I’ve been working on a new book, something which tends to send my brainmatter searching for new signals to sift through, decipher, and otherwise expand my sphere of knowledge. One such signal came in the form of a book titled From Eternity To Here by Sean Carroll. In short, it’s a book which attempts to understand and breakdown the origins, present course, and future possibilities of time. No small feat, to be sure. Add to that the fact that I’m a complete scientific layman, and what you get is one hell of a weird time. Luckily, Carroll seemed prepared for that and has plenty of explanations for the complex ideas littered throughout the book.

That said, being more creative souls rather than a scientist, most fiction writers (myself included) will tend to latch on to certain bits and pieces in books like this and obsess and run away with them, fixating and dissecting whilst sometimes even ignoring the original purpose of the information all together. While lazily flipping through the chapter titled “Recurring Nightmares,” I stumbled across Poincare’s Recurrence Theorem and that’s exactly what happened.

The gist of the theorem is, thankfully, simple enough: Given a finite amount of space and enough time, moving objects will always return to their original configuration. Seems simple. So what do I do with it? I start thinking about how that applies to the web of life that I operate within and wonder: If this is true in physics, quantum or otherwise, is it also true in philosophy? Will everything in my life at some point, given enough time, realign with an earlier configuration?

If the above is true, if relationships, social statuses, successes, and failures come full circle, does that negate any progress that you’ve made? In other words, will you always step back without having gained, step forward without complete understanding of the forces which compel you? Lots of questions which, unfortunately, I don’t have the answers too. Instead, I have guesses, the main thrust of which is that yes, it is true. Sort of.

I think that, at varying points in our lives, we’re all offered opportunities to reconnect with one another; to go home again; to reset. I think that they’re just that though: opportunities. It isn’t mandatory, you needn’t be compliant with what’s put in front of you, and you may not even recognize the opportunity (the first time around) for what it is. Likewise, I think the universe has a funny way of bringing you full circle every once in awhile in order to take stock of your life and see if you made it to where you intended to go and to review how you got there. You retain what you’ve gained but you’re presented with a perspective you may not have looked through in awhile.

There are some subtleties attached to the theory, not the least of which being, in the case of an orbiting planet which moves in finite revolutions, there are infinite points on the road it travels, even if it doesn’t wander beyond a fixed path. In this case, Carroll writes that it’s not something worth quibbling over, that, in fact, even Poincare would say it was a case where “almost” was good enough when the realignment occurs at a point close to the original. I think that’s the case here. When we’re brought back around and set to taking stock of ourselves, we’re nearly at the same starting point we began at, so close, in some cases, as to cause the two points to be indecipherable from one another. “Almost” is good enough. You’re presented with a figurative beginning point again yet armed, hopefully, with a store of experience and hard-won knowledge with which you might move forward. Whether or not it’s in the same direction or one just a tad off to the right is up to you.

Stephen King has, with great success, explored this in a direct and poignant way in a story which I won’t name here (keeping it spoiler free). Suffice it to say that a main character was presented with a situation and failed to act as he/she should have. The result was that he/she was thrust back to the beginning with hardly any recollection of what would come in his/her future, yet is shown to have acted differently in his/her past leading up to this realignment/return to his/her beginning. In other words they, in some small capacity, learned from their mistakes and would begin again with an opportunity to succeed which they’d lacked previously. Their experiences had been imprinted, if not remembered in a recognizable fashion.

Of course, taking everything a step into that direction, one has to start asking one’s self – what would you do if you could do it all again but didn’t know what you did the first time? Think you’d do the same things again or would chance come into play?

Or maybe you only know snippets. Maybe you’re the only one who remembers. Then again, maybe you’re not. Do you obsess over the fragments of dream-memory or do you simply move forward? The fun really begins, in this case, when one person tries to stick to the script while somebody else goes off the reservation.

Then what?

Ramblings of a madman here. I imagine this will require bearing out in something but it’ll have to wait. Into the notes it goes, to be retrieved in months or years when a story explodes from it. Until then, curious what you guys think: do we get a figurative do-over from time to time? A literal one at the end of the road?

Next up? How about a peak at some artwork from Awakening Volume Two?

Chapter 7 – Cover

That right there is the “cover” to what would’ve been issue 7 (which is now chapter 7). Even though we knew going into it that Volume Two was going to be hardcover only (i.e. no floppies), we wanted to keep the format seamless with Volume One. Plus, doing covers is always a good excuse for Alex to cut loose and, in a single image, help prepare you for what’s coming.

As best you can, anyway…

FOREWORD MAGAZINE BOOK OF THE YEAR NOMINATION!

Holy shit. For real? http://www.bookoftheyearawards.com/finalists/2009/category/graphic-novel/

Yar, you read right – AWAKENING is nominated in the Graphic Novel Category of ForeWord Magazine’s Book of the Year awards! It’s just an honor to be nominated, folks. It sounds hokey, but it’s true – we’re on the ballot with a lot of great books, including two other Archaia greats, MOUSE GUARD (David Petersen) and SOME NEW KIND OF SLAUGHTER (A. David Lewis and Marv Mann) so win, honorable mention, or just plain nothin’, we’re grateful and humbled to be counted amongst some of the best books of 2009.

And, of course, we’d looooove to win. Ha!

HELP GET AWAKENING INTO YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY!

Just recently, Booklist, the review journal for the American Library Association, had this to say about AWAKENING:

“Although graphic novels featuring marauding zombies aren’t in short supply, this nightmarish tale from newcomers Tapalansky and Alex Eckman-Lawn takes the genre to a new level of artistry. When an epidemic of grisly murders afflicts the normally sedate city of Park Falls, retired police detective Derrick Peters is sent by an unnamed source to investigate. Despite tooth marks around the victims’ wounds, a pronouncement by one of the city’s eccentrics that zombies are responsible only arouses Peters’ skepticism. After a little digging, Peters’ main suspects instead become the former employees of a recently closed pharmaceutical operation, where a novel treatment for Alzheimer’s was being tested. Yet as the body count rises, and Peters starts shooting ravenous killers on sight, the true cause of the outbreak becomes more and more elusive. Eckman-Lawn’s avant-garde illustrations embody a hybrid of mixed media, including altered photographs, blurred sketches, and Post-it notes. The end result is montage of unsettling imagery that will haunt readers’ dreams for days.” –Carl Hays

Not only is it a very kind review, but it’s great ammo to get your local library to order a copy for their graphic novel collection! Just shamble on in, request the book, and tell them that Booklist recommends us too! Let us know your success stories for sure!

VOTE FOR AWAKENING IN THE RONDO AWARDS!

