Category Archives: Events
Pandora Zwieback Celebrates Free Comic Book Day
—Press Release
This Saturday, May 5, 2012, will be a cause for celebration as comic shops around the world mark the tenth annual Free Comic Book Day. Independent publishing house StarWarp Concepts joins the occasion with a pair of free e-comics that will be available for download from the SWC Web site that day—comics that tie directly to its critically acclaimed young adult, dark-urban-fantasy novel series The Saga of Pandora Zwieback.
The Saga of Pandora Zwieback #0: Introducing 16-year-old Goth adventuress Pandora Zwieback! Pan is a girl with the ability to see the monsters that regular humans can’t, and with the help of a 400-year-old monster hunter named Sebastienne “Annie” Mazarin, she’s going to protect the world from danger—and maybe even have some fun while doing it.
Written by series author Steven A. Roman (X-Men: The Chaos Engine Trilogy) and drawn by Eliseu Gouveia (The Phantom), this 16-page, full-color comic book is hosted by Pandora and includes two preview chapters from Book 1: Blood Feud, in which rival vampire clans search for the key to an ultimate weapon—a key that’s been delivered to the horror museum owned by Pan’s father!
(For those who can’t wait until Saturday, the comic is available right now here at the Pan site—just click on the “Download Free Comic” link in the sidebar and start reading today!)
Blood Feud: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 1 (ISBN 978-0-9841741-0-2) is available in both print and e-book editions from such retailers as Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Kobo.com, Smashwords, and DriveThru Fiction.
Heartstopper: The Legend of La Bella Tenebrosa #1: In 1994, Sebastienne Mazarin made her debut in this short-lived Mature Readers series from Millennium Publications. Now, for the first time in almost two decades, StarWarp Concepts re-presents this long-lost comics adventure of the monster hunter known as La Bella Tenebrosa (“the beautiful dark one”).
A nefarious heavy metal band has arrived in New York City, and its lead singer is more than just a sex magnet for his female fans—he’s an incubus! Will Annie put an end to his plans for worldwide chaos, or fall prey to his supernatural charms?
Written by Roman, with art by co-creator Uriel Caton (JSA Annual 2000) and Alan Larsen, this 32-page, full-color comic offers a rare look into the past of the immortal shape-shifter, long before she became mentor to Pandora Zwieback.
After May 5, the comics will remain accessible on the StarWarp Concepts Web site’s “Free Comics” page. For more information on the company and its projects, please visit www.StarwarpConcepts.com and www.PandoraZwieback.com.
Hey, Boston Comic Con Fans!
Thanks for stopping by and for your interest in Pan’s adventures.
The free e-comic can be found in the sidebar to the right, as I’ve mentioned. If you like what you see, hit the Buy the Book Button to the right. It’ll take you to the book-buying links.
Blood Feud is also available as an e-book. You’ll find the links for those on the buying links page as well. It’s just $3.99!
Boston Comic Con is This Weekend!
The 2012 Boston Comic Con is being held April 21–22 at the Hynes Convention Center, in the Back Bay area of Boston, Massachusetts. With a nurses convention, the Yankees playing the Red Sox, and the 100th anniversary celebration of the Red Sox’ baseball home, Fenway Park, all going on at the same time, it’s gonna be one insanely busy weekend in Beantown!
Regardless, you’ll find me in the BCC Artists’ Alley at Table 106 (AA106), manning the StarWarp Concepts post; just look for the Pandora Zwieback banner. On sale will be copies of Blood Feud, Carmilla, A Princess of Mars, and The Bob Larkin Sketchbook, as well as the Official Pandora Zwieback T-shirt. I’ll also be handing out Pandora Zwieback bookmarks—while supplies last, of course.
Boston Comic Con runs from 10 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. The Hynes Convention Center is located at 900 Boylston Street.
For more information, head over to the Boston Comic Con Web site. Just click on the logo up top. Hope to see you at the show!
Latest Convention Reports for Your Reading Pleasure
So, you’ve seen the notices here of the conventions I’ve been attending recently, but where, you might ask, can you find the reports on my first two con appearances of 2012? Why, over at the StarWarp Concepts blog, that’s where!
You’ll find the write-up of the March 24th Institute of Horror, Fantasy & Science Fiction gathering (hosted by Blood Moon Rising magazine) here, and the report on the March 31st New York Comic Book Marketplace is here.
Next stop on the SWC 2012 Promotional Tour is the Boston Comic Con, being held April 21–22 at the Hynes Convention Center, in the Back Bay area of Beantown. I’ll be manning the SWC table in Artists’ Alley—just look for the distinctive Pandora Zwieback banner.
New York Comic Book Marketplace Tomorrow
The 2012 New York Comic Book Marketplace is being held this coming Saturday, March 31, at the Penn Plaza Pavilion at the Hotel Pennsylvania, in Manhattan (across 7th Avenue from Pennsylvania Station and Madison Square Garden). Stan “The Man” Lee is the guest of honor—but more important, StarWarp Concepts will be there, too!
You’ll find us in Artists’Alley; just look for the Pandora Zwieback banner. On sale will be copies of Blood Feud, Carmilla, A Princess of Mars, and The Bob Larkin Sketchbook, as well as the Official Pandora Zwieback T-shirt. I’ll also be handing out Pandora Zwieback bookmarks—while supplies last, of course.
The New York Comic Book Marketplace runs from 10 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on March 31, and admission is $10. The Hotel Pennsylvania is located at 401 Seventh Avenue, between 32nd and 33rd Streets.
