Welcome back to another installment of Indie Comics Showcase, the weekly blog where we signal boost a few truly independent comics that are currently crowdfunding their projects, crowdsourcing their funding in some way, or just completely self-publishing on their own. Every little bit of support for these creators matters, from a single dollar pledge to the twenty-five dollar bundle, and of course the higher tiers are usually fun too! Even if you can’t back a campaign or buy a book, you can share or tweet about these projects to your friends and followers.
On Indie Comics Showcase, we interview the creators, show off some art, and tell you how you can check out the product for yourself. Below we have some outstanding crowdfunding campaigns this week for you to learn about, enjoy, and hopefully support by backing one or more of them! Thanks for checking these out and for being the best part of Indie Comics Showcase. Let’s jump in!
Check out the campaign here!
Chris Braly: Welcome to Indie Comics Showcase, Jon! Briefly tell us the elevator pitch for your latest comic, The Hidden Emporor.
Jon Del Arroz: Ayla Rin must find the real Emperor of Humanity after he’s been replaced by a clone before the evil Scorpio Alliance activates a weapon that can doom everyone.
CB: What’s the genesis of this book, Jon? What sparked the ideas?
JDA: This is my second book in the Terran Imperium Chronicles, a multi-series line of sci-fi books. I wanted a good replacement for Star Wars and Warhammer 40K. This particular storyline came from the bungling of the US Withdrawal from Afghanistan and how it’s rumored Joe Biden’s replaced by body doubles. It would explain bad decisions. We start from there in a sci-fi context and open up into wild action.
CB: What kind of comic readers is this suited for and who is it aimed at?
JDA: Everyone who loves Star Wars (or used to) and wants a replacement.
CB: Tell me a little about how you approached this graphic novel, particularly the artwork.
JDA: We intentionally are going with a retro feel to the writing, designs, and art styles. Miz Krimzon is working with an 80s 2000 AD type of penmanship while using space ship designs and the like that are very geometric from the golden age to try to evoke a different feel than modern, bland and dark sci-fi. It’s gotten great reception and combined with an extremely unique coloring style where it looks “brushed” with bright colors that pop, we have a very unique looking book.
CB: I know many crowdfund projects are raising money to finish production on their books, but not you. How far along is The Hidden Emporor?
JDA: The book is 100% complete. We’re just seeing how many we need to print!
CB: So this is part of a series, and there more stories to tell in this universe, yes?
JDA: Yes! We’re spinning off a space marine book launching later this fall, and I’m already working on Ayla Rin book 3.
CB: Any special features in this crowdfunding campaign, like special perks or tiers?
JDA: We have a cool leatherbound edition which combines both this book and its predecessor, OVERMIND into a hyper-premium beautiful book.
CB: Sounds good, Jon. Anything else you would like to share with our readers before they check out your campaign?
JDA: This universe is extremely special. It’s got a lot of depth to it and we have major plans which are going to be worth your while to be a fan going forward.
CB: Congrats on a successful campaign, Jon. It looks great.
Check out the campaign here!
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Check out the campaign here!
Chris Braly: Welcome to Indie Comics Showcase, Christopher. Hit me with the ‘elevator pitch’ for the latest issue of The Great Cyclopian!
Christopher Tamulevich: Peter finds himself in turmoil as he faces a cerebral attack from the parasite known as Queen Sting. Meanwhile, Captain Aura, Cardinal, Wiretap and the Kung Fu Fighting Fyber Frog defend against another wave of combatants! Cindy, the Cyclopia and the terrible Night Mayor premier and this 30 page full color feature!
The Great Cyclopian 9 - In Danger of Extinction
CB: Where did the idea for this comic come from?
CT: Cyclopian is a character that I created when I was about ten years old. He has been developed over the last decade or so, and now The Great Cyclopian is a 12 issue comic book series depicting the life of Cyclopian.
CB: Who is the ideal reader for this?
CT: The Great Cyclopian is for all ages who enjoy fantasy and heroes. He is a deaf super hero that has powers and vulnerabilities which we believe make him relatable to all types of comic readers.
CB: Tell me how you like to create, Christopher.
CT: I am an all in one digital creator, meaning I draw, color, ink, layouts as well as letter. Moving from a more traditional artist made sense once I began to create The Great Cyclopian series because it was more efficient and timely. Although I still enjoy using pencils and charcoals on occasion.
CB: So this is all you? Wow. Anyone else helping?
CT: Honestly, my wife is my corner stone, without her help in editing, managing the business aspects of our company and the thousand other things she does in a day, I would not. be able to create comic books.
CB: What’s your production workflow like?
CT: As a person who has high-functioning autism, one of my best assets is my ability to focus and to work endlessly on my craft. I am typically able to put out a comic book every 2-3 months. The Great Cyclopian Issue 9 is complete and ready to go to print. Once our campaign ends in October, we will order the books we need. Self-publishing has been the best vehicle for us to publish the amazing adventures of Peter, The Great Cyclopian.
CB: What have you been learning from crowdfunding and creating through this series so far?
