Posts Tagged ‘Tales from the Boneyard’

I know I’ve been absent from the blog for the last few weeks, but as I mentioned sometime in the recent past, I was using the latter half of November for a vacation of sorts, and part of that included stepping away from the web somewhat. Also, I’ve been working on overhauling this website for a redesign launch Jan. 1, something that will de-emphasize the bloginess of it to the outside world and function more as a portfolio for my illustration, writing and other things for which I occasionally get paid. If you’re an RSS or e-mail subscriber, nothing much will change for you.

Anyyyyyway, I’m regathering the Tales from the Boneyard crew this Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. for a signing/meet-and-greet at Alternate Reality Comics (4110 S. Maryland Parkway #8). Almost all of the creators should be there, including myself, Jarret Keene, Victor Moya, Warren Wucinich, Deryl Skelton and Danny Roberts. It should be good times. If you haven’t gotten your copy of the Boneyard comic, well, it’s the perfect opportunity, and if you can’t make it, rumor has it you can buy a copy from multiple comic shops in Vegas, plus directly online. Remember, all proceeds go to a good cause!

Other stuff you missed while I was away:

• Total, epic fail on National Novel Writing Month. I stalled out at about 6,000 words two weeks before the end of the month and gave up. It’s kind of a long story why, but basically, I did exactly what you’re not supposed to do: got caught up in the structure and plot of the novel instead of just writing what came to me. Also, I chose a genre in which I have little experience (political science fiction), and to make things worse, I realized I was writing a bad Nineteen Eighty-Four knock-off.
• Went to Disneyland. It was maddeningly busy for the Monday before Thanksgiving. We figured it would be slow, with kids still in school and people not traveling until the following weekend. Boy, were we wrong. But it was fun regardless, especially with the weekend kicking off in Los Angeles with dinner and drinks at the Magic Castle.
• Um … I think that’s it. Like I said, took the month “off,” sort of. But now I have deadlines again and am actively pitching stories again, so expect to see more of your favorite person named Pj Perez soon.

All right. Bye.

Discussing the art and business of self-publishing with Keith Knight and Ryan Claytor. (Photo by Katrina Miller)

Well, I did it. I broke myself. I kind of knew it would happen, but I was hoping it wouldn’t: I managed to pull through the last few weeks of whirlwind activity and then my body finally gave out upon waking Sunday morning. It’s my usual change-of-season cold (because, of course, the temperature dropped drastically on Sunday as well), but I’m sure it also had something to do with the self-abuse of this past weekend’s shenanigans. But everything went spectacularly well, and despite the stress, it was about as fun as it comes.

Friday — after running around all day with last-minute prep for the weekend’s festivities — we opened the “Inside the Boneyard” original art exhibit at Blackbird Studios during First Friday. It was also the first chance anyone had to get their hands on a physical copy of Tales from the Boneyard. The turnout was great, both for our show, and for the Day of the Dead exhibit in the front of the gallery (in which I also have a terrible piece of art). We sold a bunch of comics, and I sold at least a few pieces of original art. Very exciting! Both shows will be on display through the end of November, so I suggest you waste no time and head to 1551 S. Commerce St. to check them out!

I cut out of the reception early to run over to the Double Down Saloon (OK, so I drove, whatever) to talk comics, music and other shenanigans on Double Down Radio. It’s a pretty impressive set-up they have over there. I expected one dude with a laptop and Radio Shack microphone. But there are actually producers, hosts, call-in lines and all sorts of other fancy broadcasting things going on. Of course, it’s all done while downing shots and beer, but still, impressive. Self-described Star Wars fanatic Dave Prophet hosts the Friday night live shows, and I had a great time just hanging out and talking smack. If you want to hear the program, you can get the full, two-hour episode here, though I don’t come on until about 1:21 (that’s an hour twenty-one).

Saturday morning was a bit of a rough start, as the Double Down was not my last stop the night before, and it got rougher when I failed to find an envelope holding about $125 in petty cash I needed for the Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival, where I needed to be set-up by about 10 a.m. Thankfully, because of sales the previous night at the gallery reception, there was enough cash in that box to get through the day, but misplacing that much cash wasn’t happy news either way (it eventually turned up, two days later).

The festival itself was awesome. We sold copies of Tales from the Boneyard like gangbusters — a feat I owe a lot of credit to the supportive local press, who have been promoting the anthology for almost two months — and my other Pop! Goes the Icon titles didn’t sell too shabbily either. I also sat on my first convention-style panel, a self-publishing discussion with the great Keith Knight and Ryan Claytor. The room was packed, and we must have talked for well over an hour, mostly answering dozens of questions from the crowd.

This year’s festival was packed with people, and felt way too short. I mean, it’s only five hours anyway, but those five hours went by insanely fast. Last year’s event was good, too, but I recall having a few more periods of downtime. Of course, I didn’t have two tables to run or panels on which to sit. It was great to connect with so many people, and I predict next year’s event will just be even more fun.

