Cancertown Stitched Up

The glorious "double page bedspread" (as Cy Dethan has memorably named it) that is Bad Rain, the Cancertown / Quilting crossover event of the summer is now complete.

The original art by Stephen Downey, with colours by Mel Cook, looks like this:

and the quilted version looks like this:

If you visit Ferret's (the quilter responsible) blog then you can see photos of the various stages of production and read more about how it was done.

In the meantime here are some key stats she posted about it - and I always love stats:

• When bound the quilt will be at least 90"x70"
• There is over 4000m of thread on the front of the quilt
• About 40 pre-wound bobbins were used in this quilt
• More than 1/2m of solid black appears in the quilt - it surprised me, as most of the black - isn't
• 4 1/2 cans of 505 spray baste held the pieces down so I could stitch them
• 3/4 roll of freezerpaper was used to make patterns
• 5m of washaway stabiliser was the pattern and quilting design
• over 15m of ombre fabrics went in to this quilt.
• the master pattern was 112 sheets of A4 paper

More on the quilt and other related Cancertown matters will be revealed in The Insomniac's Guide to Cancertown next year. As well as additional background material, unseen art from Stephen and more on the various techniques and processes, there will be an all new prequel story thrown into the mix, and maybe some clues about Volume 2, Blasphemous Tumours.

It'll be a lot like the bonus discs you get in some DVD packages, only in book form, and will be the first in a series expanding various Insomnia books.

New Signing:

The Empyre by Stephen Aryan

On his first day in office, the Prime Minister meets a member of his Cabinet he didn’t elect - Alistair Donovan, the Secretary of State for Nocturnal Affairs.

Donovan runs a secret government department that has existed for over a hundred years. In extreme circumstances, when a swift resolution is needed, the Prime Minister calls on Donovan and his team of hand-picked specialists.

The Empyre mixes fast-paced action with politics and drama, charting how the UK starts to become a world leader in a secret technology, and the effects it has on international politics.

If you watch 24 and The West Wing on TV and enjoy comics such as Ex-Machina and Queen and Country then keep your eye out for more news on this one in future.

Stephen is the co-host of the Comic Book Outsiders podcast and creator of Mythos, a mature superhero comic.

The Art of Kev Crossley

We are extremely pleased to announce Insomnia's next art portfolio book just as the first, MILK by Stref, goes to print.

Kev Crossley, the superhumanly talented artist on Sidhe is working closely with Art Director Rich Johnson to compile a book so beautiful it will break your heart.

Kev says:

"In life you have ambitions for the future: Get a nice car, find a great job, swim with squid, get your own art book published... those sorts of things. So far I've not managed to find any Squid to swim with, but that doesn't matter anymore as Insomnia have offered me my first ever Art Book!

If that wasn't enough, the design A.C.E. that is Rich Johnson will be designing the layout and graphics, so it is going to look STUNNING.

I'm so honoured, and hope to repay their awesomeness by filling this book with as many cool, weird, exciting and amazing illustrations as possible, including plenty of brand new pieces. "

Watch this space for up-dates!

I wonder if I can find him a squid from somewhere?

Fallen Heroes News

Barry "Fallen Heroes" Nugent was a special guest on the 30th episode of the Kryptographik podacst.

He discusses how his novel FALLEN HEROES started out being self-published through Lulu.com and has since been optioned for adaptations into both a graphic novel and a TV series, and the show also looks at how and why changes are made when stories are adapted to other media, past and upcoming adaptations of Sherlock Holmes, opinions about The War of the Worlds (starring Tom Cruise) and Indiana Jones & the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Kryptographik is a trans-continental podcast featuring Brian (in the U.S.) and Damian (in Australia), providing news, reviews, commentary and interviews covering horror, dark fantasy and science-fiction.

You can listen to the episode here

Insomnia Comics Workshop and signing on the Isle of Wight

The first workshop and signing went extremely well with lots of interest in the books that were, the books that are, and the books as yet to be.

Once again we had some brilliant, interesting and extremely wide ranging chats with people of all ages, into all kinds of different things, and the local newspaper (the Isle of Wight County Press) came along to take photos and talk about the books and the company.