For more information, head over to the NYCBM Web site.
StarWarp Concepts’ 2012 Convention Season Starts This Weekend
The annual gathering of the Institute of Horror, Fantasy, and Science Fiction—hosted by Blood Moon Rising magazine—is being held this coming Saturday, March 24, at the main branch of the Queens Public Library, in Flushing (just a few blocks from Main Street—the final stop on the #7 train—and smack in the middle of the borough’s own Chinatown). Not only will I be manning the StarWarp Concepts table, but I’ll be doing my first public reading of Blood Feud. (Now that’s terrifying!)
On sale will be copies of Blood Feud, Carmilla, A Princess of Mars, and The Bob Larkin Sketchbook, as well as the Official Pandora Zwieback T-shirt. I’ll also be handing out Pandora Zwieback bookmarks—while supplies last, of course. The print version of the free Saga of Pandora Zwieback #0 introductory comic won’t be available, unfortunately—I’ve burned through its 3,000-copy run (so where are the sales?!). At the moment, I’m still debating whether or not to go back to press (three thousand 16-page, full-color freebies don’t come cheap, after all).
After this weekend, on March 31st The ’Warp will be appearing at the New York Comic Book Marketplace—more details on that next week—and then in April we’ll be heading back to Beantown for the Boston Comic Con. For us, the 2012 convention season has officially begun! Check out the Events listing for all our upcoming appearances and come out and see us, if you get the chance.
The Institute of Horror, Fantasy, and Science Fiction runs from noon to 5:00 p.m. on March 24, and admission is free. The Queens Library is located at 41-17 Main Street, in Flushing.
For more information, head over to the Blood Moon Rising Web site.
The Horror… The Horror…
Score yet another positive review for Blood Feud: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 1, this time courtesy of Jeani Rector, founder/editor of the online magazine The Horror Zine:
“Blood Feud is an exciting read, and a page-turning adventure. Although intended for a teenage audience, many adults would enjoy it as well.”
Read the entire review by clicking on the logo above.
Blood Feud E-Book Sale
Starting today, March 4, StarWarp Concepts is participating in Smashwords’ annual Read an E-Book Week, and we’re offering the e-version of the first Pandora Zwieback novel for just $1.00! Buy it for your Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iPad, Sony Reader, or your home computer.
Please help spread the word. The sale runs from 12:01 a.m. (Pacific Time) on March 4 until 11:59 p.m. (Pacific Time) on Saturday, March 10. Sign up for a Smashwords account and use the Coupon Code you see in the ad to receive the discount on BLOOD FEUD—it’s available only to Smashwords customers.
Writing: Musical Inspiration: “MissFit”
Last Friday we were discussing the standard question put to writers: “Where do you get your ideas from?” It’s the question every writer has been asked at some point in their career, and one that never has a set single answer. Well, for me, sometimes inspiration can come from the music I listen to while I write…
For instance: in Blood Feud: The Saga of Pandora Zwieback, Book 1, there’s a scene in chapter 6, in which Pan—rain-soaked after sitting out in a heavy downpour—goes to her bedroom to pull together a change of clothes. To lighten her depressed mood, she turns on her Mac’s iTunes DJ and a song comes on. Pan sings along as she heads off to take a shower.
I’d been listening to Kiss Kiss, Kill Kill—Danish band Horrorpops’ third album, on which “MissFit” is the second track—while I was writing the scene, not really paying attention to the lyrics; it was just background music to help me get into Pan’s head. Then I heard:
My fist!
In the middle of your face!
My fist!
In the middle of your—
Well, that certainly got my attention, because Pan had punched a mean girl in the jaw two chapters earlier. So I replayed the song—and suddenly realized I was listening to Pan’s “theme song” (lyrics below):
I don’t always tread, don’t always tread careful
Yeah
Most of the time I’m quite annoying
I don’t watch my mouth
Don’t find an out in a fight
I can scream and shout and be a loudmouth!
And I, I’m from the wrong side of town
Now frown
On top of that I’m female!
Nothing, nothing I say is adequate
According to you I’m a MissFit!
What made you my judge and juror?
So I, I don’t care for the common trend
Why is that something I have to defend?
Who made you my judge and juror?
So I carry my fists, I carry my fists high
‘Cause most of the time I know I have to fight
For what I believe, what I believe is right
Even stupid things like keeping my hair dyed
And I, I’m from the wrong side of the town
Now frown
On top of that I’m female!
Nothing, nothing I say is adequate
According to you I’m a MissFit!
What made you my judge and juror?
So I, I don’t care for the common trend
Why is that something I have to defend?
Who made you my judge and juror?
My fist in the middle of your face
My fist in the middle of your—
Nothing, Nothing I say is adequate
According to you I’m a MissFit
What made you my judge and juror?
So I, I don’t care for the common trend
Why is that something I have to defend?
I still stand tall!
Once I focused on the lyrics, I knew “MissFit” was the perfect Pan song and I had to incorporate it into the bedroom scene. Thus, iTunes is turned on, Horrorpops loads up, and Pan exits, yelling “My fist! In the middle of your face!” at the top of her lungs.
Fun fact: Turns out the “My fist” shout-out was itself inspired by a song: the British band Madness’ 1982 pop tune “Our House” (Our house/In the middle of our street/Our house/In the middle of our—).
See? Inspiration can be found everywhere!
Next: Enter: The Fiend Club!