It will take place on Friday, October 11th, 1pm-2pm, at the Captain Action Booth, #226 on the Main Show Floor. I will be joined by Friends of Aquaman (and Hey Kids! essayists) Paul Kupperberg and Ed Catto! Be there!
Showing posts with label hey kids book. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hey kids book. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 09, 2013
Hey Kids, Comics! Signing at the NYCC
It will take place on Friday, October 11th, 1pm-2pm, at the Captain Action Booth, #226 on the Main Show Floor. I will be joined by Friends of Aquaman (and Hey Kids! essayists) Paul Kupperberg and Ed Catto! Be there!
Monday, September 16, 2013
Hey Kids, Comics!: A Fire and Water Podcast Special
HEY KIDS, COMICS!: A FIRE AND WATER PODCAST SPECIAL
The official podcast of THE AQUAMAN SHRINE and FIRESTORM FAN
This special episode of THE FIRE AND WATER PODCAST focuses on my new book HEY KIDS, COMICS!: TRUE-LIFE TALES FROM THE SPINNER RACK. Shag and I talk about the origins of the book, the vintage photos, and present audio clips of some of the essays read by the authors themselves!
Featuring the guest voices of West Anthony, Sholly Fisch, Paul Kupperberg, and Erika D. Peterman
Featuring the guest voices of West Anthony, Sholly Fisch, Paul Kupperberg, and Erika D. Peterman
Leave a comment on our sites:
THE AQUAMAN SHRINE -
http://www.aquamanshrine.com
FIRESTORM FAN -
http://firestormfan.com
FIRE AND WATER PODCAST TUMBLR -
http://fireandwaterpodcast.tumblr.com
You can buy HEY KIDS, COMICS! now on Amazon or Create Space
You can buy HEY KIDS, COMICS! now on Amazon or Create Space
Have a question or comment? Drop us a line at firewaterpodcast@comcast.net
Subscribe via iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-fire-and-water-podcast/id463855630
Opening theme, "That Time is Now," by Michael Kohler.
Closing music by Daniel Adams and Ashton Burge of The Bad Mamma Jammas! http://www.facebook.com/BadMammaJammas
Thanks for listening! Fan the Flame and Ride the Wave!
Thursday, September 05, 2013
Hey Kids, Comics! ON SALE NOW!
Today's the day! Literally years in the making, Hey Kids, Comics!: True-Life Tales From The Spinner Rack s now available on Amazon and Create Space!
Hey Kids, Comics!: True-Life Tales From The Spinner Rack retails for $17.99, and is 262 pages of chills, spills, laughter, tears, and adventure. Featuring these scintillating secret comic book origins:
Punctuated with vintage photos, Hey Kids, Comics! is a must for any comics fan or student of pop culture history!
Click below to get your copy of Hey Kids, Comics!: True-Life Tales From The Spinner Rack today!
