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For those who aren’t familiar, can you tell us what readers can expect from Dead Beats 2?
TYLER CHIN-TANNER: Dead Beats is a musical horror anthology centered around the enigmatic Shoppe Keeper, the proprietor of a record shop filled with haunted musical instruments and other strange artifacts. She serves as the narrator, much like Rod Serling from The Twilight Zone or the Crypt Keeper from Tales of the Crypt, introducing each story to the reader.
How did this project come about? What inspired this anthology?
TYLER CHIN-TANNER: This project was the brainchild of editors Eric Palicki and Joe Corallo. I had already worked with Eric on the anthologies This Nightmare Kills Fascists and All We Ever Wanted (both published by A Wave Blue World). And Joe was a co-editor on Mine! the benefit anthology for Planned Parenthood.
They were tossing around ideas for the theme of a new anthology and both horror and music were possibilities so they kind of came together like chocolate and peanut butter as the perfect combination.
What was the process for creating a horror anthology like this?
TYLER CHIN-TANNER: The most important thing is to make sure all the creators stay within the parameters of the theme while still having the freedom to tell their own story. But it’s also important to monitor the topics and make sure there isn’t too much overlap. We don’t want too many repeated instruments, locations, or twists.
How does Volume 2 differ from Volume 1?
TYLER CHIN-TANNER: The subtitle for the sequel is London Calling as a nod to The Clash album and because in the book, the Shoppe Keeper heads to London in search of new and mysterious artifacts. Most of the stories take place in the U.K. or Europe and there’s a bit more of a historical perspective in each tale.
In terms of audience, who is Dead Beats for?
TYLER CHIN-TANNER: Obviously, it’s for fans of both horror and music, but I wouldn’t say any reader would have to be a serious fan of either in order for this to appeal to them. It’s a pretty broad take in terms of musical tastes. And the horror is more spooky than anything else. Some mature themes for sure, but not a lot of gore or adult content.
What are you hoping readers will take away from this title?
TYLER CHIN-TANNER: We’re hoping that people see that the comics and graphic novels are a great way to read about a number of different genres. Sure, horror has a long history in this medium, but who would have thought that music and comics went together so well? And here we are, back with a second volume of Dead Beats, and this one’s better than ever.
ABOUT THE CREATOR • From his early careers in teaching and humanitarian aid work, Tyler Chin-Tanner took the leap into his lifelong passion for comics attending The Kubert School from 2003 to 2006 and co-founding A Wave Blue World with his wife Wendy in 2005. Publishing through AWBW, Tyler wrote a number of graphic novels including New York Times featured American Terrorist and edited several anthologies such as All We Ever Wanted, art books like Punkrock* Jazz, and creator-owned projects including Kismet, Man of Fate.
PORTLAND, Ore 06/24/2021 — Image/Skybound today announced that Skybound Comet, a new original graphic novel imprint aimed at Young Adult (ages 12+) and Middle Grade (ages 8-12) audiences, will launch next year everywhere books are sold.
Skybound Comet officially takes flight in July 2022 with Clementine Book One, beginning a trilogy set in the world of Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead, from award-winning writer/artist Tillie Walden (Spinning, On A Sunbeam). This will be followed by original graphic novel Everyday Hero Machine Boy from rising star voices Tri Vuong and Irma Kniivila in September 2022, and then Sea Serpent’s Heir Book One, kicking off a fantasy trilogy from acclaimed creators Mairghread Scott (Star Wars: Resistance, Guardians of the Galaxy) and Pablo Tunica (TMNT Universe), in October 2022.
“The goal of Skybound has always been to create the best comics that bring new readers to the medium we love so much, and Skybound Comet is the next step in that mission,” said Sean Mackiewicz, SVP, Editor-in-Chief, Skybound Entertainment. “We’ll be not only exploring pop culture phenomenon like The Walking Dead from a whole new perspective, but also bringing you entirely new worlds and new characters that we know will capture the hearts of readers of all ages.”
