Survival Stories

For a change this blog post isn't about a Time Bomb Comic. But it is about the efforts of a group of mainly British comic creators (including Time Bomb's Steve Tanner and Andy Dodd) to prove that nothing, not even the collapse of the publisher they were working for, is insurmountable:

"On June 30, 2010, Insomnia publisher Crawford Coutts filed to cease trading with the UK companies house. Though Coutts never officially informed his creators (or anyone) of this decision, all signs pointed to the end of Insomnia. And the creators, well, we were supposed to move on, chalk up a loss, and let all our hard work and dedication become a memory—lesson learned.

But we came up with a different plan. In the days following the news of Insomnia’s seeming end, one thing became clear: that all the creators involved believed in each other’s work. A mutual admiration was shared for the short comics that appear in this anthology, and we are determined to see it get the release it deserves.

And that’s how The Sleepless Phoenix—a collective of up-and-coming comics talent from both the UK and the US—was born. While the Comic Book Alliance works to settle the conflict of our publishing contracts, we took the only content that still belongs to us—this anthology.
The book is 192 pages long, black and white, and features all-new content. Creators include Martin Conaghan (Burke & Hare), Ben Bates (Sonic the Hedgehog), Jim Boswell (KiCk!), Peter Forbes (Oz: Fall of the Scarecrow King), and more (including Time Bomb's Steve Tanner and Andy Dodd). It will be released in October, 2010.

Mike Carey (Lucifer, The Unwritten, X-Men Legacy) says the book is "a kaleidoscope of graphic stories - mostly in the darker colours of the horror palette, but all the better for that."
All the profit raised, after printing and shipping, will go straight to the Comic Book Alliance—an organization that fights for the rights of comic creators everywhere. Hopefully, what has happened to the creators of Insomnia publications doesn’t happen again."

Please click on the link below, and support the publication of Survival Stories in October.

http://kck.st/cnQTwh

A Taste Of Henry Holden...

With a temporary lull in the convention circuit and final touches being put onto our London Calling release for October, it seemed a good idea to share some of Giorgio Ianotti's classically pencilled pages that are coming through for our recently announced The Last Ride Of Henry Holden one-shot.

Pages three and four are above, while below are a few of Giorgio's character designs for the book - enjoy!

Excel-ent!

It's been a frantic fortnight. Hot on the heels of the Bristol Expo was the London MCM Expo held at the Excel Centre in the heart of London Docklands, and our experience of both couldn't have been more different.

Expanded into a two-day event over the weekend, this year's Small/Indie Press aspect of the Bristol Expo in the Mercure had much more going on. More exhibitors, more talks, more attendees - and more of an opportunity to relish being in a spacious, well-lit, air-conditioned room rather than the Ramada sweatbox! As usual, Bristol had a cap on ticket sales and there were the same issues with poor signage as last year - including worrying reports that a fair few came and left the Mercure not realising that the huge main exhibiting room existed, just the smaller sized room - and grumbles about the event being split between two venues.

It's clearly impossible to have everything under one hotel roof in Bristol - there isn't a hotel big enough to accommodate the entire thing - but there were still a fair few conference rooms free at the Mercure that could have been utilised I reckon. My option would be to use the Ramada solely for panels and the Mercure solely for signings and exhibitors, but what do I know? Niggles aside, Bristol remains one of the highlights of the UK comics industry and it was great to be a part of it.

The UK comics industry is a very small part of the MCM Expo, a show dominated by gaming, anime and hollywood stars. We really weren't sure what to expect. We certainly didn't expect to see 41,000 people turn up, about a quarter of them in costume! MCM is being referred to by many as the British San Diego - it's a good analogy given the numbers attending and how comics are such a small aspect of both. However, that's not to say we felt marginalised - the comics village was a wonderful place to be and the Time Bomb table received constant attention! Some of our fellow villagers we'd seen at Bristol the week before, but there were a good number of fresh faces too, and a fascinating display of steampunk paraphernalia just across from us.

This was the first time we'd been to any London event, so many of those we spoke to hadn't had the opportunity to check out our comics before - not every London comic fan shops at Orbital and Gosh it seems! We took a lot of comics to the show, but we didn't take that many back. Dick Turpin and the Restless Dead was our most popular purchase - we returned from London with just 3 copies - but all our titles seemed to be well-received, and we also met a few very talented artists interested in working with us.

