The Standard #5 AND #6 to Debut at Glasgow Comic Con!

Things have been quiet on this blog again, I know, but it was with good reason.  I’ve been staying true to my word of focusing on getting the work done before marketing it… potentially prematurely.  Well, I needn’t worry about that anymore, as over the weekend, I was able to finally draw a line under the project.  That’s right: all art, coloring and letters for The Standard #6 are finished, meaning that active production on this series is now complete!

I’m sure I’ll be writing up my concluding thoughts on this massive creative journey in more depth soon.  But for now, I want to look forward to Glasgow Comic Con.  This year’s con is being held from Saturday 5th July to Sunday 6th July, at the CCA.  Buy your tickets here!  As longtime Standard readers will know, I always like to offer something special to attendees of my hometown con.  And so, this year, those attending Glasgow Comic Con will be the first in the world to get the chance to read not just The Standard #5… but The Standard #6 too!  That’s right, Glasgow readers will get to see how the epic superhero saga ends months before everyone else in the world, with issue #5 not due for worldwide release until September, with issue #6 following in November!

And that’s not all!  Glasgow Comic Con attendees will also be able to get these two issues with convention-exclusive covers from Glasgow artist Chris Connelly!  Chris has form at Glasgow Comic Con, quickly selling out of his debut comic, Reality War, at the 2012 show.  We’re working together on the Scottish sci-fi series Bad Sun, the first issue of which debuted at last year’s show.  We’ll be tabling together this year, with Chris showcasing some new work of his own.  But he’ll also be on hand to sign these gorgeous covers he did for The Standard #5 and #6.  Here’s your exclusive first look!

The Standard #5:

The Standard #6:

I hope to see you at Glasgow Comic Con!

The Standard #4 Debuts at Glasgow Comic Con!

Glasgow Comic Con creeps ever closer!  Running from Saturday 13th July to Sunday 14th July at the CCA in Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, anticipation is steadily building for the biggest event in Glasgow’s comics year.  And it’s at this, my hometown con, that the latest chapter of The Standard will be making its worldwide debut!

The Standard #4 is currently scheduled for a worldwide release in October, but Glasgow fans will have the chance to get their hands on the comic months early.  And better still, this  Glasgow edition will have an exclusive cover by Iain Laurie, the sensational Scottish artist behind Horror Mountain, Powwkipsie and the upcoming And Then Emily Was Gone (written by some hack called John Lees).

Now, I’m pleased to reveal for the first time Laurie’s completed cover, colored by the mighty Mike Gagnon:

Pretty awesome, huh?  And Iain will be at Glasgow Comic Con too, so come along, pick up the latest issue, and get it signed by the artist extraordinaire.  I look forward to seeing some of you at the show!  Tickets available at http://www.glasgowcomiccon.com!

 

Coming Soon: The Standard #4!

Hey everyone!  I know you’ve been waiting patiently, and I just wanted to write a message letting you know that the wait is almost over.  The Standard #3 will be getting its worldwide release in July, then after that, The Standard #4 will be due in fall 2013!  I’m excited, as thus far the global market has been playing catch-up to issues previously finished, but now I’m getting to launch new Standard content to select comic stores across the globe.  And of course, it’ll surely be available at this year’s New York Comic Con as well!

But for comic fans in Glasgow, the wait may be even shorter.  Glasgow Comic Con 2013 runs from 13th-14th July, and the current plan is to make that the location for the worldwide debut of The Standard #4, with a special advance preview edition of the book complete with a convention-exclusive cover by acclaimed Scottish artist Iain Laurie.

I’ll be sharing that soon, I’m sure, but for now, a special treat to take you into the weekend.  Here is your first glimpse of Jonathan Rector’s awesome cover for The Standard #4.  Holy ominous metaphors, Gilbert!

Glasgow Comic Con 2012 Report

I’ve talked before about how much I was looking forward to Glasgow Comic Con this year, about how I attended last year as a fan, and returning as a pro this year felt like a homecoming.  Certainly, Glasgow Comic Con was an event I was eagerly anticipating.  But even I had no idea just how great a con it was going to be.

