hi…

Lastly on a whole, I recently got my hands on my long awaited (2 years!) Pandora handheld device. And it’s superb. Any machine which lets me do writing, watch some DVDs on the fly, switch to a bit of gaming from the 8-bit and 16-bit era with excellent controls (my copy of Full Throttle is getting a lot of play right now), listen to music and go online (with touchscreen functionality and TV-out), all while fitting into my back pocket can only be good. There’s limited availability of the machine, but if you’re an older gamer who likes to have PC functionality literally in your pocket, it’s a veritable dream-machine: http://www.openpandora.org/

I’m sure I’ve forgotten to mention something else in this entry, but it’s gone on for long enough anyway. Hopefully catch you soon…

The Magic of Myths ebook

2010-07-30T22:59:00.000+01:00

Just a quick one for you - an end of the month slide home...

If you've not yet checked out Sergio and my fantasy miniseries, Magic of Myths yet, we've just launched a temporary ebook for your reading pleasure which lets you read all three chapters of the six part story in one go, quickly and easily.

You can check out the Magic of Myths ebook right here:

http://www.myebook.com/index.php?option=ebook&id=39996

Please do share the link around, and feel free to rate it and leave comments there.

Thanks as always!

Putting it all together

2010-07-07T23:12:00.005+01:00

So, how about that World Cup, eh?

Sorry for the long radio silence. Magic of Myths is doing its best to keep me busy, so most of my writing has been kept to scripting, promotional work, planning and approvals (not just for that, but other projects as well, which I'll get to in a bit). It's kept me off here for a while although I'm determined to not let more than a month go before putting up at least one post. As long as I get this one off, then, I'm good for another month. Hopefully.

Magic of Myths #3, page 1

In any case, there's been a lot to talk about. Magic of Myths is doing well, with Issue three now out to read for free, also marking the final free chapter before the graphic novel comes out within the next 6 months. It's been a wonderful, educating and tiring experience, something I'd happily do again should I be able to convince another artist to come along for the mad ride, as Sergio was so willing to do (for which I'm forever grateful).

We also managed to get some free promotional copies into comic book shops, which went down well, with plans to follow up in the near future. On top of that, an interview with Sergio and I was recently published, giving us lots of space to talk about the miniseries. Many thanks to Drew Edwards and the Your Mom's Basement crew for setting that up, it was a fantastic experience.

So, if you've not read Magic of Myths #3 yet, please do give it a go - and if you like it, tell everyone about it. The postman, your boss, your mistress, everyone.

In other news, James Daniels' and my vampire story, The Twilight Cleaner is all polished and ready for publication in Insomnia Publications' Layer Zero anthology this October. Yes, there's been some rather public problems with the publisher the past couple months, but things are still moving forward, as they are with graphic novel Butterflies and Moths with Jennie Gyllblad - that big preview we promised is still on its way, as well. Don't worry - I may be bad at keeping this blog updated, but I'm not shy about this sort of thing when it's around...

This week is also National Transplant Week, which I'm a supporter of - Jac has written a great blog post on it and the transplant register over at Up the Far Away Tree that's worth checking out (as is her blog in general): http://weejac.blogspot.com/2010/07/national-transplant-week-today-marks.html

Oh, and one last thing: Netherlands for the World Cup. You heard it here first. Well, that is, unless you actually live in the Netherlands, in which case you've probably heard it a few times already. The psychic octopus gets all his predictions from me, don't ya know...

"I have dreamed a dream, and now..."

2010-06-06T23:55:00.003+01:00

Magic of Myths #2, page 1

It’s a strange place to be when you’re caught between your dreams and reality. Kinda like catching flu. You’re both hot and cold at the same time. And somewhere, between elation and disappointment, comes a moment where you make a choice.

Recently, I fulfilled a personal goal of mine to get a collaborative ‘solo’ project comic book into comic shops. Mine and Sergio’s pet project, Magic of Myths, was dropped off at Orbital Comics last week to be given away for free to anyone wanting a copy. Which was a surreal feeling to say the least. I’ll be doing the same again this week with my faithful and ever-loved comic shop, Nostalgia and Comics. And while it’s not quite the same as having people come in and pay for your work, it’s the closest I’ve got to having something in a comic book shop which has my name on the cover. Which is a great feeling.

At the same time, it’s anchored by the realism that this is just a small step in my overall goal. I’m working towards it, but it’s a long path that I’ve barely set out on, and that’s after a handful of published efforts, work for hire and several years of toil. Sometimes you wonder if it’s worth it. Sometimes you wonder if you’re not just talking into an airless room while people walk past. And then, once they have, and you’ve exhausted your breath, you take a big inhale… and start talking again. In the hope that a few people take notice and talk back. Desire, encouragement and the need to get further along the road to Where You Really Want To Be.

But bloody hell, sometimes it seems so far away.

Magic of Myths #2, page 2

So, onward and upward. Magic of Myths is now officially two issues old and moving, hopefully reaching people. If not, we’ll keep trying until it does. Issue three is nearly done and will be ready for launch on 1st July, while I’m currently writing the script for Issue 5 in the hope that it won’t confuse the heck out of people. Then, on to Issue 6 and start pushing forward with some of the planning for the mini graphic novel of the whole miniseries…

The perils of writing too much

2010-05-18T13:47:00.005+01:00

I've been meaning to update this for a while now, sorry for the delay (and subsequent brevity of this entry). Most of my time has been taken up with keeping Magic of Myths (http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/) going (Sergio and I are currently doing an interview for our miniseries, so expect more on that soon), and catching up with work (also known as more writing and not trying to fall over after being off ill for two weeks). With E3 around the corner there's lots to do, and while I may not be going to sunny LA this year to cover the event, I'm looking forward to seeing what comes out of it. Even as a Sony employee who's been lucky enough to see most of what we'll be showing (yum) I'm hoping for a few surprises.

So, in the meantime while I furiously type home and away - no, not that Home and Away. Although that would be a good writing break for me - please do feel free to check out the latest stuff from Magic of Myths, which includes:

- Issue one: http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/issue-1/

- A look behind the scenes: http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/2010/05/14/behind-the-magic-curtain-1/

- The series foreword: http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/2010/04/29/series-foreword-part-one/

Issue two will be out on June 1st. Please do stop by and comment if you want. The series is ranking quite high on Google at the time of writing, which is nice to see considering it's a small publication with little exposure beyond word of mouth (and Sergio and I shouting about it on any social network we can find) but we appreciate some feedback as well to know where we're going right or wrong.

Oh, and I've just created a Formspring account, here: http://formspring.me/cbrotherson which is a bizarre open Q&A style social website where you can ask me questions in the hope that I might answer without facetiousness. I'll probably regret opening the account, but hey...

Take care for now and thanks as always.

Kidney blow

2010-04-30T10:59:00.010+01:00

Well, so much for that.

My grand plans to do a couple run-up blogs just before the launch of mine and Sergio's miniseries, Magic of Myths, kinda fell apart on Saturday morning when I collapsed in horrendous pain and had to be rushed to hospital. Doped up on morphine and oxygen, hooked to a drip and unable to regulate my own breathing through a mixture of agony and mild panic, I eventually discovered I had a kidney stone trying to make its way around my lower abdomen. It damaged my right kidney slightly and was trying to pass through a duct it was far too big for. As they often attempt.

The result was several days in hospital, fasting for a potential operation and having long needles and tubes attached to my arms to keep me hydrated. We won't talk about having to pee into cardboard boxes, wearing oh-so-sexy hospital stockings and gowns, and the constant feeling of sickness and/or fatigue quite yet, but needless to say, I wasn't going anywhere for a while.

So, my last 6 days have been pretty much spent in bed. I thankfully avoided surgery (which, as one doctor cheerfully explained, would have involved sticking a long tube into a place I'd rather not have it stuck in to repair the kidney), and I'm now out of hospital, but constantly tired and groggy, feeling nauseous at times, and the pain across my arms and kidney reminds me (along with falling into the sink, freezer, walls and other inanimate objects) that I'm still in a vulnerable state. I'll be on medication and painkillers for a short while while my kidney re-knits itself and my body gets used to having food which isn't just saline solution.

However! Magic of Myths is still launching tomorrow.

It won't be as big a launch as originally planned, with physical promotional copies to be given away in some comic book shops (initially for Free Comic Book Day on May 1st) now postponed, but the launch of the book is still set to go live at http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/, where you can read the first issue for free, along with other behind the scenes goodies to enjoy. Most of the work was done before my kidney explosion, so the stuff planned for this week was mostly just marketing and promotion, but hey, these things happen.

So, I hope you can spare a few minutes to head over to http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/ and check out the first part of a miniseries Sergio and I have spent a lot of time creating. Spread the word, subscribe to the site for free and if you like it, please do tell others about it. We're very much a small publication that can only survive off your word of mouth, so anything you can do is a massive help.

Right, the meds are calling, as is the nausea, so I'm off. I may not write here for a week or so while I get myself together (just as well most of the Magic of Myths stuff is already written and scheduled), but I'll hopefully catch you soon. And please do stop by http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/ and let us know what you think of the miniseries.

It's coming...

2010-04-21T14:22:00.003+01:00

Magic of Myths
A new miniseries by Corey Brotherson and Sergio Calvet

Launching 01/05/10

http://magicofmyths.wordpress.com/

The Twilight of our lives

2010-04-02T17:00:00.007+01:00

So, that story I mentioned a while back that I didn't want to talk about during Christmas.

You've seen some previews of this tale, A Twilight's Promise, before as it reached completion - it's a one page story on the cruel and fleeting nature of life. It's been released in Futurius' excellent hidden gem, the Tales from the Plex series, and available to buy here (http://www.indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=2962&osCsid=0hfph2dpeu3e9npdut05ocvvi7)

To be honest, it was both one of the easiest and hardest things I've written. I try to write stories to the medium and format I'm in, as I've painfully found out recently when trying to reformat a 50 issue series into three graphic novels; it didn't work. The reason why it didn't work was because all the plot, style and format of the story were designed to function within a series format, with the cliffhangers, storylines and even the way the characters progress in the story, all geared to a long running series. Condensing that into three graphic novels created all sorts of problems with the above and there was no time to adapt it fully, so I stopped trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.

It's easy to misunderstand, but adapting material from one source and format to another isn't a case of saying "well, this book should work well as a film, so why did they miss things out or change my favourite part" and so on. Stories rarely work that way. Just because it works in one medium, doesn't mean it will work in another simply because it seems like a perfect fit - it's a bit like saying a Porsche engine will work well in a Ferrari because they're both cars and drive fast. Nine times out of ten, something will have to change to make the story work and comfortably in its new form, because while you may live in a house, no one moves into a new property without making some adjustments to make it a home. Otherwise it's just you sitting in a place which doesn't quite feel right for you. Same with adaptations of most kinds, whether it's from book to comic, or even from a short story to a larger form.

So when it came to A Twilight's Promise, I thought about what would make a good one page story. Big problem = there's little space for what I would like a great, engaging story to have (not so much it being impossible, more that I'm not sure I had the scope in my tastes to make it work). Action, character development and such... no room. It's difficult enough for a prose one-pager, but a comic one-pager? Nope, not going to work. So after a long think, I realised that if this story is going to be brief, why not make that the point of the story and its main metaphor? Start it up, and before we even get a chance to know the characters, their aims, their thoughts, we lose them again. A person in their cruel twilight, as it were. I wrapped that up in a setting which we'd all be able to relate to, imagine and sympathise with, not to mention a theme and topic close to me, and that's what ended up on the page.

Ariyana Vidya, the talent behind Butterflies and Moths: Fragile, did the artwork and captured it all perfectly - the pace, the emotion and even some of the visual effects I described in the script. All in one page. It's not the most pleasant of stories and certainly my most depressing to date (however, my graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths, may take that crown this/next year) but it's meant to be bleak. It's meant to catch you in your gut and make you ask 'why'. It's meant to be far briefer than it is fair.

Given it's only one page, you can read the whole thing in the preview section of the site where you can purchase the comics from the series. Take a look and let me know your thoughts - and I'd also recommend picking up an issue or two of Tales from the Plex as well. There's a lovely range of styles and stories there for everyone and worth the rather small cover price (especially given how pricey mainstream comics are getting these days).

Catch you on the bounce and thanks as always for stopping by.

Butterflies and Moths - the first lettered preview

2010-03-24T09:00:00.006Z

So, here we are.

