Tag: new comic

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The Kickstarter is over. Dolphin Squad: Origins is on the way!

Dolphin Squad: Origins is funded! Our first Kickstarter was a success!

Thank you to everybody who contributed, shared social media posts, or helped behind the scenes. You are all wonderful people and we are so grateful for your support.

Dolphin Squad: Origins cover reveal
Dolphin Squad: Origins cover

The book is nearly done with proofreading. We’ve picked up and corrected for a few errors and should finish that task in the next few days.

After that it’s a case of assembling the final file for our printers, waiting for funds to clear from Kickstarter, and giving the green light to start production. All being well, backers should get their copies before the end of September!

And then?

We’ve got several shows booked for Autumn. You can see where we’re going to be by checking this list.

So if you’ve missed the campaign, you’ll still be able to get the book from us at comic cons, signings and events in the future – plus it will be on our website once the book is officially released.

We have more planned for Dolphin Squad for next year… but right now we need to rest. Its been a busy 30 days! Thank you again for your support and we’ll get your rewards to you as soon as we are able.

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Sammael Hicks rides again!

Sammael Jehosephat Hicks is the (Dead)star of the show today. It’s Deadstar Publishing’s 11th birthday and we’re celebrating with a return to the cursed town of 7 Shades.

We released the first 4 part miniseries in 2018 and followed up in 2019 with Hell’s Belles. Originally we’d planned to release the second 4 part miniseries in 2020… but there’s been this slight global disruption going on recently that slowed us down a bit. Nothing major… just a pandemic…

It’s looking like we’ve turned the corner now and we’re starting to come out the other side. We’ve been discussing signing events at comic stores, and in a few more weeks we should be attending our first comic con in over a year. That, coupled with it being our birthday, made us think that the time is right to peel back the curtains and give you a peek at the mysteries beyond.

And then Jericho

And Then Jericho Cover

“And then Jericho” is the first book in the next 7 Shades arc and you can get it today! Yes, that’s right. It’s our birthday so we’re giving you a present! We’ll be releasing the book in physical form at the London Film and Comic Con on July 24th-25th but you don’t have to wait that long for it. The ebook is on our store today!

Spoiler Warning!

If you haven’t read the first arc and Hell’s Belles, the first oneshot, then you should pick those up now.

Got them? Good! “And then Jericho” follows on after the events of Hell’s Belles (the last thing we released before the world paused) with Samm Hicks now squarely in post as sheriff of the wretched town of Seven Shades. Meanwhile Cousin Uriel, the Hicks brothers’ slippery snake-oil selling shyster of a relative, has arrived to help enact Mayor Azrael Hicks’ plans to ensnare the unwitting townfolk and turn them to his bidding. All the while, Samm’s sister Elsie-beth is getting sicker. And Samm? Well, he’s got other things on his mind. Can he save the town? You’ll have to buy the books to find out!

Two pages from "And then Jericho"
Click for the full size image

The ebook is available today – and you can preorder the physical copy which we’ll post from Monday July 26th.

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Interview with the creators of 7 Shades

Our  next release is going to be 7 Shades: Hell’s Belles, the follow up one-shot to last year’s 4 issue miniseries. A few months back we caught up with David Clifford and Peter Rogers while they were doing a signing event at The Comic Guru and were able to record this interview with them.

In the interview David and Peter go into detail what the creative process looks like for them as well as talking about future plans. The series has been really well received so far and we’re looking forward to that continuing. Next week we’ll be launching 7 Shades: Hell’s Belles at Thought Bubble in Harrogate. David will be at Thought Bubble and will also join us at MCM Birmingham on November 16th and 17th. We have more appearances planned for the future. Keep an eye on our appearances post for more details.

We’d love to know what you think of the video – and of the series… and if you’re yet to pick up the first season you can find it here!

Production team

We’d like to thank the following for making the interview possible:

  • Editor & Videographer: Benjamin Powell
  • Audio Engineer: Barney George Andrews
  • Sound Mixer: Patrick Flannery
  • Image FX: Dani Abrams
  • And a special thanks to Kristian Barry of The Comic Guru for allowing us to film in his store.

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Passing on our knowledge to the next generation

A few weeks ago we ran a poll on our Facebook page asking if our fans would find value in us sharing our experiences of running an independent publishing company for almost a decade. The overwhelming result was that it was something people would like to see… so we’re going to do it!

Facebook Poll asking whether people wanted us to pass on our knowledge
Facebook Poll asking whether people wanted us to pass on our knowledge

We’ve already thought of a number of topics we could cover, from what talents/roles are needed to take a comic from start to finish – to how to budget for expos and more.

As this is something we want to get YOU involved in though, we have a request: let us know in the comments what topics you want us to write about. That way we can be sure we’re giving you the really useful parts of our experience.

The first post will probably go up in December or January as we have other things (like launching 7 Shades: Hell’s Belles and Dolphin Squad: The Colouring Book) to focus on until then.

7 Shades Hell's Belles cover
7 Shades Hell’s Belles cover
Cover for the upcoming Dolphin Squad Colouring Book
Cover for the upcoming Dolphin Squad Colouring Book

 

 

 

By the way… both titles are now available to pre-order!

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7 Shades – A Brand New Comic From David Clifford and Peter Rogers

Last Saturday we attended the Cardiff Independent Comics Expo and had the pleasure of being joined by the creative team behind 7 Shades and Dexter’s Half Dozen.

 

The creative teams behind 7 Shades and Dexter's Half Dozen
The creative teams behind 7 Shades and Dexter’s Half Dozen

To the left is Peter Rogers, author of the Eagle-nominated anthology series Eleventh Hour as well as many other things. In the middle is David Clifford, artist behind both Dexter’s Half Dozen and 7 Shades – and to the right is Jamie Lambert, writer for Dexter’s Half Dozen.

When we were approached with the concept for 7 Shades we were immediately intrigued. It was described to us as a supernatural western, and having already seen the art for Dexter’s Half Dozen we were sure that David could do the theme justice. And he has.

Each page is fully painted art and looks gorgeous… as you can see here:

The story revolves around events occurring in the mysterious town of 7 Shades. The man you see being rudely awakened in the page above is our protagonist, Sammael Jehosephat Hicks, and he – with the rest of his family are on a quest to save his sister. Sammael is a pretty unreliable individual and to put your faith in him for something crucial is probably a bad idea. To say much more would spoil a story that ought to be read – and you can start that journey here! Below are the covers for issue 1 and 2. The series will be released in arcs and the concluding part of this arc will be released September 2018.

 

One of the things that Peter and David are keen to do is to have a Q&A page in each issue starting from issue 3. If you’ve got a question you’d like them to answer, you can email us or contact them through their own website.