Rainy Road Warrior Newsletter
The Plans, They Are (Always) A’Changin’
In my last newsletter, I mentioned that I was going to have to split up the Roketto-Man story because the artist was taking too long and it looks like I’m going to have to make another change for the same reason but due to a different artist.
As I mentioned before (and if you looked at the preview of the EoD campaign I linked in the previous newsletter), my plan was to have the first stretch goal be 10 additional pages of the Lady X story. So, the first issue would have had Part 1 and Part 2 of her initial 4-part introductory tale.
Unfortunately, I don’t have the funds to pay the artist to complete those 10 pages ahead of time (which was the point of the stretch goal) but I figured I could cut down on the production time of the additional pages by paying him to do 3 of them. And I intended to use them as a teaser in the campaign to get people motivated to reach that stretch goal.
Well, after exactly 2 months, all I have are thumbnails (rough sketches) of the 10 pages. (The artist decided on his own to rough out all of the pages.) It’s become clear that there is no way I can include those 10 pages as a stretch goal. At the rate he’s going, it could possibly take the artist another year to complete the artwork.
So, the additonal 10 pages will no longer be an official stretch goal in the campaign. What I mean by that is that if this campaign does reach a certain financial goal (around $2000), then I will use that money to pay him to finish the pages and include them in issue #2.
Annnnd?!
I still don’t know exactly when I’ll launch the EoD campaign. Things are a little bit hectic right now since my kids are about to start school, I’m trying to get back into the workforce once they do and my wife crashed her car the other day, which has thrown a monkeywrench into every aspect of our lives. But it’s looking like I’ll launch the first or second week of September.
In the meantime, here’s a preview of a new piece of art I commissioned from Narcelio Sousa. He’s another artist I just happened to spot while scrolling through Facebook and I figured it was worth it to have a sexy pinup like this of Lady X.
I’m thinking of having this be a stretch goal that I’ll offer as an A5 print because that’s roughly the size of a comic and will fit inside of a gemini mailer without having to fold it.
I’m also considering having a coloring contest with this piece. The winner’s version will be used for the cover of issue #2 and they’ll get a free copy of the book. But I have to think about that.
The Amazing Con-Man - Farley Con debrief
I literally just got back home from Farley Con in Chattanooga and, while it wasn’t a total dud, it wasn’t very good, either. It looked like it was going to be okay because there was a decent sized crowd early in the morning but it tapered off quickly and became a ghost town the last few hours. In the past, it’s been the exact opposite — usually pretty dead in the morning then picks up after lunch.
Once again, my daughter beat me by selling 3 sets of her books (we sell them as a set of 2 books with trading cards) while I only sold 1 copy of six:eight and 1 sticker.
Not good.
I talked to some other vendors and they did not have a good day, either. So, maybe it was due to the general state of the economy. Or maybe because they were charging $20 at the door. Organizers need to stop charging so much just to get into an event. After people pay to get in, they ain’t got no money left over to buy anything from the vendors!
The cool thing that kinda makes it all worth it is that I did get to meet Larry Hama. He actually walked the floor one time but I didn’t notice him until he was already past my table and I didn’t want to just scream out his name. Actually, I did want to do that but I knew that would have caused an awkward scene. So I decided to bide my time and go up to his table later in the day.
Since activity died down significantly in the afternoon, I decided to go over to his table at around 4pm and give him a copy of six:eight, Neotheric and Book of Legend. I just told him that I was a big fan of his work, that GI Joe meant everything to me as a kid (it’s my Star Wars) and I gave him copies of my books. He looked at them, asked if I wrote and drew them and I said I only wrote them then he looked at me and nodded and said, “Okay.” I said, “It’s an honor to meet you” and then left.
I doubt he’ll ever look at the books again but that’s okay. I wasn’t aiming to get anything out of it. I don’t know. I just thought giving him copies of my work was the best way that I could express my gratitude for all the adventures he gave me as a kid.
He was also selling sketches for $100 and pre-printed posters for $40. There was a reproduction of GI Joe issue #1 with his and Jim Shooter’s signatures that I really wanted to get but since I didn’t make any money at the show, I couldn’t bring myself to spend that kind of money. That’s been my operating philosphy at these shows. If I make any money, I’ll allow myself to spend a little. But if I don’t sell anything, my money stays in my wallet, no matter how much I might want something.
This Week in Randomness!
I’ve finally started watching Twin Peaks season 3 on blu-ray that I got last year and it reminded me of this scene from the show’s original run way back when. As with many aspects of the show, this scene hit me like a sledgehammer to the chest and has stayed with me ever since. It might seem “odd” and it verges on being “cringey” but I think if you see the world from a particular perspective — if your life has taken you on a certain path — the simple, underlying message might resonate with you, too. I’ll just leave it at that and you can take it however you want.
~Michael T Gonzalez