There was little time to breathe in between the end of the festival (from which I departed at 5 p.m.) and band rehearsal at 6 p.m. It was the first time we were able to practice with our singer Tim in almost a month, and also the first time he’d performed with our former/temporary guitarist Rick in more than a year. But Rick, Mark and I had been practicing nearly every other day, and Tim jumped right into the mix. We blazed through our set relatively error-free, and packed up to head for Brass Lounge downtown, where we were playing the release party for both the Boneyard comic and Dead Neon: Tales from Near-Future Las Vegas.

Despite fears that we’d clear out the room of Saturday night revelers whom Kirby Krackle (which was just a solo, acoustic Kyle Stevens) warmed up, getting them dancing, our performance actually went really well — maybe the best in years. I don’t know if it was Rick’s (temporary) return, the energy of the crowd, the free drinks, or what, but people were actually dancing to our rock-metal-punk attack, and inexplicably cheering. Of course, that was nothing compared to our follow-up act, Jarret Keene’s Dead Neon, which was the obvious main draw of the night. The trio’s post-apocalyptic sludge metal was strangely hypnotic, infectious and grooving, and some hardcore fans were actually hanging on every growling word from Jarret’s mouth.

The final band of the night, 11K, featured a few members from Dead Neon, but its sound was more indie-dream-rock than death metal. Still, it’s a shame so many people left after Dead Neon finished, because 11K put on a great set, and I was kind of sad to learn the band only reunited for that night’s performance (most of the same line-up appears in Minor Suns, who was supposed to play originally).

All in all, it was a good night. We sold a few more copies of Boneyard, and hopefully impressed the booking agent at Brass to invite As Yet Unbroken to perform in the future. Of course, we’re at another crux, as our full-time guitarist parted ways with the band a few weeks ago (hence Rick’s pinch-hitting appearance). Much as we did about this time last year, we’ll probably focus on recording before diving back into the search for a new guitar player. Or, you know, just build a guitar-playing robot. Hmm …

I’m taking it relatively easy this week, though this mild cold I have is also kind of forcing me to do so. I’ve been trying to plug away at my NaNoWriMo entry, but apparently, I’m a slow writer. Also: Brain borked the last few days. I do have one event to attend this week, but I’ll talk about that more tomorrow. Back to my headache and work …

Yeah, kids, it’s gonna be a marathon weekend in Las Vegas, so let’s do away with the extra yadda-yadda and get down to the business of where you can find me this weekend and where I hope to find you this weekend:

Friday night: We’re holding the opening reception for “Inside the Boneyard,” a showing of original art and concepts from Tales from the Boneyard, at Blackbird Studios (1551 S. Commerce St.) from 6 to 10 p.m. It’s also the first chance to get your hands on a copy of the comic. Bring cash and hugs. But if you want to catch me there, do so before 8 p.m., because after that, I’m heading to the Double Down Saloon to talk comic books with Dave Prophet on Double Down Radio. If you’re in front of an internet box from 8 to 10 p.m., you can listen live, but I think there’ll also be a podcast link after the fact, which you KNOW I’ll link to.

Saturday afternoon: The Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival! Duh! From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Clark County Library (1401 E. Flamingo Road), I’ll be floating around between the Pop! Goes the Icon table, Tales from the Boneyard table and artist jam, as well as speaking on a self-publishing panel at 12:45 p.m. (I think, not sure on the time). It’s all free, and it’s family-friendly, so get your butts down there!

Saturday night: You’ll want to be at Brass Lounge (425 E. Fremont St., upstairs) starting about 9 p.m., where Kirby Krackle, Dead Neon, Minor Suns and As Yet Unbroken will rock hard to celebrate the release of both Tales from the Boneyard and Dead Neon: Tales from Near-Future Las Vegas. Yes, the band in which I play drums is playing a party to celebrate the release of a comic in which I appear. I didn’t plan it that way. Jarret Keene did. And God bless him for doing so. It’s free! So just come down and rock and buy books and comics and booze and stuff.

Sunday: I’ll be sleeping, watching Smallville and catching up on NaNoWriMo. So leave me alone.

I guess, more accurately, it’s where I’ve been, but where you will hear me. Or something. Last week, Deryl Skelton and I visited the studios of KUNV (91.5 on your FM dial in Las Vegas), UNLV’s community/jazz radio station, to record an episode of “Playing Favorites” with host Nate Tannenbaum.

We talked about Tales from the Boneyard, the Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival and the business of making comics. But, as the show’s name infers, we also played our favorite music. If you want to find out just what music, well, you’ll have to tune in at 6 p.m. tonight. If you don’t live in the Vegas area or won’t be near a radio, you can also stream the station live from the KUNV website.

I actually won’t be able to listen to the program myself, because I’ll be at Firefly inside the Plaza hotel & casino to help raise funds for First Friday. If you miss my radio appearance tonight for that same reason, you are excused. We’ll share a toast.

That’s all for now. This week is absolutely insane as we roll out the release of the Boneyard comic and I have a lot to do for the Comic Book Festival. I just got a request from another radio program and have to figure out how to squeeze that in as well. Last night was spent stuffing envelopes and bagging comics to fulfill pre-orders (with much help from Sara and our pal Aaron) as well as assembling press kits. I still have to do fliers, posters, rehearsals for a gig Saturday, etc. blah blah. Oh, and I’m about 3,000 words behind for National Novel Writing Month. So … I’m outta here. See you on the radios.

