Blink and You’ll Miss It …
… but I’m in this story that Time.com did at King Con Brooklyn. I’m only there for about two seconds, though, so if you don’t already know what I look like, you’ll probably miss me. However, you’ll get some good long shots of art by Split Lip contributor Karl Slominski from Plan B: The Haunted Life of Doctor Anomalous.
Split Lip Conventions 2009
When it comes to comics, 2009 held a lot of firsts for me: first paid comic work, first self-published TPB, first time at conventions promoting and selling my work. With my final convention of the year ending last weekend, I’m looking back at this first year. All things considered, I’m really looking forward to my second year on this beat.
I started the convention year in Portland, ME, at the Maine Comics and Arts Festival (MeCAF) in May. A fitting beginning, since it was both my first convention and the first MeCAF ever. I had a solid weekend, really enjoyed Portland, and met some nice folks (including fellow PVDer, Zack Giallongo). A good start to the season.
A Busy Weekend for Comics
If you’re me, this weekend is - as the West Coats kids say - hella busy with comics. Here’s how it breaks down:
On Saturday, I’ll be selling and signing Split Lip at That’s Entertainment at 244 Park Ave., Worcester, Ma., from 12-4. A few other local talents will be on hand, too, so swing by and start your Halloween off right - with comics!
That night, before heading out to trick or treat, I’ll be making an appearance on Sci-Fi Saturday Night to talk Split Lip. Listen live at 8 pm Eastern or check out the recording forever after.
Then, after a night of candy eating, I’ll be hitting the road bright and early to the Albany Comic Con. That show, which also features Fred Hembeck, Jamal Igle, Ron Marz, Todd Dezago, and others, runs from 10-4 at the Wolf Road Holiday Inn in Albany.
How can you resist three chances to see or hear me (or both!) in 36 hours. My guess? You can’t.
Split Lip Vol. 1 Available at 7 Stores in New England
I’m proud to announce that Split Lip vol. 1 - your best bet for indie horror comics goodness this Halloween - is now available for purchase at seven stores in New England. If you’ve been thinking about buying Split Lip, or are a regular customer of these stores, consider picking one up at retail and help me build my rep with my local retailers. Here’s where you can find the books:
Massachusetts
- Hub Comics - 19 Bow St., Somerville
- Million Year Picnic - 99 Mt. Auburn St., Harvard Sq.
- Comicopia - 464 Comm. Ave, Kenmore Sq.
- That’s Entertainment - 244 Park Ave., Worcester
- Comicazi - 407 Highland Ave., Davis Sq.
Rhode Island
- The Time Capsule - 537 Pontiac Ave., Cranston
- Ada Books- 717 Westminster St., Providence
If you stop in for Split Lip or any of the other comics these fine shops carry, let ‘em know I sent you.
Upcoming Split Lip Convention Appearances
If you’re anywhere in the rough triangle formed by Boston, Albany, and Brooklyn, I’m coming your way over the next three weekends. That’s not a threat, it’s a promise. Mostly because that’s where my next three conventions to promote Split Lip are (but maybe, just maybe, I’m gunning for you, too).
If you’re avoiding me, here’s where not to be over the next three weeks:
- Boston Comic-con - Oct. 24/25 - with other guests including Walt Simonson, Tim Sale, Geof Darrow, David Mack, and many more
- Albany Comic-con - Nov. 1 - with others including Fred Hembeck, Jamal Igle, and Ron Marz
- King Con - Nov. 7/8 - with others including Harvey Pekar, Brian Wood, Denny O’Neill, Alex Robinson, Split Lip artist Karl Slominski and many, many more
See you there!
Split Lip at SPX: The Day After
I made good time driving back from Bethesda last night. The trip down - thick with traffic jams and accidents - took about 8 hours. Leaving Bethesda at 6:30, right after SPX wound down, I arrived back in Providence by 1:15. Exhausted, but man was it worth it.
SPX was my first two-day convention selling Split Lip. My first major indie comics show. And it was a great success.
I met my two-day sales goal on Saturday, which was the day everyone said was busiest for them. Sunday was much slower (and colder; the Marriott had air-conditioned the room all night, it seemed), but still held solid sales and lots of networking. I dropped a pitch (for a project with Anthony Peruzzo) with a couple of indie publishers.
Also great, I got to meet in real life folks who I’d only known online previously: Karl Slominski (artist of PrettyBoy, one of the first Split Lip stories), Ryan Sands of the awesome Same Hat! blog, Chris Beckett of Warrior 27, and top writer on comics, horror thinker, and all-around good guy, Sean Collins.
I had a great time with my tablemates - Ken Wong and Mickey Farineau - and learned a lot from being one spot away from the very successful Spike, of Templar, AZ, fame.
Not only was SPX 2009 a terrific time, but it was also inspiring. Since getting home, I’ve planned out the next few Split Lip books, my next couple of scripts, and 2010’s convention schedule. I can’t wait.
