It’s that time again: Dallas Comic Con is coming!

Be there on January 30-31 for possibly the greatest show ever. It’s your chance to meet some awesome actors, including Adam West (60’s Batman, Family Guy) and Charisma Carpenter (Buffy, Angel). Thats just the beginning.

The artist line up this year is one of the best ever, including heavy-hitter Tim Sale (the marvel “color” series, and all the stuff on the Heroes tv show).

Obviously I’ll be there with books prints, and plenty of copies of my new book “What Planet Is This.”

All the details can be found here.

See ya there!

Wow. It’s the first comic of the new year, and already Frizz is telling Chuck to take his clothes off. I never would have predicted that.

If you’ve forgotten that Frizz is the film major of the group, check out this storyline where Frizz changes his major to film, and tries to make a movie. Emphasis on the word “tries.”

A big thank you should go out to everyone who came by Keith’s comics the other day to support the new book, it went great, I hope the day was as successful for the other creators as it was for me.

As far as todays strip, Frizz is right. I’m convinced that most of the pills and miracle cures on the market are placebos that have “proprietary blend” under the ingredients, and are just taking advantage of people’s money, which, I gotta give ‘em points for ingenuity. For better or for worse, it’s still the wild west out there in the land of nutritional supplements, which is just the kind of environment I think Frizz feels at home in.

Today is of course, Indy Comic book day, so be sure to pick up a copy of “What Planet Is This?” if you can. And feel free to come see me at Keith’s Comics in North Dallas. The blog post below has all the details. Peace!

First of all, if you were busy enjoying the Holidays with your loved ones, don’t forget to go back and read my sacrilegious Christmas strip, which probably ensures I’ll go to “the special hell,” (as if I hadn’t already earned that).

But this Wednesday, Dec. 30th is Indy Comic Book Day. Here’s what you need to know:

Tons of new books from independent creators, including me, will be on sale in participating comic shops all over the country. For a list of participating stores, go here.

My book is called “What Planet Is This,” it’s a 20 page one-shot full color comic about a space detective having a really bad day. Call it a Sci-Fi crime-noir Comedy. The cover looks like this:

I will be appearing at Keith’s Comics North Dallas from 12:30-2. It’s in Carrollton, TX (just north of Dallas) on the Northeast corner of Trinity Mills and Midway. Come say hi, pick up copies of the book, I’ll sign them and maybe do some sketches.

Here’s a list of all the stores that are carrying my book (other than Keith’s), so feel free to stop by if you’re near one:

Madness Games & Comics
3131 Custer Road #125
Plano TX 75075

Zaldiva, Inc.
331 E. Commercial Blvd.
Oakland Park, FL 33334

Source Comics and Games
1601 West Larpenteur Ave
Falcon Heights, MN 55113

Spazdog Comics
21610 N 35th Avenue #162
Glendale AZ 85308

Challengers Comics + Conversation
1845 N. Western Ave. 2R
Chicago, IL  60647

Brainstorm Movies, Comics & Gaming
1648 W. North Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622

Pulp Nouveau Comix
92 South Main Street
Canandaigua, NY  14424

Hub Comics
19 Bow Street
Union Square
Somerville, MA 02143

I should note that Midtown Comics in New York will have some for all you New York readers, but, there will be a delay as my first printing actually sold out! I’ll be sure to announce when They’ll have them for sale so you can all be sure to pick them up.

Thanks for all your support, and I hope you enjoy the book! Be sure to check out all the cool books that will be available. Some of them look really cool. Happy Indy Comic Book Day!

Sometimes it’s almost like I’m playing a ridiculous game with the internet, to see how obscure I can make a joke and how many people will still get it. Today we’ve got a punchline that requires you be familiar with several different Stephen King works, enough to realize he’s known for having particularly open-ended endings, where the resolution is often left up to the reader’s imagination.

Compounded to which, there’s the “Ka is a Wheel” line, which is a reference to a Stephen King series called “The Dark Tower,” which, although he considers it his most important work goes largely ignored by most of his fans.

Coincidentally, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with this approach. I like to write things that make me laugh, and not worry about how obscure it is. Obviously if the joke hinges on something utterly ridiculous, like knowing an easily overlooked background detail from a middle episode of Doctor Who, Season 2, then I might be in bad territory. But I think even those who don’t know what ‘Ka’ is can still laugh at the other quotes, and at Bob’s ridiculous responses here, which were fun to write.

And it’s not like I’m ALWAYS obscure, right? I mean, my last post was pretty generic — EVERYONE knows about the mythology and writing style of H.P. Lovecraft, right?

Right?

Guys?

1920’s horror short stories are still cool and relevant, right?

This one’s for fans of H.P. Lovecraft.

