This Wednesday sees the direct-market release of Rombies #0 and The Example. The release date for The Example and Rombies #0 has actually had to be pushed to this Wednesday as both books have had to go back for a second printing! Yes, both books are sold out and are going back to press.
A huge congratulations to Wolfgang Bylsma, Colin Wilson, Skye Ogden and Gestalt Publishing. It’s awesome to see these Australian-made books cracking the international market and kicking head.
So remember, wherever you are in the world this Wednesday (Thursday in Australia), head into a comic store and pick up a copy of Rombies and The Example. If they don’t have any copies, rant at them. If an Australian comic store hasn’t ordered any copies, stage a sit-in protest.
A comic store would be a great place for a sit-in protest; you could read comics while calmly demonstrating your outrage.
Praise for Rombies
A large part of the book’s success stems from the stellar artwork of Skye Ogden. Working in a slightly cartoony style, Ogden’s art is lively and leaps off the page without sacrificing a stunning attention to detail. The Coliseum and its gladiators are beautifully rendered, featuring exquisite period design elements and decorative flairs. His figures are robust and expressive, the pencils impeccably inked with a nice heavy line that lends each character weight and solidity. It’s a unique style, wonderfully matched to Tom Taylor’s crisp, fast-paced script. Like his collaborator’s artwork, Taylor’s script achieves a fine balance between levity and real emotional moments… Taylor delivers a rousing, fun story even if it’s steeped in half-devoured corpses and rivers of blood.” – Broken Frontier
“Did I get what I expected out of this book? No, I got a hell of a lot more. I loved the animated style artwork, and hey how can you not love a zombie lion? The story was done right. It didn’t go where I thought it would, which is a good thing. It’s not a B-movie story that is told here. It is an action pack death fest. I will say this, if Romero directed Gladiator this is what it would have looked like. Check this one out, it is highly enjoyable and I think a must read for zombie fans. 4 stars” – ComicMonsters.com
And The Example
“This Schrödinger’s Cat scenario is explored comprehensively via Taylor’s rhythmic dialogue. Sam and Chris riposte to and fro with the sort of casual offhandedness afforded to transient relationships. It’s almost flirtatious, but never dull, and the naturalness of their humour contrasts beautifully with the silent menace of the briefcase… a burst of applause to all concerned, and a note to other creators and publishers out there – this is an example worth following.” - (Cool) Shite
San Diego Comic-Con is almost here and, once again, I will brave man-made flight machines with Colin Wilson to get there.
This con is looking a lot busier than the last one. I will be signing for The Authority at the DC booth every day. I will also be signing with Colin at the Dark Horse Booth on ‘Star Wars Day’ (Friday) and, on the Saturday, I will be part of the Wildstorm: Stormfront Panel with some great talent. I will also be signing at booth 4500 for Gestalt Publishing and generally hanging around that area as Colin Wilson has his own table at this year’s SDCC with Dave Dorman (which I’m apparently sitting at too). If you’re around, come say hi.
THURSDAY, JULY 22
12-1pm: SIGNING @ DC booth (#1915)
FRIDAY, JULY 23
12:00-1:00: SIGNING @ Dark Horse booth
2-3pm: SIGNING @ DC booth
SATURDAY, JULY 24
1-2pm: SIGNING @ DC booth
6:30 to 7:30 p.m. WildStorm: Storm Front Panel
What’s new in the WildStorm Universe? VP/general manager Hank Kanalz and senior editor Ben Abernathy bring you up to speed with this inside look into DC’s wildest imprint. Joining Hank and Ben will be Adam Beechen (WildCats), Kurt Busiek (Astro City), Darick Robertson (Fringe: Tales From the Fringe), Tom Taylor (The Authority), Tim Seeley (WildCats), Adam Archer (Ratchet and Clank), Cruddie Torian (Gen13) and others. Room 4
Want to be a zombie? Now you can be, without having to be infected by some sort of super-disease.
Rome was big. Very big. Populating it (and depopulating it in Zombie form) in a comic is a big task. Skye Ogden and I have decided we want real people to walk (and shamble) through Rome’s streets. We want you!
Gestalt Publishing have set up a facebook page – “Be a Rombies Extra.” – If that link doesn’t work just type ‘be a Rombies extra’ into facebook’s search – “Here’s the deal: Post a photo of yourself as a Zombie or Citizen (or both) for the chance to appear in the upcoming Rombies comic series from Gestalt Publishing, written by Tom Taylor (Star Wars/The Authority) & illustrated by Skye Ogden (Vowels)”
A special #0 issue of Rombies will be available in comic stores in August but it it is already available in other places and early reviews have been great.
