Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 4: Kate Daly

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Kate promised me a picture reading the comic on the beach.


Didn't expect something quite like this, though. I think it's safe to say this is the photo we'd have to use if we could ever get the comic advertised in an Abercrombie catalog. Turned out rather brilliant, I think.

Kate's a stage actress based out of Boston, Mass. who has recently started training at The Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin, Ireland, and institution that has produced actors the likes of Olivia Wilde and Stuart Townsend. As a writer who dabbles in many different styles and mediums, it's always lovely to have an actor on the hook to see just how well you're doing. 

And Kate has always been the kind of friend to tell me exactly what she's thinking.

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 4: Dave Baker

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Dave Baker is like a Swiss Army Knife of creativity. Holding a firm philosophy of "get out there and do," he recently moved to Los Angeles, where the already uber-talented writer and illustrator started getting involved in show business, living what I at least believe to be the dream - words for money. Oh, and comics, and movies, and extras and actors, and celebrities too. I other words, this is one dude who stays busy.



Yet despite that, he's also crazy supportive of his fellow creative types, bending over backwards to buy my book when Paypal momentarily rebelled against us, and offering yours truly a couch in which to sleep on when I [assumedly, eventually] head west myself. He's looked at some of my rougher work, and I've seen some stuff of his that boasts a truly unique voice, and once it sees print is going to wow a lot of folks.

And nobody tell him this, but he's one of my favorite comic artists too.

Whoops.

Having our comic in Dave's hands means a great deal to me. And like with a lot of the people who have sent me pictures with the book, it's nice to feel like there's a whole group of us at this, chasing these dreams. Somehow, all of it doesn't feel quite so impossible knowing we're all looking out.


You can keep up with what Dave's doing on his Facebook fan page, and his Twitter handle is @xDaveBakerx. As you can imagine with all that's on his plate, he stays pretty busy, so updates are sparse, but when they happen, they are most definitely worth your time.

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 4: Caitlin 'Cat' Watts-FitzGerald

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I knew Cat for years before I ever saw this beautiful face. But that was what the internet was when I started using it, a great place for people far away from each other to jump into chat rooms and instant messages to play out adventure stories or romances with fellow writers, and others who just wanted to get away from reality for a bit. Or maybe that distinction is redundant.



Probably more than a seed of Cat's influence in "Calamity Cash" - few people I knew exposed me to strong female protagonists as much as she did. Along with being a talented and accomplished ballroom dancer, she's also a lawyer now, working out of the nation's capitol - practically in my backyard [well, like Massachusetts is New York's backyard]. But that doesn't mean she's put down the pen, or stepped away from the keyboard. She keeps a travel blog, to chronicle her oft-indulged wanderlust on the blog "intra'cat'inental" with new stuff posted each time she takes to the road.

She's also got a site strictly for her fiction, which I'd also encourage you all go check out. The url is http://unhingedsoul.wordpress.com and I think - I think - she just might be looking for some feedback.

"How can we know the dancer from the dance?"

Almost need a detective to figure that one out, eh Kitty?

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:



 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 4: Anne Mishkind

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I can't speak for Justin or Laura, but for me, one of the coolest things about selling the book has been some of the familiar faces I've gotten to reconnect with. It's been especially nice that, even after all these years since graduating Bennington, a bunch of my peers are still interested in what I'm doing - and want to support it.


Anne's one of those people, and it's been excellent catching up with someone I've often thought of since coming back home, but haven't had any sort of contact with since.Anne's has had quite the academic life since we'd fallen out of touch, going to both NYU [!] and Cambridge [!!], studying Political Thought and Intellectual history, some as fascinating to me as it is over my head - I mean, the history of thought - just imagine!

Of course, she'll still that underclassman who used to swing by my dorm room in the middle night to talk about or borrow comics too. Which is why seeing her with "Calamity Cash" is a real treat.

