Tag: Hey Kids Comics

Brainiac On Banjo: Important Advice For Freelancers

Brainiac On Banjo: Important Advice For Freelancers

Well, we know where we’re going but we don’t know where we’ve been, and we know what we’re knowing but we can’t say what we’ve seen — “Road To Nowhere,” written by Tina Weymouth, Chris Franz, David Byrne, and Jerry Harrison

The Ritz Brothers “Here Kitty Kitty”

Deadlines are a pain in the ass, but let’s face it: you became a freelancer because you were tired of holding down a real job. However, work is still work no matter what the clock thinks, and that realization puts you on the Road To Nowhere. You are going to have to up your “cover your ass” game, and I’m going to lose a few friends by letting a few cats out of the bag.

You can not succeed without knowing the rudiments of grammar school arithmetic. Yes, yes, I know. No math. That’s the main reason why you quit flipping burgers. Nonetheless, it is important to know how to do some simple addition and subtraction, the latter simply being adding in reverse. Here’s why: Let’s say your deadline is 11 AM Monday, and it is now 7 PM Sunday. You think it will take you about three hours to do your work. You’ve got dinner tonight, the latest issue of Hey Kids! Comics! to finish, and those teevee shows aren’t going to stream themselves. Then, it’s time for your late-night snack (you are a freelancer; act like one!), and then, you should get a little sleep. When do you start on your deadline?

Well, like everything else in life, that’s a trick question. Your deadline is 11 AM, it will take you three hours to do the job. You weren’t going to do it the night before; if you were, you would have started it back when you landed the gig. So you’re going to subtract three from eleven and start working at 8 AM.

Yeah, of course you are. Out of habit, you’re going to stay in bed until 9:30 or until your brain starts working. At some point, maybe around 10 AM, you’re going to remember you should wash the dishes. After all, everything in life is a choice.

Okay. Let’s say your editor actually gave you a real, honest deadline. I realize there’s only one editor in the history of deadlines who does this, and he’s the one writing these words right now. Silly me. “If you treat people honestly, they will be honest with you.” This is, give or take, the funniest thing I’ve ever said.

However, more frequently I’ve had to explain why they put the word “dead” in “deadline.” We’ll talk about the psychology of editing some other time; this piece is to offer advice to freelancers. So here’s some advice.

First, become an editor. Listen to the talents’ excuses for being late. They know what they’re doing, as they do this part for a living. Write down or memorize the best ones. Then, when you are freelancing and your editor wants to know if you are still among the living, use one of those excuses. Of course, you’ll need to remember which lines you’ve used on which editors — that is how lying works.

Second, just before your assigned deadline brays, put your smartphone in “silent mode” the way you’re supposed to when you’re at the movies or in Colorado attending the Beetlejuice musical. In fact, you might actually be at the movies — that’s a very handy source of motivation when it comes to blowing off deadlines.

Third, check out the weather conditions. If you are not in the same city as your editor, then you have been experiencing severe storms that have been knocking out power all over the county, and you don’t have a clue when the power company is going to fix the lines, and if your editor has a problem with that, ask them if they have a dial-up fax machine. It will help if you know they do not in advance.

Finally, if you are lucky — and, really, this is turning a pound of shit into a shit soufflé — your editor will be representing a corporation that owes you money. That isn’t hard at all; DC Comics has owed me $250.00 for a couple years now, and it’s worth more to me as leverage than its rapidly diminishing spending power. So when your editor is putting the arm on you, change the subject to “hey, I wish you were as diligent about paying me for my work as you are demanding that stuff!”

This can be great fun. If you get in first and your editor hasn’t read this piece (which is likely), you’ll be treated to a lot of amusingly defensive grunts and groans. Swiftly change the subject to the WGA strike — particularly if you’re working for DC (Warner Bros) or Marvel (Disney). Then, just as the topic devolves back to deadlines, seize the high ground and tell your editor you have got to get back to finishing your assignment.

You know. The assignment you have yet to start.

(With apologies to Chris Ryall, Jack C. Harris, Bob Harrison and all my other editors who did not know they were road-testing the details in this column.)

