New 9th Art Award: Submission Details announced

Graphic Scotland and the Edinburgh International Book Festival have announced that submissions are now open for the inaugural 9th Art Award for graphic fiction.

The 9th Art Award will choose the best work of graphic literature originally written and published in English between May 2012 and July 2013, from anywhere in the world.
Judging the prize will be:

• graphic fiction historian Paul Gravett
• acclaimed arts critic and writer Hannah McGill
• Freight Press publisher Adrian Searle
• Costa award-winning writer of Dotter of Her Father’s Eyes Mary Talbot

A casting vote will be given to Graphic Scotland chair John McShane in the event of a tie. The award will be presented during an event at the Edinburgh International Book Festival in August.

Graphic Scotland Co-Director Gordon Robertson believes the prize could become a fixture on the international arts scene, and as important to sequential art as the Man Booker Prize is to literary fiction. “The 9th Art Award will be a significant annual award for recognition of excellence in the field of Graphic Literature," he says. "Its introduction as part of the Edinburgh International Book Festival recognises graphic literature's rightful status as an art form.”

Graphic Scotland is an independent community interest company aiming to bring together Scottish-based writers, artists and publishers in international collaborations to create diverse and innovative new graphic fiction.

Every August, Charlotte Square Gardens in the heart of historic Edinburgh, the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature, becomes the home to the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Founded in 1983, the Book Festival is the largest festival of its kind in the world and has become a platform for audiences to debate with leading thinkers from the worlds of science, politics, business, economics and journalism as well as literature.

This year, from 10 - 26 August, the Book Festival will play host to authors, playwrights, poets, politicians, journalists and thinkers from around the world. Over 200,000 visitors will come to join the debate, meet the authors, browse the bookshops or just enjoy an ice cream in the tranquil setting of the beautiful gardens. To complement the adult programme there is a full children’s programme with events, workshops and debates for every age from toddler to teenager.

Nick Barley, Director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, says of the 9th Art Award: “We have featured graphic novel authors and illustrators in our programme at the Edinburgh International Book Festival for a number of years now and I believe that this new Award will give the genre the wider recognition that it deserves.”

• The deadline for entries is 31st July 2013.
More details: www.9thartfestival.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/9thartfestival
Twitter: @9thArtAward

2000AD nominated for Eisner Award

2000AD has been nominated for an Eisner Award for the first time.

Last night, the weekly sci-fi and fantasy comic was announced as one of the five nominations in the ‘Best Anthology’ category.

It is the first time that 2000AD has ever been nominated for an Eisner, which are named after ground-breaking American cartoonist and writer Will Eisner, and are the comic book industry’s most prestigious awards (web:www.eisnerawards.org).

The winners will be announced at the famous San Diego Comic Convention in July.

The editor of 2000AD, Matt Smith, said: “I’m delighted that 2000AD has been nominated in the Best Anthology category for the 2013 Eisner Awards, the first time in its 36-year history that its made the prestigious list.

"It’s testament to the amazing work the creators and everyone associated with the UK weekly title put into making it truly the Galaxy’s Greatest, and I hope its appearance here encourages more people to check out the incredible stories found within this British institution.”

Other Brit-related nominees include artist Tom Gauld for his graphic novel Goliath, artist Sean Phillips, publisher NoBrow and writer-artist Luke Pearson.

The full list of nominations are as follows:

Best Short Story

• “A Birdsong Shatters the Still,” by Jeff Wilson and Ted May, in Injury #4 (Ted May/Alternative)
• “Elmview” by Jon McNaught, in Dockwood (Nobrow)
• “Moon 1969: The True Story of the 1969 Moon Launch,” by Michael Kupperman, in Tales Designed to Thrizzle #8 (Fantagraphics)
• “Moving Forward,” by drewscape, in Monsters, Miracles, & Mayonnaise (Epigram Books)
• “Rainbow Moment,” by Lilli Carré, in Heads or Tails (Fantagraphics)

Best Single Issue (or One-Shot)

• Lose #4: “The Fashion Issue,” by Michael DeForge (Koyama Press)
• The Mire, by Becky Cloonan (self-published)
• Pope Hats #3, by Ethan Rilly (AdHouse Books)
• Post York #1, by James Romberger and Crosby (Uncivilized Books)
• Tales Designed to Thrizzle #8, by Michael Kupperman (Fantagraphics)

Best Continuing Series

• Fatale, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)
• Hawkeye, by Matt Fraction and David Aja (Marvel)
• The Manhattan Projects, by Jonathan Hickman and Nick Pitarra (Image)
• Prophet, by Brandon Graham and Simon Roy (Image)
• Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)

Best New Series

• Adventure Time, by Ryan North, Shelli Paroline, and Braden Lamb (kaboom!)
• Bandette, by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover (Monkeybrain)
• Fatale, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)
• Hawkeye, by Matt Fraction and David Aja (Marvel)
• Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 7)

• Babymouse for President, by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm (Random House)
• Benny and Penny in Lights Out, by Geoffrey Hays (Toon Books/Candlewick)
• Kitty & Dino, by Sara Richard (Yen Press/Hachette)
• Maya Makes a Mess, by Rutu Modan (Toon Books/Candlewick)
• Zig and Wikki in The Cow, by Nadja Spiegelman and Trade Loeffler (Toon Books/Candlewick)

Best Publication for Kids (ages 8-12)

• Adventure Time, by Ryan North, Shelli Paroline, and Braden Lamb (kaboom!)
• Amulet Book 5: Prince of the Elves, by Kazu Kibuishi (Scholastic)
• Cow Boy: A Boy and His Horse, by Nate Cosby and Chris Eliopoulos (Archaia)
• Crogan’s Loyalty, by Chris Schweizer (Oni)
• Hilda and the Midnight Giant, by Luke Pearson (Nobrow)
• Road to Oz, by L. Frank Baum, adapted by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young (Marvel)

Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)

• Adventure Time: Marceline and the Scream Queens, by Meredith Gran (kaboom!)
• Annie Sullivan and the Trials of Helen Keller, by Joseph Lambert (Center for Cartoon Studies/Disney Hyperion)
• Ichiro, by Ryan Inzana (Houghton Mifflin)
• Spera, vol. 1, by Josh Tierney et al. (Archaia)
• A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L’Engle, adapted by Hope Larson (FSG)

Best Humor Publication

• Adventure Time, by Ryan North, Shelli Paroline, and Braden Lamb (kaboom!)
• BBXX: Baby Blues Decades 1 & 2, by Jerry Scott and Rick Kirkman (Andrews McMeel)
• Darth Vader and Son, by Jeffrey Brown (Chronicle)
• Naked Cartoonists, edited by Gary Groth (Fantagraphics)

Best Digital Comic

• Ant Comic by Michael DeForge
• Bandette by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover
• It Will All Hurt by Farel Dalrymple
• Our Bloodstained Roof by Ryan Andrews
• Oyster War by Ben Towle

Best Anthology

• Dark Horse Presents, edited by Mike Richardson (Dark Horse)
• No Straight Lines: Four Decades of Queer Comics, edited by Justin Hall (Fantagraphics)
• Nobrow #7: Brave New World, edited by Alex Spiro and Sam Arthur (Nobrow)
• 2000AD, edited by Matt Smith (Rebellion)
• Where Is Dead Zero?, edited by Jeff Ranjo (Where Is Dead Zero?)

