Writing Dialogue - The Guide to Making Comics

There a five page article in the back of every copy of Death Sentence called The Guide to Making Comics. In total it's about 17,000 words covering everything you need to know to get a comic made. Here's a little excerpt from issue 2.

"With dialogue, people rarely ever say exactly how they feel. They’re obtuse; they don’t want to admit things to themselves, or to others. They might think one thing, but say another. They might joke when they’re scared, or feign concern when they’re amused. We’re all attuned to picking up on the nuances of a discussion, the double meanings, irony, and body language people might use to finesse their conversation. Dialogue that doesn’t reflect that sounds unnatural. The language processing regions of the brain need something complex to keep them stimulated. So trust the reader to decipher the subtext. They’re brighter than you think."

Issue 2 discusses plotting, writing and art. It's available from your local comic shop or as a digital download:  http://www.comixology.com/Death-Sentence-2-of-6/digital-comic/50420 .

 Reviews here: http://comicbookroundup.com/comic-books/reviews/titan-books/death-sentence/2

Cheers

Monty

So what the hell's in Death Sentence anyway?

Firstly you get this striking cover. There are five to choose from (see the post below). I paint them myself because I'm really, really cheap.

Next we decided to break a few rules and play with the narrative conventions of sequential time and space by putting page 1 at the very start. I know - it's unorthodox but that's the kind of crazy experimental shit that goes down in a Death Sentence comic. You've no sooner opened the comic than Bam! - we hit you right between the eyes with Verity's predicament. If you find a better page 1 in any comic this year I'd love to read it.

Next up are 22 pages of beautiful artwork from Mike Dowling. People have compared his stuff to Jock and Sean Phillips but he's very much his own man and delivers on all fronts: quiet moments of character acting, moody establishing shots, epic pages of dynamic action. He really knows how to tell a story and his art just gets better and better with every page. I'm looking at issue 6 right now and his development blows my mind. And it's not like these first pages aren't beautiful...

It's a hell of a story - going to places most comics wouldn't dream of. If you like your comics funny, innovative and teeming with action you won't be disappointed. There's also real heart, lyricism and beauty to be found - deeper themes that emerge as each issue develops. And we don't stop with the story itself. Every issue is bursting with supporting material fleshing out the world, like this I-pad news story about Weasel. 

Then we've got 'Making Comics: A Practical Guide.' It's a 17000 word textbook on the creative and practical challenges of making your own comic and getting it published. According to one review it's "worth the entire value of the comic."

The Guide's serialised over the first five issues of Death Sentence, and it's teeming with behind the scenes artwork and insights into the comic book business. (Issue 6 is a bonus 30 page edition that wraps the comic up in style.) It's full of the stuff most creators don't talk about. 

'Making Comics' was a lot of fun to write and takes as long to read as the comic itself. The Guide will never be reprinted elsewhere - you will only ever find it in these single issues. We're always humbled that anyone takes the time to read our work, so we've gone the extra mile to pack each episode with high value content. 

Finally we end with a glimpse of issue 2. We've got the first five issues wrapped up and we're just tinkering with the explosive finale. This is shipping every month bang on time to your local comic shop and comixology. So if you want to spend the next six months discovering something wonderful - give Death Sentence a whirl.

Cheers,

Monty 

Death Sentence is a 6 issue series by Montynero and Mike Dowling, published monthly by Titan comics from 9 October 2013. Issue #1 and #2 sold out but 5000 reprints or each comic arrive in stores November 20th! You can find a trailer for the comic here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmFa-flzE0I and reviews here: http://montycomics.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/titan-sent-over-doc-with-some-death.html

Death Sentence - Variant Covers

There are five different covers for Death Sentence #1 (by Montynero and Dowling, out on October 9th from Titan Comics). Here's the definitive list:

1) Issue 1. This Verity cover is available EVERYWHERE! You can contact any comic shop in the world and buy it right now.