“A large part of the book’s success stems from the stellar artwork of Skye Ogden. Working in a slightly cartoony style, Ogden’s art is lively and leaps off the page without sacrificing a stunning attention to detail. The Coliseum and its gladiators are beautifully rendered, featuring exquisite period design elements and decorative flairs. His figures are robust and expressive, the pencils impeccably inked with a nice heavy line that lends each character weight and solidity. It’s a unique style, wonderfully matched to Tom Taylor’s crisp, fast-paced script. Like his collaborator’s artwork, Taylor’s script achieves a fine balance between levity and real emotional moments… Taylor delivers a rousing, fun story even if it’s steeped in half-devoured corpses and rivers of blood.” – Broken Frontiers.com
“Did I get what I expected out of this book? No, I got a hell of a lot more. I loved the animated style artwork, and hey how can you not love a zombie lion? The story was done right. It didn’t go where I thought it would, which is a good thing. It’s not a B-movie story that is told here. It is an action pack death fest. I will say this, if Romero directed Gladiator this is what it would have looked like. Check this one out, it is highly enjoyable and I think a must read for zombie fans. 4 stars” – ComicMonsters.com
I am incredibly excited to announce here that, after some unforeseen circumstances, The Deep is swimming along nicely again. And joining me 20000 leagues under the sea, is the simply incredible James Brouwer. Click the pic for the new website.
My family are explorers.
We have been for generations.
Some argue that there is nowhere left to explore, that everything on earth that can be discovered has already been found.
They say that to truly explore we need to leave our planet.
While others look up to the stars, my family know that there are also stars beneath us, that there are an infinite number of things that shine brightly in the darkness below.
Most of our world lies unexplored, unexplained. There are things lurking in the seas that have only ever been spoken about in myth.
Heaps going on this week, including Authority and Star Wars, but first up… Rombies!
The Rombies one-shot and The Example are both being offered through Diamond this August – meaning I now have five comics coming into comic stores in August… and that’s even with Invasion skipping that month.
Rombies has been flying along. I’m really happy with the last script I turned in and Skye is about to rip into the series proper. All of this momentum has seen a fair bit of pimping by Gestalt Publishing.
Rombies now has an official website – ROMBIES.COM – which currently has a violently-brilliant new image by Skye Ogden to check out.
Justin Randalland I have crossed paths a number of times. They’ve always been strange, but fun, encounters.
The last time we were together, we were in a car late at night. We were being driven around Perth by our friend, and the head of Gestalt Publishing, Wolfgang Bylsma. I was in the front passenger seat, Randall was in the back seat behind me. He was, oddly, quite convinced that we were being followed by helicopters. Then he announced a spider had fallen out of his nose and was in the car with us… I still don’t know if this was true.
Randall is perhaps best known for his work on 30 Days of Night and Silent Hill. However, as of last week he will be best known for his creator-owned book Changing Ways. I was thrilled and honoured to be asked to write the forward to, what I believe, is probably the best piece of work to be published in the medium in this country – Yep, this thing of great production quality, beauty and fear came out of Australia. It is now in stores. If your local comic book store doesn’t have it, threaten them.
Check out the full trailer below. Warning: It’s violent and creepy.
From my forward…
“Changing Ways grabbed me by the eyeballs and wouldn’t let go until it was done. The art demands you stop and admire every extraordinarily rendered panel, while the tension of this perfectly-paced thriller forces you to turn the page.” – Me.
From Colin
“Dark, moody, menacing. Good comics stories do this stuff really well, and Changing Ways is excellent!“- Colin Wilson
From Templesmith
“It’s like a punch to the scrotum with the aftertaste of a tickling feather. Changing Ways is a hard road, full of broken glass and broken dreams. Too cool to say no to.” -Ben Templesmith
After happily announcing that I was the new writer of The Authority on Wednesday, I was then flown to Perth on the Thursday (Thursday morning… I don’t do morning) by Gestalt Publishing for Gestaltapalooza!
Comic Book Jesus posted about the night right here.
And the night was capped off with the announcement that our one-shot ‘Rombies‘ was just a teaser. Yep, Rombies is set to be a series! The Dead will walk again… in sandals.