Best Reality-Based Work

• Annie Sullivan and the Trials of Helen Keller, by Joseph Lambert (Center for Cartoon Studies/Disney Hyperion)
• The Carter Family: Don’t Forget This Song, by Frank M. Young and David Lasky (Abrams ComicArts)
• A Chinese Life, by Li Kunwu and P. Ôtié (Self Made Hero)
• The Infinite Wait and Other Stories, by Julia Wertz (Koyama Press)
• Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo & Me, by Ellen Forney (Gotham Books)
• You’ll Never Know, Book 3: A Soldier’s Heart, by C. Tyler (Fantagraphics)

Best Graphic Album—New

• Building Stories, by Chris Ware (Pantheon)
• Goliath by Tom Gauld (Drawn & Quarterly)
• The Hive, by Charles Burns (Pantheon)
• Unterzakhn by Leela Corman (Schocken)
• You’ll Never Know, Book 3: A Soldier’s Heart, by C. Tyler (Fantagraphics)

Best Adaptation from Another Medium

• Chico and Rita, by Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal (Self Made Hero)
• Homer’s Odyssey, adapted by Seymour Chwast (Bloomsbury)
• Richard Stark’s Parker: The Score, adapted by Darwyn Cooke (IDW)
• Road to Oz, by L. Frank Baum, adapted by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young (Marvel)
• A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L’Engle, adapted by Hope Larson (FSG)

Best Graphic Album — Reprint

• Cruisin’ with the Hound, by Spain (Fantagraphics)
• Ed the Happy Clown, by Chester Brown (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Everything Together: Collected Stories, by Sammy Harkham (PictureBox)
• Heads or Tails, by Lilli Carré (Fantagraphics)
• King City, by Brandon Graham (TokyoPop/Image)
• Sailor Twain, or The Mermaid in the Hudson by Mark Siegel (First Second)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips

• Alex Raymond’s Flash Gordon and Jungle Jim, vol. 2, edited by Dean Mullaney (IDW/Library of American Comics)
• Mister Twee Deedle: Raggedy Ann’s Sprightly Cousin, by Johnny Gruelle, edited by Rick Marschall (Fantagraphics)
• Percy Crosby’s Skippy, vol. 1, edited by Jared Gardner and Dean Mullaney (IDW/Library of American Comics)
• Pogo, vol. 2: Bona Fide Balderdash, by Walt Kelly, edited by Carolyn Kelly and Kim Thompson (Fantagraphics)
• Roy Crane’s Captain Easy: The Complete Sunday Newspaper Strips, vol. 3, edited by Rick Norwood (Fantagraphics)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books

• Crime Does Not Pay Archives, edited by Philip Simon and Kitchen, Lind & Associates (Dark Horse)
• David Mazzucchelli’s Daredevil Born Again: Artist’s Edition, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)
• Wally Wood’s EC Stories: Artist’s Edition, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)
• Walt Disney’s Uncle Scrooge: Only a Poor Old Man, by Carl Barks, edited by Gary Groth (Fantagraphics)
• Young Romance: The Best of Simon & Kirby’s Romance Comics, edited by Michel Gagné (Fantagraphics)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material

• Abelard, by Régis Hautiere and Renaud Dillies (NBM)
• Athos in America, by Jason (Fantagraphics)
• Blacksad: Silent Hell, by Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido (Dark Horse)
• The Making of, by Brecht Evens (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Monsieur Jean: The Singles Theory, by Philippe Dupuy and Charles Berberian (Humanoids)
• New York Mon Amour, by Benjamin LeGrand, Dominique Grange, and Jacques Tardi (Fantagraphics)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia

• Barbara, by Osamu Tezuka (Digital Manga)
• A Chinese Life, by Li Kunwu and P. Ôtié (Self Made Hero)
• Naoki Urasawa’s 20th Century Boys, by Naoki Urasawa (VIZ Media)
• Nonnonba, by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Thermae Romae, by Mari Yamazaki (Yen Press/Hachette)

Best Writer

• Ed Brubaker, Fatale (Image)
• Matt Fraction, Hawkeye (Marvel); Casanova: Avaritia (Marvel Icon)
• Brandon Graham, Multiple Warheads, Prophet (Image)
• Jonathan Hickman, The Manhattan Projects (Image)
• Brian K. Vaughan, Saga (Image)
• Frank M. Young, The Carter Family (Abrams ComicArts)

Best Writer/Artist

• Charles Burns, The Hive (Pantheon)
• Gilbert Hernandez, Love and Rockets New Stories, vol. 5 (Fantagraphics)
• Jaime Hernandez, Love and Rockets New Stories, vol. 5 (Fantagraphics)
• Luke Pearson, Hilda and the Midnight Giant, Everything We Miss (Nobrow)
• C. Tyler, You’ll Never Know, Book 3: A Soldier’s Heart (Fantagraphics)
• Chris Ware, Building Stories (Pantheon)

Best Penciller/Inker

• David Aja, Hawkeye (Marvel)
• Becky Cloonan, Conan the Barbarian (Dark Horse); The Muse (self-published)
• Colleen Coover, Bandette (Monkeybrain)
• Sean Phillips, Fatale (Image)
• Joseph Remnant, Harvey Pekar’s Cleveland (Zip Comics/Top Shelf)
• Chris Samnee, Daredevil (Marvel); Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom (IDW)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)

• Brecht Evens, The Making Of (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Juanjo Guarnido, Blacksad (Dark Horse)
• Teddy Kristiansen, The Red Diary/The RE[a]D Diary (MAN OF ACTION/Image)
• Lorenzo Mattotti, The Crackle of the Frost (Fantagraphics)
• Katsuya Terada, The Monkey King vol. 2 (Dark Horse)

Best Cover Artist

• David Aja, Hawkeye (Marvel)
• Brandon Graham, King City, Multiple Warheads, Elephantmen #43 (Image)
• Sean Phillips, Fatale (Image)
• Yuko Shimizu, The Unwritten (Vertigo/DC)
• J, H. Williams III, Batwoman (DC)

Best Coloring

• Charles Burns, The Hive (Pantheon)
• Colleen Coover, Bandette (Monkeybrain)
• Brandon Graham, Multiple Warheads (Image)
• Dave Stewart, Batwoman (DC); Fatale (Image); BPRD, Conan the Barbarian, Hellboy in Hell, Lobster Johnson, The Massive (Dark Horse)
• Chris Ware, Building Stories (Pantheon)

Best Lettering

• Paul Grist, Mudman (Image)
• Troy Little, Angora Napkin 2: Harvest of Revenge (IDW)
• Joseph Remnant, Harvey Pekar’s Cleveland (Zip Comics/Top Shelf)
• C. Tyler, You’ll Never Know, Book 3: A Soldier’s Heart (Fantagraphics)
• Chris Ware, Building Stories (Pantheon)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

• Alter Ego, edited by Roy Thomas (TwoMorrows)
• ComicsAlliance, edited by Joe Hughes, Caleb Goellner, and Andy Khouri
• The Comics Reporter, edited by Tom Spurgeon
• Robot Six, produced by Comic Book Resources
• tcj.com, edited by Timothy Hodler and Dan Nadel (Fantagraphics)