“These three launches are only the beginning of our long-term graphic novel plan,” said Alex Antone, Senior Editor, Skybound Entertainment. “We’re committed to igniting the imaginations of young people with exciting new genre adventures from diverse storytellers for many years to come.”
It’s a new beginning for Clementine, the star of the bestselling video game franchise TELLTALE’S THE WALKING DEAD, in Clementine Book One, as she’s back on the road, looking to put her traumatic past behind her and forge new path all her own. But when she comes across an Amish teenager named Amos with his head in the clouds, the unlikely pair journeys North to an abandoned ski resort in Vermont, where they meet up with a small group of teenagers attempting to build a new, walker-free settlement. As friendship, rivalry, and romance begin to blossom amongst the group, the harsh winter soon reveals that the biggest threat to their survival…might be each other.
“Starting out with a character like Clementine is both a huge responsibility and joy. Clementine is a person who brings adventure with her everywhere she goes, and the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to take her beyond the world of the games, to somewhere new and thrilling (like the top of a mountain!),” said Walden. “She is a force and drawing and writing her story has been one of the best experiences in my cartooning life.”
Clementine makes her first comic book appearance in Skybound X #1, available in comic shops and at digital providers on July 7, 2021.
In Everyday Hero Machine Boy, the titular hero falls from the sky to the domed city of Mega 416, leaving a wake of destruction in his path…until Karate Grandpa is able to turn on his heart. Now, Machine Boy wants nothing more than to become a hero! Whether he is fighting giant bugs in the school’s basement, rescuing cats from trees, or making the perfect spaghetti sauce, Machine Boy is always looking for the best way to help others. But when his heart begins to interact dangerously with other debris from space, Machine Boy wonders if he can be a power for good after all.
“Machine Boy was initially inspired by ’80s anime, 16-bit video games, and kung fu movies but as Irma and I delved deeper into his world, we found ourselves telling a story about the pain and joys of growing up,” said Vuong. “Hopefully it touches on those collective childhood memories and experiences that we all seem to share.”
“The world of Everyday Hero Machine Boy kept getting more ludicrous as we worked on the story, but somehow more real. I wanted to live in Mega416 and could relate to the characters, even though that character might be a chicken jock,” said Kniivila. “We had a lot of big feelings while working on this story, and hope that it inspires big feelings too!”
Machine Boy makes his first comic book appearance in Skybound X #2, available in comic shops and at digital providers on July 14, 2021.
The end of the world is coming in Sea Serpent’s Heir Book One as a teen named Aella on Kinamen Isle spends her days fishing and minding her aunts, dreaming of life beyond the horizon. Everything changes, however, when she awakens an ancient evil within herself as it’s revealed that she’s the reincarnation of Xir, the serpent that almost destroyed the world. Worse yet, a fanatical religious organization has arrived on Kinamen Isle in search of Xir.
“Adolescence is about finding yourself. Like finding out you’re destined to destroy the world, or that your whole village is made up of blood-thirsty pirates, or that… Okay, adolescence isn’t usually like this,” said Scott. “There are a lot of books about young women discovering they’re destined to save the world. This book is about a young woman who learns she’s destined to destroy it, and what exactly she does next.”
“In this strange world, with its stormy nights, tropical islands and ruthless magical pirates, I see echoes of the darkest Jim Henson or Arthur Rackham but I also see the mystery of the first kisses and the tenderness of mythological beasts,” said Tunica. “And if I mention the horror of the dark and the curiosity about magic, it is because that is precisely the feeling of growing up.”
Aella makes her first comic book appearance in Skybound X #4, available in comic shops and at digital providers on July 28, 2021.
All Skybound Comet releases will be available at comic book shops, bookstores and digital platforms including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, comiXology, and Google Play in 2022.
For more info and updates on Skybound Comet, visit www.skyboundcomet.com.
One of the greats in the field of true crime literature, Harold Schechter (Deviant, The Serial Killer Files, Hell’s Princess), teams with five-time Eisner Award-winning graphic novelist Eric Powell (The Goon, Big Man Plans, Hillbilly) to bring you the tale of one of the most notoriously deranged serial killers in American history, Ed Gein.
