Another Bloody Dave

Temple APA's New Home

2012-01-01T22:04:00.005Z

Happy new year, folks!

The Temple APA (a digitial showcase for comic artists and writers who're active in the UK) has a new home, and can now be located at: http://templeapa.blogspot.com

If you're an aspiring comic artist or writer who wishes to get their work seen, the deadline for contributing to the next Temple Showcase (issue 10) is January 29th. More details can be found on the blog.

Slayer Keith Rides To Victory!

2011-12-22T14:58:00.005Z

I've just had word from John Freeman that Slayer Keith, a collaboration between myself, Dave Thomson and Stu Smith, will be appearing in issue 4 of Strip (a brand new monthly adventure comic for children and young adults).

I think none of us are more thrilled than Stu Smith, whose main involvement was to eat cheese, have a weird dream, and record it in the following illustration which inspired the comic strip.

So let this be a lesson to you, people! If you wish to get anywhere in life as an artist you must eat more cheese, and sleep whenever possible.

Strip comic is available to buy from iTunes at £2.99, and can also be purchased in many UK comic stores. Learn more about Strip here:

http://stripcomicmagazineuk.blogspot.com/

Temple Homeless Again

2011-12-22T14:48:00.004Z

Once again, a social network site which we've joined has decided to close its doors to free users.

Commencing on January 1st, the Temple Socialgo site will stop functioning. If we haven't found a new home by then, watch this space as I'll put up an announcement once me and Malcolm Kirk have sorted the problem out.

Blasted Capitalist Social Site rascals!

Not A Lot On iTunes

2011-12-22T14:26:00.005Z

You can now download my pub-time collaboration with F.J.Riley from iTunes for free, where it appears to be doing rather well in the charts.

Reviews have been mixed at best, ranging from: 'A happy pile of nonsense' to 'Disappointingly rubbish!'

Still, if you're looking for completely 100% accurate facts which we didn't at all make up whilst under the influence of alcohol, then this is the one for you!

Just hop along to the iTunes store with your iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch, type my name into the search engine and get downloading.

Myself and F.J.Riley are currently working on the sequel, which we've cunningly titled 'Not A Lot Of People Know That 2'

Hallowscream 2011

2011-12-22T14:10:00.005Z

Alright, so Halloween may have passed, but surely that's not going to stop folk downloading a free halloween horror comic eh?

Issue 3 of Hallowscream is available from Back From The Depths at the following link:

http://www.backfromthedepths.co.uk/thetheatreofterror/2011/news/hallowscream-2011

It contains 112 pages of blood curdling mayhem, including some rather twisted offerings from Dirk Van Dom (the lord and master of dark humour), Matthew Mclaughlin, Tim West, Malcolm Kirk and many others (including myself and Chow, with a sequel to our Hells Belles strip).

The comic is 53 megs, in PDF format, and completely free so get downloading it now!

Accent UK's Predators

2011-12-22T13:53:00.003Z

A few months back, Accent UK launched its latest anthology 'PREDATORS' which is another beautifully put together beast of a comic.

The anthology contains an 8 page collaboration by myself and Tony Suleri, titled 'The Exterminator'.

There's some terrific material inside, including a warped yet brilliant post-apocalyptic vision of a future ruled by giant mutated insects by Morgan Pielli and Jon-Mikel Gates, 'The Lure' by Gary Crutchley, involving a fairy used as bait to catch unwary children, 'Just Like You' by Lee Robson and Bryan Coyle, which is a well paced and darkly humorous piece about a very open serial killer, and many other great offerings.

Predators costs £8.99, and is available from www.accentukcomics.com.

Also, look out for their upcoming 'Zombies 2' anthology, which contains a 'Dead Beats' zombie strip by myself and welsh wonder-boy Neil Alexander.

Grandpa's Teeth

2011-12-22T13:38:00.006Z

Earlier on in the year I wrote a children's book about a young boy who's on a quest to find his Grandpa's Teeth, which have been stolen by a great green Gribble Grobble (the beast that lives within Minestrone, as I'm sure you all well know).

I figure it's probably about time I put up a few of the illustrations I made to go with it. Next year, once I have moved house, I shall send it out to more of those lovely agent and publisher types!