Best Comics-Related Book

• The Art of Daniel Clowes: Modern Cartoonist, edited by Alvin Buenaventura (Abrams ComicArts)
• Marie Severin: The Mirthful Mistress of Comics, by Dewey Cassell (TwoMorrows)
• Marvel Comics: The Untold Story, by Sean Howe (HarperCollins)
• Mastering Comics, by Jessica Abel and Matt Madden (First Second)
• Team Cul De Sac: Cartoonists Draw the Line at Parkinson’s, edited by Chris Sparks (Andrews McMeel)
• Woodwork: Wallace Wood 1927–1981, edited by Frédéric Manzano (CasalSolleric/IDW)

Best Educational/Academic Work

• Autobiographical Comics: Life Writing in Pictures, by Elisabeth El Refaie (University Press of Mississippi)
• Comics Versus Art, by Bart Beaty (University of Toronto Press)
• Crockett Johnson & Ruth Krauss: How an Unlikely Couple Found Love, Dodged the FBI, and Transformed Children’s Literature, by Philip Nel (University Press of Mississippi)
• Lynda Barry: Girlhood Through the Looking Glass, by Susan E. Kirtley (University Press of Mississippi)
• The Poetics of Slumberland, by Scott Bukatman (University of California Press)

Best Publication Design

• Building Stories, designed by Chris Ware (Pantheon)
• Dal Tokyo, designed by Gary Panter and Family Sohn (Fantagraphics)
• David Mazzucchelli’s Daredevil Born Again: Artist’s Edition, designed by Randy Dahlk (IDW)
• Mister Twee Deedle: Raggedy Ann’s Sprightly Cousin, designed by Tony Ong (Fantagraphics)
• Wizzywig, designed by Ed Piskor and Chris Ross (Top Shelf)

 

Strontium Dog and Sweeney Todd nominated for Stan Lee-backed award

The shortlist for the 2013 Stan Lee Excelsior Awards has been announced and includes two British titles - Strontium Dog : The Life and Death of Johnny Alpha and Classical Comics' Sweeney Todd - alongside several overeseas projects.

Created by Paul Register from Eccelsfield School, the Awards started out as a Sheffield-based project, attracting the interest of 17 Schools in its first year. As word spread, last year the project, which aims to encourage reading in younger people, attracted 77 schools - and not just from Sheffield.


This year, so far, over 100 schools have signed up, including schools from outside the UK.

The award is named after (and with permission of) Stan Lee, creator and co-creator of many of Marvel Comics' most iconic and world recognisable comic characters and groups. The Stan Lee Foundation (set up to improve literacy amongst children in the US) gave its blessing to the awards in its first year.

This award is the only nationwide book award for graphic novels and manga where kids aged 11-16 choose the winner from a selection of books by reading and then rating each graphic novel they read.

"Eight graphic novels are selected for the shortlist and it now attracts dozens and dozens of schools and public libraries from all over the UK - from Scotland to Jersey, from Belfast to Gateshead," explains Paul. "The overall goal of this scheme is to encourage reading amongst teenagers.

"However, its secondary target is to raise the profile of graphic novels and manga amongst school librarians and teachers.

"This storytelling medium has been a largely underused resource within education for many years," he feels. "The Stan Lee Excelsior Award attempts to highlight some of the amazing books that are out there - books that fully deserve to be in our school libraries alongside regular fiction.

"We work closely with both the School Library Association and the Stan Lee Foundation. We are thrilled that 'Stan The Man' has given us his blessing and his permission to name this award after him."

This year's nominations are:

PETER PANZERFAUST: THE GREAT ESCAPE by Kurtis J. Wiebe and Tyler Jenkins

SOUL EATER NOT!: VOLUME 1 by Atsushi Ohkubo

SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET (Original Text) by Sean Michael Wilson and Declan Shalvey

STRONTIUM DOG: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF JOHNNY ALPHA by John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra

SUPERGIRL: LAST DAUGHTER OF KRYPTON by Michael Green, Mike Johnson and Mahmud Asrar

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: CHANGE IS CONSTANT by Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz and Dan Duncan

WONDER WOMAN: BLOOD by Brian Azzarello, Cliff Chiang and Tony Akins

X-O MANOWAR: BY THE SWORD by Robert Venditti and Cary Nord

The Awards remain rooted in Sheffield in terms of organisation, with specialist comic book retailers Sheffield Space Centre, who have been involved since the first year of the awards, helping with book selections, library supply and attending the awards ceremony.

Sheffield creative company Digital Story Engine have also been involved, providing video coverage and interviews with many of the writers and artists involved.

An awards ceremony will be held at Ecclesfield School in July, when the top three graphic novels are announced, with school children at the awards ceremony given the chance to meet and talk to writers, artist and publishers involved in the comic book industry.

• If you are a pupil and want to get your school invlved in these awards, talk to your school librarian and point them to the website - www.excelsioraward.co.uk - or, if you are involved with school’s Libraries, or libraries, check out the website for more information, too.

For more information don’t hesitate to contact: Sheffield Space Centre, 33 The Wicker, Sheffield S3 8HS. Telephone: 01142758905. E-mail dave@space-centre.co.uk. Or Stan Lee Excelsior Award, c/o Paul Register, Ecclesfield School, Chapeltown Road, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S35 9WD. Telephone: 0114 2461156

 

Talbots scoop Costa Award for "Dotter of Her Father's Eyes"

Mary Talbot's Dotter of Her Father's Eyes has won the biography section in the 2012 Costa Book Awards.

Drawn by husband Bryan Talbot, the award has delighted the couple, who The Guardian reports have known about their win for some time but had to keep quiet about it.

While this is not the first graphic work to win a major literary prize – Art Spiegelman's Maus won a Pulitzer in 1992 and Chris Ware won the Guardian first book prize in 2001 for Jimmy Corrigan: the Smartest Kid on Earth –  the Costa Award is still a significant moment for the graphic medium and 2012 marks the first time comics have featured in the Costa nominations (see news story).

"It is a good thing for graphic novels as a whole,"  Bryan Talbot told the Guardian, whose works include The Adventures of Luther Arkwright, The Tale of One Bad Rat and Alice in Sunderland. "Graphic novels are becoming increasingly accepted as a legitimate art form."


Dotter of Her Father's Eyes tells the story of James Joyce's tragic daughter Lucia, who spent the last 30 years of her life in a mental institution. Into that tale, Mary Talbot has woven the story of her own troubled relationship with her father, the eminent Joycean scholar James S Atherton.

In other categories, Hilary Mantel won the novel award for Bring Up the Bodies; Francesca Segal won first novel for The Innocents; Kathleen Jamie's The Overhaul came first in poetry, and Sally Gardner's Maggot Moon was named children's book of the year.

Among the nominations this year were Days of the Bagnold Summer by Joff Winterhart while artist and writer Dave Shelton, who writes and draws Good Dog, Bad Dog, for both The DFC and Phoenix was shortlisted in the Children's Book category with his novel A Boy And A Bear In A Boat (see news story).

• Costa Book Awards: www.costabookawards.com 

Comics make the Costa Book Awards for first time

(Updated): Two graphic novels - Dotter of Her Father's Eyes by Mary and Bryan Talbot and Days of the Bagnold Summer by Joff Winterhart - feature in the short list for this year's Costa Book Awards - considered one of the UK's most prestigious book awards.

