Wednesday, October 25, 2017

Toby Morris announces The Side Eye!

Above: The Side Eye GIF by Toby Morris.

Recently cartoonist Toby Morris announced his regular comics series The Pencilsword would be ending, with a new project on the horizon. Today he unvailed his next comics endevour, The Side Eye, which will be hosted by The Spinoff website!

In a statement at The Spinoff, Morris described the new project: 'The Side Eye is about casting a sceptical (but hopefully not cynical) eye on the changing world around us. A way of taking all the little things that make us say ‘eh?’ and looking a little closer. And these days there are plenty of things to question: Climate change, inequality, shifting attitudes about sexuality, health, diversity, the workplace. How we use technology. How we process history. In the end I want it to be about how we treat each other. Where we’re going, and why.'

To read Morris' full announcement, you can visit The Spinoff website HERE. The first Side Eye will debut at The Spinoff later this week.

- AK!

Dylan Horrocks named as 2018 International Institute of Modern Letters Writer in Residence

Above: Dylan Horrocks. Photo copyright Grant Maiden 2015.

Today it was announced that graphic novelist Dylan Horrocks has been appointed as the Victoria University of Wellington International Institute of Modern Letters (IIML) and Creative New Zealand Writer in Residence for 2018. He is the first graphic novelist to be awarded this position!

The following statement was announced at Graham Beattie's Book Blog:

Celebrated for his ground-breaking book 'Hicksville', Mr Horrocks has also published other books including 'Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen', and 'Incomplete Works'. His work has been published internationally, with translations into French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish, Danish, Polish and Korean. Hicksville was ranked #12 in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 50 Best Non-Superhero Graphic Novels of All Time.

Mr Horrocks was named as a New Zealand Arts Foundation Laureate in 2016 and has received many awards, including an Eisner (USA) Award in 2002 and a Sir Julius Vogel Award in 2012. In 2006 he was the University of Auckland-Creative New Zealand Literary Fellow.

Director of the International Institute of Modern Letters, Damien Wilkins, says, “Dylan is an international figure in the world of graphic novels and a brilliant commentator on his art. His books are taught by the English programme at Victoria. He is a vital voice in New Zealand culture and it will be exciting to have him at the IIML.”

Commenting on the appointment, Mr Horrocks says, “I'm absolutely thrilled at this chance to be part of Victoria’s lively creative writing community. I'm looking forward to discovering the work of students and staff and feeding off all those powerful literary emanations. Above all, it's a wonderful opportunity to work with obsessive dedication on my next book: a graphic novel about playing Dungeons & Dragons.”

Mr Horrocks takes up the residency at the IIML on 1 February 2018.

Congratulations to Dylan, and all the best for his work in the forthcoming year! For more information on Dylan Horrocks and his work, you can visit his website HERE.

- AK!

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Upcoming Release: The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill

Above: The cover of The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill.

Regular readers of this blog will be familiar with the amazing work of Christchurch based cartoonist Katie O'Neill from her award-winning graphic novel, Princess Princess: Ever After, and her contibutions to Faction and High Water comics anthologies. Having recently concluded her webcomic series, The Tea Dragon Society (which you can read in full HERE), it will be published this month as a large format hardcover from Oni Press!


Above: Artwork from The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill.

Here's the synopsis:

From the award-winning author of Princess Princess Ever After comes The Tea Dragon Society, a charming all-ages book that follows the story of Greta, a blacksmith apprentice, and the people she meets as she becomes entwined in the enchanting world of tea dragons. After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives--and eventually her own.

Above: Artwork from The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill.

The Tea Dragon Society is an all-ages graphic novel and will be available from comic shops on October 18th, and October 31st from booksellers and online retailers (Amazon, Book Depository, Mighty Ape etc). It retails for $17.99 US, so it should be around $25-30 NZ, which is still a great price for an oversized hardcover. So head over to your local comic shop or bookstore and pre-order a copy today!

Ordering Information:

The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill
Format: Hardback, 72 pages
Dimensions 218 x 300 x 13mm
Publisher: Oni Press
ISBN: 9781620104415

Oh, and if you can't get enough of The Tea Dragon Society, there's also an official card game in the works from Oni Games for release in 2018! For more information on Katie O'Neill and her projects, visit her Tumblr page HERE.

- AK!