Zub Tales

The WAYWARD COMPENDIUM arrived in comic shops yesterday and will be available in bookstores everywhere on October 6th.

Finally getting this 904-page brick o’ book in my hands feels wonderful and surreal. All 30 issues, plus an extensive cover gallery and back matter.

Every creative project I work on feels like a time capsule. When I look at them, there’s a rush of memories immediately associated with each one – Where I was when I wrote key sections, nervous excitement when we got the greenlight from a publisher, amazing art, unexpected collaboration, friendships, triumphs and setbacks.

When it comes to Wayward, those feelings are even more visceral. The series was almost five years of concentrated effort right at that tipping point as I was making a name for myself, working closely with Steven, Tamra, Marshall and Zack at every step – inspiration and experimentation, research and travel. From launch to completion, on Wayward I feel like I really came into my own as a writer and the whole team leveled up.

I remember being at San Diego Comicon back in 2015 signing at the Marvel booth. Dan Slott was beside me signing at the same time and, while I was putting my signature on a few Thunderbolts issues, he was signing massive Amazing Spider-Man omnibuses. I imagined what it would feel like to have that much material collected together like that.

This bullet-stopper of a book is a milestone made manifest. It’s who I was from 2014-2018 and a celebration of what’s possible when I put an intense amount of effort into something original, working with great people at every step to create something we can be proud of.

It summons all kinds of great feelings and, honestly? I didn’t realize how much I’d missed that.

All that to say, with 8 years now passed since Wayward wrapped up, I really need to get back into the creator-owned comic space…

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Canadians Conquering Conan Panel

Evan Todd from Stygian Dogs has posted up his video from the Canadians Conquering Conan panel at Fan Expo Canada. Mike Rooth, Fred Kennedy, Nick Marinkovich and I chatted all about our experiences working in the Hyborian Age and there’s a nice series of anecdotes and playful jabs throughout.

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The Nomad Deluxe

On October 7th, you’ll be able to buy the deluxe hardcover version of THE NOMAD, the epic King Conan story Alex Horley and I put together for the 25th issue of Conan the Barbarian last year. It’s a fully painted 38-page story that celebrates the legacy of Conan – past, present, and future.

I genuinely think it’s one of the best stories I’ve worked on and am honored that Titan decided to put together this lavish oversized version that includes a bunch of extra back matter and a new introduction I wrote.

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Current + Upcoming Releases

• Conan the Barbarian #34 – released August 26.
• Wayward Compendium – released September 9.
• Journey to the West: The Beginning – releases September 15.
• Savage Sword of Conan #16 – releases September 16.
• Conan the Barbarian vol. 4-6 Slipcase Set – releases September 16.
• Conan: Tides of the Tyrant-King #1 – releases September 23.
• Savage Sword of Conan vol. 1-3 Slipcase Set – releases September 23.
• Conan the Barbarian #35 – releases September 30.
• Conan: Tides of the Tyrant-King #2 – releases October 21.
• Conan the Barbarian #36 – releases October 28.
• Conan: Tides of the Tyrant-King #3 – releases November 18.
• Conan the Barbarian #37 – releases November 24.

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Upcoming Appearances

Sep 11-13, 2026	Ottawa Comicon	Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
Oct 15-18, 2026	Gamehole	Madison, WI, USA
Nov 12-15, 2026	D&D Weekend	Lake Sinclair, GA, USA
Jan 14-16, 2027	Philadelphia Area Gaming Expo	Philadelphia, PA, USA

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Other Links

• My creator-owned comic pal Kurtis Wiebe has put together a crowdfunding campaign to bring back the Rat Queens Board Game that went off the rails years ago when the game publisher didn’t uphold their end of things and manufacture or ship the games fans had paid for. Kurtis and his team have the rights back and are looking to finally make the game a reality and also send each backer of the original campaign a set for free. I hope they’re able to make it happen for their many fans.

• Randall Messman has a video all about the importance of physical media compared to digital files and the cloud. It’s a solid rundown of why collections and ownership feel so different and detached in the here and now and how to get a bit of that magic back.

• Dave Baker has a bunch of interesting pop culture retrospective videos on his YouTube Channel Mystery Treehouse and his latest, all about Nate Simpson’s comic Nonplayer, is a compelling discussion about ambition, art, commerce and perfectionism. Nonplayer came out around the same time as the second arc of Skullkickers and I distinctly remember being amazed by the work and then wondering what happened next, so this video was both informative and a bit heartbreaking.

Jim