Did You Hear What Eddie Gein Done? is an in-depth exploration of the Gein family and what led to the creation of the necrophile who haunted the dreams of 1950s America and inspired such films as Psycho, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Silence of the Lambs.
Painstakingly researched and illustrated, Schechter and Powell’s true crime graphic novel takes the Gein story out of the realms of exploitation and gives the reader a fact-based dramatization of these tragic, psychotic and heartbreaking events.
ERIC POWELL is a writer and artist from Nashville, Tennessee, who has contributed work for every major publisher in the comics industry. Powell has spent his career creating and promoting the validity and importance of creator-owned comics, including his own critically acclaimed series The Goon, which launched in 1999 and quickly became an indie hit with a die-hard cult following. In collaboration with renowned filmmaker David Fincher and directors Tim Miller and Jeff Fowler of Blur Studio, Powell is now working to bring The Goon to life on the big screen as an animated feature film.
Jensen Ackles reports for duty as Soldier Boy when Season 3 of Amazon Prime’s The Boys returns, and you can prepare your customers for the action with Dynamite Entertainment’s in-stock backlist of Garth Ennis & Darick Robertson’s The Boys.
Solicitation:
Billy Butcher, Wee Hughie, Mother’s Milk, The Frenchman, and The Female are The Boys: A CIA-backed team of very dangerous people, each one dedicated to the struggle against the most dangerous force on Earth – superpower! Some superheroes have to be watched. Some have to be controlled. And some of them – sometimes – need to be taken out of the picture. That’s when you call in The Boys!
With the news that acclaimed actor (Watchmen) and director (One Night in Miami) Regina King will direct & produce the film adaptation of Image Comics’ Bitter Root for Legendary Pictures, the series following monster hunters during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s is poised to garner significant mainstream audience attention — and you can be ready to sell them the hit comic behind the movie with Image’s Bitter Root TPs, now in stock at Diamond!
The original, unstoppable Man-eaters creative team—New York Times bestselling thriller writer Chelsea Cain, Lia Miternique, and Kate Niemczyk—reunites for a new teen tale in Image Comics’ Man-eaters: The Cursed. Adolescents, feminist derring-do, and supernatural hijinks collide in this new five-issue story arc.
Smart, laugh-out-loud funny, provocative, referential, scary, chock-full of ephemera, and compulsively re-readable, Man-eaters: The Cursed delivers the same charm and sharp wit that first enchanted Man-eaters fans and kicks it up a notch.
Man-eaters: The Cursed reunites the original Man-eaters creative team for another tale of adolescent feminist derring-do and supernatural hijinks. Maude, now 15, is sent to Craft Camp for the week. It goes south pretty quickly.
Select praise for the Man-eaters series:
“Simply by envisioning teen girls as ferocious beasts, Cain finds a hundred ways to mock our culture’s fear of powerful women.” —NPR
“An even more inspired feminist fable than Mockingbird.” —Entertainment Weekly
“While this unique title will likely appeal to fans of Mockingbird and Women World, it’s also recommended to teens who like their story orders of smart female empowerment to come with a side of satire.” —YALSA’s Great Graphic Novels for Teens
“The Image Comics series combines The Handmaid’s Tale, Cat People and a wonderfully wicked sense of humor. Unlike anything else on the stands right now.” —The Hollywood Reporter
“It’s brilliant.” —Kelly Sue DeConnick
“Nails the nuance of being a teenage girl.” —Comicbook.com
“Cain has taken on the best of them and come out swinging because she’s just that damn good.” —Geek.com
“A sharp sense of humor that fuels the book’s momentum and makes it an especially fun read.” —The Onion’s AV Club
“Cain seems to inherently understand what it is that makes comics so great.” —The Seattle Review of Books
Spies…like us? In 2008, husband-and-wife Russian intelligence operatives walked into the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic in order to defect, making a deal to trade secrets for new lives. But instead of the American Dream, Janosh and Victorya Neumann found themselves caught up in red tape, bureaucracy and turf wars between the FBI and CIA — all while their past tries to kill them.