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:



 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 3: Eli Capps-Amburgey

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Man, I've known Eli for a long time. When we were kids, we'd stand around in our backyards, and act out whatever crazy adventures in space or the desert of whatever popped into our minds. Really meant a lot to me to see that even after all this time, Eli's still interested in my made up little stories.


Also, it appears that has the newly appointed "King of Beards" he's chosen our book as his crown. Score.


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 3: Cara Chiaramonte

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The only thing more flattering than seeing the comic with pictures of Marvel's "Runaways" [arguably the most original idea Marvel's had since the original Thunderbolts] in the background? Seeing it in the hands of Cara Chiaramonte.


[See Cara? I told you I'd spell it right. Matter of fact, I kind of think it's the sort of surname with some poetry to it.] 

Cara's an impeccable costume and clothing designer with an ever-growing presence in the Boston theatre scene [and beyond], taking an approach to her work that I'm particularly fond of - an eye towards the past, towards the history of her craft. I've always said to write, your best teachers are people who have already written stories. I think Cara might agree the same is true for design, drawing, and sewing.

Along with all that, Cara's a fellow Bennington alum, and an unfortunate witness to many of my lunch and dinner time rants - all of which she seemed to quite take in stride. Always willing to talk coats [stop judging me, guys] or how ungodly Summertime is, and with some pretty impeccable taste in comics [Brian K Vaughn, anyone?], I got back in touch with her while working on Nova, and have had the great pleasure of keeping her company since.

On a purely personal level, it's my hope I'll get to work with her someday.

You can check out her ever-growing body of work [both costumes and sketches], and get in touch with via her online portfolio at http://carachiaramonte.com.

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:



 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 3: Cheri Borgstrom

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Can't even get my own cat to read the book.


Cheri Borgstrom is a wonderful artist and storyteller who you've probably seen me talk about before. What feels like ages back, she ran a small, Blogger-based web comic which, after only a few weeks of reading, she offered me a chance to actually write for. Now, the offending collaborations have since went MIA - I lost my copies a hard drive reformat ago [D'oh!] and Cheri has since closed the previous site comic down, and went on to hone her craft [amazing, because she was already... well, amazing] and start a new, autobiographical strip "Cheeseborger and French Fries."

Which just happens to be part of the reason I'm sharing Cheri's picture today - to give everyone a reminder that Friday is the magic day when her comic updates [temporarily every other Friday - but hey, even on those weeks, read it again! Or start from the very first comic. It's quite spectacular].

Cheri's wonderful to work with, and she's let me peek behind the curtain at her creative process on more than a few occasions. I'm so glad to have had her support on "Calamity Cash" - she even donated a bit extra, yet asked for only a single copy - and we can't thank her enough. It's my hope that we'll maybe work together some day again.


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:

 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 3: Emi Tice

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Mrs. Tice and I are are war buddies. We weathered a Steven Bach screenwriting class together. And while Steven was great, the thing about great men is that when teaching, they ask for nothing less


Emi is now living in the scene-heavy paradise that is Portland, and thanks to the time difference, I usually catch her on my sleepless nights and pester her to get back into the writing game. I've had the unique privilege to workshop several things she's worked on, and it's always a great pleasure.

You can check out some of Emi's work on her blog "Emi Makes Stuff" where she talks about writing, DIY projects, and snippets of her married life. Definitely worth a place in your RSS.

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 3: Ruthy Fenchak

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I haven't known Ruthy for very long, but it's been an absolute pleasure. We met on the internet [turns out folks still do that], and after knowing me a shockingly short amount of time, she still decided our comic was worth taking a chance on for the $4.50 it cost. Perhaps that she and I share some remarkably similar life-type-situations egged her on - or maybe she just really liked the cover [it does sort of match her glasses...].