While there are many dedicated comic industry awards, this is, the Guardian notes, something of a literary milestone, as they are the first graphic works to be shortlisted for a Costa (formerly the Whitbreads) which "unashamedly celebrate and reward enjoyability in five sections.

"While it might be a surprise to some, there will be many who feel there should be more mainstream recognition for graphic work," the paper reports, and Bryan Talbot agrees. "I think it's a big thing for the comic medium generally," he says. "It is another instance of the growing acceptability of comics as a valid artform."

The well-received Dotter of Her Father's Eyes tells the story of James Joyce's tragic daughter Lucia, who spent the last 30 years of her life in a mental institution. Into that tale, Mary Talbot has woven the story of her own troubled relationship with her father, the eminent Joycean scholar James S Atherton.

Told in both monochromatic and colored styles, the story shows two very different people, combined in a way that is unique all on its own, the book received major praise for its take on gender politics on its debut and was rated one of the best graphic novels of the year by Publisher’s Weekly.

In Joff Winterhart's funny graphic novel, Days of the Bagnold Summer, Sue, 52, works in a library. Daniel, 15, is still at school. This was the summer holidays Daniel was due to spend with his father and his father's pregnant new wife in Florida. When they cancel his trip, Sue and Daniel face six long weeks together...

Already well-known for his animated films like Violet and Turquoise, Joff Winterhart here shows himself to be a comics author of extraordinary talent.

On release, review site BookMunch described it as the most enthralling graphic novel debut of the year.

"Days of the Bagnold Summer is a book that will make you chuckle and ponder," their reviewer enthused. "Chuckling and pondering are no bad things. It is also a book that will work on you and draw you back for another re-read, another chuckle, another ponder. From start to finish, it’s a pleasure of a peculiar kind. Joff Winterhart is a writer we will be keeping a close eye on in the future. He is also a writer that we think you graphic novel types should be hurrying to check out.

Talking about the nomination in the Guardian yesterday, Bryan Talbot said many people tended to view comics as a genre rather than a medium, whereas "they can tell any sort of story". He said some tended to not think beyond Superman.

"People don't seem to realise there's a whole range of quality material out there which is worth any intelligent person's time to read."

Shortlisted for his first full-length book 38-year-old Winterhart, who drums in a band despite having only one hand, told the Guardian he was extremely surprised by the nomination. "It doesn't feel like a novel, it's got pictures in it!

"I didn't know it had enough words to constitute a novel," he continued. "Some graphic novels are quite epic and very cinematic in scope and mine is incredibly not like that."

Author Wendy Holden, one of the category's three judges, said it was funny, thought-provoking and "sniff-makingly sad". She added: "Anyone with a teenager in the family, or anticipating having one in the future, should read it. It's not only hilarious and brilliant but deals with real life, as people really live it, which alone sets it apart from many works of fiction today."

She said graphic novels were "undeservedly underrated" and Winterhart's book was a jewel in the genre.

For the hotly contested Children's Book Award shortlist, the debut illustrator and author Dave Shelton stands alongside former Whitbread Children’s Novel Award winner Diana Hendry, as well as dyslexia campaigner Sally Gardner, and teen fiction writer, Hayley Long.

You can read about Waterstones’ own Sarah Clarke and experiences on the judging panel of the Children’s Book Award here.


The winners of the Costas will be announced on 2nd January 2013. The final five will then be in competition for the overall £30,000 prize as Costa book of the year on 29th January.

Stan Lee Excelsior Award 2012 Winners announced

The full results of the Stan Lee Excelsior Award 2012 can now be revealed!

This award for graphic novels is fully endorsed by The Stan Lee Foundation and the School Library Association. Seventy seven UK schools took part this year and, of the eight shortlisted graphic novels, hundreds of students (in the 11-16 age bracket) chose the following titles as their winners:

1st Place - Star Wars: Blood Ties by Tom Taylor and Chris Scalf (Dark Horse)

A multigenerational tale of honor and redemption, starring two of the heaviest hitters in the Star Wars galaxy -- the father-and-clone team of Jango and Boba Fett.
 
Shortly before the start of the Clone Wars, Count Dooku sends Jango Fett on a mission that will affect the course of Boba Fett's life some 20 years later. But for now, neither of them knows what the future holds in store, and besides, they have their schedule filled dodging monsters and fighting bad guys! It's Jango Fett and Boba Fett together in a series featuring fully painted art by Purge artist Chris Scalf.

2nd Place - Chimichanga by Eric Powell (Dark Horse)

When Wrinkle's Travelling Circus' most adorable little bearded girl trades a lock of her magic beard hair for a witch's strange egg, she stumbles upon what could be the saving grace for her ailing freakshow - the savory-named beast: Chimichanga!

3rd Place - Green Lantern: Secret Origin by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis (DC Comics)

Witness the beginning of the career of the bravest Green Lantern who's ever lived as the secret origin of Hal Jordan is revealed. This title helps you to discover how and why Hal received the power ring. It also helps you to uncover the mystery of Abin Sur's death - and why Jordan's teacher and mentor, Sinestro, became obsessed with the prophecy of the apocalyptic end of the universe 'the Blackest Night'. 


There were also two further awards up for grabs:

Winner of the JABBICA (Judge A Book By Its Cover Award, voted for by school librarians) - Sita: Daughter of the Earth by Saraswati Nagpal and Manikandan (Campfire)

The winner of the TRUE BELIEVERS AWARD (for the school that returned the most Rating Forms) was Chilwell School, Nottingham.

• See the website at www.excelsioraward.co.uk shortlist2012.html for more details

No Heroes But One Award!

The “little comic that could” No More Heroes picked up the award for Best Comic at the SICBA (Scottish Independent Comic Book Awards) event held at Glasgow Comic Con over the weekend.

The four-issue mini-series about the suspicious death of the world’s greatest superhero and his sidekick’s search for the truth has picked up a lot of attention since its March debut thanks to its unusual origins. When its writer Gordon Mclean lost his job he used his redundancy money to fund the comic and teamed up with artist Caio Oliveira to make his dream of being a comic creator a reality.

“Winning this award is an incredible honour and a hell of a way to top off what’s already been a shockingly successful few months for our comic," says Gordon. "We’ve sold a hefty amount of copies of what’s basically a debut comic by an unknown creative team and of course there was the bizarre situation of seeing issue one becoming the most pirated comic in the British indie scene and sitting in the torrent charts next to Batman and The Walking Dead. Sod it, I’m putting that in the win column too!”

 Gordon and Caio are now planning on using their success to find a publisher for No More Heroes and take their comic to a wider audience.

“If ever there was a time to get a publisher to pick up our comic it’s now," Gordon enthuses. "We’re award-winning, the response from readers and critics has been incredibly positive and we’ve received a lot of attention from comic book websites, magazines, blogs, podcasts etc.

"A special thank you to Rich Johnston at Bleeding Cool – he’s been a hell of a supporter of No More Heroes and by featuring it on his website he raised its profile immensely.

 “I’ve also adapted the title into a film script that’s picked up some studio attention," Gordon reveals. "If all of this this isn’t enough to convince a publisher that this is a hit comic waiting to happen then I don’t know what is!”