Comics Two-Fer: SPX and Cthulhu Tales
The second half of this week is a good one for me when it comes to comics for two reasons: SPX and what came in the mail today.
First: SPX is this weekend at Maryland. I’ll be at table B8B selling Split Lip and breaking hearts. If you’re planning to come to SPX, please stop by. I’d love to meet Split Lip readers who I’ve never been in contact with before, as well as those of you who I know online but not in real life.
Second: In the mail today came my comp copies of Cthulhu Tales Vol. 4: The Darkness Beyond. This TPB contains my professional debut, “It Must Have Been Something You Ate.” It’s not out yet, but you’ll be able to get your hands on it in, I believe, March 2010.
It’s pretty cool seeing my story between the covers of this appealing little book. If you horror, me, or horror and me, I suggest picking this one up.
Sneak Peek: The Pieces of Meat
As previously announced, Dirk Shearer is drawing a bloody, somewhat (pleasingly) gross story for Split Lip called “The Piece of Meat.”
Well, the inked pages are starting to come in and I had to share one with you. This story is going to be great.
After the jump, check out the second page from the story. Watch for it this fall or winter at Split Lip.
Sneak Peek: Termites in Your Smile
As you know, one of the upcoming Split Lip stories is an unpleasant little ditty about a two-timing liar named Rafe and his tangling with the wrong women.
Doug Draper is drawing the story and it’s shaping up terrifically. After the jump, get a glimpse at an inked page from the story, which will run at Split Lip this fall or winter.
Sneak Peek: Beyond the Campfire Light
As previously mentioned, Jason Ho - who drew Ingress and Egress at Split Lip last year - is drawing a new story for the series, called “Beyond the Campfire Light.”
It’s a story about a pair of friends camping for the weekend and one discovering something about the other that changes the nature of their friendship forever.
After the jump, check out the first pencilled page of the story - which you can look for at Split Lip this fall.
Sneak Peek: Make Westing
Another of the upcoming Split Lip stories features the return of former Split Lip artist to the fold, in this case Anthony Peruzzo, who drew Ashes to Ashes in late 2008.
In this new story, Anthony and I are adapted Jack London’s story of horror on the high seas, “Make Westing.”
It’s a fun, dark story and Anthony is creating it with loose lines and a terrific multi-hued gray tint.
After the jump, check out a page of pencils and one of inks from the story. Keep track of his work at his Flickr feed and watch for the story on Split Lip this fall.
Sneak Peek: Look Carefully
As I mentioned a while back, Sami Makkonen is drawing an upcoming Split Lip story called “Look Carefully.” The story is about an aging photographer who doubts his skills and vitality who encounters a strange man who changes his perspective - not necessarily for the better.
As you’d expect from his previous work at Split Lip, Sami’s work on the story is excellent. Pages 7 and 8 from “Look Carefully” after the jump.
Look for the story at Split Lip in August and September.
Split Lip Returns with 7 New Stories, iPhone App
My horror webcomic, Split Lip, has been on hiatus for most of 2009. There are a lot of reasons for this, few of them interesting. More interesting? That Split Lip is back as of this week, with the beginning of the first of seven all-new stories set to debut on the site throughout the next 9-12 months.
The first story, The Cousin of Death, is about the perils of insomnia and is drawn by Split Lip regular Gary Crutchley.
Also exciting, Split Lip is now available on the App Store for the iPhone and iPod touch. There are two apps:
- Issue 0 - which is a behind-the-scenes look at the process of creating pages from four Split Lip stories
- Issue 1 - an iPhone version of Ashes to Ashes, my story with Anthony Peruzzo.
More apps will follow later this summer. In the meantime, get over to Split Lip, read the new story, consider buying Split Lip vol. 1, and watch for the rest of the new stories.
Sneak Peak: The Pieces of Meat
I was so excited to see the first two pages of the upcoming Split Lip story “The Pieces of Meat” that I felt compelled to share one of them with you. Here’s the first page of the story, drawn by Dirk Shearer. You’ll probably get to see another page or two before the thing goes live, but I don’t want to give it all away.
Split Lip Volume 1 On Sale Now
I’m pleased to announce that the first-ever U.S. Split Lip tradepaperback is now available for purchase. Split Lip volume 1 features 11 Split Lip stories totaling 158 pages of great horror comics. It’s available for just $15 and contains the following stories:
- Straw Men, by Sam Costello and Gary Crutchley
- Headin’ South, by Sam Costello and Kyle Strahm
- Not Sleeping Well, by Sam Costello and Ayhan Hayrula
- The Consequences of a Little Alone Time, by Sam Costello and Diego Candia
- The Executioner is a Lonely Man, by Sam Costello and Brian A. Laframboise
- Fish Drink, by Sam Costello and Iain Laurie
- The Tree of Remembrance, by Sam Costello and Nelson Evergreen
- School Supplies, by Sam Costello and Brian McGleenon
- The Railroad Boy, by Sam Costello and Felipe Sobreiro
- Mujer, by Sam Costello and Sami Makkonen
- Fitcher’s Bird, by Sam Costello and John Bivens
Upcoming Stories at Split Lip
Every year, Split Lip takes a little hiatus at the beginning of the year to allow me some time to recharge, write new stories, and build up a good stock of work to let us barrel headlong into the new year.
