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The All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe is here, but the event that was supposed to kick off the brand new publishing line Secret Wars is still in production. We’re here to take a look at the brand new books in the line and tell you if they are worth the money. It’s week seven of the All-New, All-Different Marvel […]

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Legendary comics artist Walter Simonson gets honors this week, because of his excellent “Joker-shark” variant cover to the latest issue of Aquaman. Simonson helped define one of Marvel’s most popular characters with his run on The Mighty Thor starting with issue #337(1983). From very early on in his career Simonson was a frequent collaborator with fellow comics legend, writer/editor Archie Goodwin on DC comics such as Detective Comics and Manhunter. Simonson’s dynamic style pushes out in bold perspective and influenced many comics illustrators to come after him.

Walter Simonson has worked on many comics with his wife, writer Louise Simonson, including a memorable run on X-Factor, and later on the World of Warcraft comic for Wildstorm.

Simonson received the Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010, which was presented to him by his wife Louise.

You can catch the latest news/artwork from Mr. Simonson by following him on twitter here.

For more comics related art, you can follow me on my website comicstavern.com – Andy Yates

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Yeesh...I've not posted to this blog in a long long time. Feeling kinda bad about that.
SO, at the request of Mr. Jeff Andrews..I'm sharing these THOR Scribbles I posted on my blog yesterday. To scope out this and more of my other assorted artistic tomfollery, visit me at BEERS&BEARS!
If you like what you see I invite you to follow me there, and I'll make a concerted effort to post some work back to the SFG! in the future..

Have a great Friday everybody.
gogopedro

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Number of laps of the outside of our house done by Thor in his imitation of Iniesta's celebration of Spain's winning World Cup goal: 1

Number of shirts removed as part of said imitation: 1

Number of laps of our house done by my children in imitation of their father: 2

Number of clothing items removed during laps: all of them

Number of laps done naked: 3

Number of laps done wearing each other's clothing: 1

Number of laps done wearing underwear on their heads and screaming with giggles while their father chases them, trying to corral them into the bath: 1

Number of neighborhood block parties we are likely to be invited to this summer: sigh.

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In which I confess to The Mighty Thor, who loves me anyway. There should be a line in there about spending all my time blogging, but Shakespeare failed to anticipate the need for that in our time.

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it dirty laundry finds,
Or when it notes dustbusters filled with goo.
Oh, no! It is an ever-fixèd mark*
That looks on tantrums and is never shaken;
Through waist-high grass it mows well after dark,
Though at 5:30,** both the kids awaken.
Our diapers, pipes, and shingles all have leaks,
Which in inspector’s searches did not rise;
The boxes will be closed and packed for weeks,
But bear with me, e’en as I do revise.
I swore I’d work, but must confess, my One:
I never writ, nor errands did I run.

* Not unlike the ever-fixèd mark shoes make on walls when hucked them in frustration
** That’s a.m., people.

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Today's episode of No, Seriously. Just Try It. is brought to you by The Mighty Thor who reports, "Lately, I am thinking about book covers."*

I worked at a bookstore for five years. I shelved hundreds of books for kids and adults. I know about book jacket marketing and book jacket dynamics. I know that, as The Mighty Thor said just now, "the cover doesn't even have to represent what's in the book; if it's a cool cover, people will buy it." Despite all this, I am still a sucker for a good book cover.

For today, though, I want you to forget that book jackets are marketing devices. I want you to think of your cover as one visual image encapsulating your whole book. It needs to convey the title, the mood you want to set, the one mental picture you want people to have as they start reading, and maybe a snapshot of your setting -- all in one image.

With that in mind, design your book cover. No, seriously. Just try it. I don't care if you can't draw. Lay it out. What goes where? Cut things out of magazines if you have to. Steal pictures of kids off other people's blogs.** What is your title? What font will it be in? What scene is so pivotal it can represent the whole book?