Let The Updates Commence!

2011-12-22T13:27:00.003Z

Just realised that my last blog update was, er, January, so I suppose I best catch up before the year is out.

So, stay tuned and I'll tell you what I've been up to...

It's all coming true!

2011-01-25T16:56:00.003Z

I have just been informed by F.J.Riley, with whom I collaborated on a book of made up facts (titled Not A Lot Of People Know That), that a recent story in the Evening Standard bore a remarkable similarity to something we made up.

Check out this article, and pray that none of our other 'facts' come true...

http://www.incwriters.co.uk/?p=3074

Charity Moustache!

2010-11-03T11:52:00.003Z

This month I will mostly be growing a moustache.

But it's not just any moustache...it's a charity moustache for Movember.

If you fancy sponsoring my beautiful face follicles, you can do so here: http://uk.movember.com/mospace/529634/

All proceeds go towards helping folk with Prostate Cancer (and, with luck, a top lip wax when this is all over)

This will be my first moustache, so if you have any experience in this particular field, please feel free to share your knowledge and help me on my path...

Not A Lot Of People Know That

2010-06-02T08:40:00.004+01:00

Some books are written through years of hard work and effort; others are written after two pints down the pub. I'll leave it to the readers to deduce which sort of book 'Not A Lot Of People Know That' by myself and the mysterious F.J.Riley is.

There are two vitally important things to remember about this book.

1) Every fact contained within is 100% accurate.
2) It's free.

you can check out a few sample facts contained within at the following link, and also download the PDF

http://www.philistinepress.com/nlpkt_15.html

Here's a few facts from the book, to be going on with:

- Despite being involuntary, spontaneous human combustion is illegal in every country in the world apart from the Republic of Ireland, where ironically, it has never happened.

- Jack the Ripper was killed by a copycat killer who, due to very poor London lighting, mistook his idol for a prostitute.

- At any one time in the UK, there are at least six musicians who have fallen asleep after being hypnotised by metronomes.

- In America it is illegal in seventeen states to have sexual intercourse with a gameshow host.

Zarjaz 9 Available Now

2010-04-22T15:18:00.006+01:00

Issue 9 of 2000ad Fanzine 'Zarjaz' is now available to buy for £4.00 (including postage and packing) from the Futurequake shop - just follow the link.

http://www.futurequake.co.uk/shop.php

As well the Judge Dredd strip 'Death By Misadventure' written by myself and illustrated by Stuart Giddings, there's plenty of other character tributes, including a Sinister Dexter strip, Orlok the assassin and, my personal favourite, Shako the Killer Polarbear by the ever marvellous Richmond Clements and Bryan Coyle.

The comic's black and white, and wrapped in a rather lovely colour cover by Nigel Dobbyn.

Strip previews can be viewed here:

http://thequaequamblog.blogspot.com/2010_03_01_archive.html

Temple Issue 6 - Out Now!

2010-03-09T14:22:00.003Z

After a slight delay, Temple Issue 6 is now available to download at:

http://templeapa.ning.com/forum/attachment/download?id=827304%3AUploadedFile%3A15168

With contributions from Tony Suleri, Simon Mackie, Malcolm Kirk and others, the 97 page showcase also contains a 26 page feature on the work of Easmall press publisher Futurequake Press.

This is John Kirkham's final issue as Central Mailer (damn fine job, dear boy!), though with luck he'll return to the world of comics at some point, re-energised and ready to kick bottom.

The rather marvellous Malcolm Kirk will be taking over the helm from Issue 7 onwards (deadline to be announced).

New British Comics 2

2009-11-18T16:48:00.003Z

The second issue of New British Comics, an anthology published in both English and Polish, is out now to buy.

As well as featuring Spare Parts by myself and Tony Suleri (a jolly old romp through the sewers with severed limbs and cannibals aplenty!), there's a whole wealth of other comic strips and cartoons by some rather talented chaps and chapesses, including Dave Thomson, David Robertson, Paul O' Connell and Leonie O' Moore. It's 84 pages in size, comes under a terrificly English colour cover by Nelson Evergreen, and is rather marvellous stuff indeed!

