The Coolest Comic Book Covers of All Time?

Apparently the cover for Sweets #2 made it into a list of 'The Coolest Comic Book Covers of All Time' and I'm thrilled! The list includes many of my personal favorites, so I'm honored and a little humbled by it. However, I'm pretty sure that guy was bribed because there are some absolutely amazing covers that weren't included. I'd happily give up my spot to see more Bill Sienkiewicz, John Buscema, Frank Miller, Ashley Wood, and Mike Mignola in there (among others). Click image to enlarge.

Here's the article

Upcoming Appearances

Signing at Big Easy Comics
with Rob Guillory (CHEW) and Nick Jones (Green Lantern)
Saturday, April 9th, 2011, 10am - 4pm
5150 Hwy 22, Suite C-3, Mandeville, LA
(985) 792-7800 ‎

Signing at Southern Fried Comics
with Rob Guillory (CHEW)
Saturday, April 16, 2011 from 4pm - 9pm
136 East Front St., Hattiesburg, MS
(601) 582-7080

Cover art for SWEETS #5 !

Here you go! Click image to enlarge.

Cover!

Here's a look at the cover for issue #3 of SWEETS. Note, I did already show this on Facebook and Twitter last week, so everyone on those pages got a sneak peek last week.

Enjoy! (Click image to enlarge)

Kingfish!

I'll be launching this shirt sometime in the next few days. The Kingfish Cab Company is a fictional company that exists only in the pages of SWEETS. For those that don't know, 'Kingfish' was a nickname of two South Louisiana icons: Legendary New Orleans mafia boss Carlos Marcello, who ruled the region for almost 30 years; and our flamboyant governor/senator Huey P. Long, who served in the '20's and '30's. With that in mind, the fish used in the Kingfish logo design is a Piranha!

I figured I'd give you a sneak peek of the finished design. Click image to enlarge.

Issue #2 Cover Sketches

Cover sketches for issue 2 of SWEETS. Just wrapped up the inks, and I'm nearly done coloring. I'll upload a peek soon. Enjoy!

One more...

Here's a logo I designed for one of the fake companies in my new comic. I've been having a lot of fun with these.

The pitch!

The pitch pages are done! Finished up the lettering today, and now I've got to comb over the script a few times to make sure it's solid. Should have it in the mail to the publisher on Monday. More info on that soon.

Color experiments

Some color experiments using the iPhone app called Peppermint. I do these when I'm stuck waiting in line somewhere or when I take a little break. It's a good way to take a quick break from drawing and avoid wasting time on Facebook or Twitter. I've included a screen grab of the Peppermint app so you can see one of the color wheel tools.

Anytime I need a new color palette for an illustration or design, I pull these up to help speed up the process. Adobe's Kuler works in a similar way and ties into all the Adobe apps, but I do find the Peppermint iPhone app a bit more convenient since I can play with it just about anywhere and quickly crank out a few color experiments.

Promo piece

Here's a peek at the SWEETS promo piece I showed around at various conventions this past year. The logo was done rather quickly and was meant to be a placeholder, and it's not quite what I'm looking for.

So I'll be reworking it with a few new ideas in mind, many of which came from working hard on the script and picking a few visual themes that lend themselves to the logo. I do have a specific vision in mind of what I want the logo to accomplish, but it's going to take some real work to get it there. I'll keep posting updates as I go.

The promo artwork contains a few of the elements in the story without actually revealing any plot points. Here on the right as the original ink scan, it's about 15 x 11 inches.

Logo tests with woodblock type

Did some experimenting this past week with some wood type blocks I picked up a few years ago. I'll be doing a few tests with these for the SWEETS comic logo. I may or may not end up using them, but I really wanted to do some testing before making a decision on it. I'll be using oil based paint and a roller to create prints directly from the woodblocks. I've got to make a trip to pick up a few more cleaning supplies before I put oil paint anywhere near these things. Don't want to damage or stain the wood. I'll show a sneak peek at soon as I have something solid worked up. This is gonna be fun.

What's all this about, anyway?

Welcome to my BLOG.

Here's a bit of info on why I started a blog, and why you may, or may not, find it interesting.

I'm in the early stages of a new creator owned comic currently titled "Sweets." On this particular comic I'll be doing ALMOST everything including writing, drawing, coloring, marketing, logo design, etc. I'd probably run the printing press if they'd let me. I just really enjoy the process of making comics so I get involved with as much of it as I can. Why let someone else have all the fun?

So I've decided to disclose as much of the process as I can without causing trouble. That means I'll avoid story spoilers, and I may shy away from certain things (like specific financial details) because it could hurt my ability to negotiate certain things down the road. But I will try and be as upfront and honest about as much as I can, and when I'm not able to disclose specific information I'll make an effort to explain why. I'll also be mirroring all this info on my forum over at Digital Webbing since some enjoy reading the forum format more than the Blog format.

What's going to be discussed? I'll talk about all sorts of things from art tools, software, inking techniques, tips and tricks, thumbnails, business decisions, marketing strategy, design tricks, dealing with publishers, storytelling decisions, Hollywood chaos, etc. However, I won't make any promises about posting daily or with any guaranteed frequency. Deadlines can be hell, and that means I'll be going 'off the grid' for a while when I need to.

Along the way I'll answer as many questions as possible.

How's that sound?