This year, the Rondo Hatton Awards (http://www.rondoaward.com/rondo/rondos.html) snuck up on us! The Rondo’s are a yearly Horror award voted on for fans by fans (similar to the British Eagle Awards). While AWAKENING isn’t on the ballot for Best Horror Comic Book, one of the cool things about the Rondo Awards is the ability to write in your favorite pick, even if it isn’t listed! There’s some stiff competition, and it may seem impossible, but I think we’ve got a shot at it if we get the word out! We’d really appreciate it if you guys would take a quick minute to vote for us by copying the ballot below, pasting it in a new email, and sending it to taraco@aol.com. You needn’t vote in every category, or any other categories if you don’t have an opinion on ‘em, and I’ve already written in and selected AWAKENING for the comic category so all you have to do is:

1) Copy the ballot below into a new email.
2) Type your name above the ballot (all entries without a name won’t be counted so PLEASE remember to include your full name!)
3) Vote in any other categories you’d like, if any (vote by placing an X in front of your choice and highlighting the entire line in bold)
4) Email the ballot to taraco@aol.com by April 3rd, 2010!

That’s all for now, guys — more cool news coming down the road in the next few months so keep an eye on us…

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

HERE IS THE OFFICIAL BALLOT

FOR THE EIGHTH ANNUAL RONDO HATTON

CLASSIC HORROR AWARDS

This year’s awards are dedicated to the memory of Jim Harmon, Michael Thomas and Paul Naschy.

—————————————————————————————————————

1. Best Movie of 2009 (Pick one)

– AVATAR
– CORALINE
– DISTRICT 9
– DRAG ME TO HELL
– HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE
– I SELL THE DEAD
– THE LOVELY BONES
– MONSTERS VS. ALIENS
– MOON
– MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3D
– ORPHAN
– PARANORMAL ACTIVITY
– SHERLOCK HOLMES
– STAR TREK
– TERMINATOR: SALVATION
– TRICK ‘R TREAT
– TWILIGHT NEW MOON
– WATCHMEN
– ZOMBIELAND
– Or write in another choice:

2. Best Television Presentation

– BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, ‘Daybreak Part 2 (3),’ SyFy, 3.20.09. Loss, death and new hope in series finale. ‘We all make our choices. Today, I made a choice. I think it’s my last one.’

– DOCTOR WHO, ‘The End of Time,’ Parts 1 and 2), SyFy, 12.25.09-1.1.10. Farewell to the Tenth Doctor. ‘If the time lock’s broken then everything’s coming through. Not just the Daleks.’

– FLASH FORWARD, ‘No More Good Days,’ ABC, 9.24.09. For two minutes and seventeen seconds, the whole world blacks out and sees their future. ‘You’re worried your future’s gonna come true. I’m worried mine won’t.’

– FRINGE, ‘There’s More Than One of Everything,’ FOX, 5.12.09. World Trade Center is intact in Season One cliffhanger. ‘Unfortunately, the question is what can’t he do?’

– LOST, ‘This Place Is Death,’ ABC, 2.11.09. Violent shifts in time take toll on the Oceanic Six. “You asked me how to save the island and I told you, you had to move it. I said that you had to move it, John.’

– THE MEDIUM, ‘Bite Me,’ CBS, 10.30.09. Allison’s nightmares throw her into scenes from ‘Night of the Living Dead.’ Elvira guest stars. ‘I’m not sure I like what this black-and-white is doing to my skin.’

– SUPERNATURAL, ‘The End,’ The CW, 10.1.09. Lucifer reveals the future is a wasteland populated by zombies, ‘You ever hear the story of how I fell from grace?’

– TORCHWOOD, ‘Children of Earth,’ SyFy, 7.10.09. Reunions and sacrifice mark the final Sanction. ‘I wanted to know about that Doctor of his. The one who appears out of nowhere and saves the world. except sometimes he doesn’t.’

– TRUE BLOOD, ‘I Will Rise Up,’ HBO, 8.16.09. The eldest of the vampires, Godric, sacrifices himself to the sun. ‘We may be immortal, but you are dead to me.’

– V, ‘Pilot,’ ABC, 11.3.09. UFOs arrive over major cities. The Visitors have arrived. ‘Just be sure not to ask anything that would paint us in a negative light.’

– Or write in another choice:

3. Best Classic DVD

– AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON: FULL MOON EDITION
– BUCK ROGERS (serial)
– FAUST (1926 Kino)
– FIVE (Arch Obeler)
– MAD MONSTER PARTY: SPECIAL EDITION
– NIGHTMARE CASTLE (1965)
– NIGHT OF THE CREEPS: DIRECTOR’S CUT
– PHANTASM II
– Or write in another choice:

4. Best Classic DVD Collection

– HELLRAISER BOX SET (first two films, and Blu-Ray)
– ICONS OF SCI FI: TOHO COLLECTION: Battle in Outer Space, Mothra, H-Man
– KARLOFF/LUGOSI HORROR CLASSICS: The Walking Dead, You’ll Find Out, Zombies on Broadway, Frankenstein 1970

– UNIVERSAL CULT HORROR COLLECTION: Murders in Zoo, Mad Doctor of Market Street, Strange Case of Dr. RX, Mad Ghoul, House of Horrors.

– WILLIAM CASTLE COLLECTION, Tingler, 13 Ghosts, Homicidal, Mr. Sardonicus, Zotz!, Old Dark House, Strait-Jacket, 13 Frightened Girls.
– Or write in another choice:

5. Best DVD TV Collection

– ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS (Season Four)
– BBC SHERLOCK HOLMES (Peter Cushing)
– DARK SHADOWS: THE VAMPIRE CURSE: Barnabas’ origin condensed to three hours.
– DEAD OF NIGHT (1977 Dan Curtis TV trilogy)
– ONE STEP BEYOND (Season One)
– TALES FROM THE DARK SIDE (Seasons 1 and 2)
– TALES OF MYSTERY AND IMAGINATION (1966 British series)
– Or write in another choice:

6. Best Restoration (or video upgrade)

– BUCK ROGERS (serial): All 12 episodes clear and clean.
– FAUST (1926); Intensive Murnau Foundation restoration with original hand-painted intertitles.
– FIVE (1951): Sony restoration is best film has looked.
– MESSIAH OF EVIL: THE SECOND COMING (1973). Restored, Techniscope transfer..
– NIGHTMARE CASTLE (1965). Pristine print, uncensored.