Editor Karol Wisniewski had done a fine job of assembling the issue, and there's very few weak strips and plenty of black comedy which certainly kept me amused.

If you're interested in buying a copy, or learning more about the creators, more details can be located here: http://newbritishcomics.blogspot.com/

Back From The Depths!

2009-11-02T11:52:00.003Z

What-ho, chaps!

Due to the supreme efforts of Malcolm Kirk, a free Scream influenced Halloween special cunningly titled 'Hallowscream' is now available to download as a 40mb PDF from the main Back From The Depths site.

It's a 72 page whopper of a comic, featuring the likes of Tim West, Mo Ali, Simon Mackie, Andrew Milne, Dave Windett and many more.

There's also a couple of strips from myself in there: Hell's Belles, illustrated by Chow, and Last Orders illustrated by Stuart Giddings.

Just follow this link...

http://backfromthedepths.ning.com/forum/topics/back-from-the-depths-presents

or right click the next link, and choose 'Save as'.

http://backfromthedepths.ning.com/forum/attachment/download?id=2158124%3AUploadedFi38%3A8224

Temple APA Issue 5 - Out Now!

2009-10-05T12:50:00.003+01:00

Issue 5 of the Temple APA Digital Showcase is now available to download for free on the main site (http://www.templeapa.ning.com/).

It's quite a sizeable chap, being over 160 pages long and 80 megs, but there's quite a bit of quality comics material in there.

As well as featuring contributions from the likes of Stuart Giddings, Steve Tanner, Malcolm Kirk, Simon Mackie and Tony Suleri, there's also a 68 page feature on Insomnia Publications, showing previews of their upcoming projects, and containing a book list of everything they've got coming out.

You can download the PDF of issue 5 from the front page of the Temple website, or using the following link:

Right click this link and choose 'save as'

The next issue of the Temple is due out on 12th December, so if you're a comic artist or writer who'd be interested in contributing, just sign up on the main site. Both amateurs and pros are welcome!

No Beard Preview

2009-08-28T12:23:00.005+01:00

Just before the DFC folded, I was working on quite a few projects as potential submissions. One of these was a jolly piece of pirate shennanigans that went by the title of 'The Fantabulous Adventures Of No Beard'.

Ian Alexander (or ENO as he's occassionally known) illustrated the first four episodes, all of which are two pages in length, and did a rather marvellous job.

With No Beard being a continuing adventure, we're both at a loss to think of another potential market for the strips. I've recently converted the script into a 22 pager, as part one of a potential mini-series, and might also rewrite the story as a kids novel with Ian providing illustrations.

Although Ian's going to be tied up for a while with some potential work as a Computer Game Concept Artist, we're both keen for the Beard to live again!

In the meantime, here's the first episode.

Preview of A Better Place

2009-08-27T09:49:00.007+01:00

Here's a two page unlettered sneek preview of me and Stuart Giddings latest five pager, A Better Place, which involves a psychic cab driver with a psychotic hatred for advertising salesmen.

Stu's next request was for me to write a Terror Tale with a Haunted Knight in it, so we'll see how that goes.

Finished the Rascal!

2009-07-31T22:08:00.004+01:00

Well, I haven't slept, ate, washed or shaved in the last six months, and I'm down to my last pair of comedy pants, but finally that pesky creative writing MA is over! This afternoon I handed 'Jellybean: Last of the Navel Navigators' to the binders, and should have it back on wednesday, two weeks ahead of the deadline.

The first two chapters of this childrens novel about a boy and his bellybutton got me a distinction for a previous assignment, so let's hope I'm still on the right tracks with the rest of the novel.

Once I've got that rotter of a birthday out the way, I should have plenty of time to get back to my comic projects. So look out for a few more previews of upcoming work, in the near future.

Right, I'm off to catch some well earned sleep, and scrub myself free of that pungent student aroma.

Temple 4 out now!

2009-06-26T16:18:00.003+01:00

The latest issue of the Temple APA Digital Showcase is available to download here:

http://templeapa.ning.com/forum/attachment/download?id=827304%3AUploadedFi58%3A13688

It's a beast of an issue, and contains over 130 pages of UK comic creators work, including work from Steve Tanner, Simon Mackie, Tony Suleri, Jim Stewart, Dave Thomson and many more.