This was the first time I had combined a signing with a pitching and portfolio session for local creators and there were some very promising discussions, so watch this space.

The shop is very keen to have us back for more of the same, so we must have been polite and well behaved.

Thanks to Paul Armstrong, Manager, for organising all of this.

More details next week, as I have literally just stepped through the door on returning from the trip and am now off for a well earned cup of tea!

See you in seven.

Warning: Insomnia On The Rise

It's going to be a big news post this week, there is so much to say I don't know how I'm going to fit it all in, so I'll just get started:

New Signings:

As word gets around the number of submissions we are receiving is increasing weekly, and the quality is very high. The wealth of talent out there is incredible and we are extremely gratified that people believe in our approach and want to work with us . This makes choosing what to sign ever more difficult, but the latest are:

• Kronos City by Andrew Croskery
  
  In Kronos City it's not water running through the canals - it's time. It's possible to submerge your head to see visions of the past and future, although it’s risky. If you know how you can even manipulate future events, not just watch them unfold. Some say you can even change not only time, but fate..Finnegan Vedant, being an enterprising individual, sees here a business opportunity like no other, but when a mysterious client puts him on a case with bizarre consequences, he’s forced to face harsh truths about himself and the world around him. The game he’s playing is for much higher stakes than it at first appeared.
  
  
• Midnight On The Mind's Highway by Craig I. Gilmore
  
  The, dramatic, hallucinogenic tale of Carl Sark, a man frequently plagued by horrific, vivid nightmares involving disparate parts of a repressed, long forgotten memory. In desperation Carl volunteers to undergo a brand new form of regression therapy - The Mind’s Highway originally created to let people to re-live their fondest memories like they were happening for the very first time. But as Carl delves back into his past, piecing together fractured memories one-by-one, he’s pursued by a horrific, monstrous force apparently seeking to punish him for something he can’t recall.
  
  Craig adds:
  "Midnight on the Mind’s Highway is a deep, dark, character-driven tale about lost loves, repressed memories, nightmarish dreamscapes and enormous, unthinkable monsters. Oh yes, there will be monsters. It draws on many things – specifically the works of director Guillermo del Toro and Michel Gondry, as well as my absolute love and adoration for Konami’s seminal Silent Hill series of videogames. Comics are also the only medium I could ever imagine doing this kind of tale justice, so I can’t thank the good people Insomnia Publications enough for giving me the opportunity"
  
  Which is very nice of him to say. But really we are the ones thanking him for submitting such a fantastic idea.
  
  
• Cancertown Volume Two: Blasphemous Tumours
  
  Yes, the whole gang has been signed up and will be back for this. Stephen is already missing the monsters (I think we may have broken him a little bit...ssshhhh).
  
  For those wanting more Cancertown news look out for upcoming pieces in ImagineFX and Comics International. There is also some internal art up in the Eye Candy section of Comics Village this week.
  
  

Art Updates:

• We now have it confirmed that Keith Burns will be providing the cover art for Quarantine by Michael Moreci. Keith is currently working with Garth Ennis, and you may also know his name from Blood PSI (currently optioned for a film adaptation) by Andy Winter.
  
  
• Melanie Cook, newly escaped from Cancertown, will be joining the Average Joe team next to provide the colours for Kelvin Chan's gorgeous pencils. Keep an eye out for previews of the first pages very soon.
  
  
• Larry Watts has been signed up for art duties on The Ion Monger's Daughter. If you want to catch a glimpse of Larry's work before that, though he drew Red Wire, Blue Wire by Alexi Conman in Layer Zero: Choices
  
  

The Management

We are very pleased to announce that we have two new members of the Insomnia Management team:

• Richard Johnson, who will be joining us as Art Director,
  
• Martin Conaghan who will be taking up the editorial reins for the new Vigil imprint (more on this below)
  

Richard and Martin both have fantastic experience to bring to the management team, both in comics, and from their work in other media.

About Richard

Richard comes to us from the world of Graphic Design and Illustration, where he was was a recipient of the prestigious D&AD (Design & Art Directors) First Award in the 'Most
Outstanding Mixed Media Advertising Campaign for a Motion Picture' category.