2) Issue 1 Monty Cover by Mike Dowling - This is exclusively available from the Hastings chain of stores in America. They've got 149 stores in 21 states, and there are only 1000 copies in circulation.

.
http://www.gohastings.com/product/BOOK/Exclusive-Hastings-Variant-Death-Sentace-1-Hastings-Variant/sku/291766700.uts#.UmJhrFCmiSp

3) Issue 1 Verity Paint Cover by Montynero - This is exclusively available from Strange Adventures in Canada using the link below, and there are only 500 copies in existence.

 http://www.strangeadventures.com/2013/09/death-sentence-1-exclusive-cover/

Strange Adventures have three stores in Canada, and here are the contact details:
5110 Prince St, Halifax, NS B3J 1L3 | (902) 425-2140

68 York St, Fredericton, NB E3B 3N5 | (506) 450-3759

101 Portland St, Dartmouth, NS B2Y 1H7| (902) 444-2140

4) Issue 1 Verity Sketch Cover by Montynero - This is exclusively available from Warp 9 Comics and Collectibles, 21 West 14 Mile Road, Claweson, Michigan 48017 USA - with a print run of just 500 copies.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Warp-9-comics-collectibles/158809294181050?ref=stream

5) Issue 1 Verity Bathroom Cover by Montynero - This is exclusively available from the Forbidden Planet chain of comic shops in the U.K.

https://forbiddenplanet.com/105369-death-sentence-1-forbidden-planet-variant/
Forbidden Planet have 9 stores across the UK and all the contact details and locations are listed here https://forbiddenplanet.com/stores/. (Don't confuse them with Forbidden Planet International, which is a different chain.)

I did paint a few other variant covers but we didn't use them in the end - so these are the only five on sale.

They're all in high demand so it's advisable to order in advance if you want a particular cover. You'll also be able to get them on Ebay, I expect, after the release date- but you'll probably end up paying a little more for that. Especially for the low print run editions.

I don't have any to sell myself, sorry. But it was a blast creating them all and, believe me, they look even better printed than they do on the screen.

Hope you like them all.

Cheers,

Monty

Thirteen Minutes: Death Sentence #1 [Advance Review]

Thirteen Minutes: Death Sentence #1 [Advance Review]

Love this new Death Sentence page from Mike Dowling.

First issue's out in three weeks on October 9th, and you can order it from any comic shop right now.

Death Sentence Reviews

Titan sent over a doc with some Death Sentence reviews. There are loads of others out there, so I'll add those at some point too. Personally I'm always delighted when anyone takes the time to feedback, so thanks to everyone who wrote about the comic - good or bad!

Popmatters "...like only the best parts of Watchmen — a social analysis that exceeds the medium of comics, easily the equal of Dostoyevsky or Dickens."

MTV Geek "A smart, raw and relevant spin on the superhero genre."

Brian Cronin, Comics Should Be Good! "Montynero and Mike Dowling bring a striking new voice to the superhero genre. The characters are well-developed and lively and Dowling's design work is impressive - his art has a great, Sean Phillips-esque feel to it. I'm fascinated to see where they go with this concept."

Jason Sacks, Comics Bulletin "Exactly the kind of strip that we expect...Nasty, dirty and oh-so-wonderfully-wrong - and a hell of a lot of fun."

Danica Davidson, CNN, Los Angeles Times "Jumps out at readers with an edgy, moody feel, with plenty of mystery and fear in the air. The premise and unique characters are intriguing."

Broken Frontier "This is the magic of comics. DEATH SENTENCE makes you look up, wonder and ponder. As over-the-edgy as it gets. As a fan, this is the stuff I want!"

First Comic News "Highly Recommended!"

A Comic Book Blog, Anonymous “My favourite new-read is Death Sentence, in which a sexually transmitted disease gives it’s carriers great superpowers, but only six months to live. “

Ain’t It Cool Optimus Douche “It’s gritty and it’s real, all the while imbibing the fantastic and making us believe this shit is going on right outside our window."