– OLD DARK HOUSE (1963). Color replaces B/W TV print.
– ONE STEP BEYOND (Official First Season): Great transfers; pilot episode extended.
– REPULSION (Criterion). Correct aspect ration.
– THE SHE-BEAST 1966) Widescreen Chromovision.
– Or write in another choice:

7. Best DVD Extra

– AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON: ‘Beware the Moon,’ documentary.
– BUCK ROGERS (serial): ‘Buster Crabbe: All-American hero,’ 1972 autobiographical talk.
– DEAD OF NIGHT (1977): Includes unaired pilot episode.
– FAUST (1926): ‘Language of Shadows’ documentary.
– HELLHOUND: HELLRAISER II: ‘The Soul Patrol,’ interviews with Cenobites.

– KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS: William Shatner interview.
– MAD MONSTER PARTY: SPECIAL EDITION: ‘Making of a Cult Classic,’ documentary.
– MESSIAH OF EVIL: THE SECOND COMING: documentary.
– MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 VOL. XVI: ‘Santa Claus Conquers the Devil: A 50 Year Retrospective,’ documentary.
– WILLIAM CASTLE COLLECTION: ‘Spine-Tingler,’ documentary on master of shock.
– Or write in another choice:

8. Best DVD Commentary

– Fred Dekker, NIGHT OF THE CREEPS
– Barbara Steele, Ian Ogilvy, THE SHE-BEAST
– Gregory Mank, THE WALKING DEAD
– Steve Ryfle, Ed Godziszewski, MOTHRA (Toho collection)
– Tom Weaver, Bob Burns, Charlotte Austin, FRANKENSTEIN 1970
– Jim and Ken Wheat, Rebecca Balding, THE SILENT SCREAM
– Or write in another choice:

9. Best Independent Production (film, documentary or short)

– AMERICAN SCARY, finally on DVD, John Hudgens and Sandy Clark highlight dozens of horror hosts old and new.
– AUTOPSY OF THE DEAD, Night of the Living Dead retrospective, directed by Jeff Carney.
– BOB BURNS’ HALLOWEEN SHOWS (streaming video documentary)
– DARK DREAMERS collection. Four discs of Stanley Wiater’s interviews with genre writers and creators.
– EVERY OTHER DAY IS HALLOWEEN, a Curtis Prather documentary tracing the monstrous career of Dick Dyszel, aka Count Gore DeVol..
– FAMOUS MONSTER, updated for DVD, a look back at Forrest J Ackerman.
– FANEX FILES: HAMMER FILMS: Interviews with Lee, Pitt, Sangster, others.

– THE GUARDIAN (short), directed by Andrea Ricca (Skeleton confronts a motorist)
– HOUSE OF THE WOLF MAN, Eben McGarr enlists Ron Chaney in homage to the original.
– THE INSTITUTE OF SEANCE (short), directed by Kevin Corcoran. (Invokes murder mysteries of the 30s)
– LOVECRAFT: FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN, directed by Frank H. Woodward. His influence through the decades.
– NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD — REANIMATED, directed by Mike Schneider. (Original soundtrack over new animation and stop-motion)
– NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD, Mark Hartley’s exploration of Australian cult cinema

.
– ORLOK THE VAMPIRE IN 3D, directed by Keith Carter. The original Nosferatu tweaked and rendered in threee dimensions.
– TERROR FROM BENEATH THE EARTH, directed by Christopher R. Mihm. A Monster Kid homage to 50s sci-fi.
– VIRGINIA CREEPERS: THE HORROR HOST TRADITION OF THE OLD DOMINION, Sean Kotz’ and Chris Valluzzo documentary about Virginia horror hosts.
– Or write in another choice:

10. Best Book of 2009

– AMONG THE RUGGED PEAKS: An Intimate Biography of Carla Laemmle, by Rick Atkins. Last surviving member of ‘Phantom of the Opera’ and ‘Dracula’ cast.

– BELA LUGOSI AND THE HOUSE OF DOOM, by Dwight Kemper. Another comedy thriller starring our favorite horror stars.

– BELA LUGOSI AND BORIS KARLOFF: The Expanded Story of a Haunting Collaboration, by Gregory William Mank. Almost 700 pages examining the myths and realities of the Karloff-Lugosi rivalry.

– COMEDY-HORROR FILMS: A Chronological History 1914-2008, by Bruce Hallenbeck. From silents to Bud and Lou and Scary Movie.

– EDISON’S FRANKENSTEIN, by Frederick C. Wiebel Jr.  Everything about the making of the 1910 silent (E-book with DVD).

– GRAND DAME GUIGNOL CINEMA: A History of Hag Horror from ‘Baby Jane’ to ‘Mother,’ by Peter Shelley. How mother complexes, and aging actresses, found work.

– THE HORROR FILM QUIZ BOOK: 1,000 Questions on Spine-Tingling Films, by Chris Cowlin and Mark Goddard. Sure to settle, or start, tavern brawls.

– KEEP WATCHING THE SKIES, American Science Fiction Movies of the 1950s, The 21st Century Edition, by Bill Warren. More than 1,000 pages in this expanded and greatly revised edition of the classic film-by-film analysis.

– THE MAN WHO COLLECTED PSYCHOS: Critical essays on Robert Bloch, edited by Benjamin Szumskyj . Twelve looks at a master of suspense fiction.

– MUSHROOM CLOUDS AND MUSHROOM MEN, The Fantastic Cinema of Ishiro Honda, by Peter H. Brothers. Examining the visionary behind 80 films and the origins of Japan’s greatest monsters.

– PREHISTORIC MONSTERS: The Real and Imagined Creatures that We Love to Fear, by Allan A. Debus. The truth and fancy about movie monsters through the ages.

– ROMANCING THE VAMPIRE: From Past to Present, by David J. Skal. A lush ‘collector’s vault’ of research and reproductions covering the entire history, books and films of the undead.

– SHADOWS OVER FLORIDA, by David and Scott T. Goudsward. A tour of the Sunshine State’s spookiest locations.

– THE TELEVISION HORRORS OF DAN CURTIS, by Jeff Thompson. A look at the force behind Dark Shadows, Night Stalker and TV’s horror adaptations.

– THE TWILIGHT AND OTHER ZONES: The Dark Worlds of Richard Matheson, edited by Stanley Wiater, Matthew Bradley and Paul Stuve. Interviews, essays and letters serve as a tribute to a genre grand master.

– UNIVERSAL STUDIOS MONSTERS: A Legacy of Horror, by Michael Mallory. An oversized and lushly illustrated history of the films that started it all.

– Or write in another choice:

11. Best Magazine of 2009

– Filmfax
– G-Fan
– HorrorHound
– Little Shoppe of Horrors
– Mad Scientist
– Monster Bash
– Monsters from the Vault
– Phantom of the Movies’ VideoScope
– Rue Morgue
– Scarlet
– Scary Monsters
– Screem
– Van Helsing’s Journal
– Video Watchdog
– Or write in another choice:

12. Best Article of 2009 (PLEASE PICK TWO)

– ‘All Miller, No Filler: An Interview with Dick Miller,’ by Anthony Petkovich, FILMFAX #121. After all these years, the B-movie favorite has plenty more to say.