We had a Christmas party last night, and as is the thing to do, we had the “white elephant” fake gift exchange thing. These are always pretty funny, and everybody raised the bar this year. Among the gifts were gems like: an old banana, fake male genitalia, Fancy Liqueur, several that included notes with instructions the gift opener had to follow, and of course, a live mouse.

I however, was the lucky recipient of possibly the greatest gift. It was a small black book, wrapped carefully in gold chains fastened by a small lock. The keys were included. Removing the protective chains with a ominous sense of foreboding, I was shocked to see a cover which only began to hint at the horrors which awaited me:

I opened the book quickly, not giving a thought to my future. I did not take seriously the fact that the books previous owner had been so careful to lock its contents under heavy chain. Curiosity, the folly of man… also, I was more than a little drunk…

The first page had a Wal-Mart gift card (completely real) fastened securely to the top corner. It seemed to radiate with an otherworldy fervor. the page contained symbols that did not belong to any language known to me or the others in my company. I remained slightly amused at the sight, and perhaps because of the high spirits of the party, or because of the fine drink, I glanced over the strange runes, barely noticing the similarity the symbols bore to that unpronounceable horror known as “Cthulu.”

Continuing, the book contained more strange symbols. It seemed that whoever had crafted this work had created, or discovered, a strange symbology that in itself, even when unreadable, contianed a sense of growing dread. Staring at the symbols, they seemed to almost representational, depicting the death of innocence, the horror of awakened creatures not seen since days long since forgotten by man. I must have completed missed the note at the bottom of the page, warning me, pleading with me, screaming at me, “Don’t read the words aloud!”

After this, the book began to tell, in recognizeable english, stories that filled the reader with dread. Still percieving this to be a joke, I began reading the tales aloud, such as this: “And then shall the gate be opened, as the sun is blotted out. Thus the small crawler will awaken those who dwell beyond and bring them…” Another story, entitled “life as a god,” told of otherworldly intervention by creatures from the higher planes, encroaching on all that we held dear, and the sense of sacrificial devotion these creatures could awaken in their worshipers.

This page snapped me from my drink induced stupor, and I began to awaken to the horror that lay before me, becoming aware that I had stumbled across a thing that was not meant to be viewed by me, nor surely any other man. The page simply read, “When the veils are rended and bring the blood cast dawn, Then you shall hear us speak. From beyond the aeons, speak, of keys and gates.” Then, further down, “A note; do not call up any that you can not put down.”

After pages of what appeared to be maps to the heavens, revealing constellations unfamiliar, alien to the human eye, there appeared yet more warnings. A page beginning with a small text I recognized from studies as script form Hebrew. Having not kept with study, my Hebrew vocabulary was unable to translate the passage, but below it appeared the english words: “That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons, even death may die.”

What followed appeared to be a personal account of such horror that I could not believe it. I now present the two-page tale in it’s entirety, that it might ward off those who would look too closely into such things and thereby place themselves and their loved ones in such a peril that no language of man can adequately describe.

The page reads, “Last nights ritual has proven fruitful. At Last! At long last, I had strength enough to read the words of the canticle and fend off the beasts that rose from the smoke. Two this time. They dissolved to nothing as I smote them with the oil of Al Hazred. Oh, the power! The Power! Inexplicable, the creatures left something in their wake – two Walmart gift cards. I shall try to spend one tonight. (I’m out of detergent, and my robes are covered in ichor!) If I do not return to finish this book, you will know the card was Evil – if so, DO NOT SPEND THE OTHER! BURN IT WITH THE OIL OF AL HAZRED AND SCATTER THE ASHES!”

This was the last entry, the book remains empty, and the card, securely fastened to the inside cover. It appears that I am now weighed with a terrible burden… do I use the card, knowing it indeed might be the otherworldy evil the book warns of? And the other burden, to serve as watchman, to warn the others, those who, in good spirit, did not read the contents of the book. My only hope now is to use the annual gift exchange as a way to pass on the book, adding my own notes to it, that it may serve as a guidepost for others.

As for my mind, it is forever changed. I cannot now unknow that which I have seen. My mind has seen the horrors that lay beyond that which man was meant to see. Oh, what loss!

Don’t worry everyone, the chicks are still in this story, and they’ll be back soon. It’s not all sweaty gym scenes from now on or anything.

In the meantime, I’ve talked a lot about my new project “What Planet Is This,” out in stores on December 30th, but how about a look at the cover? Here’s what you’ll be looking for on the stands:

I tried to evoke a classic detective/noir feeling but still have it be somewhat comedic. Hopefully that comes through… In any case it should be easy to spot on the shelf. So pick up a copy. If you’re in North Dallas, you can even come by Keith Comics North Dallas and I’ll be there to sign it for you, from 12:30-2:30!

For more info on other independent books coming out the same day, check out www.indycomicbookweek.com