Bad Haven Bad Man “Death Sentence is a spanking bit of controversial socially cutting comics"

Comic Book Nerds Are Hot Tim Barkley “Death Sentence by Monty Nero and Mike Dowling.... A gritty dystopian tale about seemingly unconnected young people...Death Sentence is a clear standout. Dowling's art is expressive and gritty, and the story is engaging.”

Comic Book Resources Ryan K. Lindsay “...illustrated by Mike Dowling with a sketchy style that is effective and intriguing. Dowling knows how to make characters feel edgy enough that you don't feel like you are reading a lame comic, but instead experiencing the underground art scene.”

Comics Matter Bobby Acosta “Death Sentence is a strange mix of rock and roll with super powers and just a little bit of “The Doors”, with Val Kilmer. Timely reference, I know, but it seemed to be all I had in my mind. Deranged character, weird powers, and a “fight-the-man” mentality. It’s brutal and edgy.”

Comics Bulletin Gary Mitchel “We have some interesting characters here, exploring very different reactions to being told that you have six months before dying. We easily sympathize with Verity, Weasel seems like your standard self-destructive musician, and Monty is kind of amusing but is a serious sleazeball. The art reminds me a lot of Michael Gaydos, very rough and textured but not messy. I really like it.”

Cosmic Book News Chris Bushley “This tale follows three main characters that have been infected with an STD that will grant them super powers before they die from it! Totally fresh, engaging and crazy enough to grab you and make you question your weekly pull list! This is the future of comics and you can only get it here!”

Down The Tubes John Freeman “Hollywood-baiting Death Sentence...has built up a wave of well-deserved hype. Creators and critics alike have been lining up to praise the hotly-anticipated sex, STDs and superheroics saga, written by newcomer Montynero and illustrated by Mike Dowling (2000AD, Rex Royd, Torchwood). I've been lucky enough to see the whole first arc of this story and it's superb - hard-egded, dramatic, thought-provoking and well deserving of the praise it's been getting. Montynero's script is terrific and Dowling really delivers on the art front.”

First Comic News Giovanni Aria “Death Sentence deconstructs the super hero mythology and shines a harsh light of our current celebrity culture on it. At the same time Death Sentence demonstrates what governments would do with people they can’t control… It’s a gritty and compelling story with enough realism to satisfy mature readers, while presenting the fantasy/science fiction elements in a way that advances the story without making it cliché.”

Geek Girl World Ari “The series "Death Sentence" provides a gritty sensationalistic take on the Hollywood culture without the glamor. Writer Monty Nero and artist Mike Dowling present a sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll scene that will make even the most hardened partier shudder.”

Geek Syndicate Montoc1701 “Death Sentence...has a completely original idea but to tell you more would spoil it, just read and you will be hooked to see what happens next.”

Girls Read Comics Chantaal "Also great was Death Sentence from Monty Nero and Mike Dowling, which is the story of three Londoners dealt superpowers and six months to live by the sexually-transmitted G-Plus virus. This was such an interesting, bold take on superheroes that I couldn’t help but enjoy reading it,"

Latino Review Andrew-Patrick Weymes "I like the gritty artwork of ‘Death Sentence.’ It just exudes sexiness, depravity – all the things you generally want in a comic that’s reaching for an adult audience."

Major Spoilers Rob Rasmussen "Dowling’s work here is quite sketchy, but in a way that looks good for the finality that all the characters are going to have. In fact, the least sketchy segment is with the upbeat celebrity, so this may be an intended stylistic choice that really works. So far, I like the concept and I like potential of the characters, I’d pick up the next one."

MTV Valerie Gallaher “Montynero and Mike Dowling's "Death Sentence" is a smart, raw and relevant spin on the superhero genre, mirroring the plight of today's overworked Twentysomethings fresh out of college, covered in debts, and struggling to see a future over the horizon in an increasingly unstable world. And much like "Supercrooks," these folks may find salvation -- or at least some sense of personal identity -- in defying authority and basking in the dangerously awesome glow of their powers.”