– ‘The Art of Linda Miller,’ by Max Cheney, SCARLET #3. A tribute to the late fan artist, richly illustrated.

– ‘The Bad Moon Rises Again,’ by Jason Lapeyre and Jovanka Vuckovic (with Brice McVicar). RUE MORGUE #93. A retrospective on the making and influence of An American Werewolf in London.

– ‘Boris Karloff at Warner Brothers, 1935-1939,’ by Greg Mank, MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT #26. Behind the scenes at The Walking Dead and Karloff’s four other WB films.

– ‘Cult Classic Commander,’ by Brett Homenick, G-FAN #86. Interview with Robert Horton about his career and The Green Slime.

– ‘Dee Wallace: Hills, Howling and Beyond!’ by Rob Freese, VIDEOSCOPE #69. Interview with the genre star of E.T. Cujo and The Howling.

– ‘Down the Block from Bergman: The Last House on the Left and Beyond,’ by Eric Somer, VIDEO WATCHDOG #151. Connecting the cinematic dots from art house to slaughter house.

– ‘Eerie Eyre: War Eagles Beyond the Test Reel,’ by Allan A. Debus, MAD SCIENTIST #20. Everything known about Willis O’Brien’s unfilmed epic.

– ‘Four Remember Five,’ by Tom Weaver, SCREEM #18. Interviews compiled over 60 years, some for the first time, describe the filming of the 50s A-bomb classic.

– ‘Godzilla, My Old Friend: Akira Takarada Talks about His Career, His Co-Stars’, by Yutaka Ichimura (totorom), G-FAN #87. Interview with star of the original Gojira.

– ‘How I Met the Man Behind Famous Monsters of Filmland,’ by Daniel Kirk, SCARY MONSTERS #70. Remembering the day Forrest J Ackerman’s cross-country tour in 1963 stopped at his house in Columbus, Ohio.

– ‘King Kong’s Lost Nightmare: Mystery of the Lost Spider Sequence, Part 3,’ by Gary Vehar, FILMFAX #120. Facts and remembrances try to track down the truth behind stop-motion’s biggest mystery.

– ‘Let the Twilight In,’ by Stephen R. Bissette, VIDEO WATCHDOG #150. A sympathetic exploration of the newest wave of vampire romance and shock.

– ‘A Look Inside of Bela Lugosi’s Personal Scrapbook,’ by Dennis L. Phelps. SCARY MONSTERS #69. Lugosi’s show business past, carefully preserved by the actor himself.

– ‘The Making of Plague of the Zombies and The Reptile,’ by Bruce Hollenbeck, LITTLE SHOPPE OF HORRORS #23. A look at Hammer’s audacious B-movies from the summer of 1965.

– ”How Do You Solve a Problem Like Carmilla?’ by John Paul Checkett, VAN HELSING’S JOURNAL #10. Exploring the literary and film versions of one of the first vampire tales.

– ‘The Most Famous Monster of Them All: A Personal Remembrance of Forrest J Ackerman,’ by Steve Vertlieb, THUNDER CHILD Website.

– ‘Mr. Rains Goes to Burbank,’ by David J. Skal and Jessica Rains. SCARLET #3. A look at Claude Rains triumphs and battles in Hollywood in the 30s.

– ‘Mystery and Imagination,’ by Kim Newman. VIDEO WATCHDOG #151. Revelations from the obscure British TV series that adapted ‘Frankenstein,’ ‘Dracula,’ ‘The Suicide Club’ and other gothic classics.

– ‘One Browning, Two Helens and a Host of Fakes: Narrative and Cinematic Trickery in The Thirteenth Chair,’ by Gary D. Rhodes, MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT #26. Exhaustive study of the director’s use of sound, editing and, two years before Dracula, Lugosi.

– ‘Peter Lorre: The Lost One Is Found,’ by Herbert Shadrak, CINEMA RETRO website. An interview with Stephen Youngkin, author of Lorre biography.

– ‘Scare News,’ by John Skerchock, SCARY MONSTERS and MONSTER MEMORIES. Fandom’s insider column, appearing regularly.

– ‘Tales from the Crypt: A Horrorhound Retrospective,’ by Nathan Hanneman, HORRORHOUND #18. From comic to movie to TV, 20 years of the Cryptkeeper.

– ‘A Tribute to Oliver Reed,’ by Tom Triman, SCARY MONSTERS #72. Complete career retrospective of Hammer’s werewolf.

– ‘Universal-International’s The Strange Door, Part One,’ by Tom Weaver and Steve Kronenberg, MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT #26. Inside the over-the-top Karloff-Laughton production of 1951.

– ‘Vampires, Zombies and Sorcerers,’ by Mark Clark and Bryan Senn, MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT #26. Examining their picks for the best Hammer horrors of the 1960s.

– ‘A Very Careful Hatred,’ by John W. Bowen, Dave Alexander and staff, RUE MORGUE #96. The making, loss and rediscovery of the 1977 film, ‘Rituals.’

– ‘Video Invasion: Remembering the VHS Boom,’ Parts 4-9, by Matt Moore, HORRORHOUND #15-20. The definitive history of the please-rewind gore days of VHS in the 1980s.

– ‘Weird Scenes Inside the Fun House: The Making of Malatesta’s Carnival of Blood,’ by Shaun Brady. VIDEO WATCHDOG #153. Resurrecting the bizarre ghoulfest filmed in Pennsylvania 40 years ago.

– Or write in another choice:
Remember, please pick TWO articles from the list above. One will win.