Glasgow Comic Con was founded in 2010 by Sha Nazir and John Farman – two respected figures in the Scottish independent comics scene and co-owners of Black Hearted Press. This year’s guests included Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely, Jim Starlin, John Wagner and Rufus Dayglo. www.glasgowcomiccon.com

• Anyone interested in No More Heroes should its official website at nomoreheroescomic.wordpress.com 

British Comic Awards launched

News today (via The Emperor and the Forbidden Planet Blog) of the launch of the British Comic Awards website.

The British Comic Awards is described as a brand new initiative to annually celebrate the very best in British comics. The organisers aim to commend and highlight the best stories told by writers and illustrators over the past twelve months.

"Our awards recognise the finest examples of creativity, ingenuity, skill and originality in sequential storytelling in all genres and formats. We don’t distinguish between printed work and digital, or between published and self-published work; our only criteria is that the creator(s) be from the UK.

"The Awards are designed to focus on the work itself and the wonderful stories being told by the wealth of talent in this country."

There are only five awards which will emphasise the high quality of all the nominated books, not just the winners and these are:

• Best Comic for short-form, self-contained stories.
 
• Best Book for long-form comics and collections.
 
• Young People’s Comic Award for short and long form comics suitable for children voted for by young people.
 
• Emerging Talent to recognise irrepressible talent and potential in a young or new creator.
 
• Hall of Fame to commemorate the career and legacy of an influential figure from Britain’s rich comic history.

More details about each category can be found on the site's Awards page.

Morrison one of three authors to gain Queen's Birthday honour

Congratulations to Grant Morrison, who has been awarded an MBE, recognised in the Queen's Birthday Honours List (pdf) "for services to film and literature".

The annual list was published this weekend and saw just three authors - crime writer Susan Hill, poet Jean Binta Breeze and Grant, who is perhaps best known today for his work for the US market such as The Invisibles, New X-Men, Doom Patrol. His recent work includes DC Comics Action Comics and the newly-relaunched Batman Incorporated.

Needless to say, some in the comics community have expressed surprise at the news, given the nature of much of his work.

"Little surprising perhaps that a man so rooted in anti-establishment ideas, and writer of some controversial comics would be honoured this way, and would accept the honour," says Joe Gordon over at the Forbidden Planet International blog of the 52-year-old Scottish writer. "But what the hell. Congratulations Grant."

Indeed. One of three authors to get an honour? That's impressive in itself, surely.

An MBE is the lowest rank in the Order of the British Empire, established in 1917, the youngest of the British Empire's chivalry orders. It's handed out to people who in one field or another have provided a service to the UK.

Lancaster Game Designers win top award

Lancaster-based game designers Peter Cakebread and Ken Walton have won the award for Best Role-Playing Game at this year’s UK Games Expo in Birmingham, for their table-top steampunk role-playing game, Abney Park’s Airship Pirates.

Based on the songs of Seattle-based steampunk band Abney Park, the game book – lavishly illustrated by some of the top steampunk artists in the business – plunges the players into an alternate steam-powered future of strange cultures and weird gadgets. Players take on the roles of the crew of a time-travelling pirate airship in a game of storytelling and imagination.

“When we first contacted Robert Brown, lead singer of Abney Park, about the possibility of creating an RPG based on his songs, we didn’t realise how popular it was going to be,” said Ken Walton. “Steampunk is a much bigger phenomenon in the Unoted States than it is in Britain, so all the interest came as a bit of a surprise! It’s a great honour to win this award and we couldn’t have done it without all the contributions made by Robert, the artists, our publishers, and all the people who voted for us on the day.”

The game has already won the Diehard GameFANS Award for Best RPG Rule Book of 2011 and the Steampunk Chronicle Readers’ Award for Best Steampunk Game, and was shortlisted for an Origins Award too, which is given at the Origins Game Fair in Columbus, Ohio.

Cakebread & Walton: Purveyors of Fine Imaginings, was set up in Lancaster in 2010. Airship Pirates RPG isn’t the only role-playing game they’ve written; the team have also produced the critically-acclaimed Clockwork & Chivalry, game set in an a fantasy version of the English Civil War, fought with magick and clockwork war machines. Both game lines are supported by an increasing number of supplements, and new games are in the pipeline.

Their games are distributed worldwide by Cubicle 7 Entertainment, who also market the Starblazer game based on DC Thomsons 1980s SF comic.

• For more information visit www.cakebreadandwalton.com

Bryan Talbot scoops SNCF Award for Grandville Mon Amour

Congratulations to Bryan Talbot this morning, for winning the prestgious Prix SNCF prize for the French edition of his ace graphic novel Grandville Mon Amour.

Bryan won the Prix SNCF for best graphic novel at a ceremony at the Gare de Lyon, Paris on Tuesday 29th May.

Voted for by the general public, this is a national award given by the French railway company for the best in crime fiction.

"They give an award for best novel and best short film," Bryan told us. "This is the first year they've introduced the bande dessinée category and it was won by Grandville Mon Amour out of a long list of 50 and a shortlist of five."

The Milady blog (in French) has two stories on Bryan's win here and here.

- Bryan's official web site: www.bryan-talbot.com

(With thanks to Jeremy Briggs for the Milady links)

Eagle Awards set to soar back next year

“People often say ‘Don’t believe everything you read on the Internet’ and this is one of those times,” announced Eagle Awards chair Cassandra Conroy.

Referring to an announcement made by MCM Expo’s Bryan Cooney at the conclusion of 2012 Eagle Awards ceremony on Friday night, she added, “To paraphrase Mark Twain: The reports of the Eagles’ death have been greatly exaggerated.

“Neither my father (Eagle Awards founder Mike Conroy) nor I attended Friday night’s ceremony, which we were boycotting in response to actions that are now being reviewed by my lawyer. Thus we don’t know exactly what Bryan said,” she explained.

“However, with Bleeding Cool posting that Friday night’s ceremony was ‘the end of the road for the Eagle Awards after 30-some years and from next May, there'd be something called The MCM Awards instead.’ and others suggesting that next year the Eagles would be transformed into entirely new awards. I feel the need to put the record straight…

“The Eagles are neither dead nor morphing into anything else. MCM Expo is in no position to announce, imply or indicate otherwise,” Conroy stated. “In fact no third party can casually discard what my father has developed over the past 36 years. The Eagles will continue to soar into 2013 and beyond.

"We’ll be announcing further details of our plans for next year in the near future.”

DownTheTubes contacted the MCM Expo and asked for clarification of Mr Cooney's statement on Friday night.

Speaking for the organisation, which currently co-owns the Eagles with Cassandra, Paul Miley confirmed Mr Cooney had declared the Eagles were over last Friday folowing the ceremony - or at least it would seem, based on his comments quoted below, over as far as MCM was concerned.

"Bryan made a joint announcement for Bryan and I on stage last Friday to the affect that we have spent the last three years organising the Eagle Awards which we have enjoyed doing but it is time for change," Paul told us.

"It is most likely there will not be an Eagle Awards from this point forward and that we are looking to launch an MCM Awards next year.

"At this time we would not like to comment further on this matter but may in future."

Blank Slate pride at Eisner award nomination for 'Nelson'

Comic-Con International have announced that Blank Slate's Nelson has been nominated for the Best Anthology honour in the 2012 edition of the the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards.

