So, how was your day yesterday? 🙂

Man oh man… I was not prepared for the incredible response from the announcement that I’m now writing for DC Comics, taking over fan favorite title Birds of Prey starting in March with issue #18.

Friends, family, fans and a wave of new readers came out of the woodwork to congratulate me and wish me well. It was unbelievable and heartwarming. I was really nervous about the announcement and worried that people would make assumptions about my story plans or assume I was a bad fit, but that wasn’t the case at all. Lots of people telling me they’ll pick up the series and give it a try, lots of encouragement and excitement. I actually had to shut my internet off in the afternoon so I could get my page count for the day done (finishing up my 2nd Birds of Prey script, ironically enough) because the messages from well wishers were bombarding my email inbox every minute or two.

So incredible. Thank you, everyone.

For anyone who hasn’t heard of Birds of Prey, it’s a monthly DC comic book centered around a team of (almost always) female superheroes. It chronicles their triumphs and failures, their missions and personal moments. It’s a series that’s been around, in various incarnations, for over 15 years. It has a loyal and dedicated fan base who have grown to love the characters and their adventures.

As I covered in the interview yesterday, it’s a big challenge and one I’m really enjoying digging into. Working for DC, one of the “Big Two” of the North American comic book industry, is a real step up in terms of the profile, audience size and legitimacy of my work. It’s the sporting equivalent of moving from triple-A into the major leagues.

Although I can’t reveal everyone on the team for my run just yet, here are the characters that are public knowledge so far:

BATGIRL: The genius crime-fighting prodigy of the Dark Night detective.
BLACK CANARY: A top-notch martial artist who can emit a powerful sonic scream called the “Canary Cry”.
STARLING: A trouble-making and sassy marksman who specializes in espionage and information gathering.
STRIX: A mute assassin who escaped from a nefarious cult-like organization called the Court of Owls.

I’m working with well established DC mainstays, evolving the story for current characters and developing new heroes and villains to introduce into the series. It’s a really exciting time for me and I can’t wait until the first issue of my run arrives in stores. If you haven’t read a superhero comic before, or have lapsed from reading them, I’d be thrilled if you considered picking up Birds of Prey #18 in March or, if you want to jump in with both feet, let your local comic shop know you want to subscribe so they can hold a copy for you every month.

2013 looks like it’s going to be a really exciting year.

Ryan North (creator of Dinosaur Comics, builder of Project Wonderful and writer of the Adventure Time comic series) asked me to contribute an illustration to his upcoming Choose Your Own Adventure-style story of Shakespeare’s Hamlet called To Be Or Not To Be: That Is The Adventure and I enthusiastically jumped on board. It’s a fun idea with tons of potential and has an insane line-up of talented artists involved. I’m stoked to see how this all comes together.

If you like Shakespeare, comics, humor or just want to support something fun and innovative, I encourage you to pre-order a copy now via Kickstarter.

After a successful launch over the weekend at New York Comicon, I’m very proud to announce that Skullkickers Vol. 3: Six Shooter on the Seven Seas is available starting today at comic shops across North America.

The whole team worked their butts off on this third story arc and it really shows. If you’ve been enjoying the series, please show your support by picking up a copy of our latest collection and letting your friends know that we’re bringing the goods with each and every issue.

Klonoa: Dream Traveler of Noctis Sol

Based on the video game by NAMCO BANDAI Games

Written by Jim Zub
Art by Hitoshi Ariga
Coloring by Espen Grundetjern
Made for ShiftyLook by UDON Entertainment
Updates Wednesdays 9:00AM Pacific

If you’ve never had a chance to play any of the Klonoa video games, you really are missing out. Klonoa is a joyous platform adventure game loaded with memorable characters, creative designs and simple but addictive gameplay. The series has been a cult hit amongst gamers for years and has a small but dedicated fanbase who have been hoping for year to see a sequel.

Getting the chance to add a new chapter to the Klonoa story and work with mangaka Hitoshi Ariga (artist of Mega Man and The Big O in Japan) is a dream come true. Bandai-Namco has been extremely supportive and Hitoshi Ariga has done an incredible job at taking some of my ideas and designing/illustrating the heck out of them. His art style melds perfectly with the game’s look and feel. Add in Espen’s top notch coloring to the mix and the final result is pretty stunning.

