There’s No Place Like Holmes (part 2)

We’re back with part two of our annual festival of comic goodness we call HOLMES INCORPORATED.   Today’s cover is brought to you by the letters “Daniel” and “Wong”, who turned in an action packed image that gives our family something to do on a slow Tuesday.  YIKES!

Yesterday we sneak peaked you into the first of TWO all new volumes for this summer, showing off FIVE (5) amazing new tales of the Holmes family in all their generations. Today, we bring you the second (2nd) of TWO (2) issues this year, with yet ANOTHER five fantastic features, and it’s also, officially, a doozy!

If you need to read the other slam-packed issues of Holmes Inc. , they’re all up online for FREE here!

Onwards to the new stuff!  WOO HOO!

Starting off the issue with a bang (literally) we have newcomer Dave Franciosa showing off his splash page skills over a roller coaster ride of a script by Sam Noir.  Blow out the hero’s knee with a gun blast from a mysterious monster at the door, and set the scales at life or death…. THAT’S how  you start a story!  I’ll bet you want to read more, right?

There’s that Franciosa fellow again, doing layouts this time, with Jason Roussel and Matthew Tavares finishing the pencils, and Christopher Yao inking, over top of character and prop designs from Rachael Wells.   This issue features a couple of jam stories by the whole Holmes Inc. Bullpen  (we were over-abundant with eager writers to the tune of two) and had to create art-teams to give life to a couple of our instant classic scripts.

Well, when James Cooper wrote a tale that absolutely everyone in the group wanted to work on, that’s what happened.  And it turns out that there’s some advantage in splitting up the layout/pencils and inks because the pages look better than the sum of their parts.  Who knew?

First time contributor Taran Chadha didn’t work on the jam story because he was busy showing off his multi-level skills on a story he wrote, drew and grey toned all by his own self.  And WOW is the only word we can use.    Only the really good ones make it look so easy.

With an utterly charming script from Holmes Inc. super-veteran Mike Marano (who doubled as assistant editor for this star turn…ye editor is SO proud), we see our next jam story.  This time laid out by the inimitable Rachael Wells and, penciled and inked by the whole gang (including some special guest stars from previous issues!) this story introduces us to another of Mike’s fantastic guest star characters!  Is she a new love interest for Edgar Holmes….or will she DESTROY HIM?!?

Ye editor pitched in with an art job of his own this year, with a story by second time Holmes Inc. author, Oliver Ho, that I had to get my hands on.  It’s spooky meets science-y, wrapped up in a mystery, and I got to draw Chinese Water Dragons, so everybody wins.

If you’re in Toronto, come on down to the FanExpo convention, meet the creators, and pick up your own copy (while supplies last, I suspect we might sell out of these mini-masterpieces).

ALSO:  Come on down to the FanExpo to hear me give out FREE lectures on creating comics for fun and profit.  Today’s lecture (which is, I think going on in the early afternoon 6:45pm Room 705) is called “How to Write a Plot in Under an Hour!”  There’s room for lots of people, so bring a friend!

Ty the Guy OUT!

For your Bonus Moment?  A map of Hall E

Here, There and Everywhere

It’s another busy week for Ty…  He’s  teaching (yesterday Writing for Comics Part One, tonight Drawing the Human Figure from Your Head), drawing for Marvel Comics’ all-ages Spidey book (Ultimate Spider-Man Adventures), and working on some other can’t-yet-be-mentioned projects, (and yeah yeah there’s that parenting/husbanding stuff).

TODAY he will be at The Comic Book Lounge & Gallery for their UNCANNY AVENGERS #1 Launch Party. Sez The Lounge,

“[Uncanny Avengers #1 is] the first of the Marvel Now! titles being released. Uncanny Avengers 1 is written by Rick Remender, with artwork by John Cassaday.

The first customers who purchase the book will receive a limited edition print and other goodies, and there will be other surprises and bonuses for those who try out the new book.”

To celebrate and promote, the store is running a mini Artists Alley. Ty will be there as well as Shane Kirshenblatt, Marco Rudy, Christopher Yao, Rachael Wells, David Cutler,  Selena Goulding, and more!

The artists will be available to do sketches, sign books or do sketches on the large collection of sketchcovers that The Lounge has in stock. Some will have their own prints available for sale as well.

Batman #0 sketch cover by Ty Templeton. There are blank sketch covers available for sale at The Lounge today.

The event is running 12-9pm, so stop by! (If you have any questions about upcoming classes at Comic Book Bootcamp, Ty can answer ’em, and will have fliers available.)

Keiren

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Fan Expo Canada 2012: Friday

Back to the convention today!

I’ll be doing a workshop at 4pm, Creating a Character, with my great friend and sometime collaborator Dan Slott. Been a few years since Dan and I’ve been in a room together; I’m looking forward to spending time with him this weekend and to doing the workshop with him. He wasn’t able to do it last year as he had to cancel out of the con (because of the hurricane) and I ended up doing the workshop on my own and really enjoying it. I can’t imagine how much more fun it will be with Dan.

