Electricia Unmasked (Tom)

A lot of our art updates on "The Switch" have shown a lot of Electricia, naturally.  Even more recently, we've also shown her in her alter ego costume as the Switch.  She's our main character, after all, and what average comic fan doesn't like to see a pretty female protagonist in her skimpy outfit here and there?

Surely you guys remember this teaser from our campaign back in Spring where we teased Electricia out of costume

 Well I'm happy to give you guys some more sneak preview art of civilian-Electricia, otherwise known as Jenn:

Jenn eating with friend Jody

Yikes!  Some action

Praying? Eating a sandwich?  Who knows.  Actually, I do ;)

A chance meeting....

I've really been enjoying some of the "quieter" scenes with interaction that I've been drawing lately.  I have to buckle down for 3 weeks to draw as much as humanly possible before I leave for Vietnam, where I'll be finishing The Switch.  Don't worry, it's a labor of love!  Until next week....

Post ComicCard Show Wrap-Up (Tom)

Last week Keith came into Minneapolis as guest creator at the local Comic Card show in Bloomington, MN.  This would mark our second appearance together to promote our book The Switch (the first being back in June for the awesome St. Louis Comic Con/Mighty Con).  And it looks like it won't be our last as we have booked at least one show this coming May, and several stores are also eager to have us make an appearance around that time as The Switch will released to the public by then.

As soon as Keith came in last Friday, we were off to do a podcast interview with Adam Vermillion's Panels & Pizza show in St. Paul, MN (Keith's 1st time and he's the main guest; I'm just baggage this time).  We had a terrific show over pizza for dinner, and even filmed some of it for the upcoming 1-hour behind-the-scenes Switch movie that every backer will receive!  If you haven't listened to it yet, you can here....lots of fun details and anecdotes about The Switch and our careers. ;)

Adam (left), Keith, and I have a chuckle over Supreme and Cheese pizza.

As for the Comic Card show itself, it took place the next day on Saturday from 10am till 5pm.  Other guests included Kenneth Rocafort, Frank Fosco, Otis Frampton, and Dave Wheeler among others.  The show went well for us, we were pretty steady with meeting people, signing, and hawking our wares all day.  Show promoter Kevin Denesen did a great job once again, and his young son Tommy was our personal assistant all day.

Of course these exclusive Switch prints (free and signed) helped bring some of the crowd in that day.

Doing a 1970s Supergirl sketch commission at the show

Later that night, we all decompressed and had dinner at Cadillac Ranch at the Mall of America for some Juicy Lucys and more. There's a mechanical bull that you can ride there, and of course broken-leg-Keith just couldn't help himself as he was drunk with sparkling water/club soda or whatever the hell he likes to drink...

Yes, there is video of this if you're privileged enough to be on Keith's Facebook

Stolen picture from Brian. From the bottom left: Kevin (show promoter), his son Tommy, Kenneth Rocafort, me, Dave (Frank's brother), Amanda & Brian VanNierop, Adam Vermillion, and Frank Fosco.  Keith is not pictured here, probably looking for trouble near the mechanical bull.

Speaking of Brian and his daughter Amanda (who you don't really know): they actually came all the way from St. Louis to see all of us at the show.  He's a true fan and amazing supporter of The Switch.  He owns several pieces of artwork from all of us, and doesn't hesitate to travel here and there to see his favorite creators (I first met him 3 yrs ago at Alamo City Comic Con in St. Antonio, TX; he even drove to Metropolis, IL to Metro Comic Con back in January just to say hi).  So shout out to him.  He hung around all weekend with us, and we all had a great time.

Amanda, Brian, and Keith at the Mall of America

To end this week's blog, I thought I'd show one of the sketch commissions for a fan named Marty who came to the show.  He has a hilariously themed sketchbook full of original art by others:  Cthulhu as a pimp.  I present our girl Electricia getting, well, more than just bitch-slapped:

travel day

Friday the 4th is a travel day for me as I make my way to Minnesota to appear with Tom at the COMIC CARD show in Bloomington. We'll be giving away a free print to the first 100 people through the door or maybe at our table? I don't really know who we're giving them to, exactly. I just know there's no hoops to jump through. As long as you're one of the first 100 people, you're getting one somehow.

Anyway, here's what the print looks like, all finished up from the post a couple of weeks ago, for those who are wondering and can't be at the show. Tom and I had a lot of fun cranking it out and don't forget, this is actually a story page from the graphic novel so you're getting an out-of-context spoiler here.

As far as traveling goes, I'm not going to lie. If the show hadn't already paid for my airfare and hotel, I would cancel this appearance. I'm not fully recovered from my broken leg and surgery and the idea of navigating an airport and traveling to Minnesota when I can't walk yet (without crutches) makes me a bit apprehensive. By the end of each day, I still have quite a bit of swelling and discomfort. I've also developed my routines around the house that I rely on to function. My shower is set up specifically for me to use. My work area is arranged in a way where everything I need is easily accessible. And so on and so on. I guess it's a bit intimidating to leave this cocoon I've developed but dammit, nobody puts baby in a corner! So wish me luck as I tackle this journey and believe me, if I can drag my gimpy ass 1047 miles to Minnesota, I expect you all to bring some books for me to sign.

And maybe carry me around piggyback-style.

Thanks as always for your attention. See you next week!
Keith