Cullen Bunn's Blog, page 29

Five Reasons To Buy…

I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from my good pal Francesco Francavilla. I have a few books hitting the shelves today, and here are a few great reasons you should be picking them up!

Captain America and Black Widow #636

The start of a new story arc! And it’s gonna be a crazy one! This makes a perfect jumping on point!Fantastic art… and I mean simply fantastic… by Francesco Francavilla!Black Widow is both sexy and lethal! She makes some pretty interesting kills!Guest stars include Hawkeye, Iron Man, and Dr. Doom… and one of them won’t make it out alive!Weird science bounds! Pick it up at your local comic shop or digitally on ComiXology!

Captain America #17Co-written by Ed Brubaker and illustrated by Scot Eaton!Sharon Carter dukes it out with Baron Zemo… in space!Omega Madbombs!Dum Dum Dugan is one of the most fun characters to write… period.See if the editors… or Brubaker… cut my Ice Pirates reference from the script!Pick it up at your local comic shop or digitally on ComiXology!

Wolverine: Rot Premier Hardcover Wolverine faces Dr. Rot in a balls-to-the-walls horror story!Introducing Dr. Rot’s family: Baylee Ann, Mama Rot, Great-Grandpa, and Tater Pud!Paul Pelletier draws the definitive Wolverine!An additional story by Ivan Brandon!Even more awesome art by Chris Samnee, Rafael Albuquerque, and Jason Latour!

Pick it up at your local comic shop, bookstore, or through Amazon

Venom in Philly!

As the writer of Marvel’s most kick-ass symbiote, Venom, it’s my job to shake things up for the character. As the first arc of the solo run will show, Venom will be facing some challenges unlike anything he’s seen before. But I’m not done yet! Because soon Venom (and his alter ego Flash Thompson) will be leaving New York City and heading to the City of Brotherly Love–Philadelphia! It’s about time for Venom to get out from under Spider-Man’s shadow and establish himself as a hero on his own turf. Of course, it’s not going to be easy for him.

I did a few interviews about the upcoming move. There are clues aplenty in regards to what I have planned for Venom. Check them out… and buckle up!

Marvel’s Venom Pulls Up NYC Stake For Philly Steaks (AP Interview)

Bunn Talks Injecting Philly With Venom (CBR Interview)

Venom in Philadelphia (Marvel.com Interview)

Marvel’s Venom Team Talk Flash Thompson’s Big Move (Newsarama Interview)

 

 

The Burning Maiden Now Available on Kindle!

Evileye Books has released a new anthology on the Kindle today. The Burning Maiden features my short story, “And Their Shadows”, along with 15 other supernatural tales by the likes of Mike Oliveri, Joe Lansdale, Tim Lebbon, Sarah Langan, and others. This is their first published anthology, so you should definitely check it out! Get The Burning Maiden for the Kindle here!

How I “Broke In”

A couple of weeks ago, I started a series of tweets detailing a rough history of how I started working in comics. I thought I’d compile those tweets here for those of you who might be interested. I know some people don’t like the idea of “breaking in” when it comes to forging your path in the world of professional publishing. But after so many years of trying, it felt like breaking in to me. You mileage will vary.

Anyhow, here are the tweets. This is how they appeared when originally posted. As I was posting the timeline, a number of people asked me questions. I’ve incorporated my answers below.

