Watch the Trailer for Gargoyle By Moonlight, Buy It Digitally

At long last, it can be revealed: the Gargoyle By Moonlight trailer is live and speeding through the Internet pipes to you.

What's more, GBM is now available in several digital formats. You can have your copy of this stunning mini-graphic novel on your screen in seconds. Watch the video for details, or click here to buy your digital copy of Gargoyle By Moonlight.

Thanks to Comics Experience pal and creator of Gutter Magic, Rich Douek for all his help making the promo video. You should check out this fun and inventive tale of sword, sorcery, and sixguns, at Sixgun Comics.

More on Gargoyle By Moonlight, drawn by Brian Atkins, inked and lettered by Jeremiah Lambert, colored by Juan Romera, and written by Tim Bach, is available at Moonrisecomics.com.

A Little Preview for You

You've all been so good this week, and what the heck, I'm in a good mood. So here's another little taste of the mind-blowing supernatural experience coming your way this fall.

May and June were a very exciting and productive time for me as I moved forward in my making comics journey. I have three scripts of various lengths with pencilers and inkers: a short story, a full-length story, and a mini-graphic novel.

Making comics is fun--and it's a lot of hard work. I hope to chronicle all that work when I have a chance. You see, although the scripts are written, in many ways, my work is just beginning. Why? Because it takes a team to put a comic together. I work all day, and then I come home and work most nights. Anyway, at a later date, I'll recount what I've been doing, mistakes I've made, and all kinds of details.

For now, here's a little more concept art from a little project we like to call G_____ B_ M________. (Click on the image to see it in big and bold black and white detail!)



Coming soon: the creative team announcement!

Just a Tease

I'm going to have soooo much more on this soon.

Very soon.

But for now, dear reader, just a teaser image.

Part 2 of My Interview with Artist Tomás Morón

I've been getting some nice e-mails and comments about my story. Thanks. (And keep 'em coming.)

But now, as promised, here's the second part of my interview with artist Tomás Morón. THIS PORTION CONTAINS SPOILERS. So if you haven't read the story yet, mouse your way over to the right and click on the story icon, read it, and then come back. (You'll be glad you did.)

I’m interested in your thoughts on the story “The Customer Is Always Right.” What do you remember about your first reaction to the script?

First, I thought it was a great story, and with 5 pages, the characters and the situations were great, too. And it has a werewolf!

Can you explain your approach to designing the characters in "Customer"?  What were some of the things that stood out--that drew you in? 

First, I read your desciptions and tried to approach the words and the sense they gave me. In the Ben character, I tried to reflect his fatigue for his situation and how desperate he was. In Donny, I tried to do the same--but with a character with low moral values and who does illegal things--so I tried to give him a threatening look. I hope I got it.

Oh, yes. Definitely. In bringing this story to life, what were some of the influences you drew from?

I don´t know, but I think I remember some of the Creepy issues or Terror stories from the seventies with that B&W and grays that were so strong.

Was there a part of the story that was more challenging than other parts?

Well, on the fourth page, many things happened, and it was hard for me to draw the panel where Ben faints, hits the table, and Donny stands up.

You've been drawing and teaching comics for awhile now: What kinds of classes do you teach? 

I've taught for 15 years, and I've done a bit of everything. I teach classes on comics, inking, manga, and some years ago, history of comics. But now I do comics, inking, and manga.

What are some of the key things you stress to your students?

First of all, they have to think before drawing. And the most important part of comics is having the right layout to tell the story. If the panel or page don't work for the story, it is useless.

Does teaching illustration force you to raise your skills? I would think you'd feel a need to stay ahead of your students.

Yes, and if I discover some new technique or some new tools, I tell them and try to teach them the best I can. And I try to teach them how you have to interview with editors and how to show your portfolio and what you have to put in it.

What kinds of advice do you have for artists just getting started?

First, they must know that the job is great, but it means working many hours and you need to have a strong attitude. It's also important that you try to never fail to meet a deadline.

Who are some of the writers you would like to work with?

Robert Kirkman, Alan Moore, Dan Slott, Geoff Johns, and, of course, TDR Bach.

And finally, would you like to list some of the things you've worked on in the past and what you are working on now?

Well, in the comic field, I've worked for several Spanish and foreign publishers. I worked for Comicon doing the comics from Digimon for Germany. I did the inks for a Conan story for Marvel Italy, and worked in pocket comics for Semic with characters like Zembla. I also did a short story for an anthology published by Narwain Publishing from a Shannon Denton script as well as the comic prequel for the movie Zoom, Academy for Superheroes, published by Viper Comics. And finally this year, I was a part of an anthology named Fairy Tales that Chris Stevens edited and that was born in the Digital Webbing forums. I've also worked in publicity doing cartoons, children's illustrations, storyboards, etc. And now I’m working on children's illustation for Vimartic and doing a graphic novel for Kickstart comics.

