Last week, after pulling an all-nighter-and-a-half, the artwork to Ladies & Gentlemen Issue 2 was sent off to very capable hands of Stuart Gould of
UKComics. I feel like I've been working double-shifts in this last month, coming home from work and diving straight into drawing and (with my wife having long since gone to sleep) nothing to prompt me to stop but for the stinging of my eyes. Now I can sleep easy... or rather, wake up from stressful dreams of last-minute printing problems or art mistakes that don't really make sense but nonetheless can't be solved. At least I know this happens to the writer and not just the artist; Rich told me he had a dream where I drew all the characters as X-Men and refused to see why that was stupid. "Ladies and Gentlex-men"??
As soon as they're printed and I receive that glorious package at my doorstep, we're going to be hitting the cons and shop stands armed with some 200+ copies of Issue 2 and another 100+ copies of Issue 1. Kicking it off will be the
London MCM Expo on October 26th, the first time Rich and I have had a table there (but the second time we will have been, after our
flopped experience at the Eagles Awards this past summer). If you haven't been before, it's an insanely busy event crammed with hordes of costumed animangalescents (and the occasional disconcerting princess something-or-other with a beer belly and 5 o'clock shadow). This should translate into being the biggest convention for team Water Closet so far and hopefully our most successful - a good launch venue for our sequel volume. Otherwise, it's a great place to go if not just for the people-watching and should keep us endlessly entertained as the masses flow by our table in their pan-gendered garb.
After that, of course, it's up and over to Leeds for the darling of all comic conventions,
Thought Bubble, where the winners of the
Northern Sequential Art Competition will be announced. I'm rather excited about our entry, so fingers crossed. This will be the first time I'll have to travel to get there, since I've been lucky enough to live right in Leeds for the other years Thought Bubble's been going. The consequences of moving to the South West, I suppose... but hey there's always Bristol again this May, and then Rich will have to haul his heiny down here.
Anyway, I don't know why I'm telling you all this in advance. We should be writing about our experiences at these things when they actually happen. Until then, the REASON I'm typing this in the first place is to let you know that ISSUE TWO IS FINALLY DONE. It's journey to the prin-ters is now com-pLEET. And that in the meantime every page of ISSUE ONE IS NOW ONLINE FOR FREE in dazzling technicolour (black and white) so you can catch up. But by no means let that stop you from buying a good ol' fashioned paper and ink copy to put on your book shelf if you like it. We're ever so poor and hungry fellows. I'll also add shivering. That invokes a certain pity associated with puppies, I think. The kinds with their little ribs showing.
Ooh ooh, and we also have a little feature on
Geek Syndicate this week for their "Autumn of Indie" elevator pitch. Kinda nifty, and I'm interested to see what other independent comics crop up there.
So come on down to London or Leeds while we're there and we'd love to chat with you and put a copy or two in your hands. If you can't make it to either of those, I'll be going around Bristol peddling our wares at the local comic shops (Excelsior looks promising), and we are available as always at Travelling Man and OK Comics in Leeds, and on our Emporium page.
Holy smokes! Being cooped up too long has clearly heightened my rambling disposition. Time to stretch my back, (pretend to) crack my knuckles, scrub away the ink smears and hit the open road... I'm trembling with excitement.
Signing off,
Jordan