Hey Kids, Comics!: True-Life Tales From The Spinner Rack retails for $17.99, and is 262 pages of chills, spills, laughter, tears, and adventure. Featuring these scintillating secret comic book origins:
- Hey Kids...THUD! by Sholly Fisch
- Four-Color Timelines by Chris Ryall
- Hey Kids, Science! by James Kakalios
- Every Sunday by Gene Hult
- I Was A College Comics Reader by Elisabeth Rappe
- The Thrill of the Hunt by Robert Greenberger
- Portals to Other Dimensions—Ten Cents Each! by J.M. DeMatteis
- The Weekly Pilgrimage by Ed Catto
- My Encounter by John Zakour
- The Catalpa Tree by Steve Skeates
- The Black Cat and the Gentleman by Roxanna Meta
- Of Sand, Sea Nettles and Surplus Furniture: My Secret Origin by Glen Weldon
- Comics Are For Everyone! by Jill Pantozzi
- Living A Comic Book Life by Javier Hernandez
- Secret Origin by Steve Englehart
- Where Creatures Roam by Mike Howlett
- Blood The Page! by Richard Harland Smith
- Uncle Bob by Tim Schlattmann
- In Brightest Day, In Blackest Waaugh! by Kevin Dilmore
- Little Stephen and the Mysterious Magazines by Stephen DeStefano
- Comics on Infinite Minds by Marc Tyler Nobleman
- Comics Don’t Cause Nightmares by Aaron Scott
- “An All-Star Collection of the Greatest Super-Stories Ever Published!" by Paul Kupperberg
- “Here’s A Superman for That Detective Comics…” by Jim Beard
- The Great Wall of Comics by David Galassie
- Growing Up On Bash Street by Dan Whitehead
- Lost and Found by Erika D. Peterman
- The Comic Book Baron of New Jersey by Doug Slack
- Secrets of the Big Box by Shaun McLaughlin
- The Magic of Comics by Doug Zawisza
- Confessions of a Comic Book Thief by Mark Wheaton
- Steel-Hard Skin by Evan Narcisse
- 1976 - A Christmas Odyssey by Neal Patterson
- All in Color for (a Nickel or) a Dime! by Craig Wichman
- Spirit of ’74 by David Morefield
- Intersecting Panels by Paul Castiglia
- The Field by Tim Neenan
- Mahalo, Keniki by Alan Brennert
- No Careless Product of Wild Imagination… by Chad Nance
Punctuated with vintage photos, Hey Kids, Comics! is a must for any comics fan or student of pop culture history!
Click below to get your copy of Hey Kids, Comics!: True-Life Tales From The Spinner Rack today!
Tuesday, September 03, 2013
The Aquaman Shrine @ Baltimore Comic Con 2013!
The fine folks at the BCC were kind enough to grant the Shrine a Press Pass, and I will be doing my best to cover and photograph all the action that weekend. But that's not all!
If you see me and are a member of F.O.A.M. (meaning you have the certificate and/or see your name listed on the bottom right of the sidebar under the "Friends of Aquaman" graphic) please stop me to say hello! Because for the first time, we have a special F.O.A.M.-member only giveaway, a 1.5" pinback button that looks like this:
...I've been wanting to do something like this for a while, and a little button declaring your love of Aquaman seemed like the most fun, yet elegant, way to go about it. These buttons are *free* to any and all F.O.A.M.ers, absolutely no charge! (Now, before the rest of you who aren't attending the BCC get your Underoos in a bunch, we're working on a plan to mail the buttons out so you can get one, too)
But I won't just be there for the Shrine! I will also be sharing a table with my friend Doug Slack, selling some Ace Kilroy comics (where Volume 2 will be available for the first time to non-Kickstarter supporters) and merchandise. We will be located in Artists Alley, Table #TBA. So if you don't see me on the show floor, come and find me there!
The other exciting news about me and the BCC is that the show is (fingers crossed, since the books haven't arrived yet) the official debut of my book Hey Kids, Comics!: True-Life Tales From The Spinner Rack, published by Crazy 8 Press! As many of you know, I've been working on this little project a long, long, long time, and it's a dream come true. I'll have copies of the book at the table, so if Ace Kilroy or my sparking personality isn't enough of an attraction, stop by to pick up Hey Kids, Comics!--you won't regret it. In addition to me, a couple of the book's essayists (like former Aqua-Scribes Paul Kupperberg and J.M. DeMatteis) will be at the show, so you can get your copies signed!
Needless to say (but I'm going to anyway) this is going to be a historic show for me, the culmination of a lot of hard work and crazy dreams. So I hope you can make it, it's going to be a blast!
Look for this sign in AA:
Look for this sign in AA:
Monday, March 01, 2010
Hey Kids, Comics!
Okay, if you'll all bear with me for a moment, I have a slightly longish post here, but I think its pretty important stuff!