I know it’s been awfully quiet around here, aside from the occasional update to let you know how many miles I’m running or whatever. It may seem like I’ve been off the radar, maybe even being lazy or in hiding or running from the Feds or being held hostage by crazed Justin Bieber fans.

Nah. I’ve just been working.

One of the things I’ve been working on is an article in this week’s Vegas Seven about the relative success of local comic book shops, especially in the face of our struggling economy. I think it turned out pretty well, and there’s a lovely picture of Ralph Mathieu inside the new location of Alternate Reality Comics accompanying it, so you should go read it.

The other things I’ve been working on … well, it’s almost tiring to think about it. I mean, my eyelids are even sagging as I type this. Let’s go to list form:

• Playing shows again with As Yet Unbroken. We went from no gigs for nine months (while we shifted membership) to five gigs in two months. And we’re in the process of recording a proper EP, something that takes a lot longer than expected when all of us have day jobs/lives/vacations/side projects/health crises/potty breaks. But it’s getting done. I’d check out the AYU website for more info on upcoming events and whatnot.
• Making art. I mean, aside from comics (which we’ll talk about in a minute). For whatever reason, people becoming aware (or being reminded) of my semi-ability to draw has led me to be invited to group art shows. There was that LVSK8 show earlier in the summer for which I painted a terrible piece, and now I’m coming back again with an original creation for a zombie-themed show at Blackbird Studios (formerly Place Gallery) in October. I’m still not quite done with it, and the show is being hung next week, so I kinda need to get on that. But it’ll be sweet when it’s done. I hope. I’ll also be at First Friday with my own Outdoor Exhibition Space next week (Oct. 1), showing original art from Tales from the Boneyard, and promoting the Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival. Speaking of which …
• I’ve been on the planning committee for the aforementioned Comic Book Festival for the last two years, but this year, my involvement has been amped up by volunteering to publish, edit and contribute to Tales from the Boneyard, an anthology of local creators to benefit the Festival’s benefactor, the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District. I know I’ve mentioned it here before, but let me just say that it is turning out way more awesome than I ever could have expected. But don’t take my word for it, see for yourself.
• Oh, comics, right. Well, in addition to the Boneyard book, there’s a fourth issue of The Utopian and a third issue of Omega Comics Presents both coming out in the next few months, and rumor has it you can go ahead and pre-order them at the Pop! Goes the Icon website right now. I’ve got a few other things up my sleeve, but mainly, once these two issues and the Boneyard anthology are out the gate, it’s mini-hiatus time for the Peej, as I recover from what feels like a six-month marathon. You know, before I start another one.

That’s pretty much it. I’ve also been trying to find time to work on a major redesign of this website that would take the focus off this blog and put it on the work itself (a portfolio, I suppose), but uh yeah right. In the meantime, thanks for reading and bless your face.*

*Sorry, Toby.

The top panel on this page I’m working on has taken me about three days to just get that far in rendering. Obviously, not three days straight, but three days of about two hours at a stretch. It’s the last bit of inking I need to finish for my contribution to Tales from the Boneyard, the one-shot (well, possibly annually recurring) anthology comic book I volunteered to publish and edit for the 2010 Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival.

You can learn a heck more about the comic at the official website, which also features the first chapter of the anthology, an amazing story by newcomer Barret Thomson. He’s set the bar high, but that’s good, because it goes to prove the awesome collection of homespun talent we have here in Las Vegas (though, sadly, Barret is moving to South Korea to teach for an undetermined amount of time). This project has sucked up a good amount of my time lately, between wrangling freelancers, building the website, doing public relations and marketing, editing and, as evidenced above (and in previous posts), completing my own eight-page tale, which will make its web debut on Aug. 15.

At the same time, the band has started recording tracks for our forthcoming debut EP, the Utopian is careening headlong into its final chapter, and as soon as I finish the Tales from the Boneyard story, I have to dive back into finishing the third chapter of “Omega” for Omega Comics Presents #3, which is supposed to be released this fall, assuming my head doesn’t implode by then. Oh, on top of that, TV and comic book writer Mark Guggenheim went off and announced a new comic book he’s created for release this November, coincidentally titled Utopian. So as you might imagine, I’ve spent some time talking to lawyers the last week as well.

It’s all a bit overwhelming, but at the very least, most of these projects have termination dates in the foreseeable future. The Utopian (erm, mine, not the Johnny-come-lately) will finish its year-and-a-half web run in September or October, just in time for a fourth and final print issue to make its appearance, and then — assuming I still have the rights to that name by then — fully collected as one complete work in a trade paperback collection in the winter, hopefully in time for Christmakwanukah. At which time all of you who have been holding out on reading The Utopian (yes, I’m looking at you, Sara) will have no excuse not to enjoy 100-plus pages of all the teen dramatic fantasy you can handle, in full blazing color.

Whew. I’m kind of tired just typing all this. Or maybe I’m tired from working on that stupid, overly detailed panel above for the last few hours. More soon.