Jen is currently lettering the first chapter of our graphic novel Butterflies and Moths, so we're seeing what works, what doesn't and if there needs to be tweaks to the script so we don't cover up all her lovely artwork with my words. It's a process of slight trial and error, but Jen's good judgement and some wise guidance from our publisher, Insomnia, is creating some pleasing results.

These aren't 100% representative of the final product, but will give you an idea of how the whole thing may look when it's all put together.

Page 0
(click to enlarge)

Page 11
(click to enlarge)

Page 12
(click to enlarge)

Page 13
(click to enlarge)

Thanks for reading it so far - more to come...

Easy as A, B, C (or: The Importance of Good Lettering)

2010-03-18T20:13:00.031Z

Okay, here's something for the non-comic book readers (or those not too familiar with comics) to try out.

- Think about your favourite drama/tense thriller style film.
- Now, replace the best actors of that film and re-dub their voices with someone entirely inappropriate. Let's say, Pee-Wee Herman (assuming your favourite film isn't Big Top Pee-wee). You can do this with either your imagination or, if you're so inclined, Pee-Wee Herman.

Chances are, even in this hypothetical scenario, the film wont be quite the same, or even be a favourite of yours any more (unless you actually like Pee-Wee Herman), despite the fact that the only real thing which has changed is the delivery of the script. The same holds true of the dubbing or subtitling/translation of any movie - the original script may be brilliant and the acting sublime, but a poor effort in communicating any of that can kill a story.

For comics, lettering has that level of significance and importance.

Lettering, for all intents and purposes, is the 'voice' of the comic pages. It's a bit like prose in the sense that you're given a set amount of information about the character, while your imagination fills in the gaps - but where comics changes that is through its use of dynamic lettering. A letterer will often visually show you if the character is shouting, whispering, thinking, has a slightly inhuman voice and so on. You still have to use your imagination to decode and personalise this information, but it's a unique combination of presentation and reader input that creates the effect. Not only that, but colour, size, font style, and the placement of the words themselves all factor into this.

If done right, it's an invisible, almost under-appreciated art. A good letterer, like a good editor, will let you pass through a story without you thinking too much, if anything, about the job being done. But it's utterly vital to the story - because when it's bad, it stands out like a large, sore, diseased thumb.

I'm talking about this now for two reasons. The first is because the opening chapter of Butterflies and Moths is currently being lettered, and thankfully Jen is not only a sterling artist, but has a natural flair for lettering as well. There are a still a few tweaks to be made as we make some adjustments and decisions, but so far it's looking great.

The second reason is due to the much maligned Twilight graphic novel which has just been released. The book's story/art/content aren't the reason why it's taking a critical beating, but rather the lettering.

Now, while I don't subscribe to "this is The Worst Lettering in the World Ever" train of thought as some have dubbed it (simply because people who don't usually read comics won't see half the stuff a regular comics reader will see), it's still a classic example of just how important the craft is. Take the page above (click to expand it).

The speech balloons are too big for the words inside them - when a word as small as "oh" takes up a tiny space in the middle of a giant balloon it's a bad move, but what makes it worse is it takes up so much room to have an effect on the following balloon (spoken by the teacher in the scene) which is slanted at an angle for no discernible reason, needlessly overlapping the next balloon. It's a mess of placement and reading flow, and makes it look like they just stuck them on the page in a rush.

From most of the pages I've seen, this continues:

Again, poor placement covers up the art where it doesn't need to, the balloon is way too large for the text, and so on. Comics Alliance does a good run-down of the book's mistakes here, but for such a massive title and given the large following Twilight has (not to mention the lovely art the book is blessed with), it's a shame it falls down so hard on one of the most important parts.

For a point of comparison, I'd consider the following a good page of lettering (courtesy of DC Comics' brilliant Fables series - click to enlarge it):

Simple, elegant and doesn't get in the way of the story (by neither covering up much of the art or being difficult to read).

So, catch you in a few for a lettered preview of Butterflies and Moths - hopefully we've done a good job on making it easy to read... or at least easier to read than Twilight...

Art preview for Butterflies and Moths

2010-03-15T13:31:00.007Z

A very, very quick one this week, while all the Wizard of Oz style behind the scenes workings continue (a couple of nice things around the corner for the coming month): Jen has posted a page-by-page art preview of chapter one of our graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths. The artwork is nearly all done, with a few pages to finalise (this isn't the full chapter, as there are a few pages not ready to be shown and the final few pages wont be shown here until they're totally done) and lettering to add in. But it's looking staggering.

Take a look, if you please:

http://jenspiration-now.blogspot.com/2010/03/page-0-17-excluding-14-15.html

Thanks!

One page says it all...

2010-03-01T17:45:00.004Z

One rather telling page from Jen's stunning work on graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths. In case you didn't suspect already - this probably won't be a happy tale.

Jen's working like a machine right now to bring you more, so we may have something big to show you soon...

"Flash Gordon... is alive?!"

2010-02-23T23:11:00.003Z

Well, there goes the resolution...

Sorry for the lack of updates in the past few weeks, I'm still around, scripting away and staying sane. There have been a few things happening behind the scenes, which will hopefully be revealed in the coming months, but as a result things are a little quiet.

However, work has been busy enough and I've had a lot of fun covering Heavy Rain of late and will have a slew of related features going live, starting here.

David Cage, Guillaume de Fondaumière and the actors from the game are a brilliantly fun bunch to talk to and hang with, so it a was a joy to meet them. There's a write up over at the PlayStation Blog if you want to see snaps, video and read more about what happened at the launch event in Paris.

I'll be back with actual stuff to show soon. Promise.

Carving out a niche - the sequel

2010-01-26T22:32:00.000Z

Three posts in one month? Must be a fever.

A quick one, if I may, before I go home after a long day at work. As you've probably guessed from the title, this is a follow-up from the last post regarding Jen's fancy sculpture of our collaborative graphic novel's main character, Angel. The finished article is nearly here, and it's pretty damn good.

And here's a small shot of it painted (with another unfinished yet still superb sculpture made by Jen - she doesn't sleep, I swear).

Oh, if you're wondering what's going on with the graphic novel itself, well, there should be something tasty coming up in a month or so. I've seen the latest pages and they're... well, beautiful. Full of blood and suffering, but, you know, you knew that anyway...

Carving out a niche

2010-01-15T09:03:00.004Z

Just a quick one today, with some more visually pleasing snippets from the talented Ms Gyllblad related to our forthcoming graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths.

First up, a freshly painted page from the first chapter. Once we've got all the pages from that chapter completed (there's a few more left to go), there will eventually be a full-on, lettered preview for you to read in all its glory. Needless to say, when that happens you'll know about it...

And while we're here, Jen's been working on a side project - making a sculpture of the graphic novel's main character, Angel. We've talked about potentially using it for various promotions and maybe even a business card holder for when we go to cons, which would be pretty damn cool. Poor Angel is currently without her head in this pic (although it's already done, just waiting to be attached) but you can already see the similarities, especially compared to the artwork above.

Should look amazing once it's all put together and painted.

Catch you soon...

Meeting Twilight

2010-01-01T18:49:00.000Z

Happy New Year!

Okay, so it's coming a bit late in the day, but as the first entry of 2010 it's still relevant. Which in turn reflects my hopes that this blog will be more relevant this year, through a combination of more frequent updates (or at least more than once per month) and the formation of my publishing plan, which is coming together bit by bit.

But we'll get into all of that as we go on. The first thing which the newborn gaze of 2010 will turn to is forthcoming 12 page story, The Twilight Cleaner, drawn by James Daniels. The artwork is finished, the pages are lettered and so it's just going through a final round of minor edits before we can put it to bed and declare the first project of the year completed and ready for publication.

So, as expected, here's the first lettered preview of our British vampire story, The Twilight Cleaner (to be published in Insomnia Publications' forthcoming Layer Zero anthology). Hope you enjoy it and see you again soon...

The Twilight Cleaner

By Corey Brotherson and James Daniels

Page one
(click to enlarge)

Page two
(click to enlarge)

Page three
(click to enlarge)

Butterflies and Moths art preview - Page 2 to 10

2009-12-25T09:19:00.009Z

Merry Christmas to you all :)

Here, as promised, is the preview to forthcoming graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths. Jen's artwork isnt totally finished in some cases, and obviously un-lettered, but there shall be more in the coming months.

If you're still wondering what the book is about, well, here's a short teaser...

Butterflies and Moths
Writer: Corey Brotherson, Artist: Jennie Gyllblad

What would you do if you had the power of life and death?

What would you do if you were forced to kill innocent people, without warning?

What would you do if you met a person...

... who changed everything?

Butterflies and Moths is the tale of a young woman plagued by a terrible and soul staining curse, finding a kindred spirit who may be more than she seems...

Page 2

Page 3

Page 4

Page 5

Page 6

Page 7

Page 8

Page 9

Page 10

Merry Christmas! Plus, a little extra...

2009-12-24T22:46:00.002Z

Preview image 1 - Butterflies and Moths (graphic novel, late 2010)
Artwork by Jennie Gyllblad

Later than planned, yet earlier than it would have probably been, this update comes with a modicum of Christmas cheer, sprinkled with a dash of weary caution that has come with 2009 so far. It's been a year with a bewildering array of ups and downs that have kept punching me in the face/feeding me heavenly strawberries right up until now, and I fully expect that to continue right into its death-knell before we celebrate the arrival of a newborn 2010. That said, it's better than having just a year of bad news with nothing to balance it out. At least, that's what I keep telling myself...

Preview image 2 - Magic of Myths (mini-series, late 2010)
Artwork by Sergio Calvet

In any case, the writing side of things has been mostly good and my sights are firmly placed on 2010 for things to get even better.

Preview image 3 - A Twilight's Promise (one-page short story, out now)
Artwork by Ariyana Vidya

My collaborative graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths, is well on the way. I finished the complete draft of the script a few months ago, fired it over to my partner-in-crime, artist Jen G who has been busily working at it since, as you've seen already. I couldn't be happier with her work so far and you'll be treated to nearly half of the coloured pages from chapter one in a sneak unlettered-but-sequential preview in the next entry, all things willing. While you wont be able to read the dialogue, it's testament to Jen's strong storytelling skills that you'll likely have an understanding of story's bare bones from the artwork alone. Fingers crossed we'll have a whole, entirely finished chapter ready to preview to the world in a couple months. Which makes me smile.

Preview image 4 - Butterflies and Moths (graphic novel, late 2010)
Artwork by Jennie Gyllblad

Regarding the actual script, well, I'm happy with it. It still needs tweaks here and there, which I'll likely be doing right up until the book is nearly drawn in its entirety, but that's the nature of comic books - as with anything creative, you cant help but tinker with it, but when you see the artist's interpretation of your script you tend to crop dialogue which has become superfluous or change bits to better suit the depiction. It's work all the way up to launch (and then after that, given the promotion) but it never really feels like work... and that's part of the grand aim.

Preview image 5 - The Twilight Cleaner (short story, mid 2010)
Artwork by James Daniels

There are also a few other things around the corner, as you may have seen in the image previews dotted on this page... but we'll get to those in due course. Oh yes.

Non-preview image - Sexy bear stripping off for Christmas. You like it, don't lie, I can see it in your eyes. "Grrr" indeed.

Look out for the preview and have a fantastic Christmas/New Year!

This is what happens...

2009-12-22T10:38:00.004Z

...when crazed comic book creators meet up.

Butterflies and Moths artist, Jennie Gyllblad and myself, chatting in a cafe about the graphic novel, comics, art and random drunks accosting her (which led to my oh-so peaceful suggestion here). Drawn by Jen, with alarming speed.

After hearing some of our conversations and seeing images like this, our publisher's creative director, Nic Wilkinson, said (and I quote):

"Not sure I have ushered in the apocalypse in some way, putting these two together!"

Too late, Nic! Toooo late...

Butterflies and Moths: created by true whack-jobs. Pre-order now, kids! We want to break your brains early!

Twilight comes around once more

2009-12-21T13:51:00.021Z

Merry Christmas/happy holidays!

I know I've been talking about a story I wrote which was recently released and on sale, but now is not the time to discuss that - we'll come back to it in a month or so when the time is more appropriate. Instead, I'm going to focus on a story which is possibly going to get me into slight trouble next year, albeit entirely accidentally.

The Twilight Cleaner.

Due for a mid 2010 release in Insomnia Publications' next Layer Zero anthology, The Twilight Cleaner is a vampire story.

Yes, I know what you're thinking...