As well as a small press listings, this issue also contains a 35 page feature on Independent Comic Publisher Accent UK.

So, head along to the http://www.templeapa.ning.com site and download your free copy now!

If you're a comic artist or writer, whether professional or amateur, you're welcome to join.

Love and War Preview

2009-05-15T10:04:00.004+01:00

Here's a page from me and Dave Thomson's latest comic strip - Love and War.

The story concerns the last survivor of the human race, waging war on the alien menace that destroyed mankind, in a rather unique way.

Dave's done a rather marvellous job on the artwork, and it went down well at the Bristol Comic Convention. We'll let you know where/when it's published.

Accent UK Western Anthology

2009-05-08T09:10:00.008+01:00

I received my contributors copy of Accent UK's latest anthology 'Western' a few weeks back and it's a terrific read. You can find my review of the comic on Down The Tubes here.

I was lucky enough to 'sneak in the back door' a get a strip in there myself this time, thanks to Paul Harrison-Davies who was in need of a script. His only specifications were that it should be six pages long, silent, three panels a page, a done in a widescreen movie style.

Having searched through my fifty or so notepads of ideas I stumbled upon one from five years back, involving a lone cowboy finding a jewel encrusted boot, only to have its owner show up clad in the other boot and seeking revenge against the thief. I adapted the idea a little (as it was intended as a TV sketch), and changed the evil one-booted cowboy to an evil one-booted cowboy zombie at the very last second (it's only a shame that I didn't manage to fit an Elvis cameo in there somewhere).

I've also got a strip scheduled to appear in Accent UK's next anthology - Predators. So look out for 'The Exterminator' by myself and Tony Suleri next year.

Also, look out for the upcoming Accent UK Feature in the next issue of the Temple Digital Showcase, which'll contain previews from many of their anthologies and some of Accent UK's upcoming projects. The issue should be out at the end of June.

If you're going along to the Bristol comics convention, seek out the Accent UK table and pick up one of their mighty fine comics, or order them online here.

Ian Alexander's new blog

2009-05-08T08:42:00.003+01:00

Ian Alexander, artist of the Eat Me series for Rokcomics.com, has just started a new blog where he'll be posting various pictures from the projects he's working on.

I've known Ian since he was about eleven, and have been able to watch his art style progress in the Temple APA over the years. He's certainly one to keep an eye on.

Myself and Ian have a large pirate related kids comic project in the works, which Ian's doing a fantastic job at illustrating. The challenge is finding the right comic publisher to send it to, now that the DFC has folded (as it's a continuous two page strip, rather than self contained stories). Suggestions would be welcomed!

Ian's new blog can be found here: http://epochofeno.co.uk/blog/

Way Of The Dead

2009-04-16T11:15:00.005+01:00

A brief taster of me and Tony Suleri's next project; a three issue Kung-fu Zombie mini-series titled 'Way Of The Dead'.

If all goes well (finding a publisher would be a start!), we plan to follow it up with five more mini-series.

Cover image supplied by the ever amazing Stu Smith.

Keep your eyes peeled for more designs and updates as the project progresses.

Highway Robbery Complete!

2009-04-16T09:17:00.007+01:00

Highway Robbery, the ‘almost weekly’ web comic from myself and Tony Suleri was finally completed last week.

The strip was started in June last year, and had been expected to end in December with page thirty, but Tony couldn’t resist throwing in a couple of extra pages for dramatic effect. Due to various other strips Tony found himself working on (including Reaper for the upcoming issue of Futurequake), fitting the final seven pages into his schedule has been a challenge, but it’s all done now!
It’s been a fun strip to work on, especially since there’s no actual script and neither of us had a clue what was going to happen from one page to the next. I was quite surprised that the end result actually seems to make sense (alright, there’s a few potential plot holes lurking beneath the surface, and the occasional page that has no real bearing on the story, but I won’t go into them in case no-one’s noticed and we’ve got away with it!).