That hiatus is set to end in the next few weeks, with our first new comics of 2009 about to make their debut. But faithful reader, you don’t have to wait for that. Nope, I’ve got a sneak peak for you of the next few Split Lip stories, as well as some ideas about what’s coming after them.
Interested?
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Can’t Stop Talking About Comics
Or, at least, people keep asking my opinions about them. Which I tremendously appreciate.
After my first two professional interviews ever ran in the last couple of months, I’ve been lucky enough to have been asked for my opinions three times recently, twice by Indy Comic News and once by the fascinating project ComicsCareer.com.
Indy Comic News is a site about pretty much exactly what it sounds like and is run by the very nice Wesley Green. ComicsCareer is a site that’s trying to run a new interview every day with comics creators of all levels - super famous and beginners like myself - asking them the same 10 questions about how they got started and how they work. Neat idea!
Here are the links:
- From The Soapbox: What Does Diamond’s New Policies Mean To You? - IndyComicNews (my response is at the bottom)
- Feature: 2009 Creator Interview Questions With Sam Costello, Writer of Split Lip Web Comic - IndyComicNews
- 10 Questions for Sam Costello - ComicsCareer
Sneak Preview: Wreck of the Old 97
Later this year, I have two short comics appearing in an anthology called Work. Work is a collection of adaptations of old folk songs - and some new songs, too - about work and jobs and the union and all kinds of other good stuff. If you’ve checked out Split Lip, you know that I love old-time music and have adapted songs and folk tales into at least four Split Lip stories.
For Work, I’ve written a story inspired by the Billy Bragg song “To Have and To Have Not” and an adaptation of the train-disaster song “Wreck of the Old 97.”
(Art after the jump.)
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It Feels Good to Get Burned This Way
Good news from the world of comics as it pertains to me. One of my Split Lip stories from our October two-year anniversary celebration, Bad Radio, has been accepted into a Negative Burn anthology set for publication this summer.
Bad Radio was written by me and drawn by Nelson Evergreen. It’s the story of a kid, a ham radio, and one of America’s most famous serial killers.
Negative Burn, of course, is Desperado Publishing’s famous and long-running anthology series that has been host to some of comics’ biggest names in the last 20 years. It was also home to my Headin’ South (art by Kyle Strahm) in fall 2007. Not sure yet when the anthology is coming out or what its title is but, of course, I’ll post here when I know more.
(The image above isn’t from the anthology Bad Radio is in; it’s just some recent Negative Burn covers I liked. The images are, from left to right, by Michael Gaydos, Dominic Bugatto, and Tom Seelig.)
Talking About Comics
Over the last couple of months, I’ve been interviewed twice about my comics writing, especially Split Lip.
Evidently, I’d forgotten to mention that here, so here are the two pieces:
Ain’t I fascinatin’?
My Professional Comics Debut - Cthulhu Tales #9
My debut story, “It Must Have Been Something You Ate,” is one of the three stories in Boom Studio’s Cthulhu Tales #9. Cthulhu Tales is an anthology series that uses the characters, settings, and themes created by fellow Providence resident H.P. Lovecraft in his Cthulhu mythos stories. My story is a modern twist on this and involves a very strange kind of meat indeed.
The cover is drawn by all-around great guy and my future comics collaborator Shane Okaley.
Cthulhu Tales #9 can be bought online at the Boom site or in finer comics shops everywhere.
The Perfect Holiday Gift: Horror Comics
Still looking for that perfect holiday gift? Well, have I got a deal for you! Two volumes of my horror comic, Split Lip, were published in Australia earlier this year. Unfortunately the economy forced the publisher out of business, but I’ve come into his remaining stock of the comics and am selling them.
There are two volumes, each weighing in at 100 pages of comics. These are fairly rare - only about 100 copies of each was printed, and I’ve got what I believe to be the only 15 copies of each in the United States - so, someday when I’m amazingly famous, these will put your kids through college. True fact.
I’m selling them at US$15 each, shipping including to the U.S. and Canada. It’s a great deal and if you want some horror comics all your own, I suggest you make with the buying.
Submission Success
Remember those submissions I mentioned a little while back? Well, count at least one of them as a success. I’ve sold my first ever comic script (I’ve published a bunch, but no one paid me for them). Sometime in the future (not sure when yet), I’ll have an 8-page story in Boom Studios’ Cthulhu Tales anthology series. Very exciting! More as I know it.
Even More Submissions
I mentioned back in June that I’d put some book and comics submissions out into the world. No word on some yet, a few rejections on others. Still, the dude abides.
As of now, I’ve got a short comic script in with the editor of an established publisher and am about to start sending out a second set of book proposals (same book) and a comic miniseries proposal, with art by the truly awesome Shane Oakley, to various publishers.
Wish me even more luck!