In the wonders of typical creative coincidence, the emergence of the Twilight books/films has become a big ol' double-edged sword for me in the past 12 months, and will continue to be so for... well, as long as the films and books are popular. And The Twilight Cleaner (or TTC, as I'll refer to it) is the crux of that, because people will think I wrote it in response to Stephenie Meyer's popular teen-vampire saga.

Thing is, I wrote TTC way back in 2006 before I'd ever heard of the Twilight books - it's just taken this bloody long to get my story out, as per the glacial world of publishing (and almost to prove how slow the wheels move in this industry, it took Meyer 2 years to get Twilight released, from writing it and the book deal in 2003 to publication in 2005, before the film option came in 2007... and this is considered 'quick' by normal standards).

So what's going to cause the hoo-ha, if any at all? Well, I re-read my script recently as very talented artist, James Daniels, is currently drawing it, and I made the realisation it could be seen as a counter/commentary on the Twilight novels.

See, when I wrote this short 12 page story, it was for another publisher who was looking to complete an anthology of horror shorts. I knocked out the tale while on holiday in Florida for my Mom's birthday, the editor was happy with it and we were all set to go.

Then the project fell through as the publisher disappeared.

This was the second time a publisher fell apart before my story was published, so the hammer didnt quite fall as hard as the first time, but I was still a little saddened by the whole thing. Yet, I had a story written and finished, and that's something that never goes to waste.

Fast forward to 2007, and a friend at work introduces me to James (who also works at Sony), a superb young artist looking to get into the comic book industry. I fire him over TTC and he creates some samples, which turn out to be phenomenal.

Jump to 2009, and my first 'high street shop bookshelf story', Butterflies and Moths: Fragile, is released by Insomnia. They're looking for more shorts of a twisted kind to fit the theme of the next book, and TTC is a perfect fit. James is still keen to work on it and starts to deliver the goods, of which you'll see below in the first public preview of the story.

Now, The Twilight Cleaner is a story about a young female vampire called Kira, who is forced to clean the roads at night at the command of her vampire sire. Unable to hunt during the day, they prey on the drunk, the violent, the homeless and others who roam town during the twilight hours. Kira is fed up, a lonely figure of enforced servitude and boredom, but her vampirism doesnt let her make any friends, while loyalty to her 'master' keeps her enslaved, 'cleaning' the streets in more than one sense (albeit in very unsavoury ways), against her will. And after acting as the bait for countless victims, feeding off those mostly undeserving, she's had enough...

So basically, The Twilight Cleaner is about a young woman looking to fight against the conformity of what she's been told she can be and what she's been told she is. Trying to take control of her destiny and not be governed by oppression, especially that of a man stuck in his outdated, sexist ways.

In essence, something of an opposite to the Twilight saga's main character, Bella.

Hmm.

The fact Kira's a vampire (who looks around the same age as Bella, but is a lot older), seems to reject the submissive ideals that Bella falls into, the use of 'twilight' in the title and another plot point that comes up in the story, would suggest some sensitive Twilight fans looking too deeply into the material with this unintentional commentary in mind may think I'm being mean-spirited. "'Twilight Cleaner'? Who does this guy think he is?! Is he suggesting his story is 'cleaning up' the Twilight saga by trying to be better or something? That this is how vampires are supposed to be? How Bella should act if she was turned?" and so on.

I admit, it's a happy accident that both the third film in the Twilight saga, Eclipse, and The Twilight Cleaner will share a release date within bare months of each other next summer. But like everything else between the two properties, these are coincidences that I can only smile at. Like this :)

Whether or not people will even notice my little story anywhere near the juggernaut of the Twilight saga is hugely debatable, even if it'll be sitting in the same book shops next year. In fact, all of this only occurred to me when a friend pointed out another story of mine had 'twilight' in its title (A Twilight's Promise, which has no vampires in it, promise), at which point I realised what had happened. But it gives me something to write about, and hell, made me realise that things do indeed happen for a reason - The Twilight Cleaner will come out during a time when vampires are very much in-fashion again in the media, between the likes of Twilight, True Blood and other vamp-related properties.

Anyway. Here's an early and unfinished 2 page preview of The Twilight Cleaner fresh from James' drawing board. There will be more artwork previews coming up soon, not just for this but also for Butterflies and Moths, and a bit more detail on what stories I have coming out in 2010. It should be a huge year between a short story, graphic novel, planned mini-series (more on that soon) and potentially, hopefully something absolutely huge come this time next year... keep your fingers crossed for me...

The Twilight Cleaner - 2 page unfinished art preview
(coming 2010 in Layer Zero, by Corey Brotherson and James Daniels)

Page one
(click to enlarge)

Page two
(click to enlarge)

More soon...

Ch-ch-ch-changes

2009-11-24T13:42:00.007Z

The promised new entry is on its way, with a lot to talk about - but as a quick aside, I've finally added some extra functionality to this site, so it's easier to keep track of my ramblings, buy comics (some extra stuff on that soon as another one of my stories has slipped out into the wild to buy recently *grins*), follow me on Twitter and more. Sweet.

No?

Not sweet?

Okay, well how about this?

Awww. This is courtesy of Jen, who's hard at work on the art for our forthcoming graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths, coming to the likes of Amazon, Waterstones and comic book shops in 2010. See - it's not a story of blood and pain and misery all the time!

Erm, just most of the time.

*cackles*

More soon, oh yes. There are tales to tell you...

The slow march to madness

2009-10-27T22:40:00.004Z

Apologies on the lateness of this entry - there's a full update on the way, I promise. Life has just been a little unkind recently, so I'm playing catch up with a lot of things.

In the meantime, another piece of art from Jen's lovely artwork for our forthcoming graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths?

Why not.

This is Page 4 from Butterflies and Moths, the first splash page of many in the story and one of the most telling in terms of one of the main themes... Jen's still working on it, but I think it's doing a good job of looking pretty good so far...

Catch you soon...

Butterflies and Moths - the artistic angle of Angel

2009-09-09T14:33:00.011+01:00

I've spent a long time writing in different mediums, but if there's anything which reminds me why comics/sequential art is my most loved, it's getting artwork back from your original script and seeing your vision not only realised, but combined with someone else's vision - creating (what you hope) to be a perfect unison of something far better than you originally had in mind.

Which is my gushing way of saying, graphic novel Butterflies and Moths is progressing like a beautiful dream.

The talented Ms Jen Gyllblad, artist for Butterflies and Moths, is impressing with each page. And with each page it's becoming apparent that she's destined for big things - not just because she has clear, expressive line-work, can pull at your emotions with a great grasp for facial expressions and body language, and has a watercolour painted style that compliments the tale so perfectly...

...but because she can tell a story.

Comic book artists, like comic book writers, can be looked down upon by snobs because of the negative way the medium is perceived by some. But if there's one thing apparent, it's that you can have the talent to be a wonderful artist and create an emotive picture, it's an entirely different thing to do that while telling a clear story in smaller panels, because there's so much to take into mind.

Case in point. Pages 2 and 3 of Butterflies and Moths. I've put both the uncoloured early pages and coloured near finished/unlettered pages together so you can see the progression between the early and latter work, how it developed and how the entire mood can change or be augmented.

While you can get the sense of something being told here by Angel's body language and expressions (the latter is only something you get only once near the end to cap off the earlier clues), notice how the colour, lighting and framing of the pages work to give off a certain emotion, through dark blues, purples and browns, which play off two of the brighter hues on the pages (the golden scales and her t-shirt, the former almost popping off the page for a very good story related reason).

Even the panel shape and style play their part - rectangular panels create a rigid conformity and imprisonment that Angel is trapped within, given from the very first panel (which is large but shows Angel very alone, flushed to one side of the page even with space around her).

One thing that wont usually be noticed is the sense of visual story symmetry in just two pages - see how the first page uses one long horizontal panel to start, followed by six smaller panels? Then the next page uses six smaller panels to frame the end of one long vertical panel. So the page flows visually from one to the other to help build the scene, using subtle similarities and differences so your eye naturally combines the two pages (which will be published side-by-side in the book) and creates a full image of what is going on as Angel goes from dark isolation into the light of 'freedom'. And all of this is created with enough space in each panel for the lettering/text captions to come in later.

It's all stuff you can take for granted or overlook easily, but seems to come very naturally to Jen, because I'm sure as heck not specifying all of this in my script - she's taking what I've written and making it - in a visual sense - work. And as a comic book writer, you cant ask anything more from an artist.

Believe me, it's not as easy as it looks.

More pages to come...

Butterflies and Moths - the earliest of previews

2009-08-14T12:09:00.008+01:00

I'm still here! Honest. I am.

It's been a busy month, so apologies on the lack of updates - and to be honest, much of it has been spent trying to write my fantasy drama graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths. It's five chapters long, and I'm currently at the middle part of chapter four, which brings me up to about 170 pages of A4 script and around 50 more to go. Phew.

The finish-line is in sight, and while it's not always been an easy task, I can say that for most of the part it's been an enjoyable ride. Naturally it would have been even more enjoyable if I had more time to spend on it, but it's a good feeling to be close to completing my first major piece of fiction for publication.

Butterflies and Moths - early/sketched unfinished promo material

There's been lots of artwork floating around if you've been visiting my co-creator Jennie Gyllblad's site (where there's plenty more to look over), but I'm going to highlight the first couple pages which are currently in a very early sketch form, along with some other art which is closer to being finished. If you're wondering what exactly is going on in them, the answers will be clear in due time... and as the pages become more complete and lettered you'll start to build a picture of the sort of themes and issues Butterflies and Moths will be dealing with. In fact, if you look closely enough from these pages, you can probably spot a few already...

Page 2 (early sketch, unlettered - click to enlarge)

Page 3 (early sketch, unlettered - click to enlarge)

Page 9 (coloured, unlettered - click to enlarge)

Flutter?

2009-07-01T17:26:00.013+01:00

There's less of me chatting and more of me quietly getting on with it this week. Why? Because Insomnia has officially signed up an artist partner for my (and now, our) forthcoming graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths.

Step up and take a bow, the talented Ms Jennie Gyllblad (http://jenspiration-now.blogspot.com/). You can read the curious tale of how Jen became noticed by Insomnia Publications over at the company's blog here.

After a short period of emails and sketch trials, which showed she immediately captured the essence, look and style of the characters, Jennie was swiftly snapped up. And then managed to turn out the better part of a dozen different sketches, layouts, tests and other pieces of artwork to get a feel for the characters and certain settings.

As you can see from the artwork on these pages, she's a tad different from Fragile's also talented artist, Ariyana Vidya, but has a wonderfully eye pleasing style and such a strong command over emotion, expression and nuance that her storytelling simply shines through. There's also a visual consistency between her version of Angel and Ariyana's without losing that individuality of style - although the differences are given a little extra attractiveness through the beautiful colours and inks Jen effortlessly lends to her work. At the very least, the graphic novel will be lovely to look at.

Jen is fantastically quick, having produced fully painted pieces of work within a very short space of time, so expect more artwork and previews of Butterflies and Moths soon. As well as a nice little bit about what the actual story is about and how it relates to Fragile.

Catch you in a few...

Butterflies, Magic and a little bit of murder

2009-06-20T18:58:00.028+01:00

It's a sometimes scary thing, this writing business.

After having six stories published and more on the way, the feeling of mind-numbing anxiety has lessened a little, knowing that something I've spent days/weeks/months working on will be read and judged within mere minutes, but it's still a strange trial to see your work on sale for, well, actual money. And learning not to instantly die inside from paranoia when you hear a sentence start with "I read your story..." and hoping everything that follows isn't along the lines of "...and I want those minutes I wasted back, please."

It's a writer's job to be slightly neurotic, after all. That, and to possess a wonderful god-complex.

Butterflies and Moths: Fragile is now out in the rather great Insomnia Publications anthology, Layer Zero: Choices, which is packed to the brim with superb short stories and amazing artwork. While there's not been any real reviews as such, the verbal feedback I've heard has been good. And while I can't trust my friends and family to be totally impartial in their opinion of my work, they've been honest enough to let me know if they were confused or offended by Fragile, which a couple were (the latter because of the coarse language used at the start of the story, which I explained away with enough justification for it to be acceptable. Phew. Still not sure my grandparents should read it, though).

Thankfully that's been layered (sorry, bad pun) with generally good feedback on the story, especially in regards to Ariyana's stunning artwork. Once again, many thanks if you've spent the money to buy the book - I'm very happy with the way it's turned out.

