I'm back with: Chupacabra comics

Talking new comics, upcoming conventions, and The Simpsons

Hello, it’s been a minute. This is my first official newsletter after closing The Nib and the longest I’ve gone without publishing any comics of my own or others in… 21 years. I am working on comics though. After ten years of running a daily publication, I’m taking time to refocus and plan for work that is released on a different timeframe.

So there’s less newslettering and less social media posting these days. Instead, it’s hours of concentrated writing every day, steadily plugging away on few different ideas. I am far from announcing them at this stage, but I’ll tell you that I got some good news this morning on a project I recently pitched and I think 2024 is going to be a good year for me—and anyone interested my work.

There is one comic I have been working on that can tell you about now. I wrote a ten page story for the Project: Cryptid anthology from Ahoy. Daniel Irizarri is on the art, who you may recall from our collaboration on a Postman pitch. Our comic is about the chupacabra myth in Puerto Rico and a rich tech entrepreneur obsessed with extending his life. There are a few pages of unlettered art below to give you a preview, but to say anything more about it would spoil the surprise.

Our story “Cabrón” will be in Project: Cryptid #6 out February 21, 2024. This issue also features a story by Mattie Lubchansky and Maki Naro, so it is stacked with Nib veterans who do cryptid comics now. Call your comic shop and tell them to pre-order a copy for you. That’s Project: Cryptid #6 from Ahoy.

Daniel is a great talent and hope to collaborate more with him in the future, but I will take all the credit for the children’s drawing on the third page.

Upcoming Conventions

I have two more dates this year where I’ll be tabling at comic conventions. First is the Nonfiction Comics Fest in Burlington, Vermont, on November 18. I have never been to Vermont, so I’m looking forward to that. Then, I’ll be tabling at LA Comic Con December 1-3 for all three days. Two conventions that probably couldn’t be more different and I’m really looking forward to both. Getting back out there again after years without traveling while seeing friends and meeting readers? Well, it’s simply tremendous.

If you’re in the area of either one of them, please come by and say hi!

Podcasts

The podcast tour continues with Ben Clarkson and I appearing on The Deprogram to discuss Justice Warriors, as well as Words and Pictures in my former home of Portland to give a look back at The Nib and look forward to Justice Warriors.

We both appeared on the Talking Simpsons podcast to discuss the season 4 episode “Marge Gets A Job” for like two hours. This is in-depth Simpsons-ing!

One last thing: A final stock count for our Nib bookstore after our big all-thing-must-go fire sale found us with a few additional copies of various graphic novels. They are still marked down, while supplies last.