One of the criticisms of last year’s con that, with everything crammed into a single venue at the Mackintosh Church, things got pretty cramped.  With all the retailers and small press professionals all exhibiting together, and signings in the same area, there was very little space to move around in the dealer’s hall, or indeed to linger at any tables that caught your interest.  That shortcoming was addressed this year with the addition of another venue, Queen’s Cross Hall, situated across the street from the main building.  The hall was bright, spacious and airy, and I have to say opening it up for use was a great move.  This is where I was located, and I loved it.  In fact, I ended up spending most of the weekend there and very little time in the Mackintosh Church itself.  As a result, I can comment very little on the pros and cons of the convention as a whole.  For a great, comprehensive overview of the event, check out the report from Comics Anonymous.  All I can say is that, from the perspective of a professional  selling my wares, and from talking to other professionals, Glasgow Comic Con was a massive success.

Things started off a bit slow on the Saturday morning.  Nobody was coming into the hall, and I was momentarily panicked that perhaps the seperate venue meant there would be no passing trade.  I needn’t have worried, however.  It turned out that most people were attending the opening panel for the first hour or so of the show, and with that over people began filtering into Queen’s Cross Hall.  I was pleased with the layout of our tables, with me sharing my Standard table with the Glasgow League of Writers’ GLoW 1 anthology, Colin Bell and Neil Slorance’s Jonbot VS Martha and Neil Slorance’s Nine Lines of Metro, and the table next to us shared by Gary Chudleigh and Graeme Kennedy with Villainous and Gordon McLean with No More Heroes, so it was like our whole side of the hall was “the GLoW wing.”  The real hot seller for the first half of the day was GLoW 1, which made me happy as we were initially worried about whether the demand for the book would be enough to justify the price we were selling it at.  Major credit must go to Luke Halsall, who was a selling machine all weekend, shifting anthologies like no one’s business.  But as the day went on, sales for The Standard, Volume 1 – the graphic novel collecting issues 1-3 – began to really pick up steam.  By the afternoon, Queen’s Cross Hall was jumping with people, and our table was so busy that I had the unusual experience of signing sold copies of The Standard while pitching the book to more interested con-goers, and simultaneously signing copies of GLoW 1 being handed to me.  I just have to give major kudos to the Glasgow comic reader community.  They arrived at the con with an active interest in finding new comics to try, keen and receptive to good pitches, and eager to support local talent.  Some sales were as simple as, “Can I interest you in my comic, The Standard?”/”Sure, how  much?”

With things going so well, I was riding on too much of a wave of adrenaline to leave my table much.  But I did get away on a couple of occasions.  Once for a Frank Quitely signing, where I got my copy of Absolute All Star Superman (previously signed by Morrison) signed by the acclaimed artist.  And later in the day, I attended the Grant Morrison signing, which seemed to take quite a while longer as the legendary writer seemed to enjoy having lengthy wee chats with most of the folks in the queue.  I got my Deluxe Edition of We3 (previously signed by Quitely) signed, and the always-engaging Morrison was keen to chat for a wee bit and pose for a photo.

But as enjoyable as my encounters with the world-renowned superstars of the comic industry were, the real pleasure was getting to meet and hang out with my friends on  the independent comics scene.  As previously mentioned, I was sharing a pair of table with Gordon McLean, Graeme Kennedy, Gary Chudleigh, Colin Bell, Neil Slorance and Luke Halsall, and I couldn’t have asked for a nicer bunch of folks to spend the con with.  Special thanks also go to GLoW compatriots Sam Read, Jane Sayer and Iain McGarry for taking shifts at the table assisting us in selling our wares, and Fraser Craig and Stuart Ritchie for frequently stopping by to check in.  I got to spend a little time chatting to some of my artistic collabotors.  Garry McLaughlin – who I worked with on GLoW 1 short The Awesome Doggy Boy and will be drawing Black Leaf, the upcoming horror graphic novel I’m writing – stopped by for a while, and the legendary Iain Laurie stopped by to give me a copy of his brilliant Horror Mountain and discuss possible future projects.  I spent quite a bit of time chatting and hanging out with Chris Connelly, who wrote and drew the SICBA-nominated Reality War, which I fortunately bought a copy of before it sold out.  And in the Grant Morrison queue I got to spend some time talking to Ross Leonard, writer of another SICBA-nominee, Maximum Alan, which I also picked up later in the show.  It really feels great to be part of such a vibrant, passionate creative community as the Glasgow comic scene, full of incredibly talented, and more importantly, incredibly nice people.

