I have a little Golem, I made it out of clay...

Our managing director, ahem, Galactitron (Do I really need to call you that, Alex?) wanted me to let you know that we got some good stuff coming out in January. 

One of our new years books will be Golem, the story of a big hunk of animated clay that kicks ass. Of course, I'm generalizing slightly. It's actually a really hip update of a old Jewish legend about a guy who crafts a slave monster out of clay and brings it to life to do his bidding. In our version, penned by Scott Barkman & Jeff Le and drawn by Mark Louie Vuycankiat, the Golem comes to life in war-torn 1992 Sarajevo. He's a smart-mouthed bad-ass with an agenda of his own. Think Frankenstein's Monster crossed with Bruce Willis. 

And if you don't believe me, here's what Ain't It Cool News had to say...

There are a lot of cool elements going into Studio 407’s GOLEM. Writers Scott Barkman and Jeff Lee do a nice job of making this story of a man in trouble giving life to a lump of clay different than any Golem tale before it.

Sounds cooler by the minute, no? If you want to beat the rush, reserve your copy online at Heavy Ink.

Or look for it on the racks at the start of 2009. That's it for now, geek buddies. Next time I'll tell you a little about our new horror anthology, Shadow Chronicles.

Night & Fog #2 In Stores Today!

That's right, issue 2 hits comic shops around the country and online today. Be sure to pick it up today to discover the terrifying secret of Serum 37B, and find out if the survivor's of issue 1's catastrophe can somehow make it off the doomed military base alive!

HYBRID Out Today!

The second official Studio 407 title hits comic shops today (a Thursday instead of a Wednesday thanks to the holiday last week)!

Hybrid is a four-issue miniseries that plums the depths of ecological terror off the coast of Cancun. Four friends charter a boat for a relaxing vacation, only to sail headlong into an unfathomable nightmare. As they cast off, they learn that just a day earlier a diver disappeared in the same waters they're cruising. The further out they sail, the more they find biological irregularities in the local marine life, a sea darkened with mass quantities of a mysterious ink, the looming threat of modern-day pirates, and a towering whaling trawler adrift in the open water. When they spot a frightened little girl waving at them from the bow of the derelict ship, they have no choice but to investigate. But when they reach the ship, they realize she may not be alone...

Hybrid is written by Peter Kwong. Artist Pablo Churin and the talented colorists at Shipeng Lee Studio provide the atmospheric visuals. Editor Chad Jones rounds out the creative team.

Hybrid #1 (of 4) carries a cover price of $2.75 and is suggested for mature readers.

A Bumpy Start

Are we up and running? Is anyone there? I suppose the answer to the first one is yes, but the second has yet to be revealed...

Well, I mentioned that we'd be sharing the trials and tribulations of getting a new comic book company up and running, and that's all it's been so far! We're learning some lessons.

We all waited with baited breath for our first book, Tiger & Crane, to drop on February 27 via Bluewater, and then the big day came... and it didn't. Co-writer Randy Zamcheck hit the local comic shops, excited, found nothing, and started calling us. But we didn't have any answers. Turns out there was a shipping delay (let's hope that's not fortuitous!) and our big debut would be put off a few weeks. Word came through that the new date would be March 19. Then the book turned up this past week, out of the blue! Maybe that's just on the West Coast, but it is out there, and it should definitely be in your local store, wherever you live, by this coming Wednesday. So go out and pick it up! The delay may have created some brief anxiety, but we're pretty damn happy with the way it came out.

So what other lessons have we been learning? Communication is key. I guess that probably goes for all small companies, but it's certainly true in the comic biz. We've got a fulltime staff of three right now, running the office, and several part-timers (including myself) with other fulltime jobs, and some very diligent interns who come in when they can. But since we don't all see each other that regularly, it's easy for lines to get crossed. Luckily, we're working on this one too, and like the delayed release date, it will soon be nothing more than a past mistake. The fact that this blog is now live (for real) is proof of that. Like we promised, we're sharing the highs and the lows.

And if this post focuses a little too heavily on the lows, stay tuned for the highs in the next post...