More Updates than I Know What to Do With

I’ve been meaning to update for a long time, but I kept thinking I should wait until I had the all clear to make this or that announcement…and now I’ve gone so long that a bunch of other announcements have piled up.  In roughly chronological order, then:

(Amazon links are provided for your convenience, but please - support your real-world comic and book shops!)

In late January, Image will be releasing This is a Souvenir:  the Songs of Spearmint & Shirley Lee.  Like Comic Book Tattoo, TIAS is an anthology of stories based on songs, in this case the songs of the indie BritPop band Spearmint.  Never heard of Spearmint?  Well, that’s not surprising if you’re not in the UK…as Image publisher Eric Stephenson put it, Spearmint remains a well-kept secret in North America.  But like Comic Book Tattoo, an affinity with the source material is not necessary to enjoy the comic art inspired by it.  I don’t happen to have a complete list of the contributors, but I know they include my perennial San Diego Comic-Con neighbours, Phonogram’s Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie, as well as Chynna Clugston-Flores, Jamie S. Rich, Mike Holmes, Rich Johnston, Salgood Sam, Scott Mills, and – drum roll – me and my old friend Jimmie Robinson.  I’ve tried a bunch of times over the years to put together a project with Jimmie, and I couldn’t be happier to have finally managed the trick.  You can read more about TIAS here and even order from Amazon here.

Next up, shipping in late March, is PopGun #3.  As you know if you’ve seen its first two issues, PopGun is a regular catalogue of the best the contemporary comics world has to offer.  My contribution to the third issue is a nasty little crime story called “Cuffs,” brought thrillingly to life by the extraordinary Peter Krause.  You can see more of Pete’s work here and order PopGun #3 here (for reasons too mysterious to contemplate, Amazon is showing the cover to PopGun #2 on the PopGun #3 page).  Pete and I are talking about future collaborations, and I really look forward to working with him again as soon as we can make it happen.

Sometime after that, Displaced Persons will ship.  I’ve made various announcements about the release date of Displaced Persons, all based on projections of the artwork’s completion.  Since that hasn’t worked out too well, I’m officially giving up on predicting a ship date until I have the last finished page of art in hand.  When that happens, you’ll be the first to know.  Well, obviously not the first.  But among the first few dozen, probably.

In June, my third Image graphic novel, Pug, will come out.  Pug is an attempt on the part of me and artist Greg Espinoza to channel the hard-boiled boxing movies of the 40s and 50s.  Greg’s recently completed the pencils on the book and is well into the inks, perfectly on target for our release date.  The coolest thing for us is that the book will be lettered by Mr. Tom Orzechowski, a titan among letterers and the man who put the words in the mouths of all my favourite characters when I first learned to love comics.  Pug is now available for preorder on Amazon here (without, alas, a cover image).

And as if that isn’t enough, Jimmie Robinson and I have a second project in the offing.  July will mark the release of T. Runt! from Silverline.  I’m particularly excited about this one – it’s my first storybook for children.  I’d set a goal for myself to have such a book in print while my daughter was still a preschooler, and it looks like we’re going to make it just under the wire.  This is also available for preorder on Amazon here (again, without a cover image).

But no, I’m still not done.  February 6-8 is the New York Comic Con and I’ll be there.  If you live in the New York area or plan to be there for the convention, please come see me.  My biggest comics-related announcement of the year – the one I kept waiting to be able to make – will be made at the convention.  If you’re there you’ll be able to hear it firsthand instead of waiting for me to remember to send out another update.

Comments

[Von Allan]

Sounds like '09 is going to be one heckuva year for you! :)

[Chris Nolan.ca]

I've added your name to TIAS @ http://apps.facebook.com/comicbooks/creators/derek-mcculloch

Feel free to list your other titles and add any details.