By the end of day 1, I had sold through almost all of the stock of The Standard, Volume 1 I’d brought with me.  In one day at Glasgow Comic Con, I had made more from sales than I did over the whole weekend at Kapow Con in London.  I was amazed at how successful a day it had been.  But things were set to get even better.

As a nominee, I was invited to the SICBA awards party at the Citizen M Hotel.  The swanky city centre venue was a major shift upwards from the previous year, where the event was simply held in the dealer’s hall.  This year felt more like an official awards ceremony, and as we got clearer to the time for the winners to be announced I was surprised to find myself getting nervous!  We began with the Outstanding Contribution to Comics award, presented by last year’s winner Alan Grant.  This went to Dave Alexander, someone who has been working hard in the British comics scene for some 30 years and perhaps never quite got the widespread recognition he deserved.  He seemed genuinely surprised and humbled by the award, and I was happy to see him get it.  Next up was the award for Best Cover, which went to well-deserved winner James Devlin for his fantastic cover to School of the Damned #1.  And then the nerves really set in, as it came to the first category I was nominated for: Best Writer.  The tension was ramped up even more by a comically overlong process of announcing the nominees, with some confusion about who the runners-up were.  But finally, it was time to announce the winner…. and it was me!

Walking up to claim my award and give an acceptance speech was an incredibly surreal experience.  And having Jim Starlin sitting a couple of feet away from me didn’t make it any easier!  I stumbled through a speech – opening with a clunker of a joke that no one laughed at and saying “Umm” too much – but everyone was very polite and clapped at the end, and when I returned to my table on a total high.  I was over the moon, and so happy and proud.

Up next was the Best Artist award, which once again went to James Devlin for School of the Damned.  I did record the announcement and James’ gracious acceptance speech (the plan was to record all the speeches that night) but with apologies to Mr. Devlin, I must admit I accidentally deleted it.  The final award of the night was Best Comic Book/Graphic Novel, the second category The Standard was nominated in.  During the applause for the nominees, the vibrations shook my award off the table, and the base broke off!  But a couple of days later, some superglue seems to have fixed it up adequately.  But back to the awards… taking home two awards would have been incredible.  But in the end, we got perhaps an even better result: No More Heroes won.  And so we had two different members of the Glasgow League of Writers sharing in the glory at this year’s Scottish Independent Comic Book Awards.

Between the massive sales and the SICBA triumph, Saturday was absolutely amazing.  I knew going in that Sunday was never going to quite match it.  Still, the second day of the con still went rather well.  I had to bring in my remaining stock of graphic novels with me, the stock I’d been planning on keeping aside for Thought Bubble in November, in order to replenish the depleted stock after Saturday.  Sunday began with a pre-con breakfast with a few of my GLoW cohorts – including Gordon Robertson, who made a welcome appearance after being unable to attend on the Saturday – before we headed over to Queen’s Cross Hall to get back into selling mode.  The big story of the day was GLoW 1 completely selling out within the first couple of hours.  Things got off to a slower start for The Standard, Volume 1, but as the day went on I steadily picked up steam and I made a decent number of sales, and by the end of the day I only had a handful left.  Perhaps my proudest achievement of the day was being able to sell a copy to Batman, who had to remove his gloves and retrieve some money from his utility belt to buy the book.

By the time we finally closed up shop at 5pm, I had made even more from The Standard in 2 days at Glasgow Comic Con than I’d made over the whole four days of New York Comic Con last year, which is far more than I dreamed of being able to sell.  A few members of the Glasgow League of Writers wrapped up the weekend with a post-con dinner at Lucky 7 and a trip to the Insane Championship Wrestling show at The Garage, but to be honest, I went through it all in a daze.  I was exhausted, the adrenaline high that carried me through finally wearing off, but I was totally content and happy with my amazing weekend.