Hopefully the last seven pages will appear on the Bulletproof website soon, so keep an eye out for them.
Myself and Tony are all set to embark on our next project (with the generous assistance of Stu Smith - the original creator of King Burger - as cover artist) which’ll be a lot more sizable, and although it won’t have any gun-totting monkeys or bovine Elvis impersonators in it, it’ll certainly have its fair share of kung-fu zombies.

Watch this space for more details!

Temple Digital Showcase 3

2009-04-02T16:18:00.004+01:00

The third issue of the Temple APA, a showcase for UK comic artist and writers, is now available to download as a free PDF here

Compiled by John Kirkham, and containing the works of various small press creators (such as Adam Grose, Tony Suleri, Jim Stewart and Paul Eldridge) the third issue is one of the biggest yet, and has a lot of amusing offerings inside (Malcolm Kirk's mock 'sea zombies' ad being one of my favourites, along with Paul Eldridges marvellous front cover).

Not only is the PDF free to download, but all writers and artists (whether they're amateur or pro) are welcome to join up for free. Just sign up to the ning site here.

The Temple Showcase contains a Small Press Directory at the rear which is updated each issue. If you're a small press comic artist/writer/publisher who'd like to have their comic listed inside, then leave the details on the site and we'll try and include them next time (or, failing that, email details to me at purecrass@hotmail.com To see what details are needed, check out the most recent Temple PDF)

Toxic Comic Out Now!

2009-04-02T12:58:00.011+01:00

Issue 137 of Toxic is out in the shops now, and comes with a free 'Crazy Comics' supplement.

In the back pages of the supplement you'll find a one page strip by myself and Paul Harrison-Davies, titled 'The Hoaxers'. It's about a child operated cover-up agency, that's funded by the government to hide all the bizarre goings on around england.

There's the chance to vote online for your favourite strip (there's nine to choose from, some of which are by some bloody talented chaps indeed!) at: http://www.toxicmag.co.uk/vote

The strip with the most votes may get a series out of it.

Anyway, I thought now might be a good time to share some of Paul's early Hoaxers concept sketches.

He's Behind You!

2009-02-12T16:35:00.007Z

Award winning two minute movie 'Blood Over The Moon' has just been given a slight overhaul by director Roz Hall and musician Phil Palmer. The biggest changes are the addition of a new title, credits, and a tarted up soundtrack.

Feel free to check it out above, or at its official page here.

Opening Night: Dave Hailwood, Roz Hall, Phil Palmer, Flick Ansell

Toxic comic supplement

2009-02-06T12:38:00.004Z

As Down the Tubes has recently reported, issue 137 of Toxic comic will have a 16 page comic supplement bundled with it, filled to the brim with brand new comic strips from a host of UK creators.

I'm fortunate enough to be one of those creators, and have a one pager titled 'Hoaxers' going in there. It's illustrated by the highly talented Paul Harrison-Davies (who I'm also working with on Bunk Mates for Bulletproof comics, and a whole host of other projects).

There's a lot of terrific artists and writers appearing in the supplement, including John Freeman, Laura Howell, Lew Stringer and Jamie Smart (creator of the superb Fish-head Steve for DFC comics).

So, come April 1st, nip along to WHSmiths or one of them newsagenty type places and pick up a copy!

Argh! Zombies!!!

2009-01-29T10:09:00.003Z

After just having finished writing a 4,500 word short story about zombie shelf stackers for my Creative Writing MA, I was pleased to receive the first page of art for another zombie related project I'm working on with Neil Alexander.

It's a four pager titled 'Dead Beats' which involves a group of zombies sat in a pub, chatting about the good old days when it was all lurching and shuffling and there wasn't any of that silly old 'running around an' chasing folk' business.

Anyway, enjoy the preview.

New Marren Kane Strip

2009-01-24T20:32:00.004Z

Just finished lettering a brand new Marren Kane strip, illustrated by Tony Suleri. Hopefully it'll be appearing in Bulletproof Issue 4.

This strips a bit darker than usual, since Tony was working from a script I'd written (rather than our usual Kane method, which is for Tony to draw all the art first, then send it to me to put some words on). Still, it has Death By Spoon in it, so there's plenty of light hearted moments in there too.

