We’ve added a second signing to our England trip in early February!
I’ll be signing at the Forbidden Planet comic shop in Middlesbrough, England on February 12th at 3pm. If you live in the area it would be great to see you there!
Click here for the Facebook Event
As part of my trip to the Animex festival next month I’ll be signing at Orbital Comics in London, England on February 5th at 4pm. If you live in the area it would be great to see you there!
I should have details for another signing event in Middlesbrough soon as well.
Click here for the Facebook Event
NOW is the time to let your local comic shop know that you want to per-order a copy of Skullkickers Volume 1, which arrives in March.
Image is value pricing our first trade at the incredibly low price of $9.99 (as they have with hit series including The Walking Dead, Invincible and Chew) and we want to make the biggest splash possible when it’s released, increasing our readership and showing the comic community that fun non-superhero stuff is worthy.
Here are 3 solid pre-order options:
1) Go to your local comic shop
Use the spiffy Comic Shop Locator website to find the closest shop and let them know you want a copy of Skullkickers put aside for you.
Skullkickers Book 1- 1000 Opas and a Dead Body JAN110576
2) Pre-order from Barnes & Nobles
Click here to pre-order from B&N:
3) Pre-order from Amazon
Click here to pre-order from Amazon.com:
A week before Christmas I pulled together a group of friends to head over to Corey Mintz’s place to play some Dungeons & Dragons. Corey’s a columnist for the Toronto Star who interviews people over dinner parties he throws at his apartment. It makes for cool hybrid Cooking-People style articles and is a fantastic ice-breaker for getting people to open up.
The Toronto Star article just went live and it’s a fun nostalgic look at Corey’s D&D past mixed with his more self-aware present. He also has a slightly more in-depth run through of our get-together (along with some great photos) over on his Porkosity blog.
Our game crew for the night:
Ray Fawkes
Stacy King
Robin Laws
Corey Mintz
Tory Woollcott
Three show appearances for 2011 have been nailed down, so here they are:
February 7-11 Animex: In early February I’ll be heading to Teesside, England for the Animex game and animation festival as a guest speaker and lecturer.
March 4-6 Emerald City Comicon: About a month later we’ll be launching the first Skullkickers trade paperback at the ECCC in Seattle and I’ll be stationed at the Image booth.
May 7-8 TCAF: Then in May I’ll be exhibiting at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival here in downtown Toronto. With free attendance and an easily accessible location it will be busy and exciting, as always.
Comic Book Resources and Robot 6 team-up for a brand new interview all about Skullkickers that includes exclusive artwork and a sneak peek at issue #5!
Some times I get a chance to bang out thoughts on the year that was, but I don’t do it as often as I should. So, here goes…
2010
2010 was, unarguably, a banner year. It’s one that will warm my heart in possible future chilly times and a year I will never forget.
Marriage. A relationship that’s grown in depth and joy the longer it’s gone on. I’m unbelievably thankful for the love and support Stacy has brought to my life. I wake up each morning and don’t feel complete until I have my wedding ring on. Seriously. I know that’s the kind of afterglow that comes with 2 months of happy marriage, but the deep bond I feel surprises me time and time again as we embark on this amazing journey together.
Career. UDON celebrated 10 years and released a commemorative anthology/tutorial book I spearheaded. Other UDON-related duties included writing a 4 issue Street Fighter mini-series and managing high profile projects including ad/concept work for Inception, Clash of the Titans, Godzilla, Alice: Madness Returns and Suckerpunch. The company is focused and the books the studio has lined up for 2011 are looking sharp.
Career. I wrapped up my 2 year probationary period for full-time employment at Seneca, so I really am a Professor and Coordinator now. Crazy. The college has been incredibly supportive of my work schedule and other pursuits. The students continue to inspire and challenge.
Career. I launched a creator-owned comic series at Image called Skullkickers that has been an exciting roller coaster ride. I’ve built up fantastic new working relationships, pushed myself creatively and am doing my best to make a mark in comics bit-by-bit. In an industry where original properties tend to die, we’re fighting the good fight and getting some decent press coverage while Image puts some extra muscle behind the trade release coming in March. I tentatively pitched SK as a mini-series but it’s now expanded in to an ongoing that will be keeping me extra busy in 2011.
Travel. England (London and Teesside), USA (Seattle x2, Dallas, San Diego, Hawaii, Portland, New York, Baltimore and Boston), Japan (Tokyo) and Canada (Calgary and Quebec City). This may have been the most travel-centric year I’ve ever experienced. I didn’t even realize how many places I’d been to in 2010 until I went back through my calendar and photos.
I keep telling myself that 2011 cannot be as crazy as ’10 was. The fact that we made it through so much astonishes me. If Stacy and I can handle all of that and still arrive at December 31st with buoyant energy I know we can handle whatever 2011 throws at us.
2011 Goals
– Communicate joy. Tell people how much I appreciate them more often. Compliment the people around me who are doing great things. Engage creative people online and let them know that their work is inspiring.
– Buy less and buy smarter. Stacy and I have been talking about how we don’t need as much “stuff”. Question purchases and ensure that what’s being bought is needed and decent quality. Our money is better served paying down the mortgage and having new experiences rather than just piling items in to our home.
– Cook more. I enjoy cooking and find it challenging and rewarding. I want to cook more and try new foods.
– Keep going. Keep doing the things I love and put myself behind the work, day in and day out. The plan (is there a plan?) is working. Keep going. Don’t stop.
In and around holiday festivities we’ve had a few new Skullkickers #4 reviews roll in.
“Jim Zub’s writing is fun and breezy, Edwin Huang and Misty Coats provide some great, anime style art with crisp, clean colors, and the whole thing is just, well… Fun.”
“Skullkickers is a D&D inspired world where, like the game itself, the deeper you get into it the better it gets. With each issue Zubkavich is able to squeeze in more tropes of the fantasy world and then make them a) awesome and b) hilarious. It’s all about awesome action and big laughs — it’s a great mix.”
“Skullkickers is easily one of my favorite comics being published right now and this issue is another prime example of why. It’s big, bold, and bodacious in its unrelenting awesomeness. It has memorable characters, great action, and a unique sense of humor that sets it apart from every other book on the stands. “
“Skullkickers continues to be a fun read”…”I like this comic; I’ve decided to add it to my pull-list, and wish it great success. “
My good friend Tory Woollcott made up a fantastically cute little Dwarf Skullkickers Christmas ornament. I’ve had it for a couple weeks but wanted to make sure it was photographed on the tree and properly lit, so here it is!
He’s got the beard braids, ponytail and angry eyebrows… so awesome!
Tory, you rock.
Merry Christmas!
Image Comics asked us to provide the artwork for their official Christmas card this year and we were honoured to put this piece together for them. Line art by Edwin, colours by me. 🙂
All the best to you and yours this holiday season!
Zub on Amazon
Zub on BlueSky
Zub on deviantART
Zub on Facebook
Zub on GoodReads
Zub on Instagram
Zub on Patreon
Zub on Substack
Zub on Tumblr
Zub on Twitter
Zub on YouTube
Follow this blog's RSS feed
Makeshift Miracle