Tag Archives: funds

Crowdfunded Comics that deserve more attention: Olive and the Underworld Vol. 2

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Today we’re talking about a comic book Kickstarter project entitled Olive and the Underworld Vol. 2 Part 1.

This is the second book in a series about a girl named Olive.

Olive is an orphan and finds herself bouncing around foster homes due to her…unique views on life and death.

Naturally, her school and social life isn’t much better.

However, her self imposed hellscape is turned on its head when she and several of he classmates die in a bus crash and are sent to Purgatory.  While her classmates are desperate to move on to the afterlife, Olive discovers that she loves Purgatory.

The second volume picks up where the first book left off and follows Olive’s quest to stay in Purgatory, despite the powers that be insisting that it’s supposed to be temporary.

At the time of writing the project has reached $1,833 of its $2,995 goal and has fifteen days left in its campaign.

Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1058532910/olive-and-the-underworld-volume-2-part-1

Full disclosure: I actually wrote about the Kickstarter for the first volume of the series a few years ago.  I received no money for that article or this one, but the creators were unbelievably nice and decided to use a quote from my article on the front page of the book’s website and on the back of the first book’s cover.  Also, I got to read the first volume and I can assure you that it’s awesome and well worth your time and money.

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You can read the quote, and buy the first volume, here.

Why I like it.

I like this book for the same reason I liked the first book, it takes a very old and well established story and turns it on its head.

I’m a big fan of ancient history.  More specifically, I’m a big fan of ancient Greek and Norse mythology.

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Now, all three of these cultures may be from different locations, different time periods, and have different cultural norms but their mythologies have certain things in common.  For example, they all have a deity who presides over the after life.  The Norse have Hel,

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The Greeks have Hades.

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Now, this is to be expected.  Death is one of humanity’s universal constants and it would make sense for cultures to develop their own ideas of what happens after we die.  However, the similarities can get a bit spooky.  More specifically both cultures have stories about heroes to travel to the afterlife while they are still alive.

The Greeks have heroes such as Orpheus, who charmed Hades into returning the soul of his wife with his music.

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The Norse have Hermod, a son of Odin who traveled to Hel to beg for the life of Baldur after he had been killed by Loki.

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So Olive’s journey to the afterlife puts her in pretty unique and interesting company,

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but there is one major difference.  In every other story about travelling to the afterlife, the heroes come back.  The land of the dead is a place you’re supposed to be uncomfortable around and a place where you don’t want to stay.  Olive doesn’t just want to stay in Purgatory, she’s genuinely happy to be there.

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I can’ think of a single instance where the hero of a story wants to stay dead, so that makes Olive and the Underworld one of the most unique and interesting stories I’ve ever seen…and I love it.

Why you should donate

Because if our ancestors could create eternal stories about death and the afterlife, why can’t we?

Myths and legends aren’t just stories, they were a way to process emotions and events that human beings could have never understood otherwise.

Stories like the Illiad weren’t just stories about people fighting each other, they were peppered with morals and lessons on how to act and what is proper way to behave in certain situations.  Heroes like Achilles weren’t just bloodthirsty maniacs, they were scholars and noble warriors who embodied traits and emotions that the ancient Greeks thought were important.

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We may think we have grown out of our understanding of the world has progressed, but we still have fantastic beings who embody certain virtues and use their actions to demonstrate proper behavior.

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Myths and legends are still talk about important stuff, they’ve just changed their appearance and what’s important to adapt over the past several thousand years.

We’re in the process of creating a new mythology and Olive and the Underworld is a story that brings a new and different approach to how we view death to this new understanding.  It’s a fun, friendly, and important book and well worth your time and money.

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Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1058532910/olive-and-the-underworld-volume-2-part-1

Crowdfunded Comics that deserve more attention: Prison Witch

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Today we are going to talk about a comic book project seeking funding on Kickstarter called Prison Witch.

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The project is a seventy page graphic novel about a woman who works to control her latent magical abilities in prison with the help of a secret coven of witches.

At the time of writing the project as already hit its funding goal with $8,651 out of $8,500 raised and has 14 days left in the campaign.

Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/248241887/prison-witch-a-graphic-novel-about-magic-love-and?ref=category&ref=discovery

Why I like it

For starters the artwork is fantastic.