As most of you may know, one of my multitude of blogs is called Hey Kids, Comics!, which features true stories from all different people about their funny/sad and/or significant childhood (or later) encounters with comics. Ever since starting it in 2007, its been a lot of fun to put together, reading different people's fond memories of comics.
Starting back in 2009, I got the idea that Hey Kids, Comics! would make a great book--a tangible collection of stories like this, between two covers. There are several other books using this round-robin format, but on different subjects: being dumped by women, movies, the theater, etc. But, as far as I knew, no one had ever done one on comics, so this seemed like a cool idea.
I put some feelers out to a couple of publishers, and was delighted to learn that most of them thought it was a good idea for a book, too. The only hitch, of course, was who would be the people in the book (read: names) that could make the book marketable.
I figured this all along, so after talking to the publishers in mid-2009 I started going around, asking various people who I thought would tell a great "I love comics" story to be in the book.
I was absolutely thrilled when, within just a few months, I had managed to get a bunch of "yes"'s from some really cool people: Alan Brennert, Mike Carlin, Gerry Conway, J.M. DeMatteis, Fred Hembeck, Prof. James Kakalios, Paul Kupperberg, Alisa Kwitney, Jonathan Lethem, Tim Schlattmann, Tad Williams, and more from the worlds of comics, literature, comedy, and political blogging.
I was touched that so many people--some my friends, some strangers--would say yes to such a vague, as-yet-homeless book concept. When 2010 arrived, I thought I had gotten a really solid, interesting, diverse group of people, enough to go back to the publishing world and see if I got any offers. The list of names I had was by no means the final list of all the people I'd want to have in the book, but I thought it was an amazing start, especially since I did it all my own.
With the help of some friends, I got the official Hey Kids, Comics! book pitch in to several big-name publishers, the kind of people who would be able to get me access to other people on my "To Get" list, and get the book in actual, you know, bookstores.
That was over two months ago, and so far I have not gotten any nibbles. No--let me rephrase that--I've heard nothing. No yes, no, or maybe. For whatever reason, the book world seems very tight-lipped, so getting any indication of what they're thinking is really tough, especially for someone like me with little or no direct contacts to that world.
So I decided to harness the awesome power of teh internets to get people behind the book, and who knows? Maybe if enough people hear about it, it'll snowball and I'll be able to add some more contributors and some publisher will see all this hullaboo and want to publish Hey Kids, Comics!
To that end, I opened a Facebook fan page for the book, located here. I just opened it yesterday and its already got almost 50 fans, of which I am extremely grateful. So, if you're on Facebook, please head over there and become a fan (to the six of you not on Facebook, I apologize).
Over the years, I've been very, very reticent to ask much of the Aquaman Shrine's audience, because I've always felt lucky such a goofy blog would have any fans at all, let alone an audience I could ask that much of. I've never asked for donations, or put ads on the site, and that's something I'm kinda proud of (I'm sure DC's happy with it, too).
But this book has become a real passion project for me, and the fact that its been met with such a positive response from so many talented people continues to reaffirm my belief that Hey Kids! would make a great book.
So I'm asking all of within the sound of my voice(?), please head over to the Hey Kids! Facebook page, and become a fan. But not only that--if there any of you out there who have connections to the book world and think someone you know might want the book, let me know. Also, if there's some interesting person who you know loves comics and has a great story they'd love to tell, let me know. My blogs are so much better from the input of all the people who read them, and there's no reason why the Hey Kids! book can't work the same way.
I realize this post has already gone on way too long, but there's one last thing I want to mention: there is an Aquaman connection to all this, outside of it just being a comic book-centric book.
Back in 2007, I got the kooky idea for an Aquaman hardcover book, detailing the history of the character and showing off the ton of Aqua-Merchandise that's out there. It would be like Chip Kidd's superb Batman Collected book, but with more orange and green.
I realized that Aquaman could not "sell" a hardcover book on his own, so I came up with a hook--a sort of story to tell about the character that I would weave throughout the book--that would make it more than just a less-popular version of the hardcover histories of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman already out there.
