My fellow genre enthusiasts, I come before you today to tell you that the state of the StarWarp Concepts Union remains strong!
With the support of you fans, 2015 was another exciting year here at ’Warp Central, with the releases of the horror comic anthology Lorelei Presents: House Macabre; the quickly-popular how-to book for writers, Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination; and the highly anticipated dark fantasy novel, Blood Reign: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 2. And 2016 looks just as promising! Here’s what’s on the schedule:
For a Few Gold Pieces More: Tales of the Rogue With No Name: From Richard C. White—author of Terra Incognito: A Guide to Building the Worlds of Your Imagination, Troubleshooters, Incorporated: Night Stalkings, and The Chronicles of the Sea Dragon Special—comes this collection of short stories he’s written that star a mysterious, unnamed wanderer with a penchant for getting into trouble…if the price is right. If you’re thinking Sergio Leone “spaghetti Westerns” mashed up with epic-fantasy adventures, then you’re definitely on the right track!
Heroines and Heroes: In celebration of Free Comic Book Day in May (which this year is timed to coincide with the release of Marvel Films’ Captain America: Civil War), we’ll be offering this free digital comic book. It’s a collection of stories (and a few pinups) that I’ve drawn over the years, from my small press days to the “legendary” Wonder Woman-meets-Harley Quinn tale that was meant to be my entrée to fame and fortune as a DC Comics artist (spoiler: it didn’t work out). Heroines and Heroes will be joining our other free comics: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback #0 and Heartstopper: The Legend of La Bella Tenebrosa #1–3.
Lorelei Presents: House Macabre: Yes, it’s the same comic that we released in early 2015—and which is currently available for purchase in print and digital formats at the StarWarp Concepts webstore—but now, for the first time, we’re offering it to comic shops through our partners at Diamond Comic Distributors. It’s Lori’s first outing as the hostess of a horror comic anthology, in this one-shot special that contains four tales of horror, behind eye-catching cover art by fan-favorite artist Louis Small Jr. (Vampirella, Supergirl, Batman 80-Page Giant):
- “The Old, Dark Manse” is written by me, penciled by Uriel Caton (JSA Annual, The Ex-Mutants, Heartstopper: The Legend of La Bella Tenebrosa) and inked by “Chainsaw” Chuck Majewski (Harvey Kurtzman’s New Two-Fisted Tales), and has Lori welcoming readers to this special.
- “All in Color for a Crime” is another tale from me, with art by Lou Manna (T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, Young All-Stars). Two comic book collectors clash over a rare back issue—and only one of them will be adding it to their long boxes!
- “The Basilisk,” from me and artist John Pierard (Graphic Classics: Horror Classics, My Teacher Fried My Brains), is a “Lori’s Feary Tale” that examines the history of a supernatural creature that’s a cross between a deadly snake and a…chicken?!
- Wrapping up the special is “Requiem for Bravo 6,” by New York Times bestselling author and comic writer Dwight Jon Zimmerman (She-Hulk, Steve McQueen: Full-Throttle Cool) and artist Juan Carlos Abraldes Rendo. A special-ops team goes on a life-or-death mission…but will they be prepared for what awaits them at mission’s end?
Blood & Iron: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 3: Coming by year’s end, it’s the much-anticipated conclusion to Pan’s first adventure, which began in the novels Blood Feud and Blood Reign. If you read Book 2: Blood Reign, then you know our favorite teenaged Goth is facing some mighty big challenges—vampire clans, legions of monsters, sword-swinging angels—but she’s more than up to the task of dealing with them…at least that what’s she keeps telling herself. What twists and turns will her saga take? You’ll find out when Blood & Iron makes its debut!
On the digital comics front, late 2016 will see the Comixology and ComicsFix debuts of both Lorelei Presents: House Macabre and The Saga of Pandora Zwieback Annual #1. However, if you can’t wait for those esteemed distributors to make their decisions about picking up our titles, you can always order them right now from the StarWarp Concepts webstore.
As for convention appearances, it’s a pretty short schedule—one appearance planned, so far—but here’s where you’ll find us in 2016:
March 5: Big Apple Con: Due to god-awful weather conditions, we had to cancel our appearance at last year’s twentieth-anniversary celebration, so here’s hoping Old Man Winter eases back on the icy roads so we can actually get to the Penn Plaza Pavilion (in midtown Manhattan) this time. Be sure to come by and say hello if you’re attending.
We’ve got other projects in the works (of course), and I’ll keep you up-to-date on those as the year moves along.
Here’s to a spectacular 2016!