At the same time, yes, it's nice to hear positive things, but it's arguably more useful to discover where I took any missteps in the narrative - a lesson especially valuable given Fragile will be followed up by my main graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths, due for release next year. I may have a larger landscape to tell my story, given that will be around 150 pages rather than just 12, but it also means a larger scope for mistakes. And as it's my largest project (my series work aside), there's a fair bit of pressure. Which I'll have to get used to if I want to make a go of this full time again. But I'm excited to see the book slowly come to life, and fingers crossed you'll see some good news about it next week, in one form or another. Oh yes, the scene curtain is ruffling...

In other news, the second issue to Magic of Myths is all but done, which means I really should get to work on writing the script for issue three - even though we've not got to the publishing plan stage yet. It's a strange, if kinda nice feeling to know I've a talented, speedy and professional artist knocking out the artwork and having two issues complete even before we've gone near a publisher yet (having something to show for yourself in pitch form is one of the biggest hurdles to overcome in trying to get steady series work), and I can honestly say Magic of Myths #2 is one of the most 'complete' feeling stories I've done in terms of how it's come together and ended up. I've attached the first couple pages as a preview below.

Magic of Myths #2

By Corey Brotherson and Sergio Calvet

2 page preview

(click them to enlarge)

A quick plug before I go - Insomnia Publications is gearing up for the launch of its next big book, Burke and Hare, a bio-graphic novel. The blurb sums it up best:

Burke and Hare by Martin Conaghan art by Will Pickering, letters by Paul McLaren

Over a 12 month period from 1827-1828 in Edinburgh, Scotland, two Irishmen by the names of William Burke and William Hare murdered 16 people and disposed of their bodies to the eminent dissectionist Dr Robert Knox at 10 Surgeon’s Square. Delve into the murky, misquoted history of Scotland’s most notorious serial killers with a research-based graphic novel that unwravels a ghoulish story of medicine, murder and money.

Insomnia has an interview here (http://theredeyed.blogspot.com/2009/06/burke-and-hare-under-skin.html) and it's available to pre-order from Amazon here in the run up to its October 6th release: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Burke-Hare-Will-Pickering/dp/1905808127/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1245018093&sr=1-1

It sounds like it's well worth keeping an eye on - dismembered or no ;)

Right, that's all for now. Next update should come with some cool news...

"What would you do?" Weekly preview countdown... panel 5

2009-05-19T13:14:00.003+01:00

Butterflies and Moths: Fragile - out now in Layer Zero: Choices

"What would you do?" Weekly preview countdown... panels 3 and 4

2009-05-07T13:06:00.005+01:00

Butterflies and Moths: Fragile - coming May 2009 in Layer Zero: Choices

"What would you do?" Weekly preview countdown... panel 2

2009-04-28T13:33:00.002+01:00

Butterflies and Moths: Fragile - coming May 2009 in Layer Zero: Choices

"What would you do?" Weekly preview countdown... panel 1

2009-04-22T17:09:00.005+01:00

Butterflies and Moths: Fragile - coming May 2009 in Layer Zero: Choices

Four colour explosion

2009-04-09T16:30:00.013+01:00

Isn't it nice to come back from a great holiday and be greeted by lots of pleasant surprises? Comic book news is coming in thick and fast, so let's jump straight into it...

* Mine and Ariyana Vidya's short story, Butterflies and Moths: Fragile, is finished and now part of Insomnia Publications' May 2009 comic book anthology, Layer Zero: Choices. There were a few hairy moments where the deadline seemed to be crushing our chances of being included, but some valiant late night jam sessions from Ariyana saw the project through - and the results should speak for themselves. Her artwork is truly stunning and really brings the story to life, thanks to some expertly captured emotions. In comic books, your artist is your actor, set designer, special effects artist, principle photographer and much, much more, and it's easy to take that for granted. It's all very well to write a script which describes your character looking distraught yet pleading a passionate argument with just her eyes, but ever tried drawing it? Ariyana's sterling work makes it look easy when it's anything but.

Fragile is effectively the prelude to my forthcoming graphic novel, Butterflies and Moths - you wont need to read it to understand the graphic novel's storyline, but it'll give you an insight to a few things, a intriguing taste of things to come as well as a nice introduction to the character who features in it.

The bitter story of morality and mortality that is Fragile will be surrounded by a vast amount of other talented tales in Layer Zero: Choices and so far the pre-orders have been wonderfully high. You can still get your order in and avoid missing the potential sell-out by either ordering with me (discounted rate for pre-orders only) and leaving a comment, ordering via Insomnia Publications directly by emailing them at their site, or by ordering directly from various online vendors such as Amazon (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Layer-Zero-Choices-Cy-Dethan/dp/190580816X?&camp=2486&linkCode=wey&tag=insomnipublic-21&creative=8874) or local comic shops in the near future.

* My very first published story, sci-fi tale Bad Luck Inc., has been reprinted in the pages of the ever-entertaining Tales from the Plex series this month. Drawn by the superb Yui Marr, it's a curious tale that plays on the concepts of luck, determinism, fate and office working, while being a sideward's nod to The Matrix. It was slightly misunderstood the first time it was published, which partly led me to writing a huge expose (Part one, two and three) on this site, but I'm happy to see it getting another shout at this time. Check out the previews of the most recently released issue of Tales from the Plex HERE and buy a copy HERE.

* Similarly, my first story with Ariyana, A Twilight's Promise, should see release either next month or after in Tales from the Plex, which will be a nice build up to Fragile's release in May. It's a short one page missive about... well, how unfair and short life can be, as well as offering a little meta-commentary on the life of a story that only runs one page long. You can see a little preview HERE.

* One of my secret projects rolls on at a pleasing pace - issue two of Magic of Myths has been pencilled by consummate professional and blinding talent, Sergio Calvet, which means the entire secret project is nicely on track. You'll see more of this and hopefully some news on what exactly this project is later this year, but in the meantime take a glimpse at the raw pencils that is Magic of Myths #2.

And that's it for now! There'll be plenty on Fragile as we build up to Layer Zero: Choices' release in May, so expect the next few entries to be looking at that with previews, commentary and more, as well as general info about Insomnia Publication's line-up and more about Tales from the Plex.

Thanks for reading, and catch you in a few...

The Sound of Her Wings

2009-03-21T23:45:00.014Z

So.

I’ve been officially signed up to write a graphic novel. For Insomnia Publications.

This is a Very Nice Thing.

Maybe not the initial creation of the graphic novel itself - I’ve written novelettes, novellas and two half novels (one 30,000 words, the other nearly 60,000) and despite the general pleasure of writing, each one was occasionally like a cat trying to give birth to a giraffe. So the process of writing it may not be entirely nice. Nor will the subject matter of the graphic novel in question. It may have a faintly pleasant sounding name - Butterflies and Moths – but it’s a tale about a person who finds herself trapped in a very real purgatory, pinched between life and death and forced to make terrible, life-changing choices more often than a human soul should have to.

Which is kinda bleak. Hopefully also engaging, entertaining, thought provoking and slightly, ever so slightly amusing, albeit in a dark, gallows humour way. But definitely bleak.

However, being asked to write a graphic novel? Yeah, that’s nice. Kinda... amazing feeling. Incredible, even.

Butterflies and Moths has no release date yet and is still very, very early in its creation, but as time goes by I’ll detail elements of it, building to its eventual release – the artist drawing it, what it’s about and other tidbits. Just know what I’m spectacularly happy (more so when you consider the 2-year-long and difficult path it's taken to get to this stage, which I'll talk about at a later date) and hugely honoured to be doing it – and when it’s released, there will be cake. I promise.

In the meantime, you can get a glimpse of what to expect from Butterflies and Moths in the imminent prequel, Fragile, which will be released in Insomnia’s forthcoming anthology, Layer Zero: Choices.

Fragile is about a recently turned 18 year old girl called Angelica, thrown into making a dark, terrible decision that will change her forever. How far are you willing to go to help the person that’s most important to you? How much responsibility can one person take? And when is the choice between life and death not really a choice at all?

What would you do if you had to make that choice?

What would you do if your own mother asked you to end her life?

Butterflies and Moths: Fragile (2 page preview - click them to enlarge)
by Corey Brotherson and Ariyana Vidya

Layer Zero: Choices will be available in May for £9.99 from various online vendors and comic/book sites. You can pre-order directly from Insomnia Publications (Cheque or Paypal), pick up a discounted copy at the Bristol International Comic Expo and the Small Press Expo 2009 for a bargain of £7 OR you can pre-order a equally nicely discounted copy via me – email me or leave a message here and I’ll get in touch with the exact price. Then you can let me know how many copies you want and I’ll put in an order and send the copies to you when I get them myself. But get your order in quick or you’ll miss out on the discounts and have to buy them at regular shop prices...

May will also see the release of Insomnia’s brilliant big titles, Cages and Cancertown, the latter of which has picked up a fantastic foreword from comic book legend, Bryan Talbot. You can read more about that, those books, and the official announcement of Butterflies and Moths right here.

Thanks as always for reading, and see you again soon…

Talking pictures

2009-03-03T09:45:00.008Z

I'll let this one speak for itself - a sneak preview of fantasy realism short story, Butterflies and Moths: Fragile (coming this summer in Insomnia Publications' forthcoming anthology Layer Zero: Choices).

More to come...

Butterflies and Moths: Fragile
by Corey Brotherson and Ariyana Vidya

Page one (click to enlarge)

“Promise” – fulfilled. Well, in one way…

2009-01-19T21:40:00.006Z

Happy New Year!

(Yeah, I know.)

Thankfully, my start to 2009 has been far more positive than my work on this poor, neglected blog here. There’s actually a bunch of things to talk about, just finding the time to type it all up is proving difficult. But I’ll get there, bit by bit. There’s still a look into L33tspeak to come, as well as previews for more stuff down the line. Exciting stuff. Shiny. Like a silver piece sitting at the bottom of a clear lake. Or something.

But as I quickly run off to work on one of these said shiny exciting, lake-bound things, I’ll leave you with an updated preview of A Twilight’s Promise, the one page story which is due to be published later this year, drawn by the increasingly brilliant Ariyana Vidya.

Enjoy and I’ll see you soon. Really.

Promise.

A Twilight’s Promise (2 panel preview)

(click to enlarge)

Not so sleepy or hollow

2008-12-04T12:14:00.020Z

The long overdue second part of my update, then.

Although I'm hesitant to give it the usual kiss of death by talking about it publically, I've another story due for publication early/mid next year, courtesy of the good people of Insomnia Publications. By sheer chance I found out this UK based publisher was looking for submissions that were a little off-kilter, strange and different, which seems to be my bag (not just in my writing but, as anyone who knows me will tell you, just in my general personality). I dropped them a line, fired off my long suffering story, Butterflies and Moths, and waited.

Thankfully I didn’t have to wait long before I got a response. Which was, that despite liking it, B&M didn’t quite fit within their portfolio due to its length as a 22 page story. However, the company was interested in a shorter piece which used the same characters, for an upcoming anthology called Layer Zero: Choices. Suitably, my choice was to re-write the script to 12 pages, or write something new.

Hmm.

After mulling it over, I went with something new… and Butterflies and Moths: Fragile was born. And much to my relief, the script is nearly finished, too, in the final few stages of editing and rewrites. In the meantime, Insomnia's Creative Director, the lovely Nic Wilkinson, did several things which made me very happy. She officially announced the story's inclusion in the company's blogsite, the Redeye, in this entry: http://theredeyed.blogspot.com/2008/10/trick-or-treat-choices-from-insomnia.html, convinced the artist who did the original sketches for the first B&M to draw the story (take a bow Ariyana - yep, the same extremely talented young lady who's working with me on another story, the previous entry's A Twilight's Promise) and then made another official announcement in this entry: http://theredeyed.blogspot.com/2008/11/nightly-news.html along with the cover to the anthology.

Phew.

So, Butterflies and Moths: Fragile is coming to your shelves in 2009, through Layer Zero: Choices, all things willing. There's lots of things going on behind the scenes which are very promising, and this is hopefully just the start of that - I have a lot of plans in the pipeline as usual, after a far too long stint of moping and waiting and more moping. What's capped off the whole thing so far is that my friend, Matthew Gibbs, has also been signed up for Layer Zero with his excellent story, Erratum. Expect more on that as well, soon.

Fragile itself will be talked about a fair bit in the coming months as the promotion for the anthology starts up, so I'll save my spiel for then, but I'll leave this section with a tiny bit of blurb and some artwork that Ariyana did for the original B&M which will be developed for Fragile. Hope you enjoy this tiny glimpse.