I put together a pitch, and with the help of Shrine Godfather Paul Kupperberg (him again!), I got in front of the proper department at DC Comics. To my surprise and delight, DC loved it, and called me the same day I emailed it in to talk Aquaman and schedule a time for me to come to New York and meet with them (I think it took a day for the smile to disappear from my face).
I went to DC, and had a great meeting, and they seemed gung-ho about the book. But they reminded me it would be a very tough sell--I mean, a hardcover book about Aquaman?--so there was no guarantee, even with DC's backing, that any publisher would bite.
The Aquaman book pitch
Over time, that dire prediction has seem to come true, since the publisher(s) that have taken a look at the Aquaman book pitch have passed. Even with Aquaman's heightened awareness in the culture (thanks mostly to Brave and the Bold), we still haven't had any takers.
I have to think part of that is because of me--after all, who the hell am I? A hardcover Aquaman book would be a hard sell even if it was written by Stephanie Myers, let alone some blogger who no one's ever heard of.
So I have to think, whatever slim chance the Aquaman book might have would only be increased if it's author--me--had another book under his belt already. Which brings us back to Hey Kids!
So, those among you who may not really care all that much about the Hey Kids! book, are reading this because you're an Aquaman fan. And maybe, just maybe, if I can get Hey Kids! off the ground and into the nation's bookstores, maybe I can follow it up with the Aquaman book, and who among us wouldn't want to see that?
So, to sum up:
1)Please head over to the Hey Kids! Facebook Page and become a fan.
2)If you do that, talk up the page on your page, and direct your friends who you think would also be interested over to the page.
3)Email me if you have any ideas on how to make the book a reality. Anyone who helps me get the book produced will absolutely get a shout-out on Facebook and, ideally, in the book itself.
Okay, done with the hard sell. Thanks for your attention, and we'll be back to pure Aqua-goodness tomorrow!
(Just in case you're wondering: that kid in the picture above is my Dad, age eight. That shot is going in the book, somewhere--of that I swear!)
As most of you may know, one of my multitude of blogs is called Hey Kids, Comics!, which features true stories from all different people about their funny/sad and/or significant childhood (or later) encounters with comics. Ever since starting it in 2007, its been a lot of fun to put together, reading different people's fond memories of comics.
Starting back in 2009, I got the idea that Hey Kids, Comics! would make a great book--a tangible collection of stories like this, between two covers. There are several other books using this round-robin format, but on different subjects: being dumped by women, movies, the theater, etc. But, as far as I knew, no one had ever done one on comics, so this seemed like a cool idea.
I put some feelers out to a couple of publishers, and was delighted to learn that most of them thought it was a good idea for a book, too. The only hitch, of course, was who would be the people in the book (read: names) that could make the book marketable.
I figured this all along, so after talking to the publishers in mid-2009 I started going around, asking various people who I thought would tell a great "I love comics" story to be in the book.
I was absolutely thrilled when, within just a few months, I had managed to get a bunch of "yes"'s from some really cool people: Alan Brennert, Mike Carlin, Gerry Conway, J.M. DeMatteis, Fred Hembeck, Prof. James Kakalios, Paul Kupperberg, Alisa Kwitney, Jonathan Lethem, Tim Schlattmann, Tad Williams, and more from the worlds of comics, literature, comedy, and political blogging.
I was touched that so many people--some my friends, some strangers--would say yes to such a vague, as-yet-homeless book concept. When 2010 arrived, I thought I had gotten a really solid, interesting, diverse group of people, enough to go back to the publishing world and see if I got any offers. The list of names I had was by no means the final list of all the people I'd want to have in the book, but I thought it was an amazing start, especially since I did it all my own.
With the help of some friends, I got the official Hey Kids, Comics! book pitch in to several big-name publishers, the kind of people who would be able to get me access to other people on my "To Get" list, and get the book in actual, you know, bookstores.