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 3: Crista Bjornson

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One of my favorite quotes about comic books is from Alan Moore, how comics have been "made in a certain way, and designed to be read a certain way: in an armchair, nice and cozy next to a fire, with a steaming cup of coffee." The picture Crista sent me with her copy of "Calamity Cash" made me think of that, because some people's armchair is deck chair, their fire is the warm sun on their faces, and the coffee is... well, in this instance, a pretty chic pair of summer shades. 


I had the pleasure of meeting Crista while working on a different creative project, and have been lucky enough to stay in touch. One of those people always supportive of any kind of creative endeavor, she's was quite excited when I mentioned we'd be selling these, and was one of the first orders I filled. And true to form, when I asked if there was anything she was involved in that she wanted plugged or linked, she naturally thought of others first, and asked I give a shout out to her sometimes employers, the Huntington, West Virginia-based Trifecta Productions. Trifecta is one of the most successful production companies in the state, having won many awards in the process, and Crista's done nothing but rave about them, and her time with the crew.
 

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:

 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 3: Ally Melling

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As you can tell from her awesome t-shirt, Ally Melling is a girl of pretty discerning taste. Kind of makes me beam seeing her with a copy of "Calamity Cash."


Ally's done a lot to support the book, even putting it on "The Weekly Pull" on her website "Geeking Ally," and giving our comic the only mention it'll probably ever get in the same column space as "Daredevil" and "Batwoman." Along with being involved with Geeking Ally, she's also heavily involved in the horror/movie magazine Ultra Violent, and has worked for Wizard Magazine, done acting, costume design, - well, again, the lady's hard to impress.

She's also one my best friends. She's close with the artist too, and there are many-a-nights she's hung out with
Justin and me at IHOP, having to hear us talk about the comic with almost no idea what's we're going on about. Ally even got to see the earliest printing of "Cash" - the one that made us decide a slightly larger size would be necessary. 

Hell, we've even weathered "Ice From the Sun" together.

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 2: Ian Rogers

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Ian Rogers gets talked about a lot on this blog, and for good reason.



A fellow writer, and one of the few people to have survived living with me for any extended period of time without a considerable loss of sanity, Ian's support is one of those few things in life I could always count on. But this time, he went above and beyond the call of duty, and did a write-up on his blog about "Calamity Cash" deeming it "A Success Story" - and getting us a few orders from people I hadn't ever actually met before.


You know. People who live in no fear of running into me, and me asking - "why didn't you buy my comic?"

Ah, I kid, I kid.

I've posted links to a lot of Ian's work before, especially his awesome piece of alternative/experimental fiction called "Corporate Takeover." If you ask me, he doesn't blog nearly enough for how good he is, but you can still keep up with him on "A Wave of the Hand."


Thanks for the shout-out, Ian 


And for those of you paying attention, there's another comic I had a hand in making in Ian's picture too...


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.


Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 2: Shea Black

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I've been a bit worried people aren't enjoy the comic.


Turns out Shea is enjoying it enough for everyone.

This... is classic Shea, and one of those pictures I got that crystallized what we'd done with this book. Realize, I spent the bulk of high school talking about how I'd write comics some day, and the person who had to listen to all that was Shea here. An accomplished artist and sculptor in his own right, with tons of talent and a style that hearkens back to a bit of Jack Kirby, having one of the guys I've talked the most about comics with reading a book I wrote?


Thank you, Shea. For buying the book, but also reminding me of the accomplishment of what we did.


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:

 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 2: Penny Maple

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Believe it or not, I used to work with this bombshell. Ladies and gentlemen, the lovely Penny Maple.



It would be easier to list the things that Penny doesn't do, but let's give it a try anyway. Miss Maple is a writer, blogger, model, pinup girl, actress, and burlesque dancer, not to mention one of the brightest spirits I know. We fell out of touch for a little while, reconnected properly only recently, and it's honestly one of the nicest things that has happened to me in the last several years [oh yeah, watch me spoil all your lascivious thoughts with my sincerity and sentimentality. Feelings!].