The hope, of course, is that having to answer these questions will crystallize what's important to you in your book. Also, if the cover's done, it'll be just like the book is already written, right?

The Mighty Thor did have some suggestions:
1. Dust sprinkled across the background (think Philip Pullman).
2. Killer zombies killing someone.
3. Cave trolls. In fact, Thor has announced that he's going to write a book and the whole thing is going to be an ode to cave trolls.
4. "You can't go wrong with dripping letters."
5. He will under no circumstances buy your book if the cover features stills of the actors in the film version.

So, with all that in mind, what does your cover look like?

* These are the kind of conversations we have all the time in our house.
** Not really, okay?

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After much careful thought, I have decided to swap Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass for Light in August in this week's 15 Classics in 15 Weeks project. The main reason is that I can’t find my copy of Light in August I am curious to discover Whitman’s take on some of the issues tackled by Hawthorne, his contemporary. Also, my Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition of Leaves of Grass is absolutely gorgeous and has been calling me since June. Have no fear, I shall tackle Light in August next week. It will still be August, after all.

In the meantime, I stand amazed at the magnificence of Leaves of Grass, and have been inspired to offer my own addition to the world of poetry:

For Tinkerbell, with apologies to William Carlos Williams

This Is Just To Say

I have eaten
the Oreos
that you hid in
the Tupperware drawer

and which
you were probably saving
for your lunch.

Forgive me
they were delicious
so chocolatey
and my revisions so hard.

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In which I eventually get to my new favorite technique for getting unstuck while writing, I promise. But first, a word on zombies and poultry.

My husband* would take issue with my last post. He says you can't have a checklist of what makes a great novel without one of the following:

1. zombies
2. nanotechnology (preferably a swarm of tiny robots gone bad)

He would probably also grudgingly accept the following:

1. fire
2. defenestration
3. shape shifters
4. a biological villain, such as a supervirus**

In fact, whenever I write something new, my husband inquires which of the above it contains. He is always disappointed. He would like the social conflicts in my classroom oriented picture books to be more often resolved through clone wars.***

Now, Tinkerbell loves my books. But, she REALLY loves the stories her dad tells her in the bathtub, which revolve around the exciting adventures of Space Chicken, Intergalactic Milk Delivery Poultry, whose efforts to bring fresh cold milk to all of our universe's children (alien and otherwise) are constantly thwarted by circumstance and occasionally goofy bad guys.

The fact is, the Space Chicken stories are fun. Fun to make up, fun to hear.

Which bring us to my new favorite technique for getting unstuck. You know those times when you have something to write, or to revise, and just isn't coming? It just looms over you, dreaded and humongous? Your house is spotless, your bills are paid, and you've created hand-made paper scrapbooks for your pets -- anything to avoid putting pen to paper? Here is your assignment:

Choose one item from the lists above and use it. I am not joking. I don't care if you're writing an 18th century romance; have the lovers attacked by zombies. Make the mama bunny toss the baby bunny out the window.

I am willing to bet three things:

1. It will be much easier to write the scene (or whatever) than however you're trying it
2. It will be much more fun to write as well
   
3. Even though you can't use the scene like this, you'll find something, some little tidbit, that you can use. And hopefully having that little bit will make the whole thing start to come together.
   

Let me know. And if you need more, try here, which is what inspired my sharing this.

* My husband is actually quite well-read and enjoys many books without any robots. Just not as much, I think.
** Preferably one that speeds through the air and is neurologically devastating so that our hero can be a pediatric neurologist with a penchant for research and several letters in track...
*** Also, he would also like me to refer to him in future posts as "The Mighty Thor."

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In this show: Re-visiting a conversation with colleagues from Winnipeg, Manitoba. A special thank you to Chris and Tannis for their thoughtful contributions. Let me know where you are: Click on ‘Join the CLIP Frappr Map’ in the menu bar. Post a comment: Click the comment button below or leave a voice mail by clicking ‘leave me a message’ in [...]

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