This one looks like fun. One of my favorite comic writers, Ron Fortier (you may remember him from NOW’s Green Hornet) is working with an Italian artist Andrea Bormida on a new Kickstarter. It’s called Beyond The Stars, a six-issue mini-series, from Silverline Comics.

Ron Fortier is not only a great writer but a focused entrepreneur too. I’ve been lucky to collaborate with him in several different roles in his position as a prose book publisher over at Airship27.

This series is something completely different. “The concept originated with Andrea,” explained Fortier. He saw pages on a social media board where Bormida was seeking feedback from industry professionals. “They were completely penciled, inked, and colored…and incredibly beautiful.”

Fortier reached out to Bormida, and they began working together. Fortier crafted an outline for the six-part cosmic adventures. Shortly thereafter, Fortier reached out to Silverline editor Roland Mann.

“I’m a big science fiction fan anyway,” says Mann, “but when I read Ron’s pitch and saw Andrea’s art…well, we jumped on it right away! Even more impressive was that Ron had assembled his entire team so quickly. I’m a big fan of Mike W. Belcher’s work, and Ron already had him lined up to do lettering and design.”

The Anxiety of a Launch

“It’s my first crowd-funded project,” said Bormida. “Will it work? Shall I be able to reach out to new fans? Such a new adventure.”

Beyond the Stars is the primal good versus evil tale. At its core is a group of unique Science-Warriors called upon to save all of mankind from an unimaginable horror. Beyond the Stars #1 will be 1/3 of a Silverline Sci-fi Extravaganza for the initial crowdfund campaign. The other comics are Obsoletes #1 by Wes Locher, Aaron Humphres, Jose Fuentes, and Haley Martin, and with Krey #1 RemiX by Roland Mann, Steven Butler, Ken Branch, and Jeremy Kahn. The giant-sized comic will come in at almost 70 pages of story and art.

A Kickstarter campaign is slated to run until May 22. Original art and retailer bundles are available as part of the campaign!