Hope you enjoy the preview, and I'll post some more art from other projects later in the week.

Temple Digital Showcase 2 Out Now!

2009-01-15T12:42:00.003Z

A somewhat festive edition of the Temple Digital Showcase can now be downloaded as a free PDF on the main Temple APA website (http://www.templeapa.ning.com/)

Compiled together by freelance illustrator John Kirkham, and featuring 38 pages of comic strips and previews from various UK comics creators (such as Adam Grose, Tony Suleri, Jim Stewart and Malcolm Kirk), the showcase also contains a new Small Press Directory that lists the details of various small press comics for sale.

The collection is intended as a digital showcase of British comic writers and artists, both amateur and professional. It's free to join, and everyone from the UK is welcome to add their comics to the directory here: http://templeapa.ning.com/forum/topics/827304:Topic:10312

The next issue's deadline is March 22nd.

Xmas Exploitica!

2008-12-23T14:20:00.005Z

Many thanks to Neill Cameron for allowing me to have a play with his fantastic Santa artwork and post the results here.

Have a jolly marvellous Christmas, people and catch you in the new year!

Celebrate Xmas in Style - with Neill Cameron

2008-12-19T09:35:00.004Z

Looks like me old mate Neill's been up to his usual mischief again!

In the countdown to Xmas he'll be bringing a new visual interpretation of Santa to his website every day. As well as my new favourite 'Blaxploitation Santa', you can also catch the likes of Kung Fu Santa and Zombie Santa.

Just what will this Care in the Community mad man dream up next, I wonder? Find out for yourselves at: http://neillcameron.blogspot.com/

(Blaxploitation Santa art (c) Neill Cameron 2008)

B-movie made in 48 hours!

2008-11-06T14:36:00.004Z

Well, I had a fun packed and slightly surreal weekend making a film for the Portsmouth DV Missions 48 hour film challenge.

The way the challenge works is every group's given the same title, genre and line of dialogue and then has 48 hours to make the film. The title this year was 'Blood On The Moon', the genre was B Movie and the line of dialogue was 'Go on then...I'll play your vicious little game!'

The B-Movie genre certainly proved popular, and there was lots of terrific entries with giant mutated lobsters, vampires, zombies and all sorts of madness.

We went with a creature feature for our entry (courtesy of a 99p ball of wool from C and H fabrics...no expense spared on our movie) and although it had very little to do with the actual title, it went down rather well at the viewing. Phil Palmer, who plays the villain of the piece constructed the sound track in a matter of hours and did a damn fine job. My main role this year was 'Head Tribble Wrangler' which is of course the highlight of my film making career!

Last year our entry Dark Mesh won 'Best Film'. This year we won 'Best Soundtrack'.

Anyway, enough waffle...Click the link and enjoy the madness!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCyAvQQSsx8

Animated Zombies for Halloween!

2008-10-31T08:51:00.006Z

Myself and that rather pleasant writer chap David Baillie (http://www.davidbaillie.net/) have teamed up this Halloween to bring you a few short animations based on David's Zombie Interviews comic series. So, prepare yourself for some highbrow intellectual zombie antics!

Incidentally, the original comic series is contained within the pages of Accent UK's Zombies anthology, available from http://www.accentukcomics.com/

Faceless heads for Bulletproof!

2008-10-19T18:06:00.006+01:00

With the imminent arrival of myself and Dave Thomson's new weekly webcomic 'Faceless', I thought I'd post a few of Dave's early designs for the character and villains here.

Although it's only an eight pager, we've tried to pack as much mayhem and bloodshed into those pages as we possibly could!

So, who's this Faceless chap then? Well, he's a psychotic headless robotic assassin with a distinct liking for over the top violence. He also likes kittens, long walks in the park, murdering folk, cartoons, chocolate bars, beheadings and crossword puzzles.

keep watching http://www.bulletproofcomics.co.uk/ as the first page will be going up in the next few days.

Incidentally, me and Tony Suleri's Highway Robbery webcomic has just reached its 20th page (2/3 of the way there!). Give it a look if you're into violent monkey carnage (and who isn't eh?)