What I loved about Glasgow Comic Con this year was that it really felt like a celebration of Scottish creators.  Even amongst the big-name guests, for most there was a Scottish connection there.  And it seems many of the big success stories of the show in terms of sales were independent, creator-owned comics from local creators.  Rather than trying to be a mini-version of a huge American con, Glasgow Comic Con was quite proudly the GLASGOW Comic Con, and the attendees seemed to respond to that.  As a creator with a table, I didn’t just feel like one of a sea of exhibitors, but rather I felt like part of a community.  A great vibe, that I hope can be replicated for years to come.  A big thank you must go out to con organisers John Farman and Sha Nazir, who helped me have my most successful con ever.  And thanks must go to everybody who came along and supported The Standard and other local comics.  Looking forward to seeing you at Glasgow Comic Con 2013!

John Lees Wins Best Writer Award at SICBAs!

Saturday 30th June was a great day for The Standard.  The Standard, Volume 1, the graphic novel collection of the first 3 issues of the series, made its worldwide debut at Glasgow Comic Con during the day and sold very well.  Then, at the SICBA awards party, The Standard was nominated in two categories: Best Comic Book/Graphic Novel, and Best Writer.  I’m pleased to report that we were the winners in the latter category!

I was proud to accept the Best Writer award at this year’s SICBAs, and really, it’s an award shared by the whole creative team.  From artist Jonathan Rector, to the various colorists and flatters who have worked on the series (including current colorist Mike Gagnon), to letterer Kel Nuttall, to editor Steven Forbes, everyone has played a part in ensuring that my script has evolved into a beautiful finished comic.  At this time last year, the first issue had just been finished, and was a dark horse nominee on the SICBA shortlist that nobody had really heard of before the voting opened up.  So to then come back this year and win an award means so much.  This is something I’ll always treasure.  And it’s absolutely fantastic that I can now call The Standard an award-winning comic!  Thanks to everyone who voted, and everybody else who has read the book and showed your support.

The Standard at Glasgow Comic Con

This weekend, on Saturday 30th June and Sunday 1st July, Glasgow Comic Con 2012 will be taking place at the Mackintosh Church Arts & Heritage Centre, at Garscube Road, just off Maryhill Road.  Following on from the success of last year’s inaugural event in the same venue, this year’s Glasgow Comic Con returns bigger and better, expanded to 2 days, spread out across multiple halls, and with more A-list guests including comics legends Grant Morrison and Jim Starlin.  And in amidst the festivities, I’ll be bringing (2-time SICBA nominee!) The Standard along for the ride!

This feels like a major homecoming from me.  At this time last year, I was just a bewildered fan with a comic I’d made, too new to the comics scene to know anybody or even have a table at the con to sell my wares.  Having The Standard nominated at the Scottish Independent Comic Book Awards last year was my first “professional” experience in the comics world, my first peek at the other side of the curtain as I got to attend the awards party with all these creators whose work I admired and respected.  I felt a bit like a gatecrasher or a blag artist even being there!  Now, one year later, I get to return to Glasgow Comic Con, this time with my own table, selling The Standard.

Not just selling The Standard, either.  No, I’m selling the world-premiere graphic novel The Standard, Volume 1, which collects the first 3 issues of my 6-issue miniseries.  Comic fans in Glasgow will be able to get this book before anyone else in the world, and in my opinion that’s the least I could do.  The Glasgow comic community has been so great in its support of this book, after all.  I have a table at the Queen’s Cross Hall, where you’ll also be able to buy copies of GLoW 1, the first anthology of the Glasgow League of Writers.

If that’s not reason enough to attend Glasgow Comic Con, consider this: this year, attending the con on Saturday is the only way to vote in the SICBAs.  I would really love your support, guys, so please, come to Glasgow Comic Con, and cast your vote.  I’m nominated for Best Writer, and The Standard is nominated for Best Comic, with The Standard #3 as the submitted issue.  There are plenty of other worthy nominees, so it might turn out you want to vote for one of their wonderful books, but either way you should attend and cast a vote if you can!