Created by a team of 54 of the UK’s most prominent comic creators, Nelson was devised as a celebration of the incredible diversity of talent within the rapidly growing British comics industry. Envisioned and edited by veteran UK creators Rob Davis and Woodrow Phoenix, the book unites a dynamic range of literary, mainstream, independent and small-press talent to tell the story of protagonist Nel Baker from her birth in 1968 to the present day.

Comprised of yearly snapshots, Nelson combines a myriad of stylistic approaches and decades of British history in one compelling, beautifully-rendered graphic novel.

For Blank Slate, Nelson presents a great opportunity to promote the rapidly expanding comics scene in Britain. Speaking on the book's Eisner nomination, Editor Rob Davis states “It's great to see Nelson getting this recognition, not just because it shines a light on the mind-boggling profusion of talent in British comics right now, but because it's a unique experiment that takes the anthology format and uses it to create a genuine novel.

"Everyone involved has a shared belief in the power of comics to make stories come alive."

Co-editor Woodrow Phoenix added "I'm really proud of what we achieved with this book. It proves that you don't need guns, superpowers, zombies or swords to make a story compelling”.

Met with international acclaim from both mainstream and specialist book reviewers when released in November 2011, Nelson quickly sold out of its initial run, all profits from which will be donated to Shelter, the housing and homelessness charity.

- ISBN: 978-1-906653-23-1 | 252 pages | 236 x 178mm softcover with flaps, full colour | £18.99

• More about Nelson on the Blank Slate web site her • Order Nelson from Blank Slate

Harvey Awards 2012 nominations launched

The Executive Committees of the Harvey Awards and the Baltimore Comic-Con have just released the official Nomination Ballot for this year's Harvey Awards. Named in honour of the late Harvey Kurtzman, one of the industry's most innovative talents, the Harvey Awards recognize outstanding work in comics and sequential art.

Ballots are due for submission by Monday 16th April 2012. In addition to being available on the website, ballots will be sent to all major publishers and distributed at comic conventions. 

Returning for his fourth consecutive Harvey Awards, Scott Kurtz will be the Master of Ceremonies for the awards banquet, to be held Saturday 8th September 2012 as part of the Baltimore Comic-Con. 

"After Scott, Stan Lee, and the Fake Stan Lee brought the house down again last year, we had to have him back!" said Marc Nathan, promoter of the Baltimore Comic-Con. "We are thrilled that Scott agreed to come back to Baltimore and help to make the Harvey Awards ceremony as fun and exciting as the last few years have been!"

Scott Kurtz has been creating his own comic strips since he got hooked on Garfield in the 4th grade. In 1998, his comic strip, PvP, debuted on the world wide web (pvponline.com) with 700 daily readers. Over the last 10 years, PvP has grown into a genuine Internet phenomenon, growing in readership to an estimated 150,000 readers per day, a monthly title from Image comics, winning a Harvey Award in 2010 for Best Online Comics Work, and winning the Eisner Award for best digital comic in 2006.

Scott co-wrote the excellent book How To Make Webcomics and co-founded webcomics.com to help assist others in forging their own creative destinies.

Nominations for the Harvey Awards are selected exclusively by creators - those who write, draw, ink, letter, color, design, edit or are otherwise involved in a creative capacity in the comics field. The Harvey Awards are the only industry awards both nominated and selected by the full body of comic book professionals.

This year's Baltimore Comic-Con will be held 8-9th September.  The ceremony and banquet for the Harvey Awards will be held Saturday night, 8th September.  Additional details about the Harvey Awards and the awards ceremony will be released over the next few months.




• Ballots can be downloaded from HarveyAwards.org and completed forms can be e-mailed to harveyballotsAThotmail.com. All ballots must include requested professional verification information. The  Harvey Awards may be voted on exclusively by Comic-Book creators, those who write, draw, ink, color, letter, design, edit or are involved in the creative aspect of comics. Fans, retailers, distributors, and accounting personnel votes will not be counted.

• Convention info: www.baltimorecomiccon.com

Panel Borders: Exhibiting Comics

Continuing Panel Borders month of shows about about non practitioners' love of comics, Alex Fitch talks to Lord Baker of Dorking about his contributions as lender and patron of The Cartoon Museum to their latest exhibition 'Her Maj: Sixty years of unofficial portraits of the Queen' and to John Huddy, founder and curator of The Illustration Cupboard about the gallery's history of exhibiting art from picture books and graphic novels. 

Also, from last week's Manga Jiman awards ceremony at the Embassy of Japan in London, Cultural Officer Simon Wright and Minister Hiroshi Suzuki, the director of the Japan Information and Culture Centre, introduce this year's winning entries to the comic book competition. 

- Panel Borders: Exhibiting Comics airs at 8.00pm, Sunday 12th February, Resonance FM (London) / streamed at www.resonancefm.com / podcast after broadcast at www.panelborders.wordpress.com

 

Eddie Campbell award nomination prompts Dapper John offer

As many readers here may already know, ace artist Eddie Campbell has been nominated to receive the Angouleme Festival's Essential Prize at this year's festival for his "Alec" work.

To celebrate, new digital publisher Panel Nine is selling Eddie Campbell's Dapper John graphic novel for the iPad for 50% off through the end of January --  to coincide with the festival. The app is normally £6.99 but is now  £2.99. ($9.99 down to $4.99)

Angouleme (http://bdangouleme.com/english/), the "Festival International de la Bande Dessinee" is Europe's largest and most prestigious comics festival and Angouleme's Essential Prize is given to artists for works that are considered, well, essential.


Other English language authors nominated for prizes at Angouleme include Dan Clowes, Craig Thompson and Joe Sacco..

Dapper John has received excellent reviews: here, we at DTT we think it's excellent app with great content - certainly one of he best presentations of comics on the iPad I’ve seen; while artist and writer David Hine describes it as “A really enjoyable collection" and highly recommends it.”

“More than just another comic strip. The definitive version of Eddie Campbell’s early work," said Dave Hornsby.

2012 Stan Lee Excelsior Award shortlist announced

After months of deliberation, tears and tribulations (and a lot of reading), eight books have been selected and the Shortlist for the 2012 Stan Lee Excelsior Award have now been revealed.

The titles include just one British title - the stunning Wuthering Heights from Classical Comics, which was drawn by John M. Burns (read our review), but some British creators also get a nod as creators of some of the books.

Here's the full list, links are to the titles on amazon.co.uk

• Chimichanga
by Eric Powell

When Wrinkle's Travelling Circus' most adorable little bearded girl trades a lock of her magic beard hair for a witch's strange egg, she stumbles upon what could be the saving grace for her ailing freakshow - the savory-named beast: Chimichanga!

• Gate 7
by Clamp

Chikahito Takamoto has always read about the beauty and mystique of Japan's ancient capital city, Kyoto. Now, two years into high school, he's finally visiting there for real. But wandering the grounds of Kyoto's legendary Shinto shrine of Kita no Tenmangu, he chances upon a mystery that his guidebooks didn't prepare him for - two handsome men and an attractive woman, all strangely-garbed, wielding powers...and fighting monsters! The two men treat poor Chikahito with suspicion - but the girl seems to like him. They aren't worried about what Chikahito's just seen, because they have the power to erase his memory... except for some reason, that power doesn't work! And why does the girl kiss him before sending him away? One thing's for sure: Chikahito is going to be seeing a lot more of these three strangers...