Nerd Bastards Steven Sautter “The premise behind Death Sentence looks great. There’s an STD out there that kills you in six months, but in the meantime you get superpowers. It appears these powers manifest in different ways for different people, but we only see one instance. The art is grabbing, reminiscent in many ways of Charlie Adlard, but with more of an urban grit to it. Montynero and Mike Dowling have created something compelling here, with the potential to run for quite some time.”

Newsarama the best shots team “It’s a brilliantly original concept, and a features an incredibly smart script by Montynero, highlighted by fantastic character work and strong dialog. Mike Dowling is the artist here, and while everything I mentioned about his art on Rex Royd stands true for this strip, he also colors his own work here, which really elevates the final look. He has a great grasp of what colors work best in a scene, and how to use light sources to the best effect. The characters he draws for this story are all fully realized and seem to have their own personalities, which just jump out of the page.”

PDX Comic Geek Anonymous “This is the kind of story that reminds me that there are amazing, undiscovered talents lurking all over the globe that need more opportunities to share their comics with the world…The artwork and storytelling are both top notch. There is a mood to it that just fits really well.”

Sci-Fi Mafia Shathley Q “Think Charles Burns’ Black Hole, but with superpowers instead of freakish mutations”

SideKickcast Gavin Jones “Death Sentence, a debut comic from MontyNero...feels like a breath of fresh air, with fresh ideas”

Shiny Shelf Mark Clapham “Finally there’s ‘Death Sentence’...a neat high concept well-established...the proof of the high concept will be in whether further chapters develop that concept in an interesting manner.”

Talking Comics Books Steve Seigh “Death Sentence by Montynero and Dowling. This comic is packed to the gills with sex, mysterious circumstances, and lots of bad attitude, a perfect recipe for a mature comic read. It’s not to be missed.”

The Cult Den Paul Bowler “Death Sentence paints a dark view of the seedier side of the celebrity culture that so many of us in society seem increasingly devoted to. The G+Virus has a devastating effect on all of these people, with each having to deal with their diagnosis in their own way - but for some their old lives are not going to let them walk away unscathed just yet.”

The Examiner Anthony Schultz “ Death Sentence (Monty Nero, Mike Dowling), which is an interesting take on the anti-hero genre. Basically, a tortured pop-artist becomes infected with a virus dubbed the G+ Virus. The virus provides a ‘death sentence’ for the victim, but grants him superpowers as he slowly dies.

What Culture Tom White “It’s an extremely intriguing concept, and a nice side swipe at celebrity culture...The hook of Death Sentence is a fantastic one, and the story crafted around it is the reward for picking the book up and cracking open the front cover...Mike Dowling’s art continues to be a great compliment to Nero’s writing, the gritty style and tone jumping off the page...There are books from Marvel and DC in publication for years that have characters I don’t care for half as much as Verity, Weasel, and Monty. That’s the power of good writing... After two issues, I am completely hooked on this book. It drew me in with it’s fantastic concept, the story and the characters convincing me to stay. If you are looking for something original from your comics, Death Sentence is the way to go."

Just getting all the pages for Death Sentence #2 finalised. I've always loved the dialogue in this scene, but there was something about it that subtly irked me too. So I've changed it, above. Anyone who can spot what it is will wins my undying respect and admiration.

 Death Sentence #2 out on Nov 13th, and you can order it now from any comic shop (like this one for instance, http://forbiddenplanet.com/?q=death+sentence)

This is the cover for issue 3 - available to order from your local comic shop now: http://www.page45.com/store/Death-Sentence-3-of-6.html. My take on Monty and Verity is a little different to Mike's, though I prefer the way Mike draws them both I think. I tend to make everyone appear too good looking. But I'm happy with the design work, and the colours. And that staff is a real world item which gives a clue to the story. Anyone know what it is? :) 

Couple of great reviews that Titan quoted on the cover there. Death Sentence is about some pretty deep themes, underneath all the riotous entertainment - as it should be. 

