Various Stuff

COMICS AND FILM LANGUAGE It has occurred to me, while watching David Lean’s GREAT EXPECTATIONS as I write this, that cinematic language and how it relates to comics storytelling—that being the progressive sequential images of comics—has evolved in ways we don’t acknowledge or respect. Take for instance simplicity in staging and cutting—bare economics in relatable film language—in Lean’s GREAT EXPECTATIONS. Simple by today’s standards (2011). Progressive cutting from establishing shots to medium to close-ups and back out. This language of visual dynamics is economic and easy to follow and translates readily to a still-image format like comics. By today’s standards, however, the cutting dynamics of Jack Harris and his crew in GREAT EXPECTATIONS might be viewed as light and elementary by the average viewer. However, there is historic and elementary KNOWLEDGE at play here. And shockingly enough, this is the type of cutting most directly related to the strongest of dynamic comics storytelli...

Big thick board book pages! You could throw it at someone and knock 'em out! They're on their way and they're gonna be at TR!CKSTER. Come an' get 'em... and come see how make a book like this! You get a copy of the book with the price of admission!

You suckers asked for it. Me and Steve Niles are gonna slap you silly with a sneak peek book this summer. It's a 9"x12" board book with rounded corners, all big and thick and meaty. Sure, it's just got two stories in it, 32 pages total, but it's a limited edition kind'a thing. We're only printing 500 of these bad boys. It's called A GLIMPSE OF CRIME AND TERROR and these stories we're puttin' in it, they're chocked full'a both crime AND terror. Yer gonna be pushing people outta the way just to get yer mits on it. CRIME AND TERROR, the big book, it's gonna be LOTS bigger'n this with lots more stories, but that's coming out down the line and THIS is coming out this summer. This is just a tease, a tease you'll want for your coffee table to make all'a yer friends jealous that yer so cultured with a big ol' book about CRIME AND TERROR. More information soon. Hold yer horses. Enjoy the cover for the book in the meantime...