New Number Ones: New Comics Coming in May 2021

New Number Ones: New Comics Coming in May 2021

This month we give our readers a list of the exciting new comic book series debuting in May. We have compiled an alphabetical list with cover art and the official solicitation text from the publishers. Check below for our PCS NOTES to find out what we just have to tell you about the new comics in question.

There are a bunch of great new and interesting series starting this month from AfterShock Comics, Boom! Studios, DC Comics, Dark Horse Comics, Vault Comics, Image Comics, Marvel Comics, Fantagraphics Books, and Dynamite Entertainment.

There are a few one-shot comics on this list. We usually stay away from those and stick to ongoing or mini-series, but these are too good to ignore.

We will bring you reviews of most of these debut issues as they come out, and don’t forget to use the comments section to let us know what you think of this list.

You will find the books listed below in the order of when they are released.

Week of 5/5/21
Week of 5/12/21
Week of 5/19/21
Week of 5/26/21


Week of May 5th


Becstar #1
Mad Cave Studios
Written by Joe Corallo
Art by Lorenzo Colangeli
Cover Art by Sweeney Boo

Becstar is a star hopping mercenary-gone-full time-gambler light years away from Earth. Leaving her old life behind with the help of her magical luck dagger and her fan-turned-regret filled-friend Sally Soolin, Becstar ekes out a living under the nefarious Shadow Syndicate’s radar. But when a mysterious girl appears with grim news and an urgent quest where the fate of the universe hangs in the balance, Becstar has no choice but to join… and regret it immediately.

Release Date: May 5, 2021

 


Eden #1
AfterShock Comics
Written by Cullen Bunn
Art by Dalibor Talajic
Cover Art by Talajic

Tattoo artist Niles lives his life in a kind of daze. Minute after minute, he muddles through the repetitive moments of his job, his life and his guilt. All that changes when Eden walks through the doors of the tattoo shop. She’s looking for something…different…and she finds it with Niles. But Eden is a woman surrounded by deep mysteries…not the least of which is how and why her new tattoos vanish after only a few days. As Niles learns more about Eden, he is driven to fathomless depths of both love and horror.

A prestige format “One-Shock” featuring top creative talent, EDEN is a harrowing horror/romance conceived and written by Cullen Bunn, drawn by Dalibor Talajic and colored by Valentina Briki. Be prepared to accompany the notions of love, creation and heartbreak to terrifying places.

Release Date: May 5, 2021

PCS NOTES: We are lucky that the fountain of ideas in Cullen Bunn’s brain is everflowing. This is a one-shot, but damn do we want to check it out.


Eve #1
Boom! Studios
Written by Victor LaValle
Art by Jo Mi-Gyeon
Cover Art by Ario Anindito

For fans of Undiscovered Country and Little Bird comes a new adventure series from award-winning author Victor LaValle and rising-star artist Jo Mi-Gyeong about a dangerous journey across a future dystopian America to save the world.

When the ice caps melted, most of humanity was lost to the hidden disease that was released.

Now, a mysterious girl named Eve has awoken in secret and must deal with a world that’s nothing like the virtual reality she was raised in.

In order to save her real father, Eve must embark on a deadly quest across the country, but she has no idea of the threats that await her – or the price she will pay to restore life to a dying planet…

Release Date: May 5, 2021 


The Good Asian #1
Image Comics
Written by Pornsak Pichetshote
Art by Alexandre Tefenkgi
Cover Art by Dave Johnson

Writer PORNSAK PICHETSHOTE’s long-awaited follow-up to the critically acclaimed INFIDEL with stunning art by ALEXANDRE TEFENKGI! Following Edison Hark-a haunted, self-loathing Chinese-American detective-on the trail of a killer in 1936 Chinatown, THE GOOD ASIAN is Chinatown noir starring the first generation of Americans to come of age under an immigration ban, the Chinese, as they’re besieged by rampant murders, abusive police, and a world that seemingly never changes.

Release Date: May 5, 2021

PCS NOTES: This is a heavily anticipated and already critically acclaimed book. You will want to see what the buzz is about. Continue reading “New Number Ones: New Comics Coming in May 2021”