New British Small Press Community launched

Comic creator Trystan Mitchell just dropped us a note to mention an excellent new Small Press Comics Community Forum has just been birthed in the UK, dedicated to small press comics and self publishing. Some excellent discussions and experience sharing going on between some really inspirational creators and fans.

"It looks like developing into a really valuable asset and worthwhile venue," says Illustrator, writer paper toy creator and sign-writer Trystan, whose credits include work for The Guardian and commissions for campaigning organisations The Land is Ours and Greenpeace. "Highly recommended."

It's described as a forum for Small Press comic fans, contributors and creators where they can share and discuss their Small Press Comics and other comic discussion.

Always good to see another place for British creators to chew over ideas and trade tips and offer advice. Along with our own Forum, Smallzone, Bugpowder, the Temple APA and the official 2000AD forum, to name but a few, the opportunities for this are ever growing.

- Check it out at: http://www.spcomics.org/

Tube Surfing: Midnight Openings, Shocking Twists and Some Ace New Comics

(Above: Sarah McIntyre doodling for charity.)

Time for another tube surf...

Richard Bruton of the Forbidden Planet International blog has posted a preview of Will Kirkby's magnificent looking Tuk Tuk comic. See it here.

Also at that blog, there's the third and final in a series of reports on the Birmingham Comicon, this time written by Michael Gee of Nostalgia and Comics.

Meanwhile, ace small press news-log Bugpowder makes us aware that Rob Jackson's Flying Leaf Creature is out.

According to the site, "Rob Jackson's trademark blend of absurdist, child-like whimsy, sweet-humoured tone and disarmingly naive cartooning (shades of Mr.Benn here) is present in this full-colour tabloid-format comic."

Cartoonist, illustrator and writer Sarah McIntyre provides a report and photos from the Klimb Children's Book Illustration Auction, which saw her and other artists doodling for charity.

Writer Tony Lee reports on the Orbital Comics Midnight Extravaganza, a midnight opening at that well-known London-based comics shop to celebrate the launch of DC's new line-wide reboot of its characters and titles.

Novelist, comics scriptwriter, beat activist, artist, agitator, DJ, sushi expert and sonic assassin Al Ewing writes about some of those rebooted DC comics over at the Travelling Man blog.

Ace artist D'Israeli reveals why he'll never be rich at his blog.

And finally, I'm really digging this new blog devoted to science fiction comic 2000 AD's Future Shocks.

Tube Surfing: Drinking, Drawing... and other stuff too!

• If you're in the area this Sunday, you could do worse than pop along to Manchester Comic Collective's (MCC) monthly Drink 'n' Draw. It kicks off at 4pm and is usually lots of fun (although I haven't made it down for a fair few months). From the MCC blog:

'[It's a] casual get together of people who like to draw and also drink. Anyone is welcome... Free entry, materials and snacks provided and 10% off at the bar.'

(This monthly event is usually held at Sandbar, but you better check their official site in case the venue has changed.)




The Shoot from Tony Lee on Vimeo


• The Shoot, a short film written by comics writer Tony Lee (Doctor Who, 2000AD, The Gloom), is now online. He'd like feedback, so go watch it and then... well, feed back...

• Indie comics news site  Bugpowder has just done a handy little round-up of activity on the Irish comics scene. Worth a look...

• Can someone please give Dan McDaid the cash to realise this 'Sherlock Holmes meets the Doctor' commision as a full strip?

• And finally, the Blank Slate Books website appears to have had a makeover. (Or maybe I didn't notice and it all happened ages ago.)

Tube Surfing: Alan Moore, web/hyper/small press/all types of comics and events aplenty too!

Alan Moore guests on Utter Shambles, a podcast hosted by comedians Robin Ince and Josie Long.

Pete Ashton will be talking about the emergence of the British small press comics scene in the early eighties at the Birmingham Zine Festival in September.

Al Davison's new web-comic, Muscle Memory: A Survivor's Story, is online. (Via Bugpowder)

Head down to the Comica Comiket small press fair in London this Sunday. (Also via Bugpowder)

The Forbidden Planet International blog has posted a very useful comics and zine-related events round-up.

Tube Surfing: Dez Skinn, Fanzines Galore and Simone Lia

Right, what's happening out there...

Lew Stringer's ace comics blog informs us that Dez Skinn has a new website. Dez was, of course, the man behind such titles as Warrior, Comics International and Doctor Who Weekly (still with us as Doctor Who Magazine).

Warwick Johnson Cadwell has posted his ace A.B.C Warriors strip from new 2000 AD fanzine, Nu Earth online at his blog. Warwick sent me a copy of the fanzine and I have to say it's, well, zarjaz. Will Kirkby has done the same with the pencils for his cracking contribution, a fab Rogue Trooper strip. Tharg, employ these men now!!!

Paul Gravett's new article about and interview with cartoonist Simone Lia is well worth checking out. In the interview, Simone talks about various topics, including her new work-in-progress, a graphic novel about her relationship with God:

"I was passing through Leicester Square almost three years ago and the bubbling inspiration came to me and I had a fuzzy vision of the completed story whilst standing near a red telephone box," she explains. "I was so excited and happy to be suddenly inspired again, I had a sense the book would be about an adventure with God. When it came to starting the work however I really didn’t know how to go about having an adventure with God and how I might show it in a comic. Showing that relationship is such a personal thing. Part of me definitely did not want to open that up for everyone to see but the feeling to make the book didn’t go away. It’s been taking a long time to produce partly because of that uncertainty of depicting this personal area of my life and also because the story in real life has had to unravel."

Paul also sends word of an opportunity for creators of humorous zines and comics to have their work displayed in the reading room at Tate Britain as part of their Rude Britannia exhibition.

Here's the skinny, from the Tate's website:

"Help us curate the reading room of the Rude Britannia exhibition with an array of humorous fanzines, comics and home made publications. Rude Britannia: British Comic Art celebrates all that is comical, satirical, political, absurd and bawdy in British art from 1600s to today and we would like you to respond to these themes. The best fanzines will be selected by curator Cedar Lewisohn and placed in the exhibition space for a period of time. Please only send publications that you think are funny. We will notify you if your publication has been selected, but we cannot commit to sending your publication back to you."

And finally, small press comics news blog Bugpower draws our attention to another opportunity for self-publishers:

"Cerebus.TV are starting a "Small Press Comics Focus" feature, and they are looking for submissions for future episodes. Email indie@exoss.net for details. You can see a promo for the first one HERE. The 'pilot' has been put together by the guys at Cerebus.tv and features the minicomics of Dan Fish (Hey, that's ME). It appears as part of Episode 30, which streams online starting Friday 18th June and 24/7 all week long."