13. Best Magazine Cover

FILMFAX #120 By Vincent DiFate	G-FAN #89 By Lee Munday
HORROR HOUND #20 By Nathan, Thomas Milliner	LITTLE SHOPPE OF HORRORS #22 By Mark Maddox
LITTLE SHOPPE OF HORRORS #23 By Bruce Timm	MAD SCIENTIST #20 By Pete Von Sholly
MONSTER BASH #9 By Lorraine Bush	MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT #26 By Daniel Horne
MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT SPECIAL EDITION #1 By Kerry Gammill, Joe Schovitz	RUE MORGUE #90 By Gary Pullin
SCARLET #4 By Michael Wilks	SCARY MONSTERS #72 By Terry Beatty
SCREEM #18 By Bill Chancellor	VIDEOSCOPE #70 By Kevin Hein
VIDEO WATCHDOG #147 By Charles Largent	Or write in another choice:

14. Best Website (Online magazine, message board or tribute site)

Classic Horror Film Board, sponsor of Rondos, is not eligible

– Atomicmonsters.com (Fun look at 50s scifi)
– Chiller Cinema (Dr. Gangfrene’s website of horrors)
– Cinema Retro (online genre magazine)
– Classic-horror.com (Dedicated to the history of classic horror)
– Creature Feature (Count Gore DeVol’s weekly multimedia monsters)
– Creepy Classics (Monster Bash and latest product news)

– Dread Central (all things classic and modern)
– Eccentric-cinema (One of earliest cult sites)
– E-gor’s Chamber of TV Horror Hosts (amazing)
– Famous Monsters of Filmland (latest version, under new management)

– FearZone.com (modern horror)
– Film Noir Foundation (For fans of long inky shadows)
– Gallery of Monster Toys (The source)
– HK and Cult Film News (Off the well-worn horror paths)
– HorrorhostGraveyard.com (Clips, listings and more)
– Horror Society (Independent horrors)

– Latarnia: Fantastique International (all things Euro and more)
– Lugosiphilia Yahoo Group (Just Bela)
– The Many Faces of the Frankenstein Monster (like it says)
– Mondo Cult Online (the world of, well, everything)
– Monster Island News (Godzilla is just the start)
– Monster-Mania Forum (monster conventions)
– Movie Meltdown (Interviews and more)

– Serialsquadron.com (Cliffhangers, restored serials and talk)
– Shriekfreak Quarterly (online magazine)
– Stoner’s Monster Mayhem (if downtown had a monster shop)

– Thethunderchild.com (Online magazine)
– Trailers from Hell (Joe Dante, pros comment on trailers)
– Universal Monster Army (Toys, models, masks and way more)
– Witch’s Dungeon (Home of the monstrous Hollywood tributes)
– Or write in another choice:

15. Best Horror Blog

– Cinebeats (for monster cinephiles)
– Cinema Dave (movie musings)
– Cinema-suicide (Smart look at modern films; soundtracks, too)
– Dollar Bin Horror (for fans on a budget)
– The Drunken Severed Head (Max Cheney’s unique blog about it all)

– Final Girl (A different kind of scream)
– Frankensteinia (If it didn’t exist it would have to be invented)
– Gary J. Svehla: Midnight Marquee/Mad About Movies (From a genre original)
– The Good, the Bad, and Godzilla (August Ragone’s G-blog)
– Groovy Age of Horror (Not for faint-hearted)

– The Horrors of it All (Horror in the comics and more)
– Love Train for the Tenebrous Empire (mondo, Euro and fantastique)
– Monsterama.blogspot.com (Friendly creeps from Jay Stevens)
– Monstermoviemusic.blogspot.com (Music is just the start)

– Obscure Hollow (The look of horror)

– Scared Silly (classic horror comedies)
– Secret Fun Blog (childhood reveries from creator of Flip!)
– Unimonster’s Crypt (John Stevenson’s news and views)
– Vault of Horror (Blog for every era of horror)
– Vampiros and Monstruos (the blog of Mexican horrors)
– Video Watchblog (and still it lives)
– Zombos’ Closet of Horror Blog (John Cozzoli new generation blog)
– Or write in another choice:

16. Best Convention or Film Festival of 2009

– B-MOVIE CELEBRATION (Franklin, Ind.)
– CHILLER (Parsippany, N.J.)
– CINEMA WASTELAND (Cleveland)
– DARK CARNIVAL (Bloomington, Ind.)
– DEEP RED FESTIVAL OF FANTASTIC FILM (Portland and Seattle)

– DRAGONCON (Atlanta)
– FANGORIA WEEKEND OF HORRORS (New York)
– G-FEST (Chicago)
– HORROR-FIND (Baltimore)
– HORROR HOUND WEEKEND (Indianapolis)
– HORROR REALM (Pittsburgh)

– LIVING DEAD FESTIVAL (Evans City, Pa.)
– MONSTER BASH (Pittsburgh)
– MONSTER FEST (Chesapeake, Va.)
– MONSTER-MANIA (Cherry Hill, N.J.)
– MONSTERPALOOZA (Burbank)

– RUE MORGUE’S FESTIVAL OF FEAR (Canada)
– SPOOKY EMPIRE (Orlando)
– SPOOKY MOVIE FEST (Washington, D.C.)
– WONDERFEST (Louisville)
– Or write in another choice:

17. Best Fan Event

– Ron Chaney appears as the Wolf Man (Ron Chamberlain’s makeup), at the Monster Bash.

– Blob panic reenactment, held at actual theater where movie was filmed in Phoenixville, Pa. (Blobfest)

– Classic 3D double feature (Creature from the Black Lagoon and It Came from Outer Space), at Cleveland Cinematheque.

– Dario Argento’s INFERNO screened; Q&A hosted by Tim Lucas with star Irene Miracle and composer Keith Emerson. Los Angeles.

– Dr. Gangrene’s Horror Hootenanny and Zombie Walk in Nashville.

– Godzilla actor Kenji Sahara appears at G-FEST XVI, Rosemont, Ill.

– Boris Karloff blog-a-thon, organized online by Frankensteinia.

– Shadow and Substance: The Twilight Zone Tales of George Clayton Johnson, hosted by Terry Pace, Sheffield, Ala.

– Thriller re-enactment with original dancer Sheryl Sington; guest John Landis at Spooky Empire, Orlando.

– Tribute to Forrest J Ackerman, Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre, Hollywood, organized by Joe Moe.

– Tribute to Mike ‘Ygor’ Thomas, Chiller convention. Paul Scrabo assembles archival footage of late actor and makeup artist.

– Universal Monster Army toy exhibit, including rare toys from 50s and 60s, at Wonderfest.

– James Warren talks about Famous Monsters and more, Monsterpalooza, Burbank.

– Witches’ Dungeon Classic Movie Museum. Startling recreations of full-sized classic monsters, open at Halloween in Bristol, Conn.

– World Zombie Day: It’s Alive Zombie Fest included zombie walks for World Zombie Day, Monroeville, Pa.

– Or write in another choice:

18. Favorite Horror Host of 2009

Who did the best hosting in 2009? If your favorite is missing, please write them in.

– A. GHASTLEE GHOUL (Ohio)
– THE BONE JANGLER. (Illinois)
– KARLOS BORLOFF (Washington, D.C.)
– COUNT GORE DE VOL (Mid-Atlantic)
– DR. GANGRENE (Nashville)
– DR. PUREBLOOD (Smyrna, Tenn.)