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The comic is created by husband and wife team Pat and Amy Shand, with Erica D’Urso providing the artwork.  Her ability to convey tiny little moments of great emotion is awe inspiring and you can tell the book is going to be an emotional roller coaster without any words.

But what really intrigues me about this book is the possibility of combining the subject matter with the setting.

I like to dabble in storytelling from time to time and for me, magic is a way to build a character without having to rely on boring exposition.

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A wizard who controls fire will probably have a different personality than a wizard who can raise the dead.  Magic is an extension of its user and can be used as a sort of visual shorthand for their personality and beliefs.

Prisons are supposed to be a place where people who have done something wrong go to reflect on their deeds and work towards reforming themselves.

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In some countries the intention is to turn criminals into functioning members of society, in others it’s a place where dissidents and critics of the status quo are sent to…change their mind.  Here in America it clearly isn’t the case because if it was, we would be the most introspective and thoughtful nations on the planet.

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Yes, the land of the free does put way to many people in prison.

So what happens when you have a collection of people who have their personalities displayed through spells and witch craft stuck in a place that is designed to change and mold a person into something different?

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I have no idea, but I can’t wait to find out.

Why you should donate

I don’t know if anybody reading this post knows this, but during the 1970’s there was a very specific and popular genre of films specifically about women in prison.

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With a poster like that it’s quite apparent that these movies were somber, thoughtful affairs that talked about the harsh realities of prison life and gave a voice to some of the most vulnerable people in modern society and…

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nope.  The movies were porn with a bit more attention on the plot and slightly higher production values.

Now to be fair, it wasn’t like all the films were total trash.  Johnathen Demme, the man who made Silence of the Lambs,

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got his big break after directing a Roger Corman prison film called Caged Heat.

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The film was actually pretty well reviewed and it did delve into some actual social commentary, but it was still a bunch of pretty women with no hope, no way out, and almost no clothing.

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Rather thankfully, times and tastes change and I say it’s time for the women in prison genre to get a modern update that treats its characters like actual human beings and uses its subject matter to talk about important and socially relevant issues.

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Okay, so there’s that but I bet there isn’t a comic that does…

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dammit.

Okay, so revising the women in prison genre for modern tastes is well trodden ground, but Prison Witch takes the genre and does something different with it.

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By combining the wonder and mystery of magic with the drama and emotional pain of prison life, Prison Witch is set to create a story filled with wonder, mystery, introspection, and one hell of an emotional gut punch.

Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/248241887/prison-witch-a-graphic-novel-about-magic-love-and?ref=category&ref=discovery

 

Crowd funded comics that deserve more attention: Mighty Mascots

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It’s been a while, mostly because of holiday stress and a chaotic work situation, but we’re doing another one of these Kickstarter write ups this week!

Full disclosure: The author of this article does have a personal and professional friendship with the creator of this project and it does include artwork by Frankie B. Washington, the primary artist on a web comic published by this site.  The author has also donated to this project, but no money or favors were exchanged for the writing of this article.

Today we’re going to talk about a Kickstarter project called The Mighty Mascots

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The comic is a superhero story about a collection of food mascots (think the Planter’s Peanut or the Seakist tuna) who are brought to life through a freak 3-D printing accident and are brought together to fight various evil doers.  While the Kickstarter is funding the first creation of the first issue there are plans to turn it into an ongoing series.

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(this drawing was done by Frankie B. Washington)

The project was created by Keith Gleason and at the time of writing the project has $828 of its $1000 goal and has twelve days left to donate.

Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/914859599/the-mighty-mascots-comic-book-issue-1

Why I like it

As I mentioned at the top of the article, I know the creator of this project personally, and I can say without irony or coercion that Mr. Gleason knows his stuff.

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More specifically, Mr. Gleason is very good at writing lighthearted and humorous stories that feature interesting characters and incredibly unique set ups.

This project is no exception.  Where else are you going to find a bear with clawed boxing gloves,

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fighting next to an anthropomorphic glass of water, sugar, and blue food dye?

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The idea of using food brands as superheroes is an awesome idea.  Sure it’s been done before,

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but I will bet a considerable amount of money that this comic will be better than that abomination.