It was a great weekend, and we've decided to make future MCM Expo's one of our regular events. There are two MCM shows a year and the next one falls on Halloween weekend, between BICS and Thoughtbubble. It's going to be a busy Autumn...

All Aboard The Brum-Brissle Express

This weekend is the 2010 Bristol Comics Expo and as I write this we're just finishing off packing our suitcases before catching the Brum-Brissle express. All being well, we should have checked in to the Mercure by 3.00pm and have had ample time to freshen up before hitting the Ramada bar this evening and kicking off this year's Bristol show with a bang.
Our table at the Mercure this year will have our new 56-page Bomb Scares anthology as the centrepiece, as well as all our other titles including The Furies graphic novel which is making its first Bristol appearance since being published last October. We'll also have a really good deal on for any Time Bomb Comics newbies as well, with all our four one-shots (Ragamuffins, Dick Turpin and the Restless Dead, The Sisterhood and Bomb Scares) available as a set for just £10 - a true Bristol Expo bargain!
This year the Small Press Expo takes place over both days so hopefully there'll be a much better flow through between the two Expo hotels this year, and much more awareness that the convention is not just limited to whatever's in the Ramada. Hopefully we'll be able to pop in to see what's going on at the Ramada during the day as well, but if you're attending the Expo as well please come over and say hello!

Back With A Bang!

With the Bristol Expo mere weeks away and our move from Leicester to Birmingham finally complete it's great to be able to finally be able to bring some more news about what you can expect to see from Time Bomb Comics in the not too distant future!

I'm delighted to be able to announce another two new graphic novels in development, adding to London Calling and Skylark announced earlier in the year. First up is Angels Of The Somme, a well-researched World War One story by Alec Robertson and Bruce McLaren. Alec featured in our Bomb Scares horror anthology and Bruce has been a regular artist on the Futurequake titles. Bruce's excellent promo image for AOTS can be seen below.

The equally stunning picture below that is our promotional piece for our other graphic novel - The Last Ride Of Henry Holden. No prizes for guessing it's a western! Written by Derby-based Alex De-Gruchy and drawn by Italian artist Giorgio Ianotti, Henry Holden will appeal to fans of Deadwood, Jonah Hex and great comics storytelling. The promo art has been coloured by Rebecca Labor, a terrific artist we met at last year's Thoughtbubble.

With all these new titles in the pipeline (and between you and me a couple more we're currently sorting the details on with their creative teams) we'll be sending out the following press release this week to all the major comics news websites, including those who've given us some great coverage in the past:

Following their recent move from Leicester to Birmingham and in advance of the forthcoming Bristol Comics Expo, Time Bomb Comics are delighted to be able to announce a number of forthcoming one-shots and graphic novels currently in development:

LONDON CALLING Graphic Novel
Written by Stephen Walsh, Artwork by Keith Page
There’s vampires afoot in London’s Highgate Cemetery – and only secret agent Charlotte Corday and the garlic-toting, stake-swinging coppers of the Metropolitan Police’s V-Squad can stop them! Channelling the spirit of traditional British adventure comics from yesteryear, with a dose of Hammer horror and Ealing Studios thrown in, London Calling features classic black and white storytelling from respected “Commando” artist Keith Page.

London Calling is due for release October 2010.


SKYLARK Graphic Novel
Written by Jonathon Darque, Artwork by Katja Lindblom
In the realms of supernatural investigations in the 19th Century Skylark is legendary. A true adventurer from a bygone age, a Man's Man and somebody who left more mysteries behind when he disappeared without a trace. In the aftermath of The Great War his son Gabriel has enjoyed a less than stellar reputation - labelled a fraud by the press and a disappointment by his father's peers. Yet it is Gabriel who on a routine investigation finds himself suffering for his father's sins and only he can turn back a threat older than time itself. Skylark - It's only Heaven for some...


ANGELS OF THE SOMME Graphic Novel
Written by Alec Robertson, Artwork by Bruce McLaren
When the Great War began Private Doherty joined the Seaforth Highlanders wanting to do his bit for King and Country, just like any other ordinary man. But ordinary men shouldn’t have to face to horrors of the trenches and the grim battlefields of the Somme. Fed up with fighting but with nowhere to go, Private Doherty joins a deserter regiment – a rag-tag unit of men from all sides just trying to survive. Based on historical facts, Angels Of The Somme features the fascinating story of the forgotten deserter regiments of World War One.