Butterflies and Moths: Fragile - coming in Layer Zero: Choices, in 2009

Script by Corey Brotherson

Art by Ariyana Vidya

What would you do if the one person closest to you asked you to do something that put her life and your soul in danger?

What if the one person closest to you asked you to do the impossible?

What if you could do the impossible…

…and didn’t even know it?

Before the strike of 12, Angelica Delapz opened her 18th birthday presents. On the strike of 12, she was imparted with another gift.

And through a horrible, horrific explosion of blood and destiny…

everything

changed.

Hopes, desires… lives… everything can be broken… as if distantly flying on the fragile wings of a…

***

My next bit of news. As stated in my last entry, I managed to become published again this year, reaching my self imposed goal of trying to get a piece of my fiction published every year from 2007 onward. In fact, I broke that goal and became published three times this year, with a fourth by the end of this month.

What the hell is going on?

Well, as you already know, my WipEout HD fiction was published last month. What you may not have known is that indie anthology comic series Tales from the Plex was re-launched as a monthly in November, which you may have noticed via the banner on the right hand side of this site. The book will run through the rest of 2008 and all of 2009, with a variety of different stories available each month. It's also the home of a comedy series I devised, called L33tspeak, which I've mentioned a couple times on here before, drawn by the lovely and wonderfully patient Stephanie O'Donnell, (not only the artist of L33tspeak but also the great talent behind the excellent The Original Nutty Funsters, a drama/comedy strip which is really starting to gather some much deserved attention after the release of the collection, A List of Grievances). Tales from the Plex will also be the place where A Twilight's Promise will be published, next year. Yay!

The first two issues of Tales from the Plex are out now. Blurb? Why not:

Tales From The Plex #1

28 pages, black and white, RRP: $2.50.

VIRTUA-GIRL by Chris J Powers & Matthew Weldon, IT'S THE BEER TALKINGby Russell Hillman & Sergio Calvet, L33TSPEAK by Corey Brotherson &Stephanie O'Donnell, CROW'S FOLLOW by Cassie Summer (illustrated byBrian J. Crowley) and GUSSY AND PETERSHARK by Jesse Farrell.

Buy it here: http://www.indyplanet.com/index.php?id=1382

Tales From The Plex #2

28 pages, black and white, RRP: $2.50

MY OLD FLAME by Jesse Farrell, DEMI-DEMZ by Daniel Lundie, DOWN BY THE RIVER by Chad Nevett, Ze Troia & Nate Thompson, COLOSSAL BOY 3 Part 1 by Daniel Lundie, Celina Hernandez, Mike Murphy & Darren Schwindaman, L33TSPEAK by Corey Brotherson & Stephanie O'Donnell and TACO ON THE BEACH by Shironu Akaineko

Buy it here: http://www.indyplanet.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1467

I'll talk more about L33tspeak in coming entries, but Issue three of Tales from the Plex will be out later this month, alongside its publishing stablemate, The Darkling by Chris J Powers, a great monthly limited series about a young girl trying to find her way through life... by being dead. Oh, did I mention she's blue skinned vampire? And has to deal with some really, really weird stuff? It’s Bridget Jones meets Interview With The Vampire - a madcap fantasy comedy drama that's unlike anything else in the graphic novel medium.

Buy it here: http://www.indyplanet.com/catalog/advanced_search_result.php?osCsid=730f357c8da3f2554031232145f9c6d5&keywords=darkling&osCsid=730f357c8da3f2554031232145f9c6d5

Why not give them a try?

And that's me for now. Thanks for reading, as always.

Gazing into the Twilight

2008-11-12T13:49:00.018Z

Ok – I know I said I have a lot of news, and as it turns out I’ve actually got way TOO much to tell in one post. So this is merely part one of the super-large update which I’ve been planning since… well, a long time. You’re… erm… still here… right?

*watches tumbleweed slowly float past a decrepit howling wolf*

Right, down to biz. First bit of good news. Numerous projects of mine have come to light, which, during a particularly difficult time right now, has managed to keep me optimistic enough to stop pushing pencils into my ears and eyes. Last year I wrote a single page story called A Twilight’s Promise. The plan was sketchy, but it was accepted by a small indie publisher who originally intended to collect a massive group of one page stories by various writers and have them drawn by one artist.

And then that whole project fell through.

So, I was left with this one page script which I knocked up in a day or so, easily the most depressing tale I’ve ever written, sitting in the drawer until I could find an artist and home for it.
I found both a couple months ago. And it’s nearly finished.

I’ll tell you more about A Twilight’s Promise when it gets published – by who, where and when I’ll explain in the next update (oh yes, slacker-no-update-boy went there). In the meantime, here’s a sneak preview. Only one panel, because, well, it’s only a four panel story. And even in its half completed state (no speech balloons, dialogue captions or finished artwork quite yet - but what Ariyana has done so far is fantastic) giving away a one page story that will be sold in the near future is a little loonier than I can go for right now. At least wait for the opium to kick in…

A Twilight’s Promise (one panel preview) – drawn by Ariyana Vidya

Good news number two. I don’t usually do this, as it slightly breaks etiquette, but just this once I’m going to. As some of you may know, I write for Sony Computer Entertainment Europe on the official PlayStation site. And while none of the great team that works here have bylines to tell you who has written what, I’m happy to say the site became home to what is, in a strange and slightly ironic way, my first piece of published (in the public domain) prose. It’s a short two part story based on the Sony PlayStation 3 futuristic racing game, WipEout HD. Click on the text links below the images to read them.

Live fast... in the cockpit of WipEout HD - Part one

Live fast... in the cockpit of WipEout HD - Part two

It may not mean much to you if you’re not familiar with the WipEout games, but hopefully it still makes some sort of sense if you’re not.

While I haven’t fulfilled my aim of being a novel author before I turn 30 (short of me actually finishing one of my novels, it getting picked up and then put on the shelf in the next 4 months), it’s nice to think I managed to get something like this and two comic stories (yes, two – more on that next update *cackles*) out the door and publically/officially published all the same, with more to come.

Next update you’ll get another glimpse at what I’ve been up to the past month, planned and published – although eagle-eyed readers may already have spotted the latter…

Yggdrasil or crab apple (or: waiting to see which half the glass is)

2008-10-27T23:43:00.003Z

I’ll spare you the usual déjà vu jokes.

It’s been a very busy month, with a mass of ups and downs, but a full update on things is coming up soon. I’ll spare you the downs, but the ups include some nice surprise announcements, a couple of which have caught me off guard. Let’s just say some of the seeds planted from over a year ago are bearing a little bit of fruit (at last). It's either a significant part of the journey, or... well, yet another false start. We'll see.

So apologies on the delay, but there’ll be a mass of news coming soon enough, once I get past the huge amount of work and emails I’ve got on the pile (I owe a few of you replies, sorry about that).

Be back shortly...

...I’ll spare you the usual déjà vu jokes...

I Used to Love H.E.R (.O.E.S)* – a look at Heroes: Season Three so far

2008-09-28T03:13:00.010+01:00

The third season of Heroes starts this week in the UK. And after watching the first two episodes, I’m wondering if this is a good thing or a bad thing.

I’ve been a fan of the superheroes-set-in-real-life drama since its first season in 2006, despite its faults which became increasingly apparent during the rather mixed second iteration (curtailed due to the 2007/08 Writer’s Guild of America pay strike that affected a large number of American TV shows in the tail end of 2007). Accusations of a slow build up, repetitious and tedious plotlines that didn’t go anywhere, dodgy acting, and forced storytelling increased over the short 11 episodes – some of which I agreed on, but I still persisted. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but it was entertaining enough.

Now I’m not so sure.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not a crazy pedant who picks nits off the show’s hairs because of some barely disguised passive aggressive hatred for it (not yet). I’m willing to let a few things slide in any form of entertainment as long as it does a good job of making me forget its inadequacies. But so far, Season Three of Heroes is a classic case of taking too much of the vocal fan complaints on board without trusting in the reasons why they became fans in the first place.

One of the big problems many people voiced of Season Two was that it was too slow. In truth, yes, the pacing was all over the place, but that was partly because it understandably wasn’t taking into account that there was going to be a strike cutting over 20 episodes to 11. So we had all this measured, methodical build up, and then suddenly lots of things happening all at once as the Season ended. It was all a bit manic, but forgivable under the circumstances. And heck, the apparently lethargic pace wasn’t a problem for me at all – true, we could have done without the bizarre and anticlimactic plot devices (such as “what is in… the BOX?” Oh, it’s just some ID stuff for Peter, and it doesn’t really reveal anything new to the audience… hmm), but it was a similar pace to the first Season, if not slightly faster, and it worked well to create a sense of cohesion in the plot, not least leaving the characters space and time to breath.

Whereas Season Three, well, everything gets thrown at the wall. With super speed. And half of it stuck, while the other half left me going “whut?” or, for the first time during the series, rolling my eyes.

I’m going to have to venture into revealing and spoiling parts of the first two episodes now, so if you don’t want to read about it, turn back now. Really, just kill the page and come back when you’ve seen them – short of an apocalypse, or maybe a devastating economic crisis (…was that too soon?), this will still be here when you come back.

Okay, those of you still with me, the lip gloss and make-up is just on the side there – apply plenty, because things are about to get pretty ugly, and not in the Timbaland produced Bubba Sparxxx way.

Simply put, the first two episodes of Heroes so far, feel rushed, in my eyes. Much like the fourth Season opener of Prison Break (another guilty pleasure), too much is given to the audience at once – not that the general audience cant handle it, but in trying to up the pace from last Season, the writers have been forced to make the characters dumber than a sack of mute spanners resting on Dumbo’s big dumb-ass. The main culprits are future Peter (who shoots his brother Nathan during the speech made at the end of the last Season, to stop him from revealing their powers to the world), Claire, Hiro, Mohinder and Nathan himself. Why are they stupid? Well, here’s where it gets a little strange:

- Future Claire, who’s in full knowledge of future Peter having a ton of powers, tries to shoot him. With a gun. While telegraphing and warning him in plenty of time. This guy can stop time and turn invisible, among other quirks. What made her think this would be a good plan is beyond the realms of mere mortals such as myself.

- Future Peter then goes into the past to stop Nathan. How? With all the time travel power at his disposal? By going to the exact point of Nathan’s speech and shooting him. Not going a day before to talk. Not even going an hour before. But at the EXACT moment to try and KILL him. This would be justifiable if he didn’t actually and literally have ALL THE TIME HE WANTED, TO ACT. He then spends the rest of the time moping about his actions with regret.

- Contemporary Claire, in finding out she can’t feel pain anymore (which is pretty weird seeing as she got her whole body charbroiled by a raging fire in the first Season without a single peep of a scream) and the possibility that she can’t die starts to wonder if she has a soul (eh? That’s some leap of logic there, Claire-bear) and proceeds to go down the path of hurting herself because only through the rediscovery of pain can she hope to ‘feel’ anything again – so she stands in front of a SPEEDING TRAIN. Erm, ok.

- Mohinder, finding a possible way of siphoning powers does what all great scientists do when they want to try a new and untested chemical – he tries it on himself almost straight away! And thus starts turning into Brundle-fly and wonders why he’s picking gooey chunks off his back. Good job!

- Less irritating, but still strange are Hiro and Nathan’s behaviour. Hiro, when asked not to open a safe by a posthumous message from his father, goes ahead anyway and opens it. When he finds out it’s part of a formula that can destroy the world, he blunders around with it for several minutes and it’s swiftly stolen. Which is again fine, if it wasn’t for the fact he can also control time. Nathan, on the other hand, comes back from the dead and almost immediately thinks it’s God’s influence, despite the billion of things he’s seen and done over the space of the three Seasons and his initial worldly cynical nature.

Now, these last two factors are still plausible to a degree, but they’re symptomatic of the same problem that makes the earlier examples so teeth grindingly stupid – they’re rushed. There’s no time for the characters to build to those moments. We’re not shown the thought processes, we’re merely told about them (in some cases, literally, as Claire gives a painful –how ironic- exposition on her doubts of having a soul) quickly and without subtlety, making each of the characters appear reckless and irrational, or at the very least, lacking any sense of consideration or reason.