Tomás Morón is also the artist on "The Customer Is Always Right," which you've hopefully read by now. (If not, click the link above.) Check out his fine work here: http://eldibujantesinpoderes.blogspot.com/

STAY TUNED . . .

As you can see by the neat widget to the right, I'm getting ready to post my first story, a 5-pager entitled, The Customer Is Always Right, a little thriller Tomás Morón, my storytelling collaborator, and I did. Keep checking back--I hope to have the story up for Halloween.

In other news, my anthology group is racing toward the finish line. I recently saw some of the cover art (front and back). Hopefully the stars will align and this thing will be out before the end of the year. Finally.

Below is an early rough sketch of the back cover by artist Brad Green. (Wait'll you see the real deal!) The pic is a collection of characters from the stories in the anthology--a police lineup.

More Sketches from Project Comic Con

Here's an impressive sketch by Rick Burchett, the artist on Superman Adventures, Batman/Huntress: Cry For Blood, She-Hulk, and the upcoming relaunch of Batman: Brave and the Bold. Rich is a real class act and a consummate pro. He's also a St. Louis-based comic book creator. It was fascinating to watch him work from the early pencils up until the final marker stroke was applied.



Below is a little piece featuring everyone's favorite Wookie: Chewbacca. Done in markers by talented illustrator Nathan Ohlendorf, this is a really fun picture. See more of his stuff at his site, where he has a variety of fantasy and sci fi work:
www.sadlittles.com.

Project Comic Con: Making Connections; Getting Sketches

This weekend, I attended both days of Project Comic Con in St. Louis--the second year of this newer but growing show. The Con was great; I met some great local talent and I was able to talk with established industry pros. All-in-all, it was an incredible professional experience that provided me with lots of fuel to keep making comics (and a great excuse to indulge myself with some custom artwork).

It was a small show (by some standards), but I think Project Comic Con was better than other cons I've been too. In fact, the con was really the perfect size. Big enough that some major talent showed up (Fred Van Lente, Ethan Van Sciver, Adam Kubert, Gail Simone, Jamal Igle, Ryan Ottley, and Jason Howard to name a few--plus local luminaries Matt Kindt, Cullen Bunn, and Brian Hurtt); but small enough that you could actually talk to them. (The guys putting on the show did a nice job. If you want to check out the show's site, click here.)

But the reason I went to the con was to meet others like me: people who are making comics. I met several up-and-commers who are making comics. It was great to hear their stories (both fictional and personal), and to see what they had done. I'm particularly jazzed about the guys at Ink & Drink Comics and their anthology, Spirits of St. Louis (which I bought and you should, too, when it's officially released next month). They seemed like a great bunch of talented guys, and I hope to work with them soon.

Probably the most fantastic part of the weekend was that in talking with artists and writers at different stages of their comics-making journey (noob to pro), I found that as an aspiring creator, I had a lot in common with all of them. I'm not saying I'm as good, mind you, but we were speaking the same language and shared a lot of the same desires and struggles.

Talking with comics creators is different than just talking comics at your local store or even on a message board, and the energy and excitement in the air really charged me up. That's what great about attending a con: the people there are passionate about making comics and the energy is infectious. (But that may be because of all the handshaking, I don't know.) If you are thinking about making comics, get to a regional show. Even if it's not the biggest or the best, you're likely to meet like-minded creators. And hopefully, you can learn something, get charged creatively, and maybe even find some people to collaborate with.

I've been so focused on making comics that I had been denying myself original art commissions over the last few months. At Project Comic Con, I bought several con sketches, which I'll be posting over the next few days. The one up top is Drake Sinclair from the totally awesome Western-horror comic The Sixth Gun (drawn by series artist Brian Hurtt). To the left you'll see the Mandarin, a wicked little drawing by Brian Atkins, a very talented artist.

Update: My group's anthology is almost done. We are just waiting on the cover. Soon, very soon, I will be showcasing final art from my story. The above header is a preview.

Layout of "Customer" Page 2

Here's a look at the layout for page 3 of "The Customer Is Always Right," my first comic story to see print. (Awesome, huh?) I now have all the finished art from Tomás--and the pages look awesome. Right now, I'm working with my letterer to finish this thing up.

I'll be posting some of the final art soon, so keep checking back.

This story will appear in an anthology very soon. (I can't wait to see it in print.) I will post more info on the anthology as soon as I have it.