THE LAST RIDE OF HENRY HOLDEN Graphic Novel
Written by Alex De-Gruchy, Artwork by Giorgio Ianotti, Colour Artwork by Rebecca Labor
Glory, Nevada. 1871. When Henry Holden took what was rightfully his from the corrupt and ruthless landowner named John Kelly, Sheriff David Samuels was sent after him. Three weeks later, Samuels rides back into Glory with a dead man on his horse and a weight on his soul he knows he can never shake off. Kelly is happy that all is once again as it should be in his town. But he’s wrong. Sheriff Samuels knows he has damned himself – he isn’t looking for any kind of redemption. But with innocent blood on his hands and a tin star on his chest he no longer deserves to wear, Samuels knows that one way or another, a reckoning is coming. And if it’s one that costs him his life, well, that’s just fine with him…


DICK TURPIN AND THE CRIMSON PLAGUE One-Shot
Written by Steve Tanner, Artwork by Andrew Dodd
The long-awaited follow up to the popular and critically acclaimed Dick Turpin and the Restless Dead one-shot released from Time Bomb Comics in 2008!
Notorious highwayman Dick Turpin and his associate Tom King the gentleman thief are living the high-life in nineteenth century London. But Turpin’s getting itchy feet and their coin is getting low, so there’s just time for one last job before hitting the roads again. Who would have known that the upmarket brothel they decide to rob is infested with the curse of the Crimson Plague?

I've sent the promo pieces along with that as well, so hopefully we'll get some visibility before the Bristol show and the London MCM Expo that we're attending just a week later.

Finally one more thing I want to share - below is the first promo piece for Dick Turpin and the Crimson Plague! Another Andy Dodd masterpiece, I'm sure you'll agree!

Brum, Brum, Here We Come!

Thanks to Selina Lock of Factor Fiction, here's me caught waxing lyrical about comics at the recent Leicester Independent Press Day. "Waxing lyrical" pretty much sums up the day itself, with lots of people who hadn't read comics since they were kids genuinely surprised that Britain still has a thriving (albeit underground) comics industry. It was just us and Factor Fiction there to bang the comics drum, as most of the East Midlands Indie Press seems to consist of poetry and literary criticism. Usually surrounded by like-minded folk at comics conventions this was a definite step into alien territory for us; it was obvious that most people attending the event were regarding us with curiosity and some with suspicion. Despite that we still sold some comics and enjoyed having lots of conversations about comics - especially with writers who had never considered writing for comics before and who we've since received some sample scripts through from a couple of them. Given it was on our doorstep (literally a 10 minute walk) and there was no exhibiting costs nor any need for hotels, planes, trains and automobiles it made an interesting change from the usual. Not sure we'd do it again though, mainly due to the title of this post...

After two and a half years being based in Leicester, Time Bomb Comics is this week moving across to Birmingham! If I wanted to put some spin on the move it would be to say that the home of the British International Comics Show is an ideal place for us to move to. The reality is the move is down to the day job and nothing whatsoever to do with comics - although the home of the British International Comics Show is still an ideal place for us to move to! We're actually going to be just a couple of miles or so from the Millennium Point BICS-venue which is a nice bonus.

We're also looking forward to be able to regard the brilliant Nostalgia & Comics as our local comic shop as they're doing such a sterling job stocking (and repeatedly selling out) of our titles!

Hot Off The (Indy) Press!

Given that due to us having to pull out of Hi-Ex we were expecting our 2010 show schedule not to kick off until May, we're delighted to announce that we've just been invited to have a stall at the inaugural Independent Press Day taking place here in Leicester on 20th March - the weekend before we were originally to be up in Inverness. Taking place at De Montfort University and perhaps 10 minutes away from Time Bomb HQ, this is the first time we'll have the pleasure of exhibiting at a show right on our doorstep.

There seems to be quite a lot going on throughout the day judging by the official website http://www.statesofindependence.co.uk with more than forty writers giving talks and readings between 10.30am - 16.30pm and a large exhibitors hall featuring independent book publishers mainly from across the East Midlands. It looks like we'll be the only comics publishers there too, so we're really looking forward to seeing what reaction our diverse one-shots will receive from a decidedly literary crowd, and it will be interesting to see what the indie press book scene is like - as friendly and welcoming as the indie press comic scene we hope!