As you can see, she took my pinup suggestion very seriously. And as with everything Penny takes seriously, she had a lot of fun with it, too. And blew us all away.


There are a lot of places online where you can keep up with Penny Maple - as I'm sure you want to, and if you don't, you're absolutely crazy. She's a contributing writer for
HorrorfulLife.com, a wonderful website that covers not only horror movies, but the surrounding fandom, along with all things gothic and macabre [they also have a tumblr and a Facebook page you can "Like"]. Penny's also a fixture of the Charleston Branch of Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School, and has started the Wayward Girls School of Burlesque, Charleston, WV's very own, brand spankin' new burlesque troupe.

Man, some pretty kick-ass people bought our little book.


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:



 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 2: Cynthia Gerriets

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So when I first asked that my happy readers send in pictures of themselves with the comic, I half-jokingly suggested that if anyone knew any pinup models, maybe they'd get photographed with my comic too.


I love when people enable me. This lovely lady is Cynthia Gerriets, and I am ashamedly remiss to admit that I don't know all that much about her, other than the fact that she a fellow comic fan, and ever slings them and Magic cards along with other delightful swag at Tucson's Heroes and Villains Comics, where she's also the Marketing Assistant. She digs the Ninja Turtles, toy design, and sewing [man, this is starting to sound a lot like a pinup page]. And, if her Facebook page is any indication, she quite the model, having done some absolutely beautiful work and bringing her own touch to that tattooed vintage pinup style.

And who [besides Cynthia] do I have to thank for the pleasure?




Thanks again, Eric. Hh. I think I did a post for you yesterday [go check it out too].


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 2: Eric M. Esquivel

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EDIT: December 20th, 2018:

This post is ages old, and I don't even know if there's anything marking this all out will do. But here is the long and short of it - Cynthia Naugle recently made a statement about Esquivel: http://cynthianaugle.blogspot.com/ It goes without saying, I believe Cynthia - she is one of the bravest, big-hearted people I know. The honest truth is I knew Esquivel, and considered him an internet friend - my artist on this project didn't know him, has never worked with him, and does not deserve to have his excellent artwork associated with something so disgusting as Esquivel, so I'm pulling down this photograph. I don't want anyone to think I'm attempting to hide past interactions with him - you'll find other mentions and praise for him on this blog, and I loathe the idea anyone might find these in a vacuum and take them as current endorsements of the guy. I didn't know, I had shit radar on this, and others don't deserve to suffer for it.

I appreciate you taking the time to read this.

Eric M. Esquivel is pretty much the "Man of Tomorrow" when it comes to comics - he's the name you'll see writing forty books and being called "The New Fraction" or "The New Bendis" and the like, which is fine, but honestly I'll herald him [even if I have to climb up on a silver surfboard to do so] as the First Eric Esquivel. Riding a huge wave of sequential awesomeness that includes The Blackest Terror and Thor: Unkillable Thunder Christ [both working with our fellow collaborator, the mega-talented Ander Sarabia] for Moonstone, and the upcoming Electric Youth for Big Dog Ink. And here's our superstar holding the comic I wrote. 


[Picture Removed]


You can keep up with Eric in a myriad of places, the one I'd most recommend is his blog/tumblr, where talks at great length about the projects he's working on, signings and appearances, and his crush on/worship of Tony Stark, along with his main website, emecomics.com.

If you're into social media, you can "Like" his fan page on Facebook too, and follow him @ericMesquivel on Twitter. I suggest doing them all - they're each a different, but uniquely Eric experience.

And thanks for the support, man.

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 2: Zoe Chevat

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One of the few things you need in art school that you can't get from the bookstore is someone to sit next to you and shake their head derisively in unison with you. 

