Dan's pick of the week

Hey kids!
My pick of the week comes from Ait-PlanetLar this week.

SMOKE AND GUNS
I love the look of this book. Smoke and Guns invokes the feel of grim and gritty without falling for the usual conventions.
Fun, fast and full of strong sexy ladies that would knock the cigarette out of your mouth that they just sold you.
The writer Kirsten Baldock hits this one out of the park the first time she gets up to the plate. With quick snappy dialog and loads of spunky attitude, this script falls right into place with the broad, expressive brush-strokes of artist Fabio Moon. Read this book!

Publisher Larry Young writes promo copy alot better than me, so check out how he sells it:

Smoke and Guns

Kirsten Baldock, Fabio Moon

When Scarlett, an overly ambitious cigarette girl — quick to break the rules and even quicker to pull the trigger — starts selling cigarettes outside of her district, tensions rise and the seeds of an all-out cigarette girl gang war are sown. When you're out on the street in the middle of the night wearing your little French Maid outfit, with the short skirt and the off-the-shoulder top, Jack Daniels isn't just your friend, it's your coat. And the 9mm in your tray isn't just your protection — it's the compass that points you the way home.

Two stroke invasion tour hits Dearborn

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14: GREEN BRAIN COMICS (Dearborn, MI), 12pm-6pm
13210 Michigan Ave. Dearborn, MI (313-582-9444)

With the release of the MOPED ARMY graphic novel, Paul Sizer will be hitting the road over the next few months to promote Cafe Digital's first official release with a signing tour across Michigan and beyond. At each location, local branches of the real life Moped Army (the inspiration for the graphic novel) are encouraged to show up with their mopeds to show the public the amazing organization that is the Moped Army. Along with the new book, Paul will be bringing original artwork to show and official MOPED ARMY 2277 patches to sell to each signing, with the full brand new MOPED ARMY displays at the convention stops. Share the dates with your friends and spread the word as the TWO STROKE INVASION rolls into your town!
They own the skies, but WE own the streets!

Graphic novels are moving out of the hobby shop and into the mainstream.

By Rana Foroohar
Newsweek International

Aug. 22, 2005 issue - If you have any doubt about the power of comic books, consider that they are now required reading for the future military leaders of America. In order to graduate from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, cadets from the class of 2006 must study Marjane Satrapi's graphic novel "Persepolis," a coming-of-age tale set during the Iranian revolution. It's a wise choice for the syllabus, not only because it is such a compelling read but because the simple black-and-white frames of Satrapi's family saga will likely give the cadets a better understanding of Iran than any academic text, newspaper report or strategy paper ever could. "Persepolis" shows Iranians not as banner-waving fanatics or higab-covered shadows, but as individuals—funny, fraught and often fearful of the strange, powerful forces unfolding around them. "I'm not a politician or a sociologist or a historian, but I witnessed a lot of things that happened in a place that many people are concerned about right now," says Satrapi, speaking from her Paris studio. Comics, she adds, are particularly well suited to telling her story to a global audience: "Images are an international language."

CLICK HERE FOR THE REST OF THE STORY

Dan's pick of the week

Dan's pick of the week
Spiral-Bound by Aaron Renier

This book sure is swell. Spiral Bound got previewed in last year's FCBD release from Top Shelf Comix, and I have been waiting for it ever since.

I haven't read much of it yet, but what I have is very good. The playful & innocent dialog plays very well with the drawing style. I'll have a fun time reading this tonight.

Katie & Alix @ WW Chicago

Representing Friends of Lulu
(photo courtesy of Heidi MacDonald @ The Beat)

I shouldn't be worried...

Okay, so the wife and daughter are in Chicago this weekend. They are representing Friends of Lulu at the Wizard World convention.

I'm a pretty trusting guy normally, but I understand there are some real playas at these "comic conventions". After seeing this pic (right) from the floor of the con, I'm calling Katie's cell phone and telling her to come home immediately.

(photos courtesy of Jonah Weiland and Comicbookresources)

mostpeoplearedjs

A customer stopped in this week and dropped off some flyers for his weekly podcast. I listened to this weeks installment, and was entertained with music, comic and movie reviews, and the lack of FCC oversight (meaning: you might hear some swear words). It's archived here: http://www.mostpeoplearedjs.com/

Davin Brainard makes me laugh out loud.

Davin Brainard makes me laugh out loud.
This cartoon appeared in Wednesday's Metro Times.
I laughed out loud several times, while a large crowd shambled about getting their comic fix.

24 Hour Comics Day 2006

24 Hour Comics Day 2006

The organizers of the annual 24 Hour Comics Day event have announced that 2006's edition will take place on October 7.

“This date may come as a surprise to the hundreds of folks who participated in 2004 and 2005, when the event was held in April,” said 24 Hour Comics Day Founder Nat Gertler. “But when polling the folks who ran the 70 or so local events at comic book stores, schools, museums and libraries in seven countries in 2005, they expressed a strong desire for 24 Hour Comics Day to move to the fall.”

Will Green Brain Comics participate? Will 24HCD interfere with SNAP! 2006?
Stay tuned as these pulse-pounding events unfurl... TRUE BELIEVER!

Official Hotel of SNAP!

Official Hotel of SNAP!
Holiday Inn Fairlane Dearborn
October 28, 2005, departure, October 30, 2005
For Reservations please call 313-336-3340 or 1-800-Holiday
(use group booking code: SNA)
or CLICK HERE