• FF (Volume 1)
by Jonathan Hickman, Steve Epting and Barry Kitson

"FF" picks up Jonathan Hickman's run on Marvel's first family after the death of the Human Torch. The group is rebranded as the Future Foundation, and lots of newbies join the team, no longer restricted to just four members, including Spider-Man.

• Green Lantern: Secret Origin
by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis

Witness the beginning of the career of the bravest Green Lantern who's ever lived as the secret origin of Hal Jordan is revealed. This title helps you to discover how and why Hal received the power ring. It also helps you to uncover the mystery of Abin Sur's death. This title helps you to find out why Jordan's teacher and mentor, Sinestro, became obsessed with the prophecy of the apocalyptic end of the universe 'the Blackest Night'.

• Marineman: A Matter of Life and Death
by Ian Churchill

Follow the journey of Marineman from celebrated marine biologist and TV presenter to sea-breathing marine superhero as Ian (Hulk, Supergirl) Churchill's critically-acclaimed Marineman series is collected into one feature-filled volume packed with bonus material and a foreword by industry legend and Watchmen co-creator, Dave Gibbons.

• Sita: Daughter of Earth
by Saraswati Nagpal and Manikandan

In an ancient age, when gods and goddesses walked with mortals... ...Sita is the kind-hearted and intelligent princess of the kingdom of Videha. Married to Rama, prince of Ayodhya, her journey in life takes her from exhilaration to anguish... Along the way, she has to leave behind the luxury of royal comforts and live the simple, harsh life of a forest dweller where lurking in every shadow is danger... Ensnared in the evil plans of the wicked demon-king Ravana, Sita is abducted and hidden away in Lanka. Will Rama muster up a strong army to rescue Sita from the demon’s clutches? Will Sita return to Ayodhya to become queen of the land... or is she destined to be mistrusted and live alone for the rest of her life? Adapted from the ancient Indian epic, the Ramayana, this is a touching tale of love, honour, and sacrifice that reveals one woman’s shining strength in an unforgiving world.

• Star Wars: Blood Ties
by Tom Taylor and Chris Scalf

Shortly before the start of the Clone Wars, Count Dooku sends Jango Fett on a mission that will affect the course of Boba Fett's life some twenty years later. But for now, neither of them knows what the future holds in store, and besides, they have their schedule filled dodging monsters and fighting bad guys!

• Wuthering Heights (Quick Text version)
by Emily Bronte, adapted by Sean M. Wilson and John M. Burns

This title presents the full story in quick modern English for a fast-paced read! Emily Bronte's only novel is famous the world over - not least because of Kate Bush's 1978 'tribute song' - but don't let that trivialise this masterpiece of classical literature. Hardship, insanity, cruelty, frustrated love, and ghosts; what more could you want from a book? 

To see the shortlist for yourself, please visit the official website's 'Shortlist 2012' page - click the covers for more details from the publisher's web site.

Other new features on the Excelsior website include Russell Wall's and James Guy's terrific promotional trailer for the shortlist (www.excelsioraward.co.uk) and the new 'Resources' section which currently features a variety of award posters which can be downloaded as PDF files and printed out for use in libraries or bookstores.

Games awards event set to attract top talent to Brighton

While downthetubes focus is British comics, we're aware that many creators do work for the games industry, so readers might be interested in the upcoming Develop Industry Excellence Awards in Brighton tomorrow (20th July).

Over 550 top designers, programmers, artists and studio bosses from around the world - representing some of the hottest games development talent in the world - are to attend the Awards, which will also be getting a huge national media presence.

The creative teams of many critically-acclaimed and best-selling games will be in attendance to find out who has won key awards that acknowledge technical innovation, pioneering visual arts, attention-grabbing audio accomplishments and commercial and business prowess.

Amongst them will be the minds behind hit titles such as Angry Birds, Crysis, Bulletstorm, Limbo, Minecraft and Need for Speed, plus the companies that invented the best-selling Kinect and PlayStation Move motion controllers.

• More info and full list of nominees at: www.develop-online.net/events/281/Develop-Awards-2011

downthetubes nominated for SFX Blog Award

We're delighted to report that downthetubes has been nominated for an SFX 'Blogger' award in the category for 'Best SF News Blog' (Vote for us here!).

Our nomination - pitting us against Big Dumb Object, the Doctor Who News Page and SF Crowsnest (all stiff competition!) is part of  the first ever SFX Blog Awards, where the top-selling SF magazine celebrates the best that SF and fantasy fan-driven and insider-developed internet activity has to offer.

"These awards aren’t for big, profit-making sites but for sites that were created for the love of the genre, and are maintained by people out of love rather than money," the magazine's team say.

"They’re called Blog Awards, and while we do have many trad blogs among the nominations, but we’ve applied the term loosely to include a couple of less bloggy sites that still feel in the right spirit. Consider 'Blog' a shorthand term, because 'The SFX Fan-Driven And Insider-Developed Website Awards' just ain’t catchy enough."

There are six categories to choose from, and the nominations, who also include our good friends Geek Syndicate in the 'Best Podcast' category and British comic creators Paul Cornell, Neil Gaiman and Warren Ellis in the 'Best Celebrity Blog' category, have been drawn up from suggestions made by members of the SFX Forum, SFX team members and the SFX Bloggers.

All you have to do now is browse through the various nominees and decide which ones you want to vote for. Voters will be, to all intents and purposes, the Blog Academy, deciding the winners.

• Read more and vote: The SFX Blog Awards http://www.sfx.co.uk/2011/03/16/the-sfx-blog-awards

Eagle Awards voting opens

Voting is now open for the Eagle Awards, the annual prize given to the best American and British comics as decided by comic readers.

We're pleased to report that as befits their British origins, the nominations include a substantial amount of homegrown talent and publications - including DC Thomson's Commando, some wonderful small press titles such as Futurequake and Paragon, and creators such as Paul Cornell and ace letterer Jim Campbell.

We're also pleased to report that included in the nominations is the recent Charley's War collection by Pat Mills and Joe Colquhoun (and edited by me for Titan Books) - and Doctor Who Magazine (also edited by me in the dim and distant past, though I'm claiming no credit in the nomination, just delighted the comic strip creators for the title are getting some well-deserved recognition).

Founded in 1977 by Mike Conroy and Richard Burton, the Eagle Awards are named for the groundbreaking UK. comic Eagle. Nominees are chosen with the help of comic book fans and the final victors are decided by popular vote.

You can support your favourite creators, titles and publishers in 38 categories, which can be voted upon at this link. An awards ceremony will be held at London's MCM Expo on May 27, where the winners will be announced.

The full list of nominees can be found below. Where possible, links are to official sites where known; if not, then to Wikipedia entries. Book links will direct to amazon.co.uk.