The depth and breadth of the story Skye Ogden and I have planned was not even hinted at in the first publication. This story is tied to real-life historical events and crosses the path of real-life historical figures. It weaves through theologies and empires and leaves no one untouched, be they citizen, soldier or senator.
It will be fun.
A great celebration of the first five years of Gestalt also included a sneak peek of the incredible ‘Changing Ways‘ by one of the fine artists working on my upcoming Brief Cases, Justin Randall. Gestalt asked if I could provide a pull-quote for this incredible book. Which meant that I got to read an advance copy.
“Changing Ways grabbed me by the eyeballs and wouldn’t let go until it was done. The art demands you stop and admire every extraordinary rendered panel while the tension of this perfectly-paced thriller forces you to turn the page. Justin Randall balances beauty and terror on a rusty razor’s edge.” – Tom Taylor, writer of Star Wars: Invasion and The Authority.
Gestalt is Australia’s foremost independent publisher of comics and graphic novels.
Book Launch
Rome wasn’t built in a day… but it may crumble in one!
The Rombies book launch is part of Gestaltapalooza!
Can’t make it?
You can always buy it online…
We’re celebrating FIVE YEARS of Gestalt and we’d love for you to join us!
In preparing to launch Rombies, our zombies-in-ancient-Rome book, we realised that February 2010 marked FIVE YEARS since we first decided to start these shenanigans!
And so, to mark the occasion, we’re flying in the creative team behind Rombies:
Tom Taylor
Melbourne-based playwright who writes Star Wars: Invasion (for another publisher) alongside Gestalt titles Rombies, The Example, two stories in Flinch, and the upcoming Brief Cases.
Skye Ogden
Tokyo-based writer/illustrator responsible for Vowels, ‘The Daemon Street Ghost-Trap’ in Flinch and, of course, Rombies! Skye is also Art Director for Gestalt, responsible for our book design and trailer videos.
Both Tom & Skye will be discussing their vision and creative process and signing books!
Plus: LIVE MUSIC! Experience the musical stylings of Gestalt’s own Anton McKay and the immensely talented Tracey Read!
We look forward to seeing you there, and unveiling some of our plans for the NEXT five years — including the creepily beautiful world of Justin Randall’s Changing Ways…
Rombies will officially eat your brains on December 15 but the one-shot is already available for Pre Order over at the Gestalt Publishing site and at Amazon.com
Gestalt are having a sale at the moment so you can get quite a sizable discount if you order through them.
The artist, Skye Ogden, has also posted a nice look at his process in creating three pages from the book.
Click the image below for a look at Skye’s process.
The first official image for my new creator-owned series ‘The Deep’ was revealed at the Armageddon Expo in Melbourne this weekend and I’m very happy to share it here.
Art by Hugh Phiri, masthead by Skye Ogden (with a lot of input from others).
Once a professional juggler and fire eater, Tom Taylor is now a multi-award-winning playwright whose works have been produced across four continents (it’s hard to get a gig in Antarctica). However, theatre, like crime, doesn’t pay.
Fortunately, Tom has found his way into writing a bit of film, some TV and, the greatest storytelling medium there is, comics.
Tom currently writes for Dark Horse Comics, DC Comics and Gestalt Publishing.
He is the writer of several comics including the ongoing STAR WARS: INVASION series, THE AUTHORITY, THE EXAMPLE and ROMBIES.
Tom Taylor Made
STAR WARS: INVASION
ISSUE 1 - OUT NOW
THE EXAMPLE
OUT NOW
STAR WARS: ADVENTURES
LUKE SKYWALKER AND
THE TREASURE OF
THE DRAGONSNAKES
OUT NOW
THE AUTHORITY
STARTS MAY 2010
STAR WARS: INVASION
ISSUE 2 - OUT NOW
FLINCH
OUT NOW
STAR WARS: ADVENTURES
THE WILL OF
DARTH VADER
AUGUST 2010
STAR WARS: INVASION
ISSUE 3 - OUT NOW
THE DEEP
2010
STAR WARS: INVASION
ISSUE 4 - OUT NOW
STAR WARS: INVASION
ONLINE NOW
AT STARWARS.COM
STAR WARS: INVASION
ISSUE 0 - OUT NOW
ROMBIES
OUT NOW
STAR WARS: INVASION
ISSUE 5 - OUT NOW
STAR WARS: INVASION
VOLUME 2 - RESCUES
STARTS MAY 2010