– GHOUL A GO GO (NYC area)
– GRAVELY MacCABRE and GRIZELDA. (Pennsylvania, West Virginia)
– LATE DR. LADY
– MR. LOBO (California)
– ORMON GRIMSBY (North Carolina)
– PENNY DREADFUL (New England)

– PROFESSOR EMCEE SQUARE (Pittsburgh)
– REMO D (California)
– SINISTER MINISTER (Las Vegas)
– SON OF GHOUL (Ohio)
– SVENGOOLIE (Rich Koz; Chicago)
– WOLFMAN MAC (Michigan)

– There are plenty of others, so if your favorite isn’t listed, write in another choice:

19. Best Soundtrack or CD)

– CAPTAIN NEMO AND UNDERWATER CITY (Angela Morley, Film Score Monthly)
– DRACULA A.D. 72 (Mike Vickers, GDI/BSX Records
– EMPIRE OF THE ANTS (Dana Kaproff, Kritzerland)
– ESCAPE FROM PLANET OF THE APES, (Jerry Goldsmith, Varese)
– MASTER OF THE WORLD/GOLIATH AND BARBARIANS (Les Baxter, Intrada)

– NIGHT OF THE CREEPS (Barry DeVorzon, LaLaLand)
– PANIC IN YEAR ZERO (Les Baxter, LaLaLand)
– 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD (Bernard Herrmann, Prometheus)
– SILENT NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT (Gershon Kingsley, Howlin’ Wolf)

– STAR TREK II: WRATH OF KHAN, (James Horner, Film Score Monthly/Retrograde)
– TIME AFTER TIME (Miklos Rozsa, Film Score Monthly)
– VERNE LANGDON PIPE DREAMS (DejaVu

– Or write in another choice:

20. Best Horror Audio or Video Podcast

– Cult Radio A-Go-Go!
– Deadpit.com
– Fangoria Radio
– Fearshop.com
– The Graveyard Show

– Mail Order Zombie

– Midnight Podcast
– TheMonsterclub.com old time radio
– Rotting Flesh Radio
– Rue Morgue Radio
– Without Your Head
– Or dial in another choice:

21. Best Horror Comic Book

– ASTOUNDING WOLF-MAN. Robert Kirkman (Image)
– BATMAN: GOTHAM AFTER MIDNIGHT by Steve Niles and Kelley Jones (DC)
– BEASTS OF BURDEN by Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson (Dark Horse)
– CARNIVAL OF SOULS, by Michael H. Price (Midnight Marquee)

– THE COMPLETE DRACULA, by Leah Moore, John Reppion, Colton Worley (Dynamite)
– THE GOON. Eric Powell (Dark Horse)
– SCIENCE FICTION CLASSICS: War of the Worlds, A Martian Odyssey and more. (Graphic Classics)

– HELLBOY: THE WILD HUNT by Mike Mignola and Fegredo (Dark Horse)
– LENORE: The Cute Little Dead Girl, by Roman Dirges (Titan)
– LOCKE AND KEY: HEAD GAMES by Joe Hill, Gabriel Rodriguez (IDW)

– ROBOT 13 by Thomas Hall and Daniel Bradford (Blacklist)
– VICTORIAN UNDEAD Ian Edginton and Davide Fabbri (Wildstorm)
– VINCENT PRICE PRESENTS, anthology (Blue Water)
X Or write in another choice: AWAKENING VOLUME ONE by Nick Tapalansky & Alex Eckman-Lawn (Archaia)

22. Best Toy, Model or Collectible
Nominees developed with help from the Universal Monster Army!

– Or write in another choice:

23. Count Alucard’s Controversy of the Year

Every year has its fair share of disputes and worrisome trends. What topped this year’s list?

– ‘Copyright lawyer sold separately.’ Universal cracks down on unauthorized kits, images.

– ‘You know I can’t hear Bela when the ice is melting!’ Fans debate whether a snippet of Lugosi-as-the-Monster dialogue can be heard in Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman.

– ‘No, but I can burn one for you.’ Major studios offer DVD-Rs on demand rather than full-fledged classic DVD releases.

– ‘Hey kid? Want a DVD?’ Turner Classic Movies joins Best Buy in offering exclusive DVD releases.

– ‘This ain’t no library!’ Genre magazines continue to struggle.

– Or add your own matter of concern:

WRITE-IN CATEGORIES:

24. Classic Most in Need of Restoration

Which classic horror film, either released or unreleased, do you think most deserves a restoration?

25. Writer of the Year (for 2009)

Who do you think did the best published (or online) work in 2009 to advance the state of classic horror research?

26. Artist of the Year (Pro)

Which professional artist (designer, illustrator, sculptor),was your favorite in 2009?

27. Artist of the Year (Fan)

Which amateur or fan artist (designer, illustrator, sculptor), was your favorite in 2009?

28. Favorite DVD reviewer

Which reviewer in print or online was your favorite in 2009??

29. Monster Kid of the Year

Who deserves to be named ‘Monster Kid of the Year’ for efforts beyond the call of duty to build a better world of gods and monsters?

30. Monster Kid Hall of Fame

Who should be this year’s inductees into the Monster Kid Hall of Fame?

ALREADY INDUCTED ARE: Bob and Kathy Burns, Forrest J Ackerman and James Warren, Zacherley and Vampira, Ray Harryhausen, Ray Bradbury, Alex and Richard Gordon, William K. Everson, Rick Baker, Basil Gogos, Roger Corman, Dick Klemensen, Gary and Sue Svehla, James Bama and Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett, Paul and Jackie Blaisdell, Joe Dante, Don Glut, Jack Davis, German Robles and Frank Frazetta; Bernie Wrightson, Ben Chapman, Cortlandt Hull and Dennis Vincent, Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth, Archie Goodwin and Ghoulardi; Ken Kelly, Jim and Marion Clatterbaugh, Bob Wilkins, Calvin Beck, Paul Naschy and Lux Interior. Who should join them?

Tell us your suggestions. We’ll pick six more.

Whew! That’s it!!!

(Please remember to include your name so your ballot can be counted).

——————————————————————————————————————————————

VOTING CONTINUES THROUGH APRIL 3, 2010

TO VOTE: Simply cut-and-paste, check or highlight your picks, or type out your

selections, with your name, to taraco@aol.com

You do not have to vote on everything. And one vote per monster. Thanks everyone!