Favourite Newcomer Writer

• Paul Cornell
• Al Ewing (also on Twitter)
• Bryan Lee O'Malley
• Scott Snyder
• Nick Spencer

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents
by Fiona Staples

Favourite Newcomer Artist

• Rafael Albuquerque
• Bryan Lee O'Malley
• Sean Murphy
• Sara Pichelli
• Fiona Staples

Favourite Writer

• Ed Brubaker
• Warren Ellis
• Robert Kirkman
• Grant Morrison
• John Wagner

Favourite Writer/Artist

• Gabriel Ba with Fabio Moon
• Darwyn Cooke
• Jeff Lemire
• Mike Mignola
• Bryan Lee O'Malley

Favourite Artist - pencils

• Becky Cloonan
• Carlos Ezquerra
• Mike Mignola
• Dave Ryan
• J.H. Williams III

Favourite Artist - Inks

• Becky Cloonan
• Gary Erskine
• Carlos Ezquerra
• Mike Mignola
• Bill Sienkiewicz

Favourite artist - fully painted work

• D'Israeli
• Jock
• Alex Ross
• Ben Templesmith
• J.H. Williams III

Favourite Colourist

• Laura Allred
• Jeff Balke
• Laura Martin
• Len O'Grady
• Dave Stewart

Favourite letterer

• Jim Campbell
• Chris Eliopoulos
• Annie Parkhouse
• Richard Starkings
• Russ Wooton

Favoorite Editor

• Scott Allie
• Tom Brevoort
• Todd McFarlane
• Matt Smith/Tharg
• Steve Wacker

Favourite publisher

• Dark Horse
• DC Comics/Vertigo/WildStorm
• IDW
• Image Comics (inc. Top Cow)
• Marvel

Favourite American comic book - colour

• Amazing Spider-Man by Various (Marvel)
• Batman and Robin by Grant Morrison plus Various (DC Comics)
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight by Various (Dark Horse)
• Doctor Who by Tony Lee plus Various (IDW Publishing)
• Hellboy by Mike Mignola plus Various (Dark Horse)

Favourite American comic book - black and white

• Age of Bronze by Eric Shanower (Image Comics)
• Demo Vol.2 by Brain Wood and Becky Cloonan (DC Comics)
• Echo by Terry Moore (Abstract Studio)
• RASL by Jeff Smith (Cartoon Comics)
• The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard (Image Comics)

Favourite British comic book - colour

• 2000AD by Various (Rebellion)
• Dandy by Various (DC Thomson)
• Doctor Who Magazine by Various (Panini Comics)
• The Man of Glass by Martin Flink (Accent UK)
• Torchwood by Various (Titan Books)

Favourite British comic book - black and white

• Commando by Various (DC Thomson)
• Dogbreath by Various (Futurequake Publishing)
• Futurequake by Various (Futurequake Publishing)
• Paragon by Various (David Cavendish)
• Zarjaz by Various (Futurequake Publishing)

Favourite new comic book

• American Vampire by Stephen King, Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque (DC Comics/Vertigo)
• Daytripper by Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba (DC Comics/Vertigo)
• Alan Moore's Neonomicon by Alan Moore and Jacen Burrows (Avatar Press)
• S.H.I.E.L.D. by Jonathan Hickman and Dustin Weaver (Marvel)
• War of the Independents by Dave Ryan (Red Anvil Comics)

Favourite Manga

• Berserk by Kenatro Miura (Hakusensha/ Dark Horse Comics)
• Bleach by Tite Kubo (Shueisha/Viz Media)
• Fullmetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa (Square Enix/Viz Media)
• One Piece by Eiirchiro Oda (Shueisha/Viz Media)
• Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto (Shueisha/Viz Media)

Favourite European album

• Blacksad by Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido (Darguad/Dark Horse Comics)
• L'Histoire Secrete by Edward Gauvin and Jean-Pierre Pecau (Delcourt/Archaia Studio Press)
• The Scorpion by Desberg Desberg and Enrico Marini (Dargaud/Cinebook ltd)
• Requiem: Vampire Knight by Pat Mills and Olivier Ledroit (Nickel Editions/Panini Comics)
• Sky Doll by Alessandro Barbucci and Barbara Canepa (Soleil/Marvel)

Favourite Web-based comic

• Axe Cop by Malachai and Ethan Nicolle
• Freak Angels by Warren Ellis and Paul Duffield
• Hark! A Vagrant! by Kate Beaton
• Questionable Content by Jeph Jaques
• xkcd.com by Randall Munroe

Favourite single story

• Amazing Spider-Man #625: Endanger Species by Joseph Kelly and Max Fuimara (Marvel)
• A Cat Named Haiku by Mark Poulton and Dexter Weeks (Arcana Studio)
• Daytripper #8 by Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba (DC Comics/Vertigo)
• Legends: The Enchanted #0 by Nick Percival (Radical Comics)
• Sea Bear and Grizzly Shark by Ryan Ottley and Jason Howard (Image Comics)

Favourite continued story

• 2000AD #1650-1693: Judge Dredd: Tour of Duty (Rebellion)
• Fables #94-98: Rose Red by Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham (DC Comics/Vertigo)
• Hellboy #47-49: The Storm by Mike Mignola and Duncan Fegredo (Dark Horse)
• Invincible #71-continuing: The Viltrumite War by Robert Kirkman and Ryan Ottley (Image Comics)
• The Walking Dead #73-79: Too Far Gone by Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard (Image Comics)

Favourite 2010 cover

• 2000AD Prog 1700 by Jonathan Davis Hunt
• Axe Cop: Vol 1 by Ethan Nicolle
• Batwoman #0 by J.H. Williams III
• Daytripper #2 by Gabriel Ba
• War of the Independents by Dave Ryan

Favorite 2010 original graphic novel

• At The Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft and Ian Culbard (SELFMADE HERO)
• Hellblazer: Pandemonium by Jamie Delano and Jock
• Richard Stark's Parker: The Outfit by Darwyn Cooke
• Scott Pilgrim Vol 6: Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour by Bryan Lee O'Malley (Fourth Estate)
• Superman: Earth One by J. Michael Straczynski and Shane Davis (DC Comics)

Favourite reprint compilation

• Absolute All Star Superman by Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly (DC Comics)
• Batwoman: Elegy by Gregg Rucker and J.H. Williams III (DC Comics)
• Charley's War: Great Mutiny by Pat Mills and Joe Colquhoun (Titan Books)
• Doctor Who: Fugitive by Tony Lee, Al Davison and Matthew Smith (IDW Publishing)
• The Walking Dead: Volume 13 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn (Image Comics)

Favourite comics-related book

• 75 Years of DC Comics by Paul Levitz (Taschen GmBH)
• Cover Run: The DC Comics Art of Adam Hughes by Adam Hughes (DC Comics)
• The Horror! the Horror!: Comic Books the Government Didn't Want You to Read! by Jim Trombetta and R. Spiel (Harry N. Abrams, Inc.)
• Icons: The DC Comics and WildStorm Art of Jim Lee by Jim Lee and Bill Baker (Titan Books)
• Mega-City One Archives by August Hann and Aaron Dembski-Bowden (Mongoose Publishing)

Favourite comics-related movie or TV show

• The Big Bang Theory
• Iron Man 2
• Kick Ass
• Scott Pilgrim Vs the World
• The Walking Dead

Favourite comics-related website

• Bleeding Cool
• ComicsAlliance
• Comic Attack
• Comic Book Resources
• Girls Read Comics Too
• Newsarama

Favourite magazine about comics

• Alter Ego (TwoMorrows)
• Back Issue (TwoMorrows)
• Comic Heroes (Future Publishing)
• Tripwire (Tripwire)
• Wizard (Wizard)

Roll of Honour

• John Byrne
• Carlos Ezquerra
• Dave Gibbons
• Bryan Lee O'Malley
• David Mazzuchelli

•  Vote in the Eagle Awards 2010