You can read those reviews in full from Sonia Harris at Comic Book Resources... 

http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2013/05/22/committed-death-sentence/ 

...and from Shathley Q at PopMatters:

 http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/171986-its-good-news-im-afraid-death-sentence-1/:

And there's an interview with Mike and I about it all too:

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=46134

Glasgow Comic convention

So many highlights from this event. It was a brilliant location and really well organised. Top work from Sha, Katy and the whole team.

Great to meet so many 2000ad boarders in person too. All top people. And talented too, it transpired.

Learnt so much from the panels. The John Wagner writing lecture was fantastic. Hearing him breaking down a script, why each panel was there, what his thought process was in developing a story. It included a breakdown of Dredd story qualities

- Dredd as Hero
- Dredd as villain
- Powers of a judge
- Weapons/Tools of a judge
- Sci-fi future element
- The city as a character
- Action
- Humour
- Twist

 It laid bare John's understated genius and I noted a couple of major things to apply to my own work. 

Fascinating insights into the work of Carlos Ezquerra and Alan Davis too. Firstly the sheer fun they both have while drawing. They please themselves first, and their exuberance powerfully transmits onto the page as Thrill power personified. I'm always really thoughtful and methodical when I draw a comic page, and it looks much more boring as a result. A bolder approach is in order.

Secondly the sheer serendipity involved in creating great work. Of course, it's the kind of luck you can only have if you happen to be a visionary artist - a major talent waiting to happen like Ezquerra, Davis, Wagner and Moore. Carlos got his first adventure strip by accident - it was meant for someone else. Then his Dredd designs were nothing like what John wanted, he just went with his instinct and took it in the seminal direction we're still enjoying today. Similar story with D.R. and Quinch, two of my favourite ever 2000ad characters. I asked Alan what he remembered from designing them. It was a revelation.

Firstly the artistic approach to D.R and Quinch as written by Alan Moore was gritty and realistic. Knowing Moore's views on violence in comics I can understand this. So Alan D got the gig for two reasons 1) He was the grim and gritty artist of Harry 20 on the High Rock, the go to guy for a realistic take on an outlandish situation 2) He was the only artist available who the editor thought could make sense of Moore's scripts. They'd worked together on Captain Britain, though this counted against Davis as Tharg didn't want to pair them together in the same way. But simply finding someone who could decipher and realise what Moore was writing was apparently a problem at this time - so it seemed Davis was the only option. (As anecdotal evidence, I offer Carlos's revelation that he simply posted a script from Moore back to Tharg because he didn't want to deal with any of those verbose panel descriptions. I suspect it was Skizz, but there's no way of knowing for sure at this point. Carlos's view is that all the peripheral detail in a panel is his job. And why not).

So Alan D had already successfully decoded The Hyper Historic Headbang (another brilliant Future Shock) and was therefore to be trusted with Moore's vision. But when he read the script he couldn't see how it could possibly work in a realistic style. The events  of Have Fun on Earth are so outlandishly over the top that Davis decided it could only work with a much more cartoony approach. But the gritty requirement does explain some of that murky cross hatching you can see throughout the first Time Twister.

The characters as described by Moore were reptilian bikers! So again we have a great artist trusting his instincts and going way off piste as far as what was asked for in a character design. The stylistic caricature so integral to the brilliance of D.R. and Quinch seems to be something Alan D developed in response to what he felt was needed to make the story work. The talent and versatility of the man! The alien designs he came up with are an amalgamation of his own artistic skills, Moore's notes, and various aliens floating through the popular culture of the time. The Skrulls were specifically mentioned in relation to D.R.  - which you can see now he's mentioned it - crossed with the biker quiff from Alan Moore's description. The end result is something neither man fully intended, but which is utterly magical nonetheless. The rest, as they say, is history.  