Hiro is naturally impetuous, but he’s grown a little over the previous Seasons, surely enough for him to take several minutes to decide whether he’d open a safe his father explicitly tells him not to, rather than acting through a cocktail of destiny and boredom. Nathan may have been agnostic before, but how about showing us some signs of his faith (or doubt) before he blindly wanders into a church and gives an impromptu sermon? Claire’s concerns about her soul could be well founded if she’s shown worries previously or even if we started to get an idea of her misgivings before she throws herself in front of a train – something that would have been more believable in Season One, but not so much now. Mohinder could moralise the dangers of self experimentation against his clear desire to no longer be helpless, but instead we’re shown him pondering it a few seconds before chugging down super-juice like injectable Sunny D at the next possible moment (he must have been great fun at school during science class). And so on.

There ARE reasons behind each of these characters’ decisions, but there’s no time to show them adequately in the need to keep the pace up and give us action Action! ACTION-with-(TJ) Hooker. So instead of a little interesting character study we get seemingly idiotic and comical characters, who lack the emotional punch and consideration they showed before.

Another problem is that these characters are far too powerful for some of these actions to be plausible anymore. Future Peter and Hiro in particular, given their time control (and Peter’s invisibility) abilities make bone headed decisions that fly in the face of common sense just so it can serve the story better. And so we’re left going “why didn’t they just freeze time? Or go back to this point?” when yet another clanger strikes. Time travel is a messy plot device at the best of times, so it has to have a lot of boundaries imposed on it to work (or at least given a limitation and circular nature – see the Back to the Future films for a good example) but here it’s used as a convenience and forgotten about when the plot requires. Worse, we’re shown yet ANOTHER apocalyptic future - that makes it three Seasons running now and the impact is greatly reduced this time around. The repetition, three Seasons in, in this, people coming back from the dead, and characters disregarding any growth from their previous exploits are much harder to ignore.

There are still a fair few things I really like about the Season so far – the blurring of lines between what is classed as a ‘hero’ and a ‘villain’ is working well, whether it’s the question of who is in the wrong between future Hiro and future Ando (as the latter is seen fighting Hiro) or Sylar now being forced to help Noah track down escaped super-prisoners. And its introduction of new characters is far better than before, in terms of making them likeable/interesting. The strong sense of self referential humour is also great, with nods to Quantum Leap, Halloween, The Fly and even fan speculation (it’s been long questioned over what Sylar does to his victim’s brains, and when asked by Claire if he eats them, his perfectly played reaction of “…that’s disgusting” is priceless).

But personally, I’m hoping things get much better in the following episodes so that I can get back to not shaking my head in mild disbelief. A part of that would be for things to slow back down and letting the characters have a second to exhale for a moment or two. Allow the scenes to hit us with the emotion it has the potential to, rather than rushing us through the meal.

It’s not a crime to have stupid characters – only stupid writers have all their characters act smart all of the time (unless that's the point in itself) – but you have to show us the reasons why they’re being so inept. And that can take time… something, it seems, not only the main protagonists of Heroes are misusing.

*PS. Congrats to anyone who actually gets the musical reference made in the title of this post, your prize is in the post…

Magic of Myths preview… and the subject of race in comics

2008-08-06T23:16:00.007+01:00

Magic of Myths has been five years in the making.

And the funny thing is, it won’t even be released this year, either – it’s part of a much wider secret project that so far, is looking pretty damn great. But, for most of the part, Magic of Myths #1 is finished.

There’s a long and bizarre history that surrounds the conception and eventual creation of this comic book series that you’re about to get a sneak preview of, but that’s a tale for when the comic is closer to release. Instead I’m going to concentrate on the formation of things I’ve had to think about in its current iteration and what you see here.

Magic of Myths was originally titled Magic, Myths and Mythology. That was shortened last year for what effectively boils down to PR reasons – ‘Magic of Myths’ is far easier to remember, far easier on the tongue for potential buyers asking for it in shops and also brings a different meaning to the title; the former implies three separate things in potential combination, while the new title infers more in relation between the concepts of 'magic' and 'myth'. And to be honest, it sounds less like a university textbook, too. Always a plus when you’re trying to sell fiction.

The story revolves around a young woman named Evelyn, or, as she prefers, “Eve”. The preview will tell you more in a shorter space of time and in a (hopefully) more entertaining fashion than me listing off stuff here, but the basic concept is that Eve is drawn into a strange yet familiar fantasy world where she’s forced to take part in various tasks for a benefactor she knows nothing about. She’s given powerful abilities and vague objectives, but until she completes them she’s trapped within this realm, unable to return back home to Earth.

Where the whole Myth angle comes into is, is something I’d had to take care over producing. The intention is, for the first five parts of the story, each issue is self contained, but part of an overall story – so it's a serial that can be picked up any time over the first five parts without you needing to have read previous parts to understand it. And given each part is only five pages, it means a lot of tricks are rolled out to get as much information to the reader in as short a space as possible, while reintroducing the characters, concepts and any important elements each time without sacrificing the forward momentum of a new story (continuing from the last) and the central series plot every issue.

So one trick is the reference of well known works of fiction in each part of the story. This should be fairly obvious in the preview, but lets the reader latch on to something a bit more familiar to introduce themes and concepts that are predominant to Magic of Myths -and so you have the myth and themes of a famous story, running in parallel to the myth and themes being created in the comic, which in itself forms a new myth when you combine the two.

(It makes sense in my own head. Honest.)

The main plot and other parts that make up Magic of Myths are things I’ll be saving for future blog posts, but needless to say the main bulk of the story is that there’s something much larger going on than Eve doing random tasks for an unseen master, which will of course tie into the title further. There are plenty of clues in the preview alone if you're reading and studying the artwork closely enough, but as we’re a way off release I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself.

There is one final thing I wanted to briefly talk about before the preview itself.

Magic… and race

Eve is mixed race. It may come as a surprise to many people that in the comic book medium, there are very few mixed race characters. And even fewer mixed race female leads.

This shocking lack of representation is something that isn’t particularly new to me – for years you could count the number of black males in their own books who could survive being cancelled and exceeding a year’s worth of publication on the fingers of one hand, less so with black females and even less so with when trying to encounter non-white/black leads full stop. It’s something that’s slowly changing, none more so than in today’s comics which have a proud diversity the medium has never seen before, but for a long time stereotypes were the norm even when there was representation.

Go on to a typical message board or talk about the subject to various others and you’ll get a range of responses as to why this is, and that’s not something I’m going to go into right here (it’s a massive and complex thing and this blog post is already too long), but it’s always curious to see the conundrum that often occurs when tackling the thorny issue. How do you reflect race within a story without the story falling within stereotype of an accepted (and potentially erroneous) view of the race in question – and if you go too far on the other side of the scale, are you in danger of disregarding that character’s apparent culture and background by not acknowledging it enough? Depending on the story you’re trying to write, it’s a difficult task… and yet, it isn’t, really. There will always be someone willing to point out you’ve written a character too [insert colour/race] or you’ve not written that character [insert colour/race] enough. The knack seems to be remaining true to the character in question, to their background, history and core – everything else tends to fall into place soon after. Of course, this is easier with your own characters than one already created – after all, how many different takes of Luke Cage and the Black Panther have there been?

Eve’s race eventually plays an important part to the story (although possibly not in the way you may be thinking) which is why I’m highlighting it. Yes, it’d be nice to see more diversity within the medium and I’m more than happy to try and play my part in that, despite the fact my audience is so small (and probably smaller after this long-ass post) and I’m unlikely to even make a difference. But it has a story driven purpose beyond merely increasing representation, which I feel is something that -while not essential- helps add a lot more depth and meaning to the whole narrative. Or at least, that’s the plan, best laid or otherwise. I guess we’ll see.

Magic of Myths – 3 page preview

So, at last, the preview. I’m only showing three pages of the five, but if you want to see the whole thing, just email/message me and I’ll fire it off to you. Magic of Myths is just one part of the whole project that will come with it, and because it’s so far off I don’t mind showing you the whole first issue now on request (and if you like it, it’d be nice if you could spare a few pennies when the whole thing comes out, as you’ll have a few more other great stories for your buck). The first image may or may not end up being the cover, we’ll see what the artist of the story – the superb and diversely talented Sergio Calvet – feels like doing closer to launch.

Thanks as always for reading and hope you enjoy the sample.

Magic of Myths #1

Genre: Fantasy drama

Script: Corey Brotherson
Art and lettering: Sergio Calvet

Page one
(click to enlarge)

Page two

(click to enlarge)

Page three
(click to enlarge)

"Why... so... serious?" The Dark Knight - spoiler free review

2008-07-23T00:12:00.010+01:00

“At what cost?”

That’s one of the most important lines spoken by one of the characters during a pivotal scene in Christopher Nolan’s sequel to Batman Begins.

At what cost.

The Dark Knight is not an easy film. It is, by all means, an extremely enjoyable and spectacular one, but it will work you for its brilliance. Because of that one line. Following from its predecessor, this sequel takes the theme of fear that was so dominant in Begins and twists it into something far more terrifying. What can you do against a person who has no fear? Has no boundaries? No sense of personal danger? The introduction of the Joker into Nolan’s Bat-verse is the perfect foil as the purple garbed villain enters Gotham city’s streets and turns everything upside down and inside out, with only one desire – to show that beneath everyone, no matter how noble, lays a monster. And in doing that he stretches Batman’s moral compass, made all the more difficult with the arrival of Ace Attorney (ahem) Harvey Dent, who’s the shining new beacon of hope for a Gotham creeping under the influence of crime and corruption in both its civilian society and the law.

The film expertly plays off these elements, muddying its waters with complex ambiguity at every turn, leaving no character safe in its pursuit of what is ‘just’ and ‘right’; amorphous concepts that constantly come under the script’s microscope. People ask if Batman has harmed the city more than helped it, through the rise of vigilantism and people like the Joker. Or if Dent’s dogged persistence and belief in the judicial system is realistic when over half the police force is involved in crime itself.

And each time the main characters ask themselves if doing what is right worth their convictions, the answers refuse to come easily, made harder through the reflection each one sees in the other – Batman believes in going outside the law to get things done, Bruce Wayne is less certain, especially in seeing the courage of Dent, who himself has shades of Batman’s lawlessness within him. Rachel Dawes, the one who they both hold their affections for, falls between those gaps, while the Joker shines an unpleasant light on all of them to expose the hypocrisy and contradictions in their lives. The film doesn’t try to answer all the questions it poses – that would defeat the point of them, in some ways – but it does leave you pondering, never letting you settle too comfortably in jumping off the fence before exploding in an incredible action sequence or an emotionally charged or deeply unsettling scene. Naturally, it’s the latter of those that the late Heath Ledger’s Joker really stands out.

A lot has been said about Ledger’s performance, given it was his last full one before the unfortunate events that took his life. Posthumous Oscar material or not, there’s no denying that his Joker is simply amazing. To say he disappears into the role would be an understatement – there’s no trace of Ledger in the character he plays on-screen. He IS the Joker. Each appearance is marked by such a feeling of charisma and dread that you’re transfixed. Not to say the other cast members suffer from this – all are well played, Aaron Eckhart’s Dent especially, who provides the core of the story and so had to be good – it’s just that the Joke- erm, I mean, Ledger, commands his scenes with such force it’s hard not to feel in awe.

While Jack Nicholson may have claimed fans everywhere in his turn during the Tim Burton 90s Batman movie, Ledger’s iteration makes even Nicholson’s cower in despair. There’s mirth to him, true, but it’s layered with a calculatingly sinister streak that’s frightening to watch, yet impossible to turn away from. And while Nicholson’s Joker is fantastic, the 2008 edition has you gripped at every turn because when he’s around horrible, horrible things happen, regardless of whether you’re convinced a character is safe or not. Hell, when you see how the Joker introduces himself with his magic trick, you’ll never turn back.

Is The Dark Knight a masterpiece? At this stage it’s hard to honestly say. Not without a few more (very eager) viewings and the test of time. It won’t change your life, nor is it perfect – some very, very minor moments in the script undermine its tone and on a couple occasions the editing is a little haphazard… but it’s really nitpicking to ever suggest these actually harm the film. It’s certainly the best movie I’ve seen all year and without a doubt the best comic book adaptation created. Which is high praise coming off the incredible likes of A History of Violence, Iron Man, Spider-Man 2, X2, Road to Perdition, Sin City, Batman Begins and a host of other greats. At the moment, after a breathless exit from the cinema and a few hours of contemplation, they don’t even come close.