Zoe Chevat is a CalArts grad, a fellow Bennington alum, and most importantly, an excellent artist, writer, animator, and hell of a good friend. Currently rocking a West Coast address, suffering for her dandy style in a nasty climate for it, my conversations with Z have been some of my favorites over the past few years, and not just because her current address makes her the optimal up-all-night conversation companion [I'm sure she'd be able to hang even if we were in the same time zone]. Check her out with her copy of "Calamity Cash" after the jump. 


Zoe's also one of the hardest working people I know on the internet, and there are a ton of places to catch up with her. She's contributed to numerous animation and pop culture websites [see her work at The AWN, or "Animation World Network"], most notably as of late the Geek Girl Culture site "The Mary Sue" - which is actually a favorite of mine, and I recommend it whether you just want a healthy dose of what's going on in geekdom, or to read Zoe's posts specifically. Zoe also has her own tumblr, http://animateher.tumblr.com/ where she talks about her passions, and some of her trials and tribulations during her work too. You can also follow her @zchevat on Twitter.

And as always, you can check out her animation and illustration work at www.zoechevat.com.

Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:



 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week 2: Sarah Crow

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Is there a tastier comic book out there than "Calamity Cash?" Journalist Sarah G. Crow thinks not.


And barring that "All-Bacon Caitlin Fairchild" Gen13 variant cover from 1993, she's right [nevermind that a Johnny Grunge version would have made more sense].


Sarah's sort of the Queen of the Internet as far as I'm concerned. Not only is she a regular contributor to the excellent xoJane.com [you can see Sarah's work for them here], but she's also published on various other sites all over the net, and hosts her own Spreecast Channel - which she graciously has me on as a guest fairly often, with us even doing weekly shows recapping various television programs or entertainment goings-on - most recently, Breaking Bad.

Sarah also reached out to me after my father died. It took me a while to get to a place where I could reach back, but when I did, I gained a real friend, someone as committed to getting my name out there as she was her own. She's let me plug our little comic shameless on her shows at every turn - and she's always around to talk, when needed.


You can follow Sarah on Twitter @sarahgcrow and check out her own website, sarahcrow.com, here.


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:


 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week: Terry Lively

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Terry Lively was not my first boss, but she has certainly been my most reoccurring one. During college, I worked as Director's/Producer's assistant under her, while also doing some state work with the Department of Highways, which at the time, had quite the robust little film project going at the time. Since then, Terry has helped me prop up my starving artist lifestyle with the occasional freelance gig [some of which we've even won awards for] while supporting just about any other writing-type thing I've gotten involved in.


You can check out Terry's website Vandalia Productions LLC here.

 
Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:

 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week: Hannah Dibner

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So, if buys most wins, then Hannah Dibner wins.


Hannah is one of my best friends from college, absolutely brilliant to boot, so it kind of made me wonder why she wanted to corner the market on "Calamity Cash." I mean, no need to buy five, you can just read the same one over again, right?

[Somewhere, there's some IP guy shuddering even at that idea. Fascists.]

A few days after sending out her books, Hannah answered my question quite deftly, with a pleasant, 3 page letter that started, and I quote: "Why did I order five copies of your publication? Because I like supporting my friends' art, you ninny!"


Indeed.

Thank you, Dibner. Love the new haircut, by the way.


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:

 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week: John Wiswell & JohnCon

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I've mentioned John Wiswell so much on this blog that I think we might be common law married on the internet. Which, you know, works out a lot better for me than him, because if we ever get internet divorced, his blog "The Bathroom Monologues" has way more content than this one.

In college, John was the... I don't know, administrator of a really spectacular group of my classmates, who at lunch would gather all at this sort of epically* long table, and it became so ingrained in their group identity that, I don't know if anyone else did, but at least John, his crew, and I all took to calling them The Long Table.