(In order L-R: Vito Delsante, Elizabeth Purvis, Adam Knave, Frank Stockton, Jeff Powell, Joe Flood, me, Maximo Lorenzo, Jason Ibarra)

The southern New York area got pissed on the Tuesday before the signing: sleet, snow, freezing rain, regular rain. Basically, anything the sky could throw at us that was (mostly) seasonally appropriate. As such, I wasn’t sure a lot of people would make it to the signing. Sure, NYC is hearty (and, in this case, managed to escape with less damage than we did further north) but who likes coming out when the world is a mess of grey/black sludge? When the signing started, it seemed that everyone had rushed to their shelters, giving nary a thought to the stalwart group of Popgun Volume 4 contributors desperately awaiting their love at Jim Hanley’s Universe.

We laughed and joked, we heckled the one or two people who were there at the onset (shit, I even signed a guy’s Spider-Man comics for fun. Confession: Never worked on a Spider-Man book, still waiting for Marvel to call. The guy didn’t care though, so I signed happily). Then, after about 45-minutes, it seemed as though floodgates opened.

There was a line-up of people and we were moving books down the table like a well-oiled assembly line. To those watching closely, it was weirdly reminiscent of an old New York sweatshop. When the dust settled and we looked around us, tended our wounded and mourned those lost, we all realized something:

We sold out of books.

The event was a huge success and, honestly, even if we’d sold one book I still would’ve had a blast hanging out with new and old friends like Vito, Adam, and Maximo. To everyone who made it out, thanks for coming. To those who couldn’t, it’s cool, we’re still friends. I mean, you DID pick up a copy of the book, right?

In other news, this is what it looks like outside the house right now:

Snowtopia

Remember I said that the Tuesday before the signing was a bit of a mess? Well it was nothing compared to the day(s) after.

All told, at present we’ve had between 16″ and 18″ of heavy snow come crashing down on us. It’s still flurrying just a bit, but the majority of the excitement is over. After all, how many more trees can come crashing down across our street?

None Shall Pass

Yeah, that puppy’s blocking one end of the street. Luckily, when it came down it just missed our neighbor’s cars and, even though it knocked down a couple of telephone cables, managed not to disconnect any.

The other end of the street?

Yep, those are power lines

What this picture doesn’t show is the fact that, after 1am last night when the tree came down, no plows were able to pass through. Between being unable to pass and those low-hanging power lines (zap!), they would be completely stuck after a certain point. The one unfortunate sucker who happened across the tree had to back his plow allllllll the way back down the hilly, icy, barely-wide-enough-for-one-normal-car road. Did I mention the precariously parked cars on the side of the road? As such, both ends of the street are, for all intents and purposes, impassable.

But hey, what’s wrong with being shut in with the family for a while, right? I mean, I’ve got plenty of work to do, plus we’ve got movies to watch and LOST to catch up on (we’re starting from the beginning, since Jackie’s never seen it and I haven’t watched since the start of Season 3. We’ve already cleared Season 1). Even now, there’s certainly at LEAST one or two other things I should be focusing on. I’ve got a pitch brewing (and, therefore, an artist to find) and a screenplay (yar, that’s right) that begs for development.

But we’re going to be stuck here for awhile, no way out to the main roads, and we can’t let it, can’t can’t let it get us. You hear it, don’t you? The skittering in the walls and the scratching at the window?   Maybe I’ve been down here for too long.  I think I hear LOST firing up.

All work and no play…

Right?

Sadly, Alex won’t be able to make the signing today. We’ve got all sorts of nasty weather that came through yesterday and is coming through later in the week, which means Alex has to finish up work on his solo gallery debut.


WHAT?! Solo gallery show?!


Fuck yes. Cool people (that’s you) in the Philly or NYC-area, (or anywhere commutable to Philly) need to get out next Friday night, March 5th, from 6-9pm to check out the show. Info to follow after the invite:

REBUILT: Redifining the Spaces That Define Us

You can save and print the image, or just plug the following into your ol’ internet compass or whatever it is you kids do these days:

Proximity

2434 East Dauphin Street,

Philadelphia, PA 19125

Hope to see some of you tonight at Jim Hanley’s and more of you next week at the opening. Because you’re awesome. And we love you.

]]> http://www.nicktapalansky.com/blog/2010/02/24/rebuilt-redefining-the-spaces-that-define-us/feed/ 0 http://www.nicktapalansky.com/blog/2010/01/14/lets-go-exploring/ http://www.nicktapalansky.com/blog/2010/01/14/lets-go-exploring/#comments Fri, 15 Jan 2010 02:48:34 +0000 Nick http://www.nicktapalansky.com/blog/?p=327 First some exciting announcements!

Item the first! Two exciting events, particularly for those in the NYC area, celebrating the release of Popgun Vol. 4 (featuring a short written by me and illustrated by Alex, Rusted: Faded Signal).  On February 16th @ 8PM, come check out The Comic Book Club, a weekly live show at The Pit, where I’ll be hanging out with Popgun editor Adam Knave and writer Vito Delsante. We’ll be whoring ourselves out and laughing it up so come hang out and have a blast!

Tuesday, February 16th @ 8:00 PM

Tickets: $5
Online: ThePIT-NYC.com
Phone: 1-800-838-3006
Questions? 212-563-7488

The Peoples Improv Theater
154 West 29th Street, 2nd Floor
Between 6th and 7th Aves.

Check out the website:
http://www.popcultureshock.com/comicbookclub

The second event is a Popgun signing extravaganza on February 24th, from 6-8pm at Jim Hanley’s Universe, with Alex Eckman-Lawn, Frank Stockton, Jeff Powell, Jason Ibarra, Vito Delsante, and Joe Flood! Come by and meet some awesome creators, grab a copy of the new Popgun released that day, and hey, maybe grab a copy of Awakening Volume One if you haven’t already (wag of the finger) or get yours signed if you already have it (tip of the hat)!

Item the Second! We just received an extremely flattering review courtesy of The San Francisco Book Review (we’re on page 12), who said “[Awakening is] near, if not at, the pinnacle of the best execution of a zombie graphic novel. It breathes death into the dead fad, and somehow, in contradiction, brings it back to life by doing so! Trust me on this.” In honor of such heaping kindnesses, I can’t resist putting up a couple of new pages from Awakening Volume Two. Alex is going crazy on this book. Bask in his glory:

The other day, feeling a little burnt out on a new something I’d been smashing away at for the past few weeks, I doubled back and finished a short story that had been sitting in a drawer, waiting to be scritched and scratched with my red pen of justice. I finished it with gusto.

The new something in question was making me a bit uncomfortable, not because of what it was about but because it was unfamiliar territory. I needed to re-orient myself, find a touch stone I recognized, a street corner near home. After looking back over my shoulder and seeing home I was ready to move forward. I was reminded of one of my favorite Calvin and Hobbes strips. Might’ve been the last one, actually. A fresh snow had just fallen and the world was unrecognizable, full of possibilities. Calvin looked at Hobbes and said,

“It’s a magical world, Hobbes old buddy. Let’s go exploring”

So it is. Let’s go.