That was over two months ago, and so far I have not gotten any nibbles. No--let me rephrase that--I've heard nothing. No yes, no, or maybe. For whatever reason, the book world seems very tight-lipped, so getting any indication of what they're thinking is really tough, especially for someone like me with little or no direct contacts to that world.
So I decided to harness the awesome power of teh internets to get people behind the book, and who knows? Maybe if enough people hear about it, it'll snowball and I'll be able to add some more contributors and some publisher will see all this hullaboo and want to publish Hey Kids, Comics!
To that end, I opened a Facebook fan page for the book, located here. I just opened it yesterday and its already got almost 50 fans, of which I am extremely grateful. So, if you're on Facebook, please head over there and become a fan (to the six of you not on Facebook, I apologize).
Over the years, I've been very, very reticent to ask much of the Aquaman Shrine's audience, because I've always felt lucky such a goofy blog would have any fans at all, let alone an audience I could ask that much of. I've never asked for donations, or put ads on the site, and that's something I'm kinda proud of (I'm sure DC's happy with it, too).
But this book has become a real passion project for me, and the fact that its been met with such a positive response from so many talented people continues to reaffirm my belief that Hey Kids! would make a great book.
So I'm asking all of within the sound of my voice(?), please head over to the Hey Kids! Facebook page, and become a fan. But not only that--if there any of you out there who have connections to the book world and think someone you know might want the book, let me know. Also, if there's some interesting person who you know loves comics and has a great story they'd love to tell, let me know. My blogs are so much better from the input of all the people who read them, and there's no reason why the Hey Kids! book can't work the same way.
I realize this post has already gone on way too long, but there's one last thing I want to mention: there is an Aquaman connection to all this, outside of it just being a comic book-centric book.
Back in 2007, I got the kooky idea for an Aquaman hardcover book, detailing the history of the character and showing off the ton of Aqua-Merchandise that's out there. It would be like Chip Kidd's superb Batman Collected book, but with more orange and green.
I realized that Aquaman could not "sell" a hardcover book on his own, so I came up with a hook--a sort of story to tell about the character that I would weave throughout the book--that would make it more than just a less-popular version of the hardcover histories of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman already out there.
I put together a pitch, and with the help of Shrine Godfather Paul Kupperberg (him again!), I got in front of the proper department at DC Comics. To my surprise and delight, DC loved it, and called me the same day I emailed it in to talk Aquaman and schedule a time for me to come to New York and meet with them (I think it took a day for the smile to disappear from my face).
I went to DC, and had a great meeting, and they seemed gung-ho about the book. But they reminded me it would be a very tough sell--I mean, a hardcover book about Aquaman?--so there was no guarantee, even with DC's backing, that any publisher would bite.
The Aquaman book pitch
I have to think part of that is because of me--after all, who the hell am I? A hardcover Aquaman book would be a hard sell even if it was written by Stephanie Myers, let alone some blogger who no one's ever heard of.
So I have to think, whatever slim chance the Aquaman book might have would only be increased if it's author--me--had another book under his belt already. Which brings us back to Hey Kids!
So, those among you who may not really care all that much about the Hey Kids! book, are reading this because you're an Aquaman fan. And maybe, just maybe, if I can get Hey Kids! off the ground and into the nation's bookstores, maybe I can follow it up with the Aquaman book, and who among us wouldn't want to see that?
So, to sum up:
1)Please head over to the Hey Kids! Facebook Page and become a fan.
2)If you do that, talk up the page on your page, and direct your friends who you think would also be interested over to the page.
3)Email me if you have any ideas on how to make the book a reality. Anyone who helps me get the book produced will absolutely get a shout-out on Facebook and, ideally, in the book itself.
Okay, done with the hard sell. Thanks for your attention, and we'll be back to pure Aqua-goodness tomorrow!
(Just in case you're wondering: that kid in the picture above is my Dad, age eight. That shot is going in the book, somewhere--of that I swear!)
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