Some have suggested this is because Nolan’s film is a very strong crime thriller wrapped in the spandex of superhero form. That effectively Batman, Joker and crew have stumbled into a noir classic by accident. I disagree. Remove these characters and replace them with a stock crime movie cast and part of what makes The Dark Knight so special goes missing. Nolan has gone through great pains to show the characters’ evolution from Begins, making their choices a natural progression from the first film, but also underlining their core traits that have made them so popular in the first place. The moral dilemmas on show work in tandem with the costumes and gadgets and high octane action sequences, given a modicum of suspension of disbelief because it’s Batman. We’re just so sapped into the tale that we forget. Yes, it’s a crime story, but it’s also a Batman story – and you remove one from the narrative, the whole wouldn’t be nearly as strong. Everything here is given purpose and reason, making it one of the most tightly plotted films in recent mainstream cinema – and the Batman mythos and its well known concept is an important part of the whole instrument. Saying The Dark Knight works without it is a bit like saying a guitar will still ‘work’ if you cut a couple of its strings. You’d be right, but it kinda misses the point.

Chances are The Dark Knight, as sterling as it is, will leave you exiting the cinema a bit conflicted. Exhausted. Maybe even a little dirty as it thoroughly bathes you in murky moral greys that refuse to wash white come the film’s heavy climax. This is not a leisurely experience. It will ask questions of your morality and challenge you… and for some it may be too much. Too close to the knuckle. Too punishing. Too harsh.

Too dark.

And there, in that moment, comes the answer.

At what cost?

That, is the price of masterful cinema.

Moving you in just four colours

2008-07-20T03:44:00.020+01:00

I feel sick.

For anyone who knows me, this isn’t a rare thing. My body turns against me with frightening regularity that usually means I tend to feel sick every so often (it’s a gas thing, and by that I’m not using a colloquialism for it being funny).

But in this case, the sensation of my stomach lurching and my head feeling this immense pressure is because, well…

…okay, let me line up the shot from a different angle.

Whenever I tell people I read and write comics, there’s often one of several responses I get. More often than not, I get a raised eyebrow of slightly concerned curiosity. A nearly-30 year old man, reading comics and writing/about them. Hmm. Even if the other person has briefly read comics in the past, there’s an element of scepticism that’s difficult to ignore. Mainly because it’s slapping you in the face with its obviousness. This is usually followed by questions over what I read and sometimes, how much I typically spend a month, at which when I divulge my ‘addiction’s monetary costs, the sense of concerned curiosity gets a sprinkling of outrage and scoffed ridicule.

So if what I’m going to tell you seems weird, well… I expect it. But allow me a moment to explain.

It was the most recent edition of The Walking Dead – a comic – that has made me feel sick.

Hardly the most glowing way to recommend the medium to you, I’m sure. But I refer to the above caveat about moments and letting me use them to explain as to why this is.

The Walking Dead is a series about the world overrun by zombies. The premise, on its surface, is a typical one – unknown plague/virus/McDonalds has changed people into raving flesh eating mutants and humanity is left to struggle with this by becoming surviors, and as a result we discover that it’s Not the Zombies Who are the Real Monsters, but Humanity Itself. You know, standard horror fiction theme.

But.

The Walking Dead goes beyond that. Way beyond.

Most zombie movies will take you on a journey which emphasises this theme through the changeable brutality of human nature. How people react under immense pressure, devolving to Cro-Magnon ferocity and savagery, turning on each other just to try and survive, something which is mirrored ironically by the zombies, who are, for all their brain chomping nastiness, an expression of human hunger and desire without moral conscience, and thus creatures of purity, untainted by the horrors that we expose ourselves to in trying to find food, keep our loved ones safe and live at the expense of everything else.

However, these films are finite. The longest zombie movie lasts around 2 hours. There’s yet to be a long running TV series about zombies (as far as I know). The Walking Dead has no limitations. Yes, it’ll eventually come to an end, but its current verve and medium allows it to go further than any other work out there as a piece of zombie-driven horror fiction.

To be frank, it’s horrible.

But in the best way possible.

Writer Robert Kirkman has created a universe where no one is safe. Where main characters get maimed, mutilated and killed in the most terrible of ways. Where even the most unspeakable of horrors is carried out on page.

It’s terrifying. It’s shocking. At times, nauseating.

And it’s grippingly brilliant.

This uncompromising zombie tale is meticulously written and drawn (artists Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard do a stupendous job) with a very easy to follow narrative that envelops you into a world of hope and grime and chokes you on its depravities. It is totally captivating. It feels real. Characters are introduced and fleshed out, each with their relatable traits, and just when you start to get comfortable with them, the sledgehammer of their reality hits and things take a terrible turn. And it’s all within the realm of realism – you could easily see people acting the way they do reflected here because, well, it happens in our world. Just under different circumstances.

The events that occur in The Walking Dead, in particular the most recent trade volume, (Volume 8 “Made to Suffer”) affected me more than any other piece of fiction has in a long time. I’m not going to spoil it, as that would miss the point and me describing them to you wouldn’t have the power as they would you experiencing them, but for the first in a long time, I had to stop reading half way through because it was just all too much. Too intense. Too painful. Here was a book, in a medium which sometimes has me deemed as a some deviant man-child, that had actually left me shaken to the core at what was happening to its characters. And by the end of it, my throat had tightened and stomach felt like it had been repeatedly pounded by a giant sledgehammer.

Hence the sickness.

The sense of relief in finishing that chapter soon became replaced by an urge to find out what happens next, as with all good fiction, but also knowing that this powerful effect The Walking Dead had – not for the first time – was something that will likely stay with me for a long, long time.

To have that same effect, The Walking Dead couldn’t be done in any other form. Film is limited by time and space, and while TV avoids such problems, there’s no TV broadcast company that would be brave enough to allow the sort of stuff that happens in The Walking Dead. It’s too raw and untamed, not to mention the fact there are things depicted here that would be difficult to reproduce on a TV budget to the same level of effectiveness. In a similar vein, a book would lack the dual layer of simultaneous narrative comics are unique with, showing you a picture that freezes a moment while the words lace them with separate, yet combined meaning, playing with time. A comic panel is designed to be looked over as long as the reader allows, without that break in narrative becoming unnatural, meaning the horror of certain things becomes prolonged and fixated, while your imagination moves them in a very personal way between panels. It’s a depth easily taken for granted.

As said by people much smarter than me, comics are the last 'underground/guerrilla' medium out there. They can express anything they want with limited budget and limitless imagination, sometimes with just a team of one person pulling the strings and creating something that visually pushes narrative boundaries without fear of executive decisions and a million other financial fingers getting in the way as often does with TV and film. Again, this is something easily taken for granted.

Comics are generally more accepted than they’ve ever been, but having something that can affect you on that level, the way The Walking Dead affected me and countless others (read the reaction to the series online and you’ll find a plethora of critical acclaim), will probably come as a surprise to those who still think it’s a puerile medium. It’s an attitude that will be sternly tested in mainstream eyes through the cinema screening of The Dark Knight as well, which is being heralded by some quarters as a crime film epic that just so happens to have Batman in it. People are generally walking away from this movie, shaken, disturbed and full of praise for its powerful and intense story. Quite an achievement given its protagonist is a man who dressed up in a rubber bat-suit.

Comics can move you like any other medium – it’s just finding the right story that pushes you. And there’s plenty out there if you’re willing to look for it. From the political, journalism sci-fi edge of Transmetropolitan, to the fantasy and multi-cultural epic of Sandman. From the socipolitical gender commentary of Y: The Last Man, to the hardboiled crime thriller of Criminal. From the revolutionary historical samurai saga of Lone Wolf and Cub, to the equally influential and all encompassing Watchmen. Heck, even if you like to see where you favourite fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters ended up, there’s the fantastic Fables to try out.

And if you’re after the best horror movie that will never be made, something that will genuinely shock you, you could do far worse than The Walking Dead - just don’t blame me if it truly and quite literally moves you.

But then, isn’t that what we all want our fiction to do?

Oooookaaaay...

2008-06-10T13:11:00.000+01:00

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans" - John Lennon

Obviously I’ve been out the loop far too long and things have escaped me. Again. And again and again. It’s a bit like Groundhog Day or a glitch in The Matrix, but even more frustrating because, you know, at least those are planned. And fictional. Instead I’m at the mercy of erratic scheduling and procrastination. (Oh, and hayfever.)

A full update is on its way, along with – fingers crossed – a rather nice preview of something I’ve been working with the past year or so. Well, actually it’s been something close to 5 years, but only now is this starting to bare lovely multicoloured fruit. If you’ve been following the blog (and I apologise, because if you have this two month absence must have been a little strange, if not wholly unexpected) then you’ll have seen some of it before, but not at this stage of completion. And even then it’s still miles off the shelves.

But hey, it keeps me off the streets.

At least until I find the key to my cell.

And the beats go on...

2008-04-08T18:15:00.011+01:00

As hiatuses go, I can't say this one was planned. But when are the long ones ever?

Apologies for the lengthy absence. It's been an increasingly difficult month (okay, months) and time often beats me over the head with a large stick when it comes to things like this, and between numerous circumstances (mostly bad, I'm sad to say) updating the site became less of a priority and more of a burden. This is something I'm hoping will change soon enough, along with the delivery of a new laptop to ease my woes slightly (- yes, the knave is dead, long live the knave, thanks to the wonders of contents insurance *pumps fist*).

So, first thing. My entry in Shadowline's Create a Super-Heroine contest ended at the semis, which was…. unfortunate. I got some interesting feedback from a couple of important people in the industry, which was nice, although that isn’t enough to mask disappointment at the end of the day. That said, when I got the news I was in the middle of writing something else so it wasn’t so much a case of trying to get back on the saddle, more a case of: "Bugger. Well, this saddle isn’t as comfortable as it was a few seconds ago. Feels kinda… warm. In the bad sense."

However, something else happened regarding my writing plans to eventually help offset that irritation (namely a really nice offer of continuing another series I'm working on) and also my work for the contest won't go to waste because I'll be using it for another publication. Oh ho. So at some point you'll be able to read it and see for yourself what semi-failure looks like! Although the artist I have lined up for it will at least make it appear miiiighty puuurty.

I've a couple reviews up over at ComiX-Fan, so feel free to check those out. There will be no quiz afterwards. I promise.

THE MIGHTY AVENGERS #11 REVIEW :
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?t=44758

ANGEL: AFTER THE FALL #5 REVIEW:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?t=44725

There is also tons of my work on the official PlayStation Europe site, although seeing as that's the day job and all (you dont want to know what I am during the night. Really.), but as there are no bylines I can only really usher you over to the site and go "that one! No, THAT one" rather than provide links, lest I be beaten over the head with yet another large stick, this time with a P45 attached to it. Which would be somewhat ironic seeing as I couldn’t find a recent copy of the damn thing when I joined the company last year.

No idea when I'll get to update this again, but the intention is to have something to preview next time.

Although what's more likely is that I'll go missing again for a month and turn up wearing just my underwear. Again.

Did I just type that out aloud?

*Drops mic*

"Marty! Marty! We've got to go back!"

2008-02-04T12:33:00.000Z

Let's get the important thing out the way first.

My friend, the talented Stephanie O'Donnell (she of The Nutty Funsters) fame is looking to do commissions in her run-up spot to the forthcoming New York comic convention. She's charging only $10 for black and white drawings, $15 for colour – you can find examples of her work over here: http://kitschfactor.deviantart.com/. Well worth a shot, as Steph is veeeeery diverse and quick to go with her talent (which is a rare combination in this fair industry, believe me).

My other news is that I recently discovered news that my entry to Image Comics/Shadowline's Create a Super-Heroine competition managed to reach the semi-final stages. To say I was surprised would be understating things a fair bit. Very happy, but surprised - I feel a bit like Charlie when he got a golden ticket the chocolate factory (although this soon passed at the thought of the rather creepy Willy Wonka showing me around). To those who are wondering what the blue hell I'm babbling about, see here: http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=140485 and results thus far confirmed here: http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=145528

The contest is basically as follows:

You had to submit a plot synopsis of your newly created, original super-heroine story to the company by the end of Jan. One short paragraph. That's it.

If you're among the lucky ten chosen, you then have to submit a 5-page script. From those, five will be chosen in March and their synopses posted to comic site, Newsarama, where posters will vote on their favourite. Polls close come April, and the winner will have their concept and story taken into the company, drawn by a pro artist (the excellent Franchesco! – exclamation mark is compulsory ;-) ) and published by Image/Shadowline for the end of the year.

So in essence, a story contract for one of the biggest comic publishing companies going, with your story drawn by one of the best artists in its line.

