Jim Stewart, Mychailo Kazybrid feature in new, free Self Publisher Magazine

Self Publisher! Magazine #60 is available now free as a PDF download and introduces "a whole new look" to the magazine, offering lots of articles and features any indy creator or fan of such would enjoy, its editorial team at Dimestore Productions enthuse.

While this is a US magazine, based in Madison, it's of interest here for its interviews with British comics creators Jim "Ganjaman" Stewart and Wallace & Gromit artist Mychailo Kazybrid, talking about their careers in comic and self publishing.

There's also an ace strip by fab US artist Michael Neno, a guide to adding pictures to a SmashWords project, a look at Print on Demand, indie comic reviews and lots more.

Self Publisher! Magazine is the work of the Self Publisher Association, currently a "not for profit" group, their main goal in the coming months to officially become a Non-Profit organization, so thatthey  may better serve the world with their efforts to bring forth better tools for all creators to use to make it more likely that they can survive in today's changing markets.

"We are seeking to forge the foundation of a permanent Self Publisher Hall of Fame," they say, "and do everything we can to bring recognition to the do-it-yourself level of publishing. We hope you will take the time to learn about us, and then join in our efforts."

The editorial team on the magazine are doing everything they can to increase readership, so they can do more good for the self publishing comic creator community.

"We'd greatly appreciate anything you can do to help this issue go viral and reach our 1,000 download goal!", says publisher Ian Shires.

• Download it (PDF): www.selfpubmag.com/site/dload.php?id=12

Pass the cheese Gromit, while I listen to our podcast!

This week's Panel Borders, now available as a podcast, continues this month’s theme of shows about newspaper comics, with Alex Fitch talking to a couple of creators working on newspaper strips featuring popular British science-fiction characters.

Richy K Chandler is a member of a writing team penning new adventures of 'Wallace and Gromit' for The Sun newspaper, drawn by Mychailo Kazybrid, including this week’s story ‘Paper Hound’ and talks about his interest in humour strips and writing licensed characters.

Alex also chats with writer / artist Huw J Davies, who was approached by the Daily Mirror in 2007 to update their classic adventure strip 'Garth' for the 21st Century and he talks about his problems in achieving this goal and how it lead to a re-imagining of the character in his graphic novel Freeman.

• Panel Borders: British Newspaper Strips is podcast at www.panelborders.wordpress.com

New Anti Doping Comic from UNESCO

Just launched on the UNESCO Social and Human Sciences website is a new weekly comic by Mychailo Kazybrid which aims to promote the battle against doping in sport.

Published by UNESCO in partnership with EDGE G3 Ltd., The Case of the Spoilsports, published in English, Spanish and French, stars Rattus Holmes and his assistant Dr. Felis Watson and dramatizes UNESCO's anti-doping role and explores the importance of the International Convention against Doping in Sport, adopted by UNESCO's member states in 2005.

The characters come from the pen of Sheffield artist, Mychailo Kazybrid who has been involved in the cartoon and comic book industry for over 30 years, with work covering a variety of licensed characters from Shaun the Sheep, Wallace & Gromit, The Tick to Duckula, Dangermouse and the Bash St. Kids, to name but a few. He also publishes his own strip, Do-Do Man, on the comics-to-mobile service ROK Comics.

"When Ed Chatelier of EDGE G3 Ltd, provided the script, he wanted something different, and the idea was to take a new approach to something that was already well known." Mychailo explains. "So we came up with the pets of the famous having an encounter with pets of the infamous, with my partner, Sarah Sier naming the characters. When the rat and cat belonging to Holmes and Watson have to take on the evil bird of Moriarty, anything could happen!"

With the colour work produced by fellow artist Richard Thomas the story is in five chapters, published weekly.

Inspired by the famous detective stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, it will trace how twin athletes react differently to the pressures of competitive sport. One gives in immediately to the pressure put on him by his trainer and teammates, while the other athlete suffers as a result of the use of performance enhancing drugs by his competitors. From one sports event to the next, the plot will lead us to the 29th Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

Having also produced Rattus Holmes and the Case of the World Water Crisis, artwork is already being put together for the character's third adventure.

• View the strip on the UNESCO Social and Human Sciences website