Now, the big question: how do you get tickets for Glasgow Comic Con?  There will be a limited number of tickets on sale at the door, depending on availability.  But if you want to ensure your place at the con, tickets are now available from these four shops in Glasgow:

– Comics by Post

– City Centre Comics

– Plan B Books

– The Shop of Interest

Here’s all the ticket info:

For more info on Glasgow Comic Con, including a full guest list, a schedule of events for the day, and directions on how to get to the venue, visit the official site.

I’m really excited about this coming weekend.  I’m sure it’s going to be absolutely great, and it would be even better if I could see some of you guys there.  Come along, have a great geeky day out, pick up your world-exclusive copy of The Standard, Volume 1 and vote in the Scottish Independent Comic Book Awards.  Show your love for The Standard, and for Scottish comics!

The Standard: 2-Time SICBA Award Nominee!

Last year, I was overjoyed to have The Standard nominated for the Scottish Independent Comic Book Awards in two categories: Best Comic/Graphic Novel, and Best Writer.  At the time, the first issue had just been released, and I was totally new to the world of attempting to be a comic pro.  So, getting to go to the awards show and be in the same room as people whose work I respect and admire was one of my highlights of 2011.  Now, a year later, we’re now halfway through The Standard with 3 issues in the can, and I’m delighted to report that once again, The Standard has been nominated for SICBAs for Best Comic and Best Writer.

The awards show will be held this year at the Citizen M Hotel on Saturday 30th June, the night of the first day of the Glasgow Comic Con.  As soon as I have details on when and how you can vote, I’ll let you all know.

It is an honour to be recognised once again for these awards, especially given the calibre of the talent I’m nominated alongside.  Special shout-outs to fellow Glasgow League of Writers members Gordon McLean and Colin Bell for the nominations garnered by No More Heroes and Jonbot VS Martha respectively.  I’d like to think I have progressed a lot since last year’s nominations – I’ve tabled as a pro at a con for the first time since then, and have since been to several marts and conventions – but it’s still just as exciting to be an award nominee.  Everybody wish The Standard the best of luck!

The Standard in 2012

Hello everyone!  This is, I believe, the 100th post on this blog, and the last one of 2011.  So, to commemorate this mini-landmark, I thought I would look ahead to 2012, and share with you all what to expect from The Standard in the New Year.

For starters, there’s the pressing concern of The Standard #3.  First, I want to thank you all for your patience, and apologise for the long wait.  I have had a lot of people asking me when issue #3 is due for release, which I feel guilty about, though on the positive side the fact that I have people asking at least shows that you’re interested, and care about what happens next.  All I can say is that the delays have been unfortunate but unavoidable, and I’m confident things will get back on track in 2012.  Right now, I’m expecting The Standard #3 to be ready for February 2012.  The pencils are nearing completion, and then it’s just a matter of getting the coloring and lettering done.  I will say that Jonathan Rector has outdone himself once again: the pages I’ve seen have blown me away.  To whet your appetite a little, I’m going to share with you a sneak peek at The Standard #3:

 

Looking further ahead, I’m also planning on taking The Standard to more conventions this year.  In May, I will be going to the Kapow Con in London.  I’ll have a table there with the Glasgow League of Writers, and I’ll be bringing along Standard-related goodies, hopefully including The Standard #4 and a collection with a London-exclusive cover.  The following month, in June, I also aim to be at Glasgow Comic Con, hopefully building on the success of being nominated at my local convention’s SICBA awards this year.  And I intend to return to the Big Apple in October for New York Comic Con 2012.  All indications seem to be that the ComixTribe presence next year is going to be bigger and better than this year’s breakthrough debut, and I definitely want The Standard to be a big part of that.  It may be an optimistic goal, but I’d like for all 6 issues to be released by that time, so that I can debut the graphic novel collected edition in New York.

