Matt Dembicki's Blog, page 7

Oct. 13 signing in Baltimore

I'll be signing Xoc: The Journey of a Great White as well as District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, D.C. at Collectors Corner in Baltimore from noon-4 p.m. on Sat., Oct. 13. Joining me will be District Comics contributors Troy-Jeffrey Allen, Kevin Rechin, Michael Brace and others!

In the works

My next big project is actually inking a graphic novel that I believe will be out in early 2014. Below is a page I recently inked. 

Interview with DCist

DCist posted its Q&A regarding District Comics. I got a kick when a commenter added new text to the featured panel! Funny!

Media trifecta!

District Comics got a lot of digital ink these last two days! First, a little write up from the Washington City Paper:
The graphic anthology is unconventional, definitely, but above all, it’s ambitious.
Followed by a piece from Scripps Howard:When “The Brewmaster’s Castle” was well received by the Heurich House Museum, Dembicki said he realized there are a lot of other D.C. stories that need to be told.
And ending the day with a Q&A in the Huffington Post:Want to know more about Civil War soldiers who drank alcohol from containers storing body parts? Of course you do. Which is one of the reasons you'll want to check out local artist Matt Dembicki's new anthology "District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, D.C."

Signing this Sunday!

Just a reminder that we'll have our first signing for the book on Sunday, Aug. 19, from 3-5 pm at One More Page Books in Arlington, Va. There will be more than 20 contributors on hand to sign (this will certainly be our biggest signing), including:
Rebecca GoldfieldJacob WarrenfeltzTabitha WhissemoreArt HauptJason RodriguezAndrew CohenRand ArringtonMal JonesMike RhodeRafer RobertsGregory RobisonJoe CarabeoCarolyn BelefskiJeff BarrusMichael CowgillDale RawlingsMichael BraceSteve LoyaKevin RechinPaul ZdepskiMatt DembickiCarol Dembicki
And, as few cherries on top, the Small Press Expo has generously donated FREE day passes to SPX to the first 25 people who buy a copy of the book at the signing! But wait, there's more: I did a few 5x8 sea-related illustrations (see below) that will be raffled off at the signing! (AND I'll have copies of Xoc: The Journey of a Great White on hand, and, perhaps, a few copies of  Trickster ? :)
What is District Comics, you ask?  “District Comics is a graphic anthology featuring lesser-known stories about Washington, D.C., from its earliest days as a rustic settlement along the swampy banks of the Potomac to the modern-day metropolis. Spanning 1794-2009, District Comics stops along the way for a duel, a drink in the Senate’s speakeasy, a look into the punk scene, and much more.”

BrickFair 2012

Comics-related Lego sculptures (and other photos) from BrickFair 2012.

News and reviews

Cool reviews from Meepzine and Ghetto Manga for Xoc: The Journey of a Great White (Oni Press), which hit shelves today.

There's also a review in the Library Journal for the upcoming District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, D.C. (Fulcrum Publishing), which will be available Aug. 7 (that's about a month earlier than initially scheduled!)

I'll be at Big Planet Comics this Saturday, July 28, at the the College Park store from 11 am-1pm and at the Vienna store from 3-5pm signing Xoc with colorist Evan Keeling (check out the limited edition promo poster below, available for $5!). And then, well, maybe a few beers at the Spacebar to unwind. Please join us for one or all of these!

The Shark Trust on 'Xoc'

Here's is what Mark Richardson of the Shark Trust, an international shark advocacy organization based in the UK, wrote about Xoc:

Xoc: The Journey of a Great White moves shark conservation into a whole new genre. As a science-based organisation, the Shark Trust works hard to dispel the hopelessly inaccurate–and damaging–imagery which Great Whites and many other large shark species acquired post-Jaws. In its place the Shark Trust emphasizes the vital importance of these apex predators in healthy marine ecosystems.

And far from the ferocious, indestructible image most people attribute to Great Whites, the species is in fact listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. This scientific assessment reflects a global decline in White Shark populations–the result of Great White’s biological traits (late maturity, few offspring, low natural mortality and longevity) being unable to compete with overfishing.

This paradigm shift is clear in Xoc. The narrative and images, and the science behind them (that is, what little marine biologists actually know about the Great White) comes through loud and clear, bringing the crisis faced by one of our oceans mightiest predators to the fore. As tens of millions of sharks continue to be killed each year, Xoc’s message is a timely one.

Xoc hit shelves this week. You can see a 20-page preview here!

San Diego Comic-Con!

So, San Diego Comic-Con is coming this week. That means the release of Xoc: The Journey of a Great White (Oni Press)!

I’ll be doing Xoc signings with colorist Evan Keeling on the following dates and times at the Oni Press booth (#1833):Thursday: 2-2:45Friday: 1-2:45Saturday: 1-2:45
I’ll also be on an Oni panel on Friday at noon, room 32AB, with a slew of talented Oni creators to talk about our projects. I'm very excited about that; lotsa good books coming from Oni.
BTW, I’ll not only have the hardcover Xoc books, but these wonderful hand-crafted sculptures (see pic below) by the brilliant Brooke Allen! (Speaking of Brooke, who did the cover to the upcoming District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, D.C. , during my signings I will also have a limited number of pre-release copies of District Comics. Thanks to Oni for being so generous.)
You'll also be able to nab both these books at the free Trickster2 indie comics event, held just down the street from the San Diego convention center! 
Oh, and please check out my 8-page online comic Xoc Pup , brought to you twice a week courtesy of Big Planet Comics! 

ALA video interview

While at the annual American Library Association conference last week in Anaheim, Calif., Jack Baur chatted with me about Xoc: The Journey of a Great White (Oni Press) and District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, D.C. (Fulcrum Publishing). I'm not very good at these kind of interviews, but I think it came out pretty well (if you overlook that I look like I'm 80; I immediately shaved the beard when I saw this and feel like an energized 40-something-year-old!)


Also related to ALA, the Library Journal wrote an article about a panel I was on regarding books that cross young adult and adult readers. I discussed Trickster: Native American Tales: A Graphic Collection (Fulcrum Publishing).