The Sunday Spotlight: The ‘For A Long Time, I Thought It Was Just Because I was Smarter’ Edition

It’s Sunday, therefore it’s time for The Sunday Spotlight. Take the weight off your feet and have a read of all the comics news…

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Don’t miss this – Hellboy Humble Bundle….

The latest Humble Bundle digital comics package is full of horror and fabulousness, as it’s time to dive deep into the world of Hellboy and The Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense.

This bundle is packed with over 30 volumes of the long-running B.P.R.D, cataloging the organization’s struggles to protect the world against all manner of paranormal threats.

As with all Humble Bundles, there’s the chance to pay what you want for multiple tiers of graphic novels – all of which helps support the excellent Hero Initiative, the charity supporting comic creators in need.

But get in quickly – click here for more – it’s only there until Friday 7 June 2024

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Thought Bubble Comic Creator Micro-Bursaries…

We have some truly great comic shows in Britain, shows that are all about comics (seriously, why go to a comic show where you struggle to find comics and artists amongst the media tat and the z-list celebs?).

The biggest two festivals here in Britain are The Lakes International Comics Art Festival and Thought Bubble, and both do everything so very well, supporting comics and the comics community throughout the year and not just during the festival dates.

Case in point, Thought Bubble, taking place this year in Harrogate on 16 & 17 November, has a number of Comic Creator Micro-Bursaries available. In conjunction with Travelling Man comic shops, Thought Bubble are offering micro-bursaries of £200 for UK-based comic creators who will all receive space at the comic festival to exhibit, promote, and sell, in addition to the £200 bursary.

Five recipients each will be selected from the following: Disabled Comic Creators, Comic Creators of Colour, and Trans/Non-Binary Comic Creators. Recipients can be at any stage of their creative careers, but must be at least working towards creating comics work.

Submissions open June 3rd 2024 – more details here – let everyone who’s eligible know.

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Lakes International Comic Art Festival’s Between The Lines e-pub coming soon…

And speaking of the always excellent Lakes International Comic Art Festival, they’ve just announced they’re getting into publishing – well, publishing a new e-publication called Between The Lines anyway.

Edited by John McShane and designed by Steve Kerner, Between The Lines offers insider info on LICAF and its events and guests, plus ‘features on comics past and present, and more.’

All this under a rather lovely Dan Panosian cover. Sign up for their occasional newsletter to be the first to get access to its release here.

LICAF 2024 takes place in Bowness-on-Windermere on 27-29 September 2024. More details here.

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Philippe Caza’s epic Arkadi and the Lost Titan gets English omnibus edition for its 35th anniversary…

A huge 528-page omnibus edition marking the 35th anniversary of Philippe Cazaumayou/Caza’s Arkadi Book 1 is coming from Humanoids publishers.

Sitting alongside The Incal and Metabarons in terms of its scope and style, Caza’s Arkadi is a book that was 20 years in the making for its author.

‘Arkadi and the Lost Titan is Caza’s longest and most complete work and it’s a thrill to introduce this seminal work to a wider audience in the States. This wide-ranging saga has been stuck in purgatory for decades for technical reasons, but through a process of thoughtful and painstaking restoration, the original negative films have been salvaged and are currently undergoing a scanning and digitization process, allowing the release of this magnum opus in its entirety, and the way it was meant to be experienced.’
Humanoids Publisher Fabrice Giger

It’s going to be crowdfunded by Humanoids on Kickstarter, their first crowdfunder, starting 5 June 2024. Don’t miss out on something very special – sign up to the Kickstarter crowdfunder here.

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Peter Kuper wins the 2024 Robert F Kennedy Human Rights Cartoon Award…

Huge congrats to Peter Kuper, comic maker, cartoonist, activist, and satirist on winning the 2024 Robert F Kennedy Human Rights Cartoon Award.

The RFK Book and Journalism Awards honor outstanding writing on issues that reflect Senator Robert F. Kennedy’s concerns, including human rights, social justice, and the power of individual action in the United States and around the world.

The Robert F Kennedy Human Rights organisation said on awarding the honor to Kuper…

‘Cartoons can often be silly and satirical but Peter Kuper’s work is often political, personal, and persuasive. He takes aim at some of the most pressing issues of our times, with limited text or no text at all. As Kuper puts it he’s often speechless in many ways given the magnitude of the problems we are all facing. So he finds using the vernacular of comics a way to convey ideas that can break through any language barriers.

‘As he points out in his cartoons, while we stare at our devices, worshipping technology, waters are receding and fires burn Canada. Every dimension of climate change is explored in his work with a mixture of horror and humor. But in his work you can also find hope. This panel shows that in the showdown between corporations and kids he’s banking on the kids who are gradually pushing back in an effort to save our environment.’

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Peter Bagge & Rober Mailer Anderson double signing at Fantagraphics Bookstore – 15 June…

Double book signing at the Fantagraphics Bookstore and Gallery in Seattle on 15 June – Peter Bagge will be there signing copies of Hate Revisited #1 and Robert Mailer Anderson will be there signing copies of his new graphic novel, My Fairy Godfather. See here for a preview of Hate Revisited and see the Fanta site for more on My Fairy Godfather

 

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Gosh! Comics host Mollie Ray for Giant signing – Saturday 8 June 2024…

More great signing sessions coming from Gosh Comics in London, UK now… first up in June comes the eagerly awaited first graphic novel by Mollie Ray, Giant, published by Faber and Faber on 6 June 2024.

The signing happens 8 June, 1-2pm.

Here’s what Mollie has to say about the book:

‘Giant is a silent graphic novel published by Faber and Faber, coming June 2024. The book is inspired by the journey my brother faced after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and how our family were affected. The main character wakes up one morning to find he has grown to the size of a giant, which acts as three metaphors: the physical mutation of cancer; the idea of feeling like the ‘elephant in the room’; but also, the ‘giant’ strength he takes away with him following his recovery.’

And here’s what Gosh have to say…

‘Deeply moving and tender, with gorgeous ball-point illustrations, Mollie Ray’s debut graphic novel is a resonant story of empathy, healing and hope.’

You can pre-order a signed copy from Gosh’s website for mail-order or collection by clicking the link here. More details here.