With so many characters and places from previous games to draw upon, we wanted to make sure we put some fan favorite elements in while not getting so bogged down with nostalgia that we couldn’t move things forward. There will be new friends, new enemies and new places to explore as Noctis Sol rolls out. I hope long time Klonoa fans and new readers appreciate the hard work we’ve put into developing our story.

Skullkickers #17 is in stores now! I’m incredibly proud of this third story arc and our fans seem to agree that we’ve delivered the goods once again.

Here are links to some of the reviews rolling in:

Comic Buzz: “9/10. The Skullkickers are at their best when things are at their most insane and this arc is a boat full of crazy.”

Fanboy Comics: “Skullkickers is perfect for fans of fantasy adventure or just anyone looking for a fun, violent read that will leave them in stitches.”

First Comics News: “…very good for a final chapter of an arc while also leaving an exciting cliffhanger.”

Geeks of Doom: “…there are few comics on shelves right now that match Skullkickers in terms of pure unfiltered insanity. This is why comics are made and why we love reading them so much.”

One Geek Nation: “5/5. The story itself flows so damn smoothly, you’d think you’re going down a waterslide. Jim Zub is quickly becoming the next best thing in comics.”

Product of my Dreams: “10/10. This is my second time reading Skullkickers and my excitement for this series hasn’t left yet.”

Unleash the Fanboy: “4½/5. Whether it’s the death of a character or the development of the current ones, the actual narrative itself is sustainable without all the jokes and humor; but it’s the funny take that makes it so refreshing.”

This year’s Gen Con Indy (August 16-19) is going to be epic.

I’m toggling between three different locations promoting a trio of gaming-related goodness.

Skullkickers: I’m set up at Booth #745 along with with Tracy Hickman (Dragonlance, XDM, Wayne of Gotham) and Howard Tayler (Schlock Mercenary) promoting Skullkickers with comic issues, books and our convention exclusive Skullkickers World Map.

Munchkin-Skullkickers: Steve Jackson Games (Booth #1301) will have copies of Munchkin-Skullkickers for sale and I’ll be signing over there for a couple hours on Thursday and Saturday.

Pathfinder the Comic Series: The Pathfinder comic launches at Gen Con! Paizo Publishing (Booth #203) has an exclusive variant cover of the first issue for sale at the show and I’ll be signing at select times each day along side artist Andrew Huerta.

Here’s the full floor map:

Thursday, August 16th
10:00 – 12:00 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)
12:00 – 01:00 lunch break
01:00 – 03:00 Zub signing at the Paizo Booth (#203)
03:00 – 04:30 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)
04:30 – 05:30 Zub signing at Steve Jackson Games Booth (#1301)
05:30 – 06:00 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)

Friday, August 17th
10:00 – 11:00 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)
11:00 – 12:00 lunch break
12:00 – 02:00 Zub signing at the Paizo Booth (#203)
02:00 – 06:00 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)

Saturday, August 18th
10:00 – 12:00 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)
12:00 – 01:00 lunch break
01:00 – 03:00 Zub signing at the Paizo Booth (#203)
03:00 – 05:00 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)
05:00 – 06:00 Zub signing at Steve Jackson Games Booth (#1301)

Sunday, August 19th
10:00 – 11:00 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)
11:00 – 12:00 Zub signing at the Paizo Booth (#203)
12:00 – 01:00 lunch break
01:00 – 04:00 Zub at XDM/Schlock/Skullkickers Booth (#745)

This one’s been in the works a while and it’s a bit hard for me to believe that it’s finally been announced.

I’m the writer of the upcoming comic story Klonoa: The Dream Traveller of Noctis Sol comic being drawn by legendary manga artist Hitoshi Ariga (Mega Man Megamix, Big O) !

This all-ages comic strip series, running absolutely free on Bandai-Namco’s ShiftyLook site, will be a brand new Klonoa adventure. It will include familiar characters from Klonoa: Door to Phantomile (PS1 and Wii) and Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil (PS2) while also adding new characters and amazing places to the franchise.