I’ve had a bunch of questions lately about how I broke into comics, so I thought I’d tweet the history of it.
Keep in mind, this worked for ME. The path is different for everyone.
I had been trying to break into writing comics for YEARS, but had no clue how to do it. So, I switched my focus to prose.
With prose… at least I knew what was involved in the submission process, y’know?
And even in prose, I started working on building a network… editors and fellow writers I could turn to for advice.
I started publishing a small press magazine and taking submissions for writers and artists.
I had a day job (in marketing) and I tried to make as much time as possible for writing.
I attended conventions, joined message boards, and even started a small press to meet other creators.
(Later, Twitter and Facebook and LinkedIn would become my online networking tools of choice.)
I still sent in pitches for Moon Knight and Morbius and Ghost Rider and Etrigan books, but it was pretty pointless.
Blind pitches never worked for me.
Some pitches I remember were Ghost Rider, Morbius, Scare Tactics, Blue Devil, and Moon Knight.
(For new writers, it is much more common for a big 2 editor to come to you with a character or idea they want you to work on.)
Finding a reliable, talented artist to work on a project with you can be as tough as finding someone to publish your work.
Long ago, I started working at a comic shop (The Fantasy Shop in St. Louis) with an aspiring artist Brian Hurtt.
Early on, Brian Hurtt and I started talking about working on a comic book together.
Brian was breaking in himself (and that’s his story to tell) and had started working with Oni Press.
A couple of years passed, and Brian and I pitched our first concept to Oni Press.
The book we pitched was PENNY DREADFUL, a Victorian era supernatural story. It was a project we had been discussing for years.
But Oni Press rejected it. Boo! Hiss! (Actually, it was the right call, although I still like the concept and characters.)
I tried a few more pitches (not 100% sure of the timing here) for books like FREAKHUNTER and DEAD ACRES that never happened.
When finally Brian and I pitched our next project, THE DAMNED, which Oni Press liked quite a bit.
Speaking of, if you haven’t checked out THE DAMNED, here’s your chance! http://amzn.to/PJ81Vh 
While THE DAMNED was being put together, I happened to meet with some Marvel editors at World Horror Con.
During that pitch session, I was totally lost. But at least it helped make some connections.
I also submitted short comic scripts to small press magazines, notably Futurequake.
Futurequake published 3 of my stories.
The biggest benefit of the small magazines was that they found artists for my stories.
I tried to build relationships with those artists. One of them led to me getting a lot of paying work later on.
In terms of networking, you never know where you’ll “strike gold” and you run a great chance of making lasting friendships.
I followed up on every connection I made. I was polite, concise, and friendly.
From that meeting, I was put in touch with a few different editors, but no immediate work surfaced.
When THE DAMNED came out, I sent copies to every editor who agreed to read one.
It took a couple of more years for a Marvel editor to read the book and offer me a one-shot. Sometimes, the wheels move slow.
Important lesson! Getting your first book published is hard. Getting your next book published is just as difficult!
Having one book hit the stands only means you have to keep working to get the next one out there!
I pitched books and stories to Oni and Vertigo and WildStorm and Marvel and DC. I kept trying to stoke the fire.
I searched for artists all over—message boards, comic shops, small press anthologies.
And I got burned several times by people who weren’t as excited about working on a project as I was.
I’ve never done a page rate for an artist when pitching a project to a publisher.
I’m not saying I wouldn’t. It’s just not been my experience so far.
I develop all new rookie mistakes with every project.
For something creator-owned, I think it is VITAL to build a lot of collaboration.
I think having a solid proposal/pitch early on can help you find an artist and get them excited about a project.
My best luck sourcing artists came when I started asking my network of friends if they knew anyone who was looking for work.
After my first Marvel one-shot, I went through a dry spell.
I kept working on pitches, mostly for creator-owned projects, and I kept knocking on doors.
I successfully pitched THE TOOTH to Oni Press, but it took us years to find the right artist. http://amzn.to/PJ8BSU 
Early on, I found several small freelance jobs that helped a lot.
Eventually, I pitched THE SIXTH GUN to Oni Press. They liked it, and Brian came on as a co-creator on the project.
There came a point where I wasn’t happy on the job…I wasn;t getting any younger… and I was making at least a little money.
Have you read THE SIXTH GUN yet? http://amzn.to/PJ8JSh 
I was a part of a local horror writer’s group for years. They were my first readers for a while.
When THE SIXTH GUN came out, I once again contacted other editors to see if they would like to read it.
It wasn’t long before a DC editor reached out to me on Twitter to see if I’d like to pitch an arc of SUPERMAN/BATMAN.
A couple of creators at Marvel really went to bat for me at Marvel. They made sure editors read THE SIXTH GUN.
Marvel contacted me and gave me some short stories and one-shots.
I made sure I was accessible, easy to work with, and on time with all my assignments.
These tweets aren’t just about breaking into comics… but also about breaking into your hearts.
Soon, I was offered bigger projects, like FEAR ITSELF: THE DEEP and FEAR ITSELF: THE FEARLESS.
During the last couple of years before I went full-time as a writer, I worked my ass off!
I wrote before I went to the day job, during my lunch break, and late into the night.
When I started treating writing comics like a job… when I forced myself to make time… I started seeing a lot more success.
I still feel a little lost in terms of comics, but I try to learn and improve every day.
My biggest drawback? I’m very shy. I’m not a good face-to-face networker.
But I’d challenge anyone to say a publisher just “gives” me work. I earn the projects I work on.
I still feel like I’m hustling every day, trying to make the magic happen.
Did I get lucky at times? You bet! But it wasn’t all luck. It took time and hard work, too.
My advice? Treat writing like work. Be easy to work with. Compete assignments on time. Don’t be a dick.
So… That’s kind of how I did it. I’m sure I missed some steps there. I hope it was helpful, though.
And I know some people don’t like the idea of “breaking in” to comics. But that’s common wording. It can feel like that. Deal.
It can be a tough road. Don’t get bitter about other people making headway. I struggled with that. It ruined my momentum.
Go buy my damn books. http://amzn.to/PJ9ydU 