In other news, I also hope to see The Standard break into the American comic store market in 2012.  Currently, The Standard is available to buy in comic stores in Glasgow, but American readers have to rely on reading it digitally or ordering it online.  I want that to change, and for my comic to be more accessible to those who are interested in reading it.  And it seems like some avenues could be opening up in the coming months to get The Standard into an American LCS near you, so watch this space for further updates!

2011 has been a great year for me and The Standard.  It was the year that this idea that has been in development for so long was finally unleashed on the world.  Thank you to everyone who has supported the comic, and I hope you’ll stick around for the year ahead!

The Standard at SICBA Exhibition

All this week, running daily up until Friday 30th September, the Mackintosh Church, Arts & Heritage Centre will be running an exhibition showcasing the nominees of the Glasgow Comic Con’s Scottish Independent Comic Book Awards.  On display is a gallery of framed artwork from each of these comics, and the exhibition also has a pop-up indy comic shop selling all the nominated titles and other quality books from the Scottish small press.

The Standard was nominated for two SICBAs – Best Writer, and Best Comic/Graphic Novel.  As such, I am excited to report it is being featured as part of the exhibition.  That’s right, Jonathan Rector – your artwork is now in display in a gallery here in Scotland!

The Mackintosh Church, Arts & Heritage Centre is the same venue that the Glasgow Comic Con was held in earlier this year.  It can be found on Garscube Road.  It’s a little out of the way from the City Centre, but this not-very-helpful map kinda shows how you can acces it:

If you’re up for the journey out there, however, it would be great if you could check out the SICBA Exhibition.  As well as The Standard, there are lots of great indy comics being showcased there.  I can’t wait to check out the exhibition myself at some point this week.

Glasgow Comic & Toy Fair Report

Setting up for the Glasgow Comic & Toy Fair

I don’t normally update this site on weekends, but I thought there was no time like the present for posting up a recap of today’s events.  Today, at the Queen Margaret Union at Glasgow University, I attended the Glasgow Comic & Toy Fair, selling the first two issues of The Standard.  I posted over on my personal blog about my first experience tabling as a pro last week.  That was a small event at the same venue, with no publicity, and so there wasn’t much of a turn-out.  Today’s fair was much more successful.  Even before the 12pm opening, there were early birds filtering in, and once it got going properly, things got really busy.

I was once again sat next to my Glasgow League of Writers compatriot Gary Chudleigh, who today was with his Obscure Reference Comics partner Graeme Kennedy.  They were selling the first issue of their comic, Villainous, another series which is certainly worth checking out.  I, meanwhile, had both The Standard #1 and The Standard #2 for sale, and I’m pleased to say there was a lot of interest in the series.  I had surpassed the sales I made over the whole day last week within the first hour, and things went up and up from there.  Some people had no awareness of The Standard until I pitched the comic to them.  Others had spotted the first issue in Glasgow comic shops and were interested in reading more.  And a few mentioned learning about the comic through this site, which made me happy!  Thanks again for checking out the site, guys.  I’m glad it made you interested to give the comic a try, and I hope the end product doesn’t disappoint you.  Whatever made you give the comic a try, a big thank you to everyone who picked up one or two issues of The Standard today!

Some of the GLoW Team: Me, Luke Halsall, Graeme Kennedy, Gary Chudleigh, Gordon Robertson

On another note, I was also incredibly pleased with the awareness we were able to build for the Glasgow League of Writers over the course of the day.  Gordon Robertson, writer of Arse Cancer, printed out a whole bunch of flyers for the event, and they were almost all gone by the end of the fair.  A whole lot of people had questions about GLoW, and were eager to find out more.  As it turns out, there seems to be a real demand – in Glasgow, at least – for a community where writers can get together and talk about making comics.  GLoW has most certainly been that community for me, and I can’t wait to see where that community goes next with all the potential new faces.

All in all, the Glasgow Comic & Toy Fair was a great day.  It’s the first time I’ve been to one of these fairs – which Glasgow Comic Con organisers Sha Nazir and John Farman run twice a year – and I’d definitely be up for going  again.  Thanks to Sha and John for a great event, and thanks again to everyone who came along and supported The Standard!

Me and my comics!