Alright folks. I’m going to be at the Vancouver Fan Expo this weekend, camped out at table P4. I’ll have Murder Book, Comeback, Acts of Violence and issues of Near Death featuring Murder Book back up stories. I’ll also have a VERY LIMITED number of Peter Panzerfaust #10 Convention Sketch Special Editions with cover sketches by me – these will be $25 ea. Did I mention that I’d only have a VERY LIMITED NUMBER OF THESE? Haven’t you always wanted a cover sketch from the letterer of a book? I know you have! I KNOW YOU HAVE! (Here’s what they look like, if you’re curious)

Anyway, swing by, say hi and buy some stuff.

Here’s a sort of map of where I’ll be at:

First, check the cover:

Pretty slick, eh?

And here’s what it’s all about:

SHELTERED tells the story of a survivalist society gone wrong. A remote place called Safe Haven where necessity trumps morality. Where preparing for the worst can bring out the worst in others. No one knows this better than 17-year-old Lucas, who stages a rebellion against the adults of Safe Haven only to see his own leadership turn brutal in the aftermath. Or Victoria, the young outsider who watched Lucas’s violent coup unfold and now finds herself hunted by his loyal friends. For Lucas, survival will require an iron grip, no matter the cost. For Victoria, the only survival is an escape from Safe Haven through the winter wilderness of the American Northeast. Pitted against each other, Lucas and Victoria find themselves fighting for their lives.

Past Murder Book collaborator Johnnie Christmas is on art duties and Shari Chankhamma is killing it on colours.

There’s not much else to report right now. We’ll be hitting the promo trail pretty hard in a couple of weeks and should have a more to preview, including an early look at the process of some of the pages. We’ll have a Tumblr dedicated to the book as well.

Really looking forward to getting this out there and in people’s hands. I’m really proud of the work that’s going into this book and think that people are really going to dig it. But, prepare yourself: it gets DARK.

Meanwhile, if you haven’t already, please check out Midnight Walk, the first story that Johnnie and I did together.

Hey folks! Sorry for the late update on this! Been blasting through writing and lettering deadlines and am literally 10 minutes from running out the door for ECCC!

I’m going to be there sharing a table with my Comeback co-conspirator, Michael Walsh. Kurtis Wiebe will also be sitting at our table, you know… if you’re into THAT sort of stuff. Johnnie Christmas will be floating around too. If you ask, we might fill your ears with details on our upcoming project. Anyway, table I-03. That’s where we’ll be at.

If you’re afraid of stopping by tables (with all those artist, writers and other creators staring at you with their hungry, hungry eyes, who can blame you?), then feel free to swing by and visit Michael and I at one of our two Image Booth signing times.

Anyhow, I’m out the door! See you folks in Seattle!

A map, for your map-looking pleasure.

Just a quick heads up that I’ve been added as a special guest at SEE (the Saskatchewan Entertainment Expo) that will take place in Saskatoon this September.

From their website:

lanning is in full swing for SEE’s first Entertainment Expo, coming to Saskatoon in September of 2013. This is an exciting time of growth for Saskatchewan, and we think it’s about time our province had an Entertainment and Pop Culture Convention to match. We are planning to bring in exciting North American television and movie entertainers, as well as pop culture and comic book creators to provide a cultural experience in Saskatchewan that has yet to be attempted on this scale. Rounding out the immense talent, we will fill the hall with provincial and national vendors of all kinds, for a show that will appeal to adults and families alike looking for an exciting day out.

You can check out a full listing of other comic guests, including my arch-nemesis, Kurtis Wiebe, by clicking here.

See you folks there!

Hey folks,

Just a quick reminder to let you know that Comeback #3 hit shops today (Jan 16).

Need convincing? Check out these preview pages at Geeks Unleashed Me.

Need more convincing? Check out this early review from the Silver Snail.

What? You still need MORE convincing? Well, why don’t you just head over to Comixology and read Comeback #1 for FREE.

If that doesn’t tickle your goat, then I don’t know what will.

My friend and yours, Robin McConnell has been curating the new site Canadian Comics Archive and it’s well worth a look. The site collects minis and self published comics/zines from the past 20+ years primarily from, at this point, Vancouver based creators.

I’m thrilled to see works from Blaine Thurier on the site. Thurier is probably now best know as the keyboardist for the The New Pornographers, but back in the 90s, he was one of my favourite local comic artists. I had all his minis and would clip his comics from the pages of Terminal City — a local, alt paper run primarily by comic artists.

Another creator worth a look — they’re all worth a look, but I’m talking close to my own heart — is Julian Lawrence. Julian is a Vancouver indie comics legend and is the sole reason that I first got into making minicomics in the 90s. I met Julian at Lollapalooza in 1994. He and Robert Dayton had a booth set up and were selling zines and minicomics that they and friends had created. I purchased one of everything and devoured them all that night. I was blown away by the Julian’s talent and by the idea that you only needed access to a photocopier to produce your own comics. Julian was my introduction to zines and minicomics, to the idea of not waiting around, but of doing.

Please, have a look and spread the love. Read the free comics. So many of the comics that influenced my own early comic making are on display for you to discover.

If you’ve talked to me about upcoming projects over the past year, you’ve probably heard me talk about The Ballad of Sang. If you caught me at the right time, you probably watched me act out the opening scene – like some sort of manic child on a crystal meth kick. The most basic boiling down of the idea is: mute, primordial dwarf hitman vs. everyone. There’s more to it than that, but I’m not giving anyone my ideas!

The Ballad of Sang is the project I’ve been itching to do for the better part of three years, but not one I’ve pitched yet. 2013 is the year that I get this sucker off the ground, one way or another.

A few friends of mine have been kind enough to do pin-ups to help me sell the idea of Sang to publishers and prospective artists. Please take a moment to visit their sites. They’re all great folks and amazing artists.

It’ll take a couple of days to get going, so in the meantime go check out Murder Book and Comeback.