One Eyed Wench preview

2008-10-19T10:57:00.004+01:00

Whilst Matt Yeo's putting the final touches to Bulletproof three, I thought I'd put up a preview page from one of the strips I wrote for the issue. It's illustrated by Dave Thomson and based on a character design he did a while back.

We've tried to put as much gunfire, explosions, sleaze and vomiting into the story as we could, so keep your eyes peeled for the One Eyed Wench!

Small Press Directory

2008-10-19T10:26:00.007+01:00

The Temple APA (an on-line community of comic writers and artists from around the UK) is in the process of putting together a Small Press Directory to feature in the free downloadable Temple Showcase.

If you're a small press publisher from around the UK who would like to have your comic added to the listings, then simply join the Temple site (it's completely free) and add your comic details here:

http://templeapa.ning.com/forum/topic/show?id=827304%3ATopic%3A10312&page=1&commentId=827304%3AComment%3A10319&x=1#827304Comment10319

If you're interested in contributing to the quarterly Temple Digital Showcase, or would like to include previews of upcoming comics, the next deadline is 19th December. More details can be found on the website at: http://www.templeapa.ning.com

He is the Law! (and so is the artist)

2008-10-14T10:54:00.004+01:00

Thought I'd post a preview page from a Dredd strip myself and Stu Giddings are working on. We'll probably put the strip up in the fan section of the 2000ad website when it's done, and perhaps send it Dave Evans way (as he runs the majority of 2000ad related fanzines).

Stu only has two pages to go, and is doing a rather brilliant job (which I put down to extensive research gained from his real life job as a copper)

BICS pics

2008-10-11T22:08:00.007+01:00

There's a nice report up at the Bulletproof website of the Birmingham International Comics Convention, partially run by me old mate Shane Chebsey. Thought I'd nick a few photos to post here (taken by Matt Yeo, I'd assume. Except the one that he's in, which was most likely taken by someone else) as their stall looks rather eye catching. (Pictured are Tim Perkins of The Wizards Keep, Matt Yeo, and, er, Some Other Chap)

Also me and Tony's Marren Kane 12 page sampler comic is now available to buy for a quid on the site's shop at http://www.bulletproofcomics.co.uk/online-store.php

We're hoping to finish the comic off when we get the chance (it's more likely to be a one-shot than a mini-series), though we've got a lot of projects planned for the new year that'll demand our attention first (including the Technofear collection to be released through Bulletproof, and another long running series we've been planning for quite a while).

Bulletproof 2 Overview

2008-10-09T13:50:00.008+01:00

My contributors copy of Bulletproof 2 came through today (along with a rather snazzy looking Marren Kane 0), and it looks like another well presented offering.

The addition of colour to almost half the comic is a welcome change, and ensures that John Freeman and Mike Nicoll's Ex Astris strip really stands out from the crowd. The 3d graphics style has never looked better, and I was very pleased to see some bloodshed, violence and nudity had been added into the mix. Hurrah! Definitely my favourite of the bunch.

Alan Burrows artwork on Funguys (concerning the adventures of two hard drinking party crashing alien mushrooms) is also a visual treat, with plenty of freaky-ass aliens to feast your eyes upon. The only thing I found slightly odd about the strip was that is seems to take place in Dec 31st 2009, and, er, Clinton pops up as President of America. My guess is that the date was changed from 1999 so that the strip wouldn't appear so old, though since the Funguys are time travelling mushrooms this was unnecessary, and might provoke pernickety little gits like me to make pointless comments such as the one I'm making right this very moment (it's also possible that it's just a typo, but that's far less dramatic).

Sideburns is another strip that's growing on me, with some mighty fine artwork from Jon Haward and an amusing story by Jim Alexander (well, the idea that a criminal would be brought to justice when the detective realises he had his fingers crossed behind his back amused me anyway) .

Plenty of other good strips in the issue, but I'm bored of talking to myself and must depart, in search of that mystical substance known as 'lunch'.

If you haven't brought yourself a copy yet, it's only three quid and available from http://www.bulletproofcomics.co.uk/. I've got some strips in there, but don't let that put you off - it's actually a bloody nice read.

