First, Some News
We have a launch date!
Crazy Latte Thing Called Love will be launching on Kickstarter Wednesday May 15th at 8am EDT.
If you haven’t followed the campaign yet, please do! We’ll have early bird deals for both digital and physical copies until the end of Friday May 17th (ending at 11:59pm EDT).
How a Kickstarter launches really makes a difference for the algorithm, so your early support is vital to the project’s success. More importantly, getting in early will save you some money and get us closer to funding and even getting you more for your dollar by hitting some great stretch goals!
Follow if you haven’t already, but if you already have - share it with your friends!
This Ship Travels Overseas
And in some international news, I’ll be exhibiting at Thought Bubble in Harrogate, UK in November. I’ve met a few really cool folks online from ‘round those parts, so it'll be a lot of fun to meet them all in person. Plus we'll have a couple new projects ready for that time (see the “release calendar” at the end of this post for some clues!)
Lost and Found
A quick update from last week: I found my Expo pass.
They say it's in the last place you look, but it was actually in the last place I left it: the bag that I took to Fan Expo.
It's a shame I didn't get to go, but it definitely saved me some money going through those back issues. More for my friends on Kickstarter.
Now let's get into it.
Who Chose Who?
Launching on April 17th, TO Comix Press has a new anthology called The City We Chose.
I’ve been a fan of the Toronto Comics anthologies since the first edition in 2014. Seeing stories told in my city - and not in the Marvel way with the odd panel or nod - but actually about the city was something I hadn’t really seen before this. Getting accepted to be a part of this anthology has meant a lot to me.
For my entry, I submitted a personal story called Il Pescatore. It translates to the fisherman. The story is about my grandparents. At least, kind of about them. It's not a true-to-life account. It's dramatized and condensed quite a bit, but the main idea is there, though even their names are different.
Who is Il Pescatore?
My grandfather, Fausto, came as an immigrant from Roseto degli Abruzzi, Italy in the ‘60s. He was the last of his family to come over, doing so by plane rather than by boat, along with his wife, Splendora, and his five children (one of which, being my mother).
Though I never heard the story direct from him, I heard through my mother, aunts and uncles that he was told of a better life in Canada. Leaving the beaches of the Adriatic for the cold streets of Caledonia and St. Clair in Toronto.
He could be both stern and loving, like most men of his generation. I was fortunate for getting the most time with him out of the extended family of grandchildren, as he and my grandmother helped raise my brothers and I - along with my mother. Being older now, I can see how I took that for granted - but there was always a language barrier as he never learned English.
Though that didn’t stop him from making friends with all of our neighbours.
He was a healthy man right up until he was 80 when pancreatic cancer struck - and struck fast. My grandmother, having already passed, had health scares throughout her senior years, but my grandfather could keep up with the teenagers in the family. Needless to say, it was a shock.
I didn’t handle that time well. I let my feelings about silly things get in the way of what should have been meaningful moments. It’s one of the last lessons he taught me; even if it was indirectly.
This entry into the anthology is just a comic at the end of the day, but I hope it serves as an appreciation for what he, and the entire family, sacrificed so we could have a better life in Canada.
We’re All In This Together
Working in this anthology was something new for me. Crowdfunding my own comics, I’m used to picking my collaborators. I have my hands on every aspect of the project from beginning to end. I know what the end goal is - and though the artists I work with put their own spin on things - I can see it all come together.
This was different.
I was paired with an editor, Kavita, and was able to pick Marzia Migliori as the artist. Marzia has a Disney-esque style that I felt was perfect for this story. Her samples showed that she could really get the emotion to come through in every panel, even without the dialogue.
Steven Andrews and Emily Stewart have been steering this big ship and I’m looking forward to seeing it all come together.
But I had more help from an unexpected, and very reliable, source.
The Assist from a Legend
Once my pitch got accepted by TO Comix Press, I was quick to write the script, but I knew something was missing. Fortunately, I'm a part of the Black Jackett Club. If you’re unfamiliar, it’s Scott Snyder’s writing class which he runs through his Substack: Our Best Jackett.
With the Black Jackett Club level, you do get 5 minutes with Scott whenever he's available, which is rarely, but those 5 minutes were huge in making this story what it is. A few moments talking it through with Scott managed to really get to the heart of the story and make it something special. Something worthy of a tribute and this anthology.
Growing as a Creator
I have a day job, but comics is where I want to be. Crowdfunding can be a challenge in its own right, but it's not going to teach me everything. It's good to see how other creators are operating and learning from them. My path clearly isn’t the only one - or even the most direct one.
I’m glad to have the opportunity to be part of such a cool project. It’s not the last time I’ll be stretching beyond my comfort zone. In fact, I have a project that falls outside of what you might expect from me entirely - something that was inspired by this whole endeavor.
But we’ll chat more about that next entry.
Until then, be sure to check out The City We Chose on Kickstarter in just a couple days. Let me know if you do. I’d love to know what you think.
And thanks to all the collaborators on this project for teaching me and helping me grow.
What’s Next?
May 1
Welcome to Convention Season
A story of getting in the side-door of a favourite con
(Plus: News about “BSP #1”)
May 15
Have Yourself a Crazy Latte
Launching Crazy Latte Thing Called Love on Kickstarter
(Plus: Two cons in two weeks?!)
Il Pescatore: A Personal Story