Based on the real-life story of real-life spies, ALMOST AMERICAN is written by comics master Ron Marz in close consultation with the Neumanns, with art by rising star Marco Castiello.
When asked why readers should pick up this series, writer Ron Marz had this to say, “first, it’s a compelling true story. You can tell any kind of story in comics, but we generally tell a lot more fictional stories than true stories. There’s more reportage here than in anything I’ve written. Second, the art by Marco Castiello is fabulous.
This is not an easy assignment, drawing real people, real events, and real locations, but he’s doing a wonderful job. And third, this is the beginning of … well,. a beautiful friendship! You don’t expect to have a Russian former intelligence operative as a friend, but life is strange. We’ve started work on a few other projects together, so I think you’ll be hearing a lot more from us as a team.
When asked what was the single most terrifying moment in Jan Numann’s life as an actual spy he said, “it’s hard to evaluate moments by how scary they were. But the major turning point moment for us occurred when we made the decision to go to the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic.
This moment split our life into two parts: before and after. It was the most psychologically and emotionally complicated, complex, and stressful day we’ve ever experienced. It’s impossible to describe how we felt, and we’ll be reckoning with our decision for the rest of our lives.”
Almost American from AfterShock Comics is coming soon.
Dynamite Entertainment, a leading independent publisher of comic books and graphic novels, today announced that it has partnered with Curiosity Ink Media – a producer of original multiplatform entertainment for kids and families – to create books for kids that are rooted in Curiosity’s original intellectual property (IP) as well as titles the company will develop for other brands. The alliance begins in earnest with the first titles slated to hit shelves beginning in spring, 2022 and brings Curiosity, which recently entered into an agreement to be acquired by Grom Social Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: GROM), squarely into the publishing arena. The announcement was made jointly by Dynamite CEO and Publisher, Nick Barrucci and Russell Hicks, Curiosity Ink Media’s Chief Content Officer.
The first two properties to hit shelves will be: Curiosity Books’ “Baldwin’s Big Adventure,” a picture book about an unassuming, but fearless switcher train with a giant heart, and Book-Plus Novelty Formats for preschoolers based on the wildly popular PAW Patrol™produced by Spin Master Entertainment and airing on Nickelodeon.
Following the debut of “Baldwin’s Big Adventure,” a visually rich picture book for preschoolers, and PAW Patrol, in Book-Plus Novelty Format, Dynamite and Curiosity will publish additional titles including entries in the red-hot graphic novel category. Additionally, it was announced that Dynamite will serve as the distributor of record for Curiosity’s wide-ranging catalogue of licensed properties and original content for publishing.
In the partnership, Jon I. Rosenberg who heads publishing for Curiosity, will lead the alliance in cultivating Curiosity’s licensed and original IP (intellectual property) into books and consumer products for today’s kids and families. A veteran publisher who held executive positions at MGM Studios Licensed Publishing Division and Silver Dolphin Books, Rosenberg brings 20+ years of industry experience to the new development initiative before taking the reins at Curiosity Books in 2017.
A proven publisher in adult-targeted comic books and graphic novels, Dynamite is dedicated to serving a variety of consumers through comic and picture book storytelling. Among some of the company’s current offerings for young adults and kids include Nancy Drew, Rainbow Brite, Grumpy Cat, Fruit Ninja and Bob’s Burgers.
“Dynamite publishing is energized by our alliance with Curiosity Books. The best way to grow the industry is to have diverse offerings for younger readers, and then encouraging them to continue to read both our children’s books, and then our comics, and all segments of the industry will grow,” said Dynamite CEO/Publisher Nick Barrucci. “By offering Curiosity’s immersive content alongside our proven portfolio of best-selling properties, Dynamite can embrace a wider fan base with new, premium titles.”
“Locking arms with Dynamite underscores Curiosity’s commitment to premium publishing and our mission to entertain kids through unique immersive storytelling content,” said Rosenberg. “Dynamite shares our vision of promoting reading as one of the joys in life we hope to instill in kids at a young age and embrace as a life-long habit.”