I entered knowing my chances were pretty slim – it turned out there were over 5,000 entrants in total, and with various aspects of my life taking over recently it was only during the last week of Jan that I realised how short time was before deadline. And I still didn’t even have anything more than a basic concept… which was untitled as well.

Scary.

Thankfully, I sat down, fleshed it out, researched some bits, fleshed it out some more, decided on a name and then had the pain of reducing it down to something brief (and if you know me, 'brief' isn’t even something I use as underwear – that's boxers, by the way, before that metaphor gets out of hand) and finally carved something out of it I was pleased with, which I sent off on the last day, uncertain that it would arrive in time. Amazingly, it got selected (this shock took about 60 minutes to pass… and 20 of those minutes was waiting for the broadband connection to download the confirmation email – ah, technology).

So, what happens next? Well, at the moment (figuratively speaking, of course) I'm scripting the pages for submission. While I wait for my washing machine to be fixed and someone to repair my shower (oh yes, I lead the glamorous life, yes yes). After that, I send it off and try once again to forget about my chances while secretly hoping for the best.

At this point, some of you will be wondering "why hasn’t he said anything about the story itself?" - and the answer is, I'm not legally allowed to. Unless I want to get unceremoniously dumped from the competition before I've even written anything, I can't name the title or indeed anything about the story. Which is 100% fair, because everyone else is in the same boat and it means the final five are judged on the basis of the story itself rather than how many people you can spam to get you votes. But it's all pretty damn exciting. And between that, the two series I'm developing right now and a 3 page story I've been asked to recently write featuring two very well known comic characters (just a sample, rather than anything to be published, but it had my jaw drop in disbelief – never thought I'd be writing about these characters any time soon, and the pin-up artwork is done by a comics pro and looking amazing) I'm in a happy place for now, at least where my writing's concerned.

Now if only I had the time to do it all…

Anyone got a spare DeLorean?

Guess who's back?

2008-01-19T12:25:00.001Z

Wow.

Okay, my feet are a bit back on the ground now after a manic couple weeks of catching up. Hope you like the slight reshuffle of the site – I thought it was about time for a change, which has given me chance to fix a few broken links and add a few more new friends to my list of collaborators and conspirers to reflect 2008's direction for my work.

My update below was actually part written when I was staying up north in Scotland with family in the first week of Jan (see, I've been writing still! I may not have put it online, but…), but I thought it still applies to my general frame of mind and retrospective of last year/thoughts for this year. So it may seem a little off time-wise, but the sentiment remains…

'Happy New Year. Apologies as usual for the lack of updates on my part – my laptop problems still persist past a couple repairs, but in-between the large number of crashes I've had to deal with (there's likely to be around four just as I write this) I've now got the means to back my stuff up across several sources, to ease the pain of repetitive restarts.

So, 2008. Hope you enjoyed your NYE celebrations and aren't still suffering the consequences. I can't honestly say the year has started too well, as a number of things have happened in the infantile 2008 that have made me either angry, nervous or -at the very least- unhappy, but hopefully this will pass…

Looking back over 2007 it didn’t take long to realise that it's been a strange year. To say the least. Lots of good things, a fair share of bad, and thankfully a lot of progress, even if it's gone from leaps and bounds to baby steps within the space of months. Such is life.

The big thing was, naturally, moving from Birmingham to London (again) as consequence of going back to full time employment from being self employed the past two years. As reluctant as I've been to do either, it's turned out to be a good decision. I'm still not a fan of London, given it's too overcrowded, too expensive and too sprawling for my second city tastes, but my new job is going much better than I could have imagined, especially as I was very hesitant to re-enter the games industry full time again after being fairly disillusioned with it having been in it so long.

Not to say the past two years as a freelancer have been a waste. I've made some brilliant friends and contacts in both the games and fiction industry that I wouldn’t have made if I was still full time, and my fiction writing has improved immeasurably through the number of scripts and prose I've done too. My first and subsequent professional scripting jobs wouldn’t have even been an option (through both a lack of confidence and time) if I hadn’t taken the freefall freelance dive, and I doubt I would have completed the dozens of stories I've done either, since.

One thing that has also been invaluable is learning what it's like to live the life of a freelancer, which is damn hard. The lessons learned have definitely made me wiser and more experienced for it, and while it's been extremely tough at times, two years of freelancing have done me good for my aspirations (although not for my social life, money or sanity). All that said, going back full time when I did was the right decision, and hopefully the seeds planted in the freelance life will bear a bit more fruit this year.

Most of which will be regarding my fiction, which should make 2008 something of an influential period. I was blessed to work with a few brilliant people in 2007, some of whose work you'll see in the next 12 months. I'm afraid of naming all of them as if there's one thing I've learned in the past 2 years is that the publishing world moves with the speed of an arthritic slug and chances are there will be delays and other problems stopping a release. In any case, of the 6 series' I'm writing, 2 should get their first parts launched this year. If I'm lucky, 4 of them will see daylight, although that's unlikely as various circumstances need to fall into place. The chances of all 6 launching this year are about the same chances of England winning Euro 2008. And if you've been following football you'll know how painfully impossible that is. But hey, two REALLY talented artists have recently agreed to work with me, one on a series, the other on a short story, so fingers crossed – 2007 has been a mixed bag of working with several amazing artists (some of which you'll find links to in my updated Link list on the right) and being let down by at least twice that number.

One of the reasons I'm smiling through problems of late.

On the prose front, Silly Games (one of my novels) is half done, which means I'm half way behind my schedule. The plan was to finish it to coincide with 2008, but half way in the year I got stuck behind my move before my laptop crapped out and made procrastination even easier. Now I've got numerous USB solutions to backing up my work, I'm hoping to get back on the rails and finish the novel for the year. Easier said than done, but the excuses are less and with the fantastic Crooked Little Vein (Warren Ellis) and JPod (Doug Coupland) providing plenty of inspiration, as well as the regular trip to work giving me ideas my notebooks are getting too full to put things off any longer, broken laptop or no. If there's one thing I'm grateful to London for, it's that the average day can turn up a myriad of unintentional muses, from the predictable break down of a Tube line to that guy who always finds his breakfast in the contents of his nostrils. Ah, London, sweet London.

Other random musings from 2007:

- I was asked to be a Godfather for the second time in as many years, which was extremely surprising, if worrying. I'm not sure if my eccentric influence should be allowed to spread further than it already has.

The Godfather: Blackhand Edition on Wii is one of the best games for the sys-- oh. Ah. *Ahem*

- Heroes came to a premature end in Season 2 due to the (very justifiable) writers strike that's currently going on in the USA. The Season was about as uneven as it came, although nowhere near as horrible as some may have you believe, nor as slow – it was about the same pace, if not slightly quicker than Season 1. That said, it had many problems with pacing and plot which will likely have a fair few fans scratching their heads or just being plain annoyed when it airs on British TV this year. Flawed, but enjoyable, in my opinion. Prison Break, on the other hand, had a spectacular 3rd half-Season, with its constant surprises, high tension and brutal deaths. If you grew disillusioned from the patchy Season 2 or just curious, it's worth your time.

It wasnt as bad as everyone says... really. It wasnt great by any means, but...

- Hip hop had a decidedly average 2007, with very little in the way of highlights despite decent (if only decent) efforts from Kayne West and Jay-Z. For me, the likes of Median, Little Brother and Blu & Exile stole the show with sterling albums, especially the latter who created the wonderful Below the Heavens; a refreshingly unpretentious, bass and string driven album. Kidz in the Hall continue to improve too, underlined by their wonderfully positive track and now reworked campaign song for Democrat/US Presidential candidate 08, Barack Obama; the appropriately titled Work to Do :http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJWNW3g6Blo'

Back to the present tense (let's face it, if you've made it this far past the above Wall O' Text, you may as well stick it out...) - there's lots more to say, promote and generally talk about, but we'll be getting to all that in due time. I'll be updating this a bit more often than the last few months (not really difficult given my current record) and with the sheer number of projects on the go promotion is a must, anyway. Year of the pimp - grab your hat, cane and goldfish bowl shoes, son.

Thanks for sticking with me and all the best for your 2008.

Excuse me, while I kiss the sky

2008-01-14T13:23:00.000Z

I know, I know.

I've got some things lined up for the site and it's just taking a while because, well, stuff keeps on happening. Good stuff, mostly, but it does mean there's a massive update or two on the way. I promise. Scout's honour.

In the meantime, check out a couple people's sites. Why? Oh, you know. No particular reason...

*smiles*

The Nutty Funsters: http://www.theflamingcat.com/nuttyfunsters.php

Broken Sanity: http://brokensanity.wordpress.com/

Back soon...

PS. I'm experimenting with some new looks for the site, any preferences?

We're sorry to interrupt your scheduled programming for…

2007-12-04T22:09:00.000Z

I don’t have long.

They'll be coming soon.

Who?

Them.

…

I'm just messing with you.

I'm painfully aware it's been *checks calendar* just over a month since I last posted. Lack of net access, time and my laptop not working has pretty much destroyed my plans for the month for a fair few things. I'm writing this at a pub right now, with my laptop working as long as I don’t move it while I type (although it's working better now the keyboard is fixed and hinges/screen aren’t damaged – cheers Sanj!) but I'm left with the wonderful dilemma of not having much time to do anything that I want for this site right now. Expect that to change as Christmas approaches and I get a tad more time, infinite more net access and hopefully my laptop issues sorted (cheers Sanj!).

Joy to the world.

But thanks to those who've been still looking in here every few days or so and reading the archives. I'll have some properly fresh content soon enough. Lord knows I've plenty to write about.

One thing I've noticed, however, is the post I made nearly one year ago: http://cbrotherson.blogspot.com/2006/12/warning-following-programme-contains.html

In some ways, very little has changed and in other ways, everything has changed.

And that's all my ominous clues used up for today.

Hopefully catch you again in a couple weeks…

C.

The Writer's Block

Magic of Myths: season two artwork

Tick tock goes the Clock

Bayou Arcana: Volume 1. Songs of Loss and Redemption news

Sign of the times

Merry Christmas!

Thought Bubble 2011 - in pictures

Thought Bubble 2011

Magic of Myths returns!

Clockwork Watch gains a little Olympic-sized assistance

Making friends with Jonathan Ross

Clockwork Watch update

Unseen Shadows update

Ringing in the...

Become a vital part of Clockwork Watch!

More Stolen artwork for your pleasure

The latest on Clockwork Watch

Enter the Shadows

Magic of Myths finds an extra home

Stolen - artwork preview

Running like Clockwork

Next step - stealing an artist

Stealing a bit of time

Shhhhh...

X-Men: First Class – spoiler free review (or essay, in this case)

Post Bristol - the weekend of win

I have a dream...

Meanwhile, down in the Bayou...

Countdown...

The Magic is building

*Expletive* happens. And everything else, too.

The first of... well, not so much 'many', more 'a few'

"What’s new? Lots new."

Roll credits

Survival Stories - out now!

Surviving

The update relay

The catch-up hangover

The Magic of Myths ebook

Putting it all together

"I have dreamed a dream, and now..."

The perils of writing too much

Kidney blow

It's coming...

The Twilight of our lives

Butterflies and Moths - the first lettered preview

Easy as A, B, C (or: The Importance of Good Lettering)

Art preview for Butterflies and Moths

One page says it all...

"Flash Gordon... is alive?!"

Carving out a niche - the sequel

Carving out a niche

Meeting Twilight

Butterflies and Moths art preview - Page 2 to 10

Merry Christmas! Plus, a little extra...

This is what happens...

Twilight comes around once more

Ch-ch-ch-changes

The slow march to madness

Butterflies and Moths - the artistic angle of Angel

Butterflies and Moths - the earliest of previews

Flutter?

Butterflies, Magic and a little bit of murder

"What would you do?" Weekly preview countdown... panel 5

"What would you do?" Weekly preview countdown... panels 3 and 4

"What would you do?" Weekly preview countdown... panel 2

"What would you do?" Weekly preview countdown... panel 1

Four colour explosion

The Sound of Her Wings

Talking pictures

“Promise” – fulfilled. Well, in one way…

Not so sleepy or hollow

Gazing into the Twilight

Yggdrasil or crab apple (or: waiting to see which half the glass is)

I Used to Love H.E.R (.O.E.S)* – a look at Heroes: Season Three so far

Magic of Myths preview… and the subject of race in comics

"Why... so... serious?" The Dark Knight - spoiler free review

Moving you in just four colours

Oooookaaaay...

And the beats go on...

Expletive happens. And everything else, too.