I will be sitting in Artists Alley at P30A–look for me there. I have original art, sketchbooks, copies of  Bigg Time, Bill the Boy Wonder:  The Secret Co-Creator of Batman, and most of my original teeth. Although I’m not selling or sketching my teeth.

AND!! Don’t forget–copies of HOLMES INCORPORATED #3 are available for sale today. Look for artist Christopher Yao in Booth 614, at Rachael Well’s booth A165, and at the Templeton-Smiths tables in Artists Alley, P30A and P30B. Stop by and pick up your copy!!

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AND!! don’t forget–if you’re interested in taking any of my classes at COMIC BOOK BOOTCAMP, you can ask me or Keiren Smith about them, at P30A/B. Come by and pick up a flyer.

AND!! My 12 page story for Heroes of the North, The Canadian:  The Man I Think I Am, is available ONLINE and FREE as of today! Pencilled/inked by Spent Pencils’ Daniel Wong (or Bootcamper Daniel Wong, or Holmes Inc. #2 alum Daniel Wong!), colours by Aljosa Tomic, lettering by Zen, cover by Donald Caron.

Ty the Guy OUT!!

Holmes Incorporated Countdown Continues! Tuesday Edition!

MORE Holmes Inc. goodness! How will you survive all this explosively skilled and impressive work? By heading to FanExpo Canada 2012 this weekend to buy your VERY OWN copy of the book, of course!

It will look like this…you should have no trouble finding it at the FanExpo convention this weekend in Toronto!

Up first today, pages from Analysis Paralysis, a story from first-time participants Savannah MacIntosh and Tuhin Giri, who turned in a story like a pair of old pros.   Savannah wrote this delightful story – illustrated even more delightfully by Tuhin – which sees Edgar having to rescue his sister and cousin from evil-doers.

story by Savannah MacIntosh, art by Tuhin Giri

 James Cooper is back with a one-pager, Special Guest, with art by Jeff Longstreet!

written by James Cooper, illustrated by Jeff Longstreet

Next up in our excursion through artland is returning champion artist Rachael Wells (a participant in all three Holmes Inc. issues), and a new writer, Sam Noir. I inked Rachael on her last story, and it inspired her to take my Inking for Comics course–with some pretty wonderful results, as she inks her own pages this time out. Sam Noir is a first-time participant with Artie is Dead, but his story left an impression on everyone who read it.  There’s a hidden surprise or two AFTER this tragic opening that you’ll NEVER see coming.

story by Sam Noir, art by Rachael Wells

The next haunting tale of Holmsian Love and Mystery was one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had working on this project for the last three years.  The story went through a draft or two before we got to this fabulous version in the end, and Kevin “Silkcuts” Gorospe gets my vote of the most tenacious writer we’ve ever had.  His artist Raymond Jin is another first-time participant who turned in a wonderful art job with more effort and attention to detail than anyone else, and was FINISHED FIRST, which every editor loves.  When you read the full story, you’ll fall in love with one of our cast, just like Trey did…

Take a bow, guys.

story by Kevin “Silkcuts” Gorospe, art by Raymond Jin

Holmes Incorporated #3 will be available for sale at Fan Expo this weekend, in Booth 614, at Rachael Well’s booth A165, and at the Templeton-Smiths tables in Artists Alley, P30A and P30B. Stop by and pick up your copy!!

Ty the Guy OUT!!

Here now, your BONUS Holmes Comic Book Moment:

This comic is actually the FIRST time I ever read a Sherlock Holmes story.  It came out when I was about nine or ten, and started me down a lifelong path of loving the great detective.  Walt Simonson cover, and E.R. Cruz artwork on the inside, if I recall (or one of the Redondo Brothers).

See, Mom?  Comics can learn ya stuff.

H-Day has arrived!

If you’re reading this before seven o’clock this evening, then you’ve still got time to get down to the TORONTO CARTOONISTS WORKSHOP,  587A College Street (at Clinton) and join in the fun for our launch party, celebrating the new issue of Holmes Incorporated!  We’ll have issues in hand, performing conjurers, circus acts and a host of comic creators to talk to about working on the new issue, except for the circus acts and conjurers.

Artwork by Dawnson Chen.

But a room packed with the next generation of hot comic book creators should be reason enough to drop by.  WHERE are you going to find a room FULL of comic creators this weekend, all in one place?  I mean outside of San Diego, obviously…

And if you need more reasons to come over and say hello, then I’ll give them to you:  Preview pages from the Holmes Incorporated mega-collection, being published tonight!  I’d like to say I’m saving the best for last, but we always offer up the best here at Art Land, and I believe in honesty.   But here’s more of the best below.

