International Cryptozoology Conference 2024

 

Cryptids have appeared in my work for some time, so this weekend I'll be attending the International Cryptozoology Conference. 

The ICM's International Cryptozoology Conference will feature engaging talks and presentations by leading Cryptozoology experts on a variety of topics as well as access to the our vendor rooms, hosting over two dozen cryptozoology, science, curiosity, and Fortean themed vendors. This one of a kind event is an important program and fundraiser supporting the non-profit scientific and educational mission of the International Cryptozoology Museum (ICM) - it's also a lot of fun! Get your tickets today: https://cryptozoologymuseum.simpletix.com/

Special rates for kids under 13, as always babes in arms and strollers are free.

Friday Night VIP Event Schedule:
3:00-6:00pm - Vendor Room Early Access (not all vendors may yet be present)
4:30-6:30pm - Meet & Greet Tea Time Fundraiser for Herp Haven - touch reptiles, chat with cryptozoology experts and other enthusiasts
6:00-7:00pm - Casual Pizza Dinner with VIP seating - eat and mingle with over a dozen cryptozoology celebrities! Celebrities include most of our speakers and: Nathaniel Brislin author of "Crawlers: A Conclusive Casebook,” Aleksandar Petakov of Small Town Monsters, Michael Familant of In the Shadow of Big Red Eye, Jeff Foran of Strangeology Podcast, Sam Baltrusis author of Ghosts of Salem, Travis J Hill - artist, and more!
7:00-8:00pm - Keynote Address: J.W. Ocker, author of The United States of Cryptids: A Tour of American Myths and Monsters
8:00-10:00pm - Screening of BIG FUR, a feature documentary movie about taxidermist Ken Walker, Bigfoot and the value of wilderness. Meet taxidermist Ken Walker, filmmaker Dan Wayne, and "Patty" the bigfoot.

Saturday Main Conference Schedule:
9:00-6:00pm - Vendor Room Fully Open Come See Live Reptiles
9:45-10:00am - Official Conference Welcome
10:00-10:45am - "Bigfoot in Maine: Back into the Woods" - Michelle Souliere, author of Bigfoot in Maine & Strange Maine
11:00-11:45am - "Cryptozoology Adventures" - Pat Spain, host of Travel Channel's Legend Hunter, Nat Geo's Beast Hunter
12:15-12:45pm - "Mystery Cats" - Jean Tewksbury, Eastern Cougar Researcher
12:00-1:00pm - Lunch at the Food Trucks, vendor room open
1:00-:1:45pm - "Big Cats are Scary: A case study of cryptozoology & folklore" - Christopher Packard, author, biologist, and folklorist
2:00-2:45pm - "My Favorite 25 Cryptozoology Facts" - Wen Eldridge, cryptozoologist and creator at Facebook's "Cryptozoology Facts"
3:00-3:45pm - "Cryptozoology, Cthulhu, and Lovecraft" - David Goudsward, author and cryptozoologist
4:00-4:45pm - "Digging into Skinwalker Ranch's Cryptozoology: Bigfoot, Dogmen, & Dinobeavers"" - Loren Coleman, author, cryptozoology legend, and founder of the ICM
5:00-5:30pm - Official Closing Remarks

Dinner on your own - offsite - see what Portland has to offer.

Optional Add-on - The International Cryptozoology Museum is open during the conference and Sunday 10-6 and is only a short distance away from the conference and come tour the museum! Separate ticket purchase required.

Special rates available in our block of rooms at the Clarion - room availability is limited so book your reservation now, only rooms in the block include free breakfast.
Reservation link: https://www.choicehotels.com/reservations/groups/YH91V6

Midnight, Mass. Trade Paperback Collection Coming In Fall 2024

 

Through it's Black Label imprint, DC Comics will be releasing a 208 page trade paperback collection of the 8-issue series, Midnight, Mass. on October 1, 2024. It will sell for $16.99 retail. You should be able to pre-order it through your local comic book store in the next few months. 