CT: The creative process is easy for me, it is the marketing end of it that is the biggest challenge. Getting my books out on social media, bookstores, comic cons take time and effort. Self-publishing is difficult because of that. My background, not only as a comic book creator but as a graphic artist has helped me to be able to use on demand websites to get our book printed.
CB: What are your plans beyond this book?
CT: Once I have finished The Great Cyclopian series, I will continue to put out comic books of varying genres. There a few adult themed books that I have published that need their stories finished.
CB: What’s something you want our readers to know about this particular campaign?
CT: The Great Cyclopian #9 also features The Cardinal of Justice part two. This is an 8 page story that may end of having it’s own comic. Currently, we have a few tiers for this campaign which can be seen at the FundMyComic website.
CB: How excited are you approaching the 9th issue of your comic?
CT: I am eager to continue creating The Great Cyclopian series, I am looking forward to the end when all will be revealed. I am also excited to begin working on a few other comic book projects that have been on the back burner and to get those stories printed and out to the readers.
CB: Thanks for telling us about it. Good luck!
Check out the campaign here!
Check out the campaign here!
Chris Braly: Weclome to Indie Comics Showcase, Justice. What’s Tales of the Witch Hunters all about?
Justice Wright: Tales of The Witch Hunters: Volume 1 is a steampunk-fantasy graphic novel that follows the descendants of a notorious vigilante group known as The Witch Hunters. These warriors have sworn themselves to fight against the misuse of magic by any means necessary within the supercontinent of Pangaea. Inspired by books and board games such as X-Men and Dungeons & Dragons, these new recruits must face the struggles of their oath while attempting to save a world that has turned against them.
CB: What inspired this comic, and eventually made you decide to self-publish?
JW: The idea was originally inspired from watching old action cartoon shows in my childhood, especially the 2003 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series. Then, after a while, I became interested in fantasy movies and books, which helped grow my idea of writing a steampunk-fantasy action series.
Self-publishing is really important to me because it keeps everything personal. I want my stories to be dictated solely by me and not influenced by any other person that’s mandatory. Also, it keeps me more engaged and passionate with the stories that I create.
CB: What kind of comic readers is this suited for?
JW: Tales of The Witch Hunters, while seemingly looking tame, is filled with gory action scenes and slightly disturbing moments. I would recommend this series for anyone 17 and up.
CB: Tell us about your style and creative process, and how you developed them.
JW: When I wrote my first comic, THE ULTIMATE CRUSADERS #1, was a big eye-opener as to how creating comic books was actually done. As such, I’ve been doing a lot of extra work including hiring reliable talent, creating and managing deadlines, and focusing on advertising. But most importantly, I’ve created my own way of writing scripts that help me to discern what works and what doesn’t. This includes voicing character lines out loud to see if they work as dialogue, and rewriting key moments in various storylines.
CB: Who’s your creative team?
JW: The main creative team for Tales of The Witch Hunters includes Ian Waryanto, who is the penciller, inker, and cover artist, and Michael Woods who is the colorist.
CB: What’s your production workflow like?
JW: I usually listen to a lot of jazz music to focus when I’m doing drafts as well as research a lot of shows and books that I loved as a kid to get good inspiration. After that, I usually come up with around three drafts and pick the best out of all of them. Right now, we have 12 fully completed interior pages for Tales of The Witch Hunters and are currently working on more. So, if we reach our funding goal, things will start going a lot faster and it’ll be finished in time for early next year.
CB: What have you been learning from \crowdfunding through this process?
JW: When my first comic got fully funded, there were a lot of problems that arose during production, like delays, miscommunication, getting new artists, etc. While I did eventually complete my previous campaign successfully, I didn’t want these delays to become something that was expected of my work, in contrast to other Kickstarter/Indiegogo comic creators. So this time, I’m doing everything that I possibly can to ensure that my books are complete and ready to be shipped on or before the date of each of my campaigns.
CB: Are there more stories to tell?
JW: Once Volume 1 gets fully funded, I plan to make this story into an ongoing series that, hopefully, will span for the next 5 years. Then, during that time, I’d have hopefully garnered a big enough audience to continue my previous book, THE ULTIMATE CRUSADERS, and continue with that story.
CB: Any special features in the book you want our readers to know about?
JW: For the campaign, I have commissioned some very talented Japanese artists to draw the variant covers, as well as an special exclusive, which is a large body pillow of a sexy fire witch that I’m very excited to get printed and shipped to backers. Some of these rewards are limited, so if you want them, hurry and get them before they’re gone!
CB: Thanks again. I think it looks good. Any final comments before we sign off?
JW: As always, I want to thank Bleeding Fool for showcasing our graphic novel. We’ll be sharing more preview pages and announcements during the Kickstarter campaign, so be sure to tune in and check out our project for more info. Thank you!
CB: Thanks Justice, we’re rooting for you!
Check out the campaign here!
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That’s it for this installment. If you’re a creator ramping up your own campaign or have a comic available for purchase online and you want to be featured in our weekly column, click here. And follow Indie Comics Showcase on Twitter at @Indie_Comics and reach out to them for more eyes on YOUR crowdfunding comic project. Until next time, support indie comics!
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