Busy Weekend!

This weekend, I’ve got lots of cool comic book stuff going on!

On Saturday, I’ll be signing from 12 – 4 at Heroic Adventures in Edwardsville, Illinois!

And on Sunday, I’ll be attending RubleCon in Springfield, Missouri!

If you’re in the vicinity of either of these events, I hope you’ll stop by and say hello!

Minimum Carnage!

At Comic-Con International, Marvel announced the upcoming (and fantastically titled) crossover event MINIMUM CARNAGE! There are a number of reasons I’m excited about this. First of all, I’m involved in bringing this story to you. Second of all, I have the chance to co-write a project with Chris Yost once again. Third, I have the chance to work with some characters I’ve wanted to write since looooooong before I started writing comic books professionally.

Now that the cryptic tease is out of the way, how about some details?

MINIMUM CARNAGE is a crossover that will take place over the course of six issues starting in October. It will bring the worlds of Venom and Scarlet Spider crashing together in a major way as Carnage breaks out of prison and ravages not only our world but another universe altogether! Alpha and Omega issues will bookend issues 10 and 11 of Scarlet Spider and 26 and 27 of Venom to bring the bloody sci-fi tale together. Chris and I are plotting together. We are co-writing the Alpha and Omega issues. Chris is handling scripting on Scarlet Spider and I’m scripting Venom (naturally). Lan Medina is handling the art on the bookend issues. Declan Shalvey is drawing Venom, and Khoi Pham is drawing Scarlet Spider.

For tons of information on the crossover, check out these recent interviews!

MTV Geek – Chris Yost and Cullen Bunn Get Small for Minimum Carnage

Comic Book Resources – Bunn and Yost Create Some Minimum Carnage

Marvel.com – SDCC 2012: Minimum Carnage

The crossover kicks off in October. Please let your comic book retailer know that you don;t want to miss this event. It’s gonna be action-packed and bloody and violent and full of sci-fi weirdness, Spider-guys, and symbiotes! I’ll leave you with a look at some fantastic cover art from the first three issues!

Cover to MINIMUM CARNAGE Alpha! This is where it all begins! (Cover by Clayton Crain)

The story continues in Scarlet Spider #10… (Cover by Ryan Stegman)

…And spills over into Venom #26! (Cover by Patch Zircher)

SDCC 2012 Schedule

For those of you coming to Comic Con next week, here’s where you can find me! I hope to see you there!