The art team is also worth mentioning.  As I said before, the comic features work from Frankie B. Washington and the principal artist is a man named Ian Waryanto,

Boxer Bear Unleashed!

who has done work for creators at Image and Marvel.

So it’s a cool idea, put together by a great creative team, and most importantly it’s a fun comic in an industry that has pushed fun and joy aside to focus on dark and brooding drama.

And then of course there’s the nostalgia factor which leads me into…

Why you should donate

If you’re a nostalgia fan, specifically a fan of 80’s and 90’s cartoons that were thinly veiled advertisements for action figures and sugary snacks and beverages, you owe it to yourself to back this project.  Let me explain why using two of the biggest nostalgic cash grabs in today’s market: Transformers and Stranger Things.

We all know that nostalgia is big business, which has led to everything from big budget versions of our favorite toy cartoons,

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to coming of age stories that reassure us that keeping our emotional attachment to the toys we grew up with isn’t just okay, it can actually save the world.

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What’s interesting is that while Hollywood is riding a massive cash wave of nostalgic fervor, it’s not Hollywood’s kind of nostalgia.

The fact of the matter is that most of the people in charge of what kind of movies and shows get made are too old to wax nostalgic about the 1980’s and 90’s.  Let me put it to you this way, do you really think Michael Bay grew up on the Transformers cartoon?

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The answer is no, he was born in 1965 and would have been in his twenties by the time the Transformers cartoon rolled around.

To properly leverage nostalgia into a product that can be profitable and enjoyable to its target audience you have to understand why audiences loved the original product in the first place.  This is usually helped by being part of the generation that grew up on said product and being given the time and freedom to put that feeling into film.

I think that it’s the reason why Stranger Things works so well.  The Duffer Brothers have demonstrated that they understand why people who grew up in the 1980’s loved that time period so much and Netflix has been very generous in leaving creators alone to do their work.

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So what would you rather have: an army of ancient Hollywood executives approving movies based off of nostalgic properties that they have little to no interest in, or a small team of creatives who genuinely care about what they’re working on and who want to put their heart and soul into something that they care about?

If your answer was the second option than go ahead, donate to the comic about cereal and beverage mascots fighting crime and taking names.

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Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/914859599/the-mighty-mascots-comic-book-issue-1

Crowdfunded Comics that deserve more attention: Can I Pet Your Werewolf?

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Today we’re going to be talking about a project on Kickstarter that deals with a subject close to my heart.

PUPPIES!!

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Okay, okay, the project isn’t actually about puppies.  I said that so I could post pictures of cute pups.

That being said, today’s Kickstarter project is pretty close.  It’s a project about everyone’s favorite furry monsters…werewolfs.

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Can I Pet Your Werewolf is an anthology series created by Kel McDonald and a various number of artists who want to tell lighthearted stories about friendship, family, and romance between humanity and the furry incarnations of humanity’s animal instincts.

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At the time of writing this project has already reached over $10,000 and needs a total of $30,000 by July 14th, 2017.

Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1495959227/can-i-pet-your-werewolf?ref=category_recommended

Why I like it

In a word…PUPPIES!!

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Sorry…sorry that’s the last time I’ll do this I swear.

In all seriousness, I consider myself to be a dog person.  One of the greatest jobs I ever had was working at a doggy day care where I would babysit large groups of dogs for hours at a time.

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It was such a demanding job, I’m surprised I was able to survive.

That’s why I like this project so much.  For me, werewolves are basically giant, man sized dogs and having an entire book about the big fluffy pups?

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I am okay with this.

Another reason why I like this project so much are the artists that are involved with the project.  Having the right style of art in your comic is just as important as having the right words for your story.  It can set tone, mood, and the entire emotional layout of what you want to say.

Want proof?

This is how werewolves are normally portrayed,

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and this is how some of the artists from Can I Pet Your Werewolf portray them.

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There’s a pretty big difference in tone.

Now, you may be reading this and thinking that this may not be your cup of tea.  You may be thinking that this anthology is doing to werewolves what another, inexplicably popular book and movie series did to vampires (and werewolves), and in a way I kind of agree with you.  However…

Why you should donate

I’m not going to go into a long tirade about how modern literature and Hollywood are destroying classic monsters that used to be intimidating,

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But you have to admit that the landscape of modern horror is…changing.

Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a bad thing.  Horror movies are supposed to touch on modern day fears and terrors.  The classic horror monsters preyed on things like our fear of uncontrollable lust,

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the destruction of the barrier between life and death,

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and werewolves played on our fears of the bestial nature of man and uncontrollable rage.

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Now, these movies are classics for a reason but the simple fact of the matter is that times and tastes change.  As a result, horror movies have had to change and find different fears to exploit.  Things like modern day racism,

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the fear of being a single parent raising a child,

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or the fear of catching an STD,

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are the new monsters and worries that we have to afraid of.  As a result, the monsters of the past have passed from the realm of terrifying creatures of folklore to accepted members of the popular culture cannon and creatures that are accepted rather than feared.

We don’t fear creatures like vampires and werewolves anymore, we want to be them.

Hollywood noticed this and has answered the call,
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With varying degrees of success and acceptability.

The funny thing is that you can’t really blame Hollywood for taking the classics and turning them into something that ranges from decent to terrible and bland.  Movies are expensive and you aren’t going to spend millions of dollars on anything and not take every step you can to mitigate risk.  That’s why you see movies that have been workshopped, test grouped, and market tested to death until the final boring, lifeless, and joyless product is forced on audiences everywhere.

Can I Pet Your Werewolf takes the direction that the classic monsters are going and distills it into the focused artistic vision of a few creators, and that’s what makes it special.

What I’m trying to say to you is this.

Would you rather have this as our modern werewolf?

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or this?

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I’ll take the second option thank you.

Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1495959227/can-i-pet-your-werewolf?ref=category_recommended

Crowdfunded Comics that deserve more attention: Enough Space for Everybody

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Boy, it’s been waaay to long since I’ve done one of these.

For anyone who might not know, I run a blog series where I talk about cool crowdfunded comic books I like and try to help them out for free.  Unfortunately, silly things like work and sleep tend to get in the way so I don’t get to do this as often as I like.

However, today I was feeling especially awake and I decided to browse the projects on Kickstarter and I found this!

The project is a science fiction comic book anthology with a really intriguing twist: it’s a collection of sci fi stories without any military or imperialism themes, tones, or stories.

The project is headed by J.N Monk and needs to raise $30,000 to pay for artists, editing, printing, and shipping.

Kickstarter link:  https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1638576966/enough-space-for-everyone-else-an-anthology?ref=home_featured

Why I like it

I’ll be honest, when I first read the project description I was a tad confused.

You see, I am a guy who likes comic books and science fiction.  This means that, for most of my life, this is the kind of sci fi I’ve been raised on:

As you can see it’s big, brash, loud, and awesome, but “Enough Space for Everyone” is trying to do science fiction without all the guns, fighting, and violence and that intrigues me.

For me, and I would assume almost everyone else who likes science fiction, the genre is at its best when it creates timeless stories that speak to some particular part of the human condition

By setting stories in the distant future authors allow their stories to become timeless.  After all, we won’t have to worry about a sci fi story being dated because we’ll be long dead by the year 10191

and the wondrous technology that sci fi is known for allows its creator to physically show the reader everything from the meaning of humanity,

To the dangers of our hubris.

The reason why I think conflict is so prevalent in science fiction is because it makes a story easy to understand.

War and violence are one of the few constants in human history and it is something that everyone understands at some level.

Sci fi often uses conflict to set up two opposing sides and use each side to explain the point he/she is trying to make.  One side is good, the other is bad, here’s why, and this is what happens when one side wins.

But if science fiction is a way to explore the human condition, why do we have to always limit ourselves to conflict?  Aren’t there other emotions and ideas that humans have been coping with for thousands of years?  Why can’t science fiction tell those kinds of stories?

The creators of “Enough Space for Everyone” want to write sci fi stories like that and claim that “there is enough space for friendship, for art competitions, for understanding, for magical nights at the theater, for creativity, for vacations, for new beginnings.”

I like this project because I have spent a LOT of time with violent military sci fi and I want to see what stories from other perspectives look like.

Why you should donate

Another interesting thing about science fiction is that a lot of its art tends to rely on a