I can only speak about the Long Table from outside of it. I spent a few breakfasts there, but the nature of Bennington tended to keep the same folks traveling the same circles,  and I'd already settled, and honestly, back then, might have been a tad too surly for a such friendly crew. They were isolated in many ways, but not isolationists, they welcomed others like they welcomed the discourse of new ideas, a place where people could share the things they were thinking, what they liked, celebrate that which they could, communally or not, love, and love quite publicly. And though John sort of could clearly be seen at the head of the table, I don't know if "leader" or anything like that would ever be appropriate. Maybe moderator at times. Maybe even surrogate father figure.

Actually, not even anything that concrete. But that's the language I always wanted to use when it came to talking about the Long Table - that they were like a family. A group that had come together despite whatever might have kept them apart, and filled some innate gap for each other, one that I often wonder if we all have.

But no need to get philosophical about it.

"Events" tended to spring up around the Long Table too - the way I met them was at Anime night, a weekly occasion where we'd all gather together to watch dubbed Japanese cartoons [seemingly bought on the South Korean black market], shout references at the screen, and generally make as much noise about blood spray and fan service and bishies as some of the wilder parties on campus.

And even though college is over, they keep the party going - at a regular event dubbed, loosely or not [never been clear], JohnCon.

John was the first online order for the book we got. Practically helped me test the PayPal button, so great was his enthusiasm to support the project.

And a little while later, he sent me this picture - what looks like a dramatic reading of Calamity Cash at JohnCon.

Left to Right: Max Cantor, C. Dillion Ross, John Wiswell, Jemma Mayer, and Shelly Fleming.



All of these pictures mean so much to me. But thanks for letting me be a part of the family, guys.


You can follow John on Twitter @wiswell, and make sure to check out his Bathroom Monologues, updated daily.

 Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:

 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

*DICOCHET'D!

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week: Jessie Miglus

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There should be more people in this world like Jessie Miglus. A classy lady of the highest order, Jessie took my piss-poor attempts at Freshman hazing in stride, brought me a copy of "The Muppet Movie" when I was deathly ill, and to this day sends me homemade postcards on my Birthday and Christmas. When I once thought I was going to need a costume designer for a particular project that never quite got off the ground, it was Jessie who actually entertained the idea of making it work - when she was living easily 12 hours away.



And then there's this.

Thank you, Jessie. 


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:

 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.

Calamity Cash Fan Appreciation Week: Julia Cooper and Liam Kemp

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I don't have many closer friends than Julia Cooper. A fellow Lord of the Ring fan, a fellow Bennington alum, a fellow screenwriter, and one of my sole means of conveyance all throughout college, I have about a hundred different stories I could tell about Julia, her marvelous family [who've put me up in their home on several occasions], or various adventures the two of us have gotten into since knowing each other. But while those adventures were going on, about the only stories I regaled Julia with was the various mythoi of the comic characters I grew up reading about, particularly the likes of the various men and not-so-much-men to call themselves the Green Lantern.

So imagine what a pleasant surprise was when I met her new boyfriend, Liam Kemp, who sporting a familiar green ring from a certain famous galactic police force.


When they stopped by not all that long ago, we spent most of our time in diners, getting to know Will through conversations about comics, Kevin Smith, and Doctor Who. And now we'll have another comic mythos to talk about...

You can follow Julia on Twitter @suluscar and Will on Twitter @liamkemp.


Order your copy of "Calamity Cash & the Town with No Name" via the button on the sidebar, or here:



 


"Calamity Cash & The Town with No Name" (25 pages, $3.50, plus shipping): The mother/daughter vigilante team of Tana and Cal Cash are on the run from an Afro-rocking, Kung-Fu assassin, and have been forced to make their last stand in a nameless desert town hiding an unbelievable secret - every last citizen is in the Witness Protection program! Out of gas, low on ammo, and with their backs against the wall, Calamity and Mama Cash become the town's unlikely protectors, but with friends so quickly becoming enemies, and old enemies becoming friends, is the whole place doomed to burn? And will our heroines be the ones to light the first match? A modern-day action/adventure western with words by Randall Nichols, and art by Justin Cornell.