Thursday, July 12th

12 to 1 pm – Signing @ Marvel Booth, #2329

3 – 4:45 pm – Signing @ Oni Press Booth #1833

Friday, July 13th

12:00 – 1 pm – Oni Press – RevolutiONIze comics panel (Room 32AB)

3 – 4:45 – Signing @ Oni Press Booth #1833

Saturday, July 14th

2 to 3 pm – Signing @ Marvel Booth, #2329

3 – 4:45 pm –  Signing @ Oni Booth #1833

7 – 8 pm – Writers Unite! Pitching Your Creator-Owned Comics (Room 23ABC)

Sunday, July 15th

10 to 11am – Signing @ Marvel Booth, #2329

12:30 to 1:30 pm – Amazing Spider-Man Panel (Room 6DE)

Sixth Gun Role-playing

I’ve long joked that The Sixth Gun is the Dungeons and Dragons comic book Dungeons and Dragons players wish they could read. I wholeheartedly believe that the book is ripe for role-playing game adaptation. At the very least, I think it could serve as an excellent source of inspiration for fantasy gamers. Today, I discovered a series of Armchair Gamer articles focused on using The Sixth Gun as a resource for a fantasy RPG. The articles have been around for a while. I’m not sure how I missed them. But if you’re a gamer… or you know a gamer who should be reading comics… they are pretty interesting.

Inspiration: 6th Gun

Mining the 6th Gun: The Strange and the Familiar

Mining the 6th Gun: Weapons of Dark Purpose

Mining the 6th Gun: Monstrous Men

Mining the 6th Gun: Friends and Posses

 

 

 

 

The Power of Hypnosis!

Anyone who knows me knows that I claim to have once performed as “the World’s Youngest Hypnotist”. My dad was a professional stage hypnotist for many years, and at one time he put me on stage as part of the act. I only vaguely remember being part of the show myself, but I do remember quite a few of my dad’s performances. Last week, I visited my folks in North Carolina, and I uncovered an old folder full of memorabilia from his days as a “master of mesmerism”. I didn’t find anything mentioning the amazing spectacle of the “World’s Youngest Hypnotist”, but these still stirred some really great memories. I thought I’d share. These materials are from 1973 and 1974.

First up, a newspaper advertisement on improving your life thru hypnotism! Years later, I remember the Boy’s Club D&D group I was in wanting to hire my dad to hypnotize us all and have us “live out” a d&D adventure. A terrible, terrible idea that I’m glad died on the vine.

A flyer from a show. I like how the image has nothing to do with hypnosis.

My mom and dad trying to drum up business at the county fair. I’m sure I was hiding behind the booth, playing with Matchbox cars or Weebles or Planet of the Apes toys.

My dad also ran a photography studio (a business he would stick with for many years). They sponsored this event on Easter. I remember it pretty well. They hid 10,000 eggs! 10,000!

Ah, Easter in Fayetteville! My dad gets the show going. That’s a mesmer wheel that he’s standing behind.

I’m sure he’s telling the crowd how he learned hypnosis from a Frenchman while he was in the army. I have no idea if that’s true or not.

 The show begins! “You walk down a dark hallway, and Tiamat eats you.” Hilarity!

I’m pretty sure my dad’s just revealed that the “apple” they were eating was really an onion or a lemon.

“There’s a fly on your face.” And shaving cream in your hand.

Another show, this one at a high school. “Here. Enjoy a refreshing Pepsi.” Of course, that’s really milk in a baby bottle.

“Mmm! That really is a delicious beverage!”

Well, he’s wearing one of the girl’s knit caps. I’m pretty sure he is acting as he sees her act. I’m also pretty sure he got his ass kicked when he got home.

A classic and a crowd favorite! “Your seat is on fire!”

And this is less about hypnotism and more about how far high school permission slips have come. Ah, the good old days!

Borrow Crooked Hills on Kindle… for NOTHIN’!

If you have an Amazon Prime account, you can now download my middle reader horror novel Crooked Hills to your Kindle for FREE!  If you’re not already a Prime member, you can start a free trial and still download the book! I’ve had a Prime membership for a few years now, and I love it. The free 2-day shipping on anything fulfilled by Amazon is great, and there are many other benefits (like the Kindle lending library).

For more information on Crooked Hills, check out this page!