It’s been a while, but I’m back, and I’ve got fun new things for you all. Coming tomorrow is Gravity Matters, a brand new comic story from me, featuring art by Sean Dillon with letters by Erica Schultz and editing by Kristopher White. Here’s the pitch:
Amy Pill is a genius and a slacker who’d rather surf than grind out her day job in 2439, building anti-gravity units for deep-space vehicles. But when her shoddy factory begins to implode around her, will her gritty genius be enough to save her? Gravity Matters is a thrill-a-minute adventure that packs the flashy sci-fi of The 5th Element into a Towering Inferno style disaster tale.
Beyond that, it’s a fun exploration of youth and sisterhood, and it’s HUGELY inspired by my amazing stepdaughters, Vivianne and Grace. Explaining to teenagers that a character I created isn’t just a copy of them has been a fun exploration of how writing works in our house, for certain. These two young women inspire, amaze, frustrate, shock, awe, and motivate me every single day, whether they know it or not, and this story would never have happened without the two of them. It’s dedicated to them and their amazing mother, Carla, my rock. Thanks Ladies, I really hope you like it.
There are many other folks to thank as well, and I have to start with the man who makes the story so gorgeous, Sean Dillon. We met this past June at Special Edition NYC, my favorite little con in the world, and his style immediately grabbed me. I had Gravity Matters already written in one form (more on that in a bit), and Sean’s work really helped bring Amy, Aphos and Victoria to life in my imagination. I was really excited that he wanted to work on the story, and can’t get over how awesome it looks. If you love his stuff (and really, you should) there are great places to find more of it, including his book Sweetie with the fantastic Steven Petrivelli, and the RedStylo Media anthology 27.
I also have to thank Erica Scultz two-fold, both for early input on the story and her fantastic lettering work. Erica can rock an implosion sound effect like none other, and is truly Of The Bad Ass. Likewise, I need to thank Kristopher White for his in depth story editing, which came via Kickstarter. I was proud to back the campaign for RISE: Comics Against Bullying from Northwest Press, which is how I got these amazing folks to take a look at the GM script, and their help was invaluable. They are both killer writers themselves, too! Check out Erica’s M23 (with art by Vicente Alcázar) and Kristopher’s The Thirty Six. Do it. DO IT NOW!!!!
OK, if you’re still here, the litany of thanks goes on. I’ll try and avoid the hook of the Academy Orchestra while still listing as many people as possible. Thanks to Buddy Scalera of Comicbookschool.com for his Creator Connection panels at NYCC, C2E2 and SE:NYC – he’s the reason I’ve met most of the folks I make comics with, including Sean. Further thanks to the aforementioned Stephen Petrivelli, the nattily dressed J. Jacob Barker, and my werewolf-western partner in crime Stan Chou for forming the Creator After Con Network. If it sounds like an excuse to drink and socialize with fellow like-minded creators trying to break into a difficult industry, that’s because it is, and we don’t really need an excuse. These guys helped me build a network of support that has buoyed me through these tough early stages of my career, folks like Johnny C, Chris Liryo, Jamal Patterson, and many, many more. (Also, Stan is a mean karaoke singer. Mess with him and his rendition of Guns ‘N Roses at your peril.)
Thanks also goes to Michael Dorman, for whom I wrote the original script of Gravity Matters. This was literally the first money I ever made in comics, and it hopefully won’t be long before you see Michael and I making cool comics of our own!
BIG BIG BIG thanks also goes to the folks at the Greatest Comic Shop on EARTH, Whatever Comics in San Francisco. Cougar and Rich are just the nicest guys around, they run the best shop in the city, and they love to talk comics (check out their podcast if you don’t believe me.)
Of course, I want to thank my Parents, Ron and Mary Reynolds for their generous support of Cloudwrangler Comics, and of me in general.
I have to thank Athos, our family’s French Bulldog. He’s NOTHING at all like Aphos the German-Cyborg-Shepard in the comic, but the names are close. Athos is adorable, but not at all useful, and likes to fart. A lot.
Lastly, I have to thank my wife, Carla. I would not be the writer, or even the man, I am today without her. Her unending support has meant the world to me, and every single thing I do is for her. I love you, baby, more than anything.
And finally thanks to all of you for reading Cloudwrangler Comics. I hope you like them all! Look for some awesome new stuff coming this winter, and some neat stuff in print after the first of the year!