So churn out your best ideas, collaborate freely, and hope the comic gods smile upon the results. God knows how many other characters died on the vine in this collaborative melting pot. But so be it - it all sounds like great fun to me!

This is the final variant cover I did for Death Sentence #1, exclusively available from Forbidden Planet http://forbiddenplanet.com/105369-death-sentence-1-forbidden-planet-variant/.

Each of these variants is only available from one comic shop, and there's only 500 of each. So if you want one...

It was a fun pic to do, trying to create a different visual with some personality and humour. I think the duck toilet brush is my favourite bit. I wish I could buy one for my bathroom. The ink and shading was just a study for a painting initially, but I liked the feel of the linework so much I decided to keep it.

Hope you like it.

Check out the explosive variant cover to Death Sentence #1 from Marvelous Mike Dowling, available to order from comic shops now.

I was lucky enough to do short Terror Tale for 2000ad called 'Rattle'. It was a lot of fun to draw and write. You can check it out online: http://shop.2000adonline.com/products/2000_ad_prog_1838

This variant is my original cover from when we were self publishing. I call it the 'original gangsta' edition. It's a little nod toward the history of the comic, and the people who have been supporting us from the very beginning. It's got the old logo and everything. I've always liked the juxtaposition of the glowing eye with the more contemporary/realistic elements.

Here's the second variant cover. Always nice to see some pencils, I think.

Here's one of the variant covers for Death Sentence #1.

Dave Gibbons Doctor Who art

I was struck recently by the brilliance of Dave Gibbons art for Doctor Who from 1979 to 1982. Partly, I think, because I had no idea he had done so much art for the title, every issue bar 4 from issue 1 to 69. I've attached some images from 'The Tides of Time' with Steve Parkhouse in 1982. Here Gibbons demonstrates all the key skills a great comic artist needs. The speed, consistency and variety of the art, the mastery of  character ( in this case a great likeness of Peter Davidson), the scale and sense of wonder, the dynamism, the body language and figure work are all from the top drawer.   

The page below has an interesting reverse S formation to its panel flow, which works in this case because the screen the Doctor's looking at in the second panel acts as a panel border leading the eye unequivocally to the right. It helps that Dave letters his own work. The storytelling flows beautifully, and you can see the talent and sequential precision that would lead to the groundbreaking Watchmen art some four years later. 

Talking of Watchmen this panel amused me: Check out Shayde's circlar head in the center panel. See how it foreshadows the Watchmen badge logo four years in advance, even down to the dolop of proto ketchup above the eye? Pure coincidence, but good fuel for conspiracy theorists and scholars of the subliminal.

  

Most of all I was stunned by how cohesive and expressive the work was, hand drawn and inked with Letratone. It seemed to move me more than recent digital work. Of late I've come to believe, rightly or wrongly, that there's a certain human element that gets subtly removed from digital art. Something about the cohesiveness of the page gets lost in the scale of the linework, perhaps due to the constant zooming in Photoshop and the tools used. It's only a personal opinion, but I would love to see Dave's art fully hand drawn again.

'The Tides of Time' is a Panini graphic novel containing 221 pages of Doctor Who strips from 1982 with art by Dave Gibbons, Mick Austin, Steve Dillon and written by Steve Parkhouse.

2000AD 1823 - 'Rocket De La Revolucion'

This post contains SPOILERS. You may want to read the comic first.

I'm always jotting down plots, and the mechanics of this story seemed to work fairly well apart from the cliched "Everyone's dead! And the hero falls to his knees in horror!" ending. Couldn't have that, so I racked my brains in idle moments trying to figure out an original twist. Or rather, I went off and did other things while my mind sorted it out for me. The story was set in the fifties at this point, in Britain, during the Cold War. It all seemed a bit familiar.