Midnight, Mass. follows the adventures of paranormal investigators Adam and Julia Kadmon from their home in Midnight, Massachusetts. It was written by me with pencils by Jesus Saiz, inks by Jimmy Palmiotti, colors by Noelle Giddings and Kevin Somers, letters by Ken Bruzenak and John Costanza, and covers by Tomer Hanuka. It was edited by Heidi MacDonald and Zachary Rau. 

Here's DC's press announcement:

The Best Cryptozoology Books 0f 2023

 

Loren Coleman has released a list of the best Cryptozoology related books of 2023 which included issue #121 of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You. You can see all of the books on the list here. 

The Milestone Compendium - Volume 3 Now Available

The third huge volume collecting all of the Milestone Media comics from the 1990s is now available. Among the varied chronological contents are issues 1-14 of Kobalt,a series I created and wrote, with art by Arvell Jones, Eric Battle, Jamal Igle,and others. You can order the Milestone Compendium Book 3 through Amazon, and a percentage of that sale will come back to me, by clicking here: Milestone Compendium Book 3 .

Milestone Compendium Book 1 which contains Xombi 0-11, also written by me and drawn by Denys Cowan and J..J. Birch is also available here: 

Milestone Compendium Book 1

Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? #125

Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? #125 is now available at a comic book store near you. It contains a new story I wrote, as well as a reprint of an older story I also wrote. The complete credits can be found in the previous post. You can read a preview of this issue's main story here.

Available Next Week

On December 5th at a comic book store newar you, the Mystery Inc. gang investigates the Hyena Man in "No Laughing Matter" written by me, with art by Randy Elliot (who also did the cover), colorist, Silvana Brys (who also colored the cover), lttered by Saida Temofonte, and edited by Courtney Jordan. This issue also reprints "The Boy Who Cried Werewolf" by myself, Robert Pope on pencils, Scott McRae on inks, Heroic Age coloring, Randy Gentile, lettering, and Jeanine Scheaffer editing. This story was originally published back in May, 2008 in Scooby-Doo #132.

The Grim Gallery Enters Year 13

Do you like monsters? My companion blog, The Grim Gallery is full of them. Over 4300 of them, posted one per day. The Grim Gallery has just entered its 13th year of surving up all sorts of horrors on a daily basis. Go check it out.

Signing at the International Cryptozoology Museum

On May 6th, famed Cryptozoologist, Loren Coleman and I signed 300 copies of Scooby-Doo! Where Are You? #121 at the International Cryptozoology Museum in Bangor, Maine. The comic book, which I wrote, features a thinly veiled version of Loren and his museum.

It was a fun day overall. I got to poke around in the museum library. We met some great people who attended the signing, and afterwards Loren took me on an abbreviated Stephen King tour. (The King household is right around the corner from the museum). Loren also showed me the future museum site and generously sent me home with a pile of loot.

If you were unable to attend, copies are still available at the International Cryptozoology Museum at both its Bangor, and Portland, Maine locations. They are free with a $10.00 donation to the museum. Shipping is additional. Thank you to Loren Coleman and Jean Tewksbury for hosting me. Signing photos by Jean Tewksbury Photos outside the King house by Loren Coleman

Signing at The International Cryptozoology Museum with Loren Coleman

Next Saturday, May 6, 2023, world renowned cryptozoologist, Loren Coleman, and I will be signing copies of Scooby-Doo! Where Are You #121 at the International Cryptozoology Musuem's neew location in Bangor, Maine. Scoony Doo! Where Are You? #121 was recently published by DC Comics. It features a story I wrote which features a character who is very thinly veiled version of Loren Coleman and also features an equally barely disguised version of the International Cryptozoology Museum. The story was drawn by Walter Carzon, inked by Horacio Ottolini, colored by Sylvana Brys, and lettered by Saida Temofonte. It was edited by Courtney Jordan. See previous posts for more information.

The signing will take place between 11:00 am and 4:00 PM. All proceeds will benefit the International Cryptozoology Museum located at: 585 Hammond Street Bangor, Maine 04401

Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? #121

Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? #121 marks my return to writing Scooby-Doo comics after a twelve year absence. Guest starring a thinly veiled friend of mine, and world renowned cryptozoologist, this issue is available today at a comic book store near you. There's a preview of the first few pages here. Published by DC Comics the issue was edited by Courtney Jordan, drawn by Walter Carzon, inked by Horacio Ottolini, colored by Sylvana Brys, and lettered by Saida Temofonte.