Richard, who also writes under his middle name James, is the creator of Erth Chronicles, an online community of talented artists from around the world who have been inspired by his first novel in the series, The Enemy's Son, from Mam Tor Publishing.

Richard Says:

'The British Independent comic book scene is a close knit family - everyone knows each other, in their many guises and the talents they have to offer. Families support one another and share an important ethos. I'm looking forward in helping to elevate things a little further through the design of these publications and help support all of our own projects in the process.'

About Martin

Martin Conaghan's first published writing work appeared in Aceville Publications' Comic World in 1992, in the form of interviews and reviews with writers and artists such as Grant Morrison and Steve Yeowell. This was followed by a one-off Tharg's Terror Tale in the 1995 2000AD Yearbook and several short stories for the American publisher CaliberPress, including an issue of their popular Raven Chronicles title. In 1997, he produced a weekly internet column for The Big Issue in Scotland, in addition to writing feature articles for The Herald and other Scottish broadsheet newspapers. He now works for the BBC.

New Vigil Imprint from Insomnia

As many of you will know last year we signed the historical graphic novel Burke and Hare by Martin and Will Pickering.

The response we have already had on this book has been great, with people and magazines, not to mention libraries, museums and educational establishments, already emailing me to ask when it will be out. I've seen the first finished pages, though, which is a great perk of the job, and I'm not surprised people can't wait - they are outstanding!

Anyway this got us to thinking and chatting with Martin about the idea of an imprint for more of this kind of book - fact-based stories of a biographical nature with supporting notes and research. As the conversation progressed it was obvious he would be perfect as editor, so we invited him to the party.

Martin Says:

"History is ripe for the plundering - not just classical history or ancient history, but the history of the 18th, 19th and 20th Century - history is being written all around us every day, in the news, on the web - from politics to war, to celebrity life and the ordinary stories of every person on the planet. It's all there, waiting to be plundered - and comics are the ideal format for telling broad, grand stories about people's lives, global events and shocking controversies.

"What we're aiming for here it the comic-book/graphic novel equivalent of a biopic; Nixon, JFK, Apollo 13, Braveheart, Ali, Missisipi Burning, Let Him Have It, Frost/Nixon, In the Name of the Father, Michael Collins, The Damned United.

What we want to do is tell similar stories, and back them up with facts and quality research - even if parts of the stories are fictionalised or the creators take an original slant on their approach to the story. What we want is more than just a comic-book or a graphic novel - this is the comic-book equivalent of the director's cut of the biopic movie crammed full with all the DVD extras, the facts, the research and every scrap of paper that creators leave scattered around their office floor when the work is done.

There are thousands of stories out there about real-life events that can be woven into fascinating tales. Stories about murder, political scandal, military cover-ups, controversy, disasters, war.You just need to look.

We really feel a line of books like this can help lift the comics medium beyond the realm of fantasy and science-fiction, offering material that is entertaining first, but also educational at its heart."

Martin and I will be working on specific submission guidelines for the imprint over the next couple of weeks - so if you have any ideas for this kind of book, start to gather them now.

Final Word

So to sum all that up, Crawford Coutts takes a few minutes away from his master plan and says:

"With the rapid growth of Insomnia in recent months, the development of our new imprint, Vigil, and with the ever increasing list of books we're producing for the coming years, there was going to be a time when we needed more people to manage everything.

Richard and Martin started out, like Nic Wilkinson our Creative Director, as creators. I can't think of two better people to be a part of the management team. Their experience and expertise in the industry is extremely valuable and I would like to take this opportunity to give them a warm welcome them to the Insomnia Publications management team.

I cannot emphasize enough that the creators are what makes this venture possible. Not only do they create the products, but they are willing to devote their time to assisting in the promotion of their products and all the others in the Insomnia lines. The feeling of seeing this all come together is incredible."

And now off to plan for Bristol...Oh My God It's only 3 weeks away!..look out for the Big Bristol update here next week with details of everything that will be going on at the stand.