Oh yes, and here's some previews from a few strips appearing in Bulletproof 3; Bunk Mates, by Paul Harrison-Davies, and Backtrack by Tony Suleri. Plus there'll also be a One Eyed Wench strip illustrated by Dave Thomson.

Temple Comic APA Issue One Launched!

2008-10-09T09:22:00.005+01:00

The first issue of the Temple APA's digital showcase is now available online to download as a free PDF.

It's 36 pages long and contains contributions from 10 members, including the likes of Paul Harrison-Davies, Simon Mackie, Malcolm Kirk and more. Inside you'll find cartoons, full strips, previews of soon to be released small press comics, work in progress, and a behind the scenes look at making a webcomic.

If you're a comic artist/writer who's interested in joining the Temple APA, then more details are available on the site (it's as simple as clicking 'join'). Although this is the first digital issue (apart from Issue 0, which is also available on the site), the Temple's been running for more than ten years now and seen a wealth of talent come and go. Everyone's welcome, from the rawest amateur to the most seasoned pro. It's a good place to learn from each other and hone your skills, or simply draw more attention to upcoming projects.

Anyway, click the link to be taken to the site:

http://www.templeapa.ning.com

Robots Reviewed (at bloody last!)

2008-10-02T14:55:00.003+01:00

At the Bristol convention in May, Colin Mathieson and Dave West of Accent UK were kind enough to give me a review copy of their latest Robots anthology.

Due to the amount of writing projects I've been working on since then, I only just finished writing the review today. You can read it on Down The Tubes here: http://downthetubescomics.blogspot.com/2008/10/in-review-robots.html

Typical...it took me five months to write the review, and it took John Freeman five seconds to put it up on his site, along with links to every single creator mentioned. What a truly marvellous chap!

Anyway, I probably won't be reviewing the next Accent UK anthology (Westerns) simply because I have a strip in it, and wouldn't want to appear biased.

The strip's illustrated by the hugely talented Paul Harrison-Davies, and you can see an 'alternate' preview page of it below. Paul's finishing it off at the moment, so I'm very keen to see how it's looking now.

Futurequake 11 Available at BICS

2008-10-02T14:04:00.004+01:00

The latest issue of the twice Eagle Award nominated Futurequake will be available to buy at the BICS convention this weekend. Preview images can be viewed on the messageboard of the website at http://www.futurequake.co.uk/ and comics can also be purchased online.

One of my favourite collaborations with Tony Suleri appears inside this issue; Spare Parts (a tale about a scavenger who gets a little more than he bargained for when he ventures into the sewers). There's also a second offering from myself and Tony inside, titled 'Waste Of Time' - a cautionary tale about the hazards of using the past as a third-world dumping ground for all mankinds rubbish.

So pick up the comic if you get the chance. It's got zombies, pirates, cannibals, aliens and gunfire in it! What more motivation do you need?

Comics to look out for at BICS

2008-10-01T09:12:00.002+01:00

Okay, here's a few previews of some of the comics containing my work that'll hopefully be available at BICS this weekend.

You'll notice from these cover illo's that one particular creation of Tony Suleri's and mine will be featuring quite strongly; Marren Kane.

As well as a black and white strip appearing in Bulletproof 2 and a behind the scenes look at the art in Bulletproof 1/2, Matt Yeo's been kind enough to give Marren his own title. It's very much a mini-comic, being a mere 12 pages in length, and it ends on a cliffhanger which me and Tony hope to resolve once we've got a few other projects out of our way.

Anyway, seek out the Bulletproof stall (number 151) at BICS. There'll be plenty of goodies available.

A hearty welcome

2008-10-01T07:59:00.000+01:00

Well, since my Geocities site and its whopping ten megs of space has become somewhat redundant of late (especially since it tends to struggle under immense bandwidth pressure if more than one person visits it a year), I thought I might as well give one of these 'blog' chappies a go.

With so many projects in the works at the moment, this might also help me keep track of what I'm doing from one day to the next.

I'll put up a few samples later of the various comic strips that'll be available at the upcoming Birmingham Comic Con. In the meantime, welcome to the barren featureless landscape that is my blog!