Ask Me Anything #66

I've been pretty bad about running these, and with blogs being somewhat archaic vs other social media platforms, am not sure there's any interest here. We'll find out. Here's your chance to ask me anything you want, whether it's about my work, influences, what I'm watching, reading, eating, drinking, anything you want at all. Leave me your questions in the comments and I will answer them, either there, or if it requires a lengthy response, in a separate post. You can view previous questions and replys under labels on the right side of this page, by scrolling down. Now ask away.

Available Next Week

Available at a comic book store near you on April 4, 2023 is Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? #121. It contains a tenpage story written by me with art by Walter Carzon, Inks by Horacio Ottolini, colors by Silvana Brys, letters by Saida Temofonte and edits by Courtney Jordan. As many of you know in the early 2000s I wrote over 100 comic book stories for Scooby-Doo. While my stories have been reprinted frequently since then, the last one I wrote was in 2010. I was very happy to revisit the Mystery, Inc. gang after such a long absence.

THE ABYSS #6 is Now Free to Read

The culmination of the Red King saga is now available to read for free at Interpop Comics. This storyline greatly expanded the supporting cast of The Abyss, revealed a great deal of the mythology behind his group of Acolytes, gave some hints into the Abyss's origins, and provided a key villain, and former ally, in the form of the Red King, while also establishing alliances, betrayals, and suggestions of what's to come. A lot of work went into this book, not just from myself, but from my talented collaborators, Cliff Richards, Chris Sotomayor, Carlos Mangual, Rylen Sigman, and Rachel Gluckstern, and I think it shows. You can read the entire saga of the Abyss, thus far, for free. That includes all six issues of the ongoing series, plus the four 8-page stories starring the Abyss which appeared in Emergents Presents. Give them a read and let me know your thoughts on them.

THE ABYSS #6 Variant Cover Available

This great alternative cover to The Abyss #6 by Peter Nguyen is now available at Interpop Comics.

THE ABYSS #6 is Now Available

I was away all of last week with really spotty internet so I did not get to post this. The Abyss #6, which brings the Red King saga to its epic climax with more guest heroes and villains than you can shake a stick at,is now available at Interpop Comics. This issue was created by the usual crew of myself, Cliff Richards, Chris Sotomayor, Carlos Mangual, Rachel Gluckstern and Rylen Sigman. It features wall to wall action and a number of revelations. You can also read the first part of it for free here. If you need to catch up, issues 1-5 are also available under Free to Read, a are the initial 4 8-page The Abyss stories from Emergents Presents. At some point in the next couple of months I will probably put up a post of my process on putting together The Abyss up through the end of this arc. I did something similar with The Hangman way back when. Stay tuned.

THE ABYSS #5 Now Available

The Abyss's attempts to keep the Red King from returning diminish with the arrival of the Red King's daughters: Mortuaria, Cemeteria, and Crematoria. See what happens in The Abyss #5, now available from Interpop Comics. If you need to catch up, the previous issues are all available for free under the Free to Read category.

THE ABYSS #4 Available For Free

The Abyss #3 is now free to read in it's entirety here. If you missed any previous issues, including the initial four 8-page stories, you can find them all at Interpop Comics under "Free to Read."

THE ABYSS #4 Variant Cover Now Available

The Abyss #4 has a variant cover by Miguel Sepulveda and Alex Sinclair which is now availble. You can find it here. The regular edition of The Abyss #4 is also still available here. Earlier issues can be found for free, under "Free To Read."

THE ABYSS #4 Now Available

It's magic vs machine in this issue as the Abyss and his allies race to stop the return of the Red King. All 24 glorious pages of The Abyss #4 can be had for a mere $1.51 at Interpop Comics. Back issues can be found there at no cost under "Free to Read."

THE ABYSS #3 - Now Available for Free

The third issue of THE ABYSS is now available in its entirety for FREE. Here's the link. Issue #4 will be available for purchase early next month.