I’ve also got Sir James Frazer on the brain this morning, hence the title of this post. While I haven’t been reading The Golden Bough, from which the quote is taken, I have been digging through Tim Taylor’s excellent The Buried Soul, which explores the invention of ‘death’, the idea, and the development of the human concept of the soul from an archaeological perspective as some research for the post-Awakening Volume Two book Alex and I are doing. On that same count, if anybody can recommend a definitive, unexpurgated version of The Golden Bough I’d be thrilled. It seems like there are a few too many to choose from for me to be comfortable hunting and pecking through.

In other writing news, I’m pretty excited to note that I finished the first draft on my first non-comic short story in more than five years yesterday. It’s just a baby, only 4,000 words in its current state, but I’m still excited. I’ve mentioned it in interviews, but part of what drove me to write comics when I first started giving it a whirl five or six years ago was my complete distaste with my own straight fiction narrative. A lot of it, all short fiction, read more like an outline for something larger with very cold and detached direction, not unlike a script. After years of studying (not formally, just reading anything and writing comics), I decided it was time to dive back in and see where it takes me. So far so good and I think more is on the way in the coming weeks and months. I’m planning on making 2010 the year of the short…

Some miscellany for you:

Just found this last night, copies of Awakening Volume One which Alex and I signed for Lone Star Comics are available on their website. May be a fun last-minute holiday gift for the noir or zombie fan whom you hold close to your heart. For those of you new to the site, be sure to check out the Awakening Comixography by following the link here, or check out the entire Comixography via the nav bar at the top of the page.

Tweeted by Templesmith, PR Newswire points out the Top 10 PR Blunders of 2009. Some amazing stuff. And when I say amazing, I mean horrifyingly stupid.

Just watched Drag Me to Hell last night, and it was everything I would expect from a fun Raimi horror flick. The last 20-minutes were disappointingly obvious, which led to a bit of a ‘hurry up and end’ face from me but overall I was pretty happy with it. My biggest gripe was the use of CG where traditional effects would’ve matched both the feel of the movie and the history of the filmmaker much better. The same could be said for a few flicks though, (::cough:: Crystal Skull ::cough::), and seems to just be indicative of the times.

I was more enthusiastic about Quantum of Solace. What an amazing movie. Buyer beware though: if you didn’t like Casino Royale, or if you don’t remember it, you may want to stay away or refresh yourself, depending on how you felt about it. This was a direct sequel which picked up shortly after the end of Casino and didn’t explain itself for the benefit of initiates in the audience. I liked that. You rarely see movies with the same type of continuity you get out of, say, sequential fiction, picking up the story with the next ‘issue’ so to speak. It was welcome to not have to sit through 20-minutes explaining who these people were and why I should care, and more welcome that it wasn’t avoided because it was a new story but because they’d already been through all that in the first go ’round. Last I heard this new series is planned as a trilogy or quadrilogy, and I hope it’s true. Looking forward to the next one immensely.

Website note the first, if you’d like to leave a comment you have to click on the title of the entry of choice on the front page. You’ll be brought into that entry and a comment field will be hanging out at the bottom of the page. As I stumble across other quirks, I’ll let you all know.

Off to begin another short while yesterday’s cools off a bit. Happy Friday, everyone.

- Nick

Welcome to the All New! All Different! NickTapalansky.com!

Well folks, it finally happened – the site is up, running, and full of awesome. I’ve spent the last two years updating upwards of three blogs (two on MySpace, one on Blogger) and at some point recently I realized, hey now, that’s a bit silly. For those of you wondering why those hotspots of the interweb haven’t been updated in over a month, this site is why. This is going to be your one-stop shop complete with all sorts of pretty cool stuff to check out, like:

1. Full chapters and Behind The Scenes artwork from Awakening Volume One and Volume Two – just check out the Awakening Section in Comixography.




2. Previews of upcoming stories, like Rusted: Faded Signal and Perhapanauts: A Grim’s Haunt, also in the Comixography.




3. Some of my scripts, for the curious, over in the Scripts section.




4. There’s even a Trailers section which, right now, is housing the trailer for Awakening Volume One!

And all this stuff is just the beginning – I’ll be updating more regularly here, including new comic previews as I have them and more Behind The Scenes stuff.

Update those bookmarks, kids – it’s about to get exciting. To keep up with all my in the moment musings and site updates, why don’t you go ahead and give me a Follow on Twitter too. I’ll do my level best to keep it interesting for you.

Thanks for popping in – be sure to tell all your pals where the party’s at.

- Nick

OUR TOP STORY…

One more official Halloween Signing Tour stop to go! Everybody in the NYC area, head on down to Jim Hanley’s Universe on 33rd Street on Wednesday, October 28th from 4-7pm to grab your free signed art print, which was created exclusively for the tour, with every copy of Awakening Volume One brought in to be signed or picked up at the store. Then, sign up for the exclusive Halloween preview of Awakening Volume Two debuting at 12am Halloween morning.

Jim Hanley’s Universe is located at 4 West 33rd Street in Manhattan.

THE TOUR THUS FAR…

The other three stops on the tour have been great! Thanks so much to everybody who’s come out to hang with us, talk comics, and celebrate the zombie season. It’s been unreal. Special thanks to the stores who hosted us, Brave New Worlds in Philly, PA and Upstate Comics in LaGrangeville, NY.

For anybody who couldn’t make it to these stops or who can’t make it out to Jim Hanley’s this Wednesday, you’re in luck. Folks in the Albany area can catch me hanging around the Albany Comic-Con this Sunday, 11/1. We may not have any prints left but you can defitnitely grab a copy of the book, or bring yours to be signed, and I might even have the sign-up sheet still available for the Volume Two preview…

And don’t forget, all you folks who’ve got the book but can’t make it out to a signing stop, there’s still time to send a photo with you and your copy of Awakening Volume one to AwakeningComic@gmail.com and get access to that same Volume Two preview. It’s the entire first chapter and it’s definitely our best yet.

AWAKENING IN THE PRESS…

Alex and I got to catch up with Tim over at Robot 6 about the signing tour, sticking it out with Archaia, and defining existential horror. Check it out and let us know what you think in the comments – Talking Comics With Tim – Awakening

Also, for anybody who’s happening on this and isn’t familiar with Awakening, the entire first chapter will be going up on Newsarama tomorrow for free! Keep an eye out and watch the Twitter feed for an update when that goes live.

That’s it for today, I think – I’ve got all sorts of things I want to get down but, for now, I think sleep is what’s going to happen instead. More next time.

- Nick