I’ve been a Klonoa fan ever since I played Phantomile on Playstation back in 1998. The appealing designs, fun gameplay and engaging storyline really jumped out at me as something special. Being able to team up with a manga artist as incredible as Hitoshi Ariga to bring Klonoa back after a 10 year hiatus is just stunning to me. I’m working really hard to make sure our comic lives up to the quality of the games (7 in total, though most were only released in Japan) while forging new paths and creating new worlds. If you check out some of Ariga’s sample artwork, you can see how much he understands and appreciates the look and feel of the Klonoa world.

As we get closer to our August/September launch date for the series, I’ll update with more teasers and interviews. Until then, wish me luck as I tackle this new and exciting project!

PRESS:
Anime News Network
Destructoid Reveal
Destructoid: Best News of the Show

PS: I’ve never worked on a project where people have created fan art even before it launches! Holy moley! Check out these two great pics:
PhuiJL on deviantART
Hewpoe by Brave Wing

Over at digital comic powerhouse site comiXology, they’re having a special Skullkickers Sale until Thursday. 99 cents per issue and 50% off collections!

It’s the perfect time to get caught up on the series or hook your friends on our brand of monster mashing madness! Go now!

The crew at The Electric Playground filmed this interview with me at TCAF back in May and it’s finally available online. Check it out!

Since it’s Father’s Day today, let me tell you a little story about my Dad.

Beyond raising me and letting my brother and I grow up as comic book loving RPG-playing nerd boys, he helped me start on this weird and wonderful career in comics.

The year is 2002. I’m living in Halifax working at a small animation studio, struggling to get by. Finances are tight, way tighter than my girlfriend and I had planned when we decided to move out east. Work isn’t steady. It’s a stressful and difficult time.

One of the only things going well was the little webcomic I was creating in my spare time. It was called the Makeshift Miracle (yes, the same one I relaunched with UDON and am rebuilding now a decade later). Three times a week I would work away in the evening creating new pages and posting them online, learning about comic storytelling – what worked and what didn’t. Even when everything else was a mess, I could focus a bit on Makeshift and feel like I was making creative progress.

With San Diego Comicon coming up fast and furious, there was a lot of talk among webcomic creators about being at the show. Joey Manley was organizing a Modern Tales get together. Scott McCloud was insistent this was the year webcomics would really break out and make an impression on mainstream comic readers. It was exciting times. Still, no matter how amazing it sounded, there was no way I’d be able to attend. My finances were shot and my credit card was maxed.

When Dad heard about this convention, he asked me flat-out.

“I know the comic thing is your hobby, but is this trip important?”

I couldn’t really say it was. Not really. It was just a comic convention. A bunch of webcomic people meeting in person and hanging out isn’t “important”. But it felt like it was the start of something exciting and just about everyone I knew and respected creating comics online at that point was going to be there. Even though I told my Dad that it wasn’t important, he could tell deep down I kind of thought it was.

That was that. He cleared my credit card bill and insisted that I book a flight to San Diego. He helped push me that crucial last step. I attended my first comic convention thanks to his immense generosity and kindness.

I cut as many corners as possible and used every contact I had to make it work. My friend Cam drove me to the airport on the back of his motorcycle so I didn’t need a taxi. My friend Aeire picked me up at the airport so I wouldn’t have to pay for a cab in California either. I split meals and made PB&J sandwiches. I crashed on hotel floors and friends’ couches, leaning on everyone I even vaguely knew, many of whom had never even met me in person before.

It was worth it. The friendships I made that week in San Diego helped me feel like I was part of a larger creative community. It inspired me to want more from my art and stories. Less than a year later, after a roller coaster ride of ups and downs personally and financially, I started working at UDON.

I’ve attended San Diego Comicon every single year since. In a few weeks it’ll actually be my 10th SDCC in a row and, no matter how crazy and frustrating it can be at times, I feel it’s an important annual milestone for me. A good time to look back at where I’ve been and where I hope to be in the years ahead.

My father helped make my silly comic book dream a reality.
It’s just one of the many reasons I’ll forever be in his debt.

Love ya, Dad.