As lovely as these pages are, they become lovelier when you realize that Vince Tourangeau (author and penciler) had never ever drawn a comic story before this one.  And I don’t mean he hadn’t been published before today, I mean he hadn’t EVER written or drawn one.  For his rookie gig, he gives us one of the coolest stories in the book, and I ain’t kidding.  You gotta read “Enabled” to see the twists and turns our new auteur had up his sleeve.  Our returning champion inker, Jeff Longstreet, gave these pages the spit and polish that only Jeff can, and it all adds up to a heck of a rookie card.   Come and meet ’em both tonight, and pat them on the back.

“She died of rage.”  If that ain’t a great line, then I should eat my shoes.  And the story just gets better from there!   But it was that wonderful line by author Sam Ruano that sold me on this script when he first pitched it at me.  And there’s nobody better to sell the story than his artist, Gibson Quarter.  Gibson’s a bit of a ringer in our group, as  he’s already worked with some big name creators  in his career (Judge Dredd creator Alan Grant, Miracle Man artist Gary Leach, to name-drop a few), but he’s kind enough to lend us his hands when we get a script this good.  I’ll bet both Sam and Gibson have a few comic book war stories to share with the gang at the launch party.

Writer/Artist Marshall Geddes is one of those people that really makes me mad.  Like Vince Tourangeau, this is ALSO his first ever story, and it’s remarkably good for his first time out of the gate.  But Marshall was only SEVENTEEN YEARS OLD when he started this tale.  He’s just turned eighteen, so you can’t buy him a beer yet.  But he’s annoyingly good for someone that young.  If I was that good when I was that age, I’d probably own Marvel Comics by now.  Normally I encourage our creators, but Marshall must be stopped before he rules the world.  Jeff Longstreet’s steps in to give us more of his mighty brushwork, and Jeff did it all while on vacation!  The dedication of this guy is frightening.  A pox on both of them for being so good at this without the normal decades of hard work.

If you recall from the first set of preview pages on Tuesday, our issue starts off with the memorable image of Sherlock Holmes’ open grave and his rotting body.  As an editor, I know how to pick a heck of a curtain raising image.  Well, “Safe” ends up with the most shocking moment of the collection, and you don’t get to see it unless you come on down to TCW tonight.  Or, of course, you can see it when the issue is distributed to local comic stores, and is available free online.  Actually, you’ll get to see it in a lot of places, but I promise you’ll remember it once you do.   Aaron Feldman’s dynamic script packs a gutshot punch that’s worth whatever wait you have, and Rachael Wells turned in pencils so lovely and detailed that I couldn’t help it…I grabbed my kit and inked this one myself.  I only hope those two were as happy with my inks as I was with their issue-ending thriller.  Why don’t you come on down tonight and get their opinion?

All right, that’s enough out of me.  If you ain’t excited by all this new talent on display than you ain’t a comic fan.  And if you ain’t a comic fan, than you’re not invited to the launch party tonight.

But everyone else is.

TORONTO CARTOONISTS WORKSHOP,  587A College Street (at Clinton).  I’ll see you there!

Ty the Guy OUT!

Here now, your BONUS Holmes Incorporated COMIC MOMENT:

The teenaged Sherlock Holmes the Third. Art and colours by Christopher Yao.

And don’t forget to download Issue #1, with an equally amazing array of talent and fun, including, Rachael Wells, Gibson Quarter, Christopher Yao, and Jeff Longstreet, showing off THEIR first work with the Holmes Family.   You can find the free download HERE:

I believe we can officially call this the TCW Age of Comics, right?

(and, as always, to check out bios of the creators, and links to sites with more of their work, check out the Holmes Incorporated website–kts)

THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS…3….

Just three days before we launch Holmes Incorporated out into an eager world.  Three days before FanExpo, and three days before all my soon-to-be-published and soon-to-be-big-shot friends see their hard work come to fruition.

Today’s this-can’t-really-be-their-first-published-work entry comes from Magnificent Madeleine Beaupré (script),  Ravishing Rachael Wells (pencils), and Popular Pierce Desrochers-O’Sullivan (inks).  Besides being another fabulous and fun story, I believe this entry has the advantage of being created by the three most wonderful creators’ names in the biz.  They all sound like stars, now they get to shine like ’em.

I know I’m biased, but I love that shot of Trey Holmes leaping for joy at the end of page one.

Going undercover at an all-girl’s school…?  Where do I volunteer?

To finish this pulse pounding tale of terrificness, show up at FanExpo and pick up your own amazingly inexpensive copy of HOLMES INCORPORATED No. #1, and prove you’re just that savvy.

Go HERE for yesterday’s Bobby Bomber pages.  Go HERE for the cover!  Here for more pages!  Here for even MORE pages! and HERE for more pages.   The TCW age of Comics has arrived, or at least it will in a mere three days.  Tomorrow, check back for even MORE exciting work from tomorrow’s superstars of comics.

TY THE GUY OUT!

Here now, your  comic book moment of zen