My subconsious came up trumps one drowsy morning: 'What about 'if the nuclear detonations irradiated a moment of time and trapped them all forever?' 'Yes,' replied my waking self,  'that would sidestep the cliches. But what would sustain the illusion of internal reality? 'Magic', replied my subconscious - and promptly died of shame. Hoary old sub-Constantine demons and tarot deck magic? Not very inspiring.

Then a neuron in my sluggish brain fired from 'Nuclear detonations in the fifties' to 'The Cuban missile crisis, 1962'. Much more promising: Cuba could provide an original tone to freshen up the whole story. Bury the missile crisis in the shadows till the end, beneath the sparkly misdirection of a search for Castro. And why we're at it why not build the whole world from Castro's imagination, replete with sixties dreams of a sci-fi future and a communist utopia? That's when I got excited.

Tharg wanted it in four pages. I'd sent him Death Sentence first, a six issue series forthcoming from Titan in October 2013. In that comic we don't waste panels or captions when telling the story. Every element adds something new to the narrative, or it gets cut. It makes for powerful sequentials. As a consequence I really enjoy the discipline of writing a story in the shortest possible space. It's useful technique to master.

Overall 'Rocket de la Revolucion' is a little too condensed, with too many words in each panel, but the story works if you bear with it. I like the way you can read it on different levels if you want to: a communist allegory, a muse on the nature of reality - a thriller with a twist. Mostly I adore Simon Fraser's beautiful artwork, which conveys all the information each panel needs in a vibrant and dramatic way despite the lack of space. Any credit for the story's impact should go to him. He has form in this area - check out his decades of excellence here:

2000ad Prog 1823 is out today from newsagents, comic shops, and http://www.2000adonline.com/

Titan comics are publishing Death Sentence, a six part series from Mike Dowling and myself,  in October 2013 - Previews code JUN131282

Death Sentence out in October 2013

Death Sentence, by Mike Dowling and myself, is coming out as a six part series from Titan comics in October 2013. It's about a virus which kills you in six months but enhances your ability to do amazing things. Though really it's about the point of your life. Look out for it in comic shops and online.

There's a range of great creator owned titles in the Titan line, from comic book luminaries such as Si Spurrier, PJ Holden, Carl Critchlow and... oh, that hasn't been announced yet? Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

You can read more about the Titan launch here.

A wee page from the latest episode of Death Sentence, running in Clint magazine. This is the start of a sequence I wrote specifically to ensure a knighthood, some thirty years hence, in the manner of Grant Morrison ;) (hahaha!) I don't want to post spoilers for a few days yet, so I'll leave it at that.

I like the page because the artist and writer are working in sweet harmony, and the letterer put all the balloons in the right place! That may sound unremarkable, but it's amazing how rarely it happens in professional comics. A lot of writers don't get to see the finished lettering before the strip's published, for a start. Often an artist will draw something slightly different from what was intended, which the writer doesn't see until its too late!  If you self publish, you control everything. Yay!

From the first ten page sample we did it was clear from feedback that we were on to something special, storytelling wise. And good storytelling is the only thing that makes us happy - the only reason we started this project. All praise for Mike Dowling for his excellent work here. It means I can write with a lot more confidence, and we can try more ambitious sequential techniques. Our trust in each other reaches its apotheosis in the next issue, where we really push the storytelling boundaries. Every issue so far, we've tried something new - something we weren't sure would work - and it has! At some point we may come unstuck. Stay tuned to see if we drop from the wire.

This is page sixteen from issue 3 (out in December 2013), also in Clint Magazine 2.6. Clint is on sale now in WHSmiths and your local comic shop.

Hi-Ex! Blog: Rogue Trooper: Tales of Nu earth 03

Hi-Ex! Blog: Rogue Trooper: Tales of Nu earth 03: Review by Montynero Popular opinion often has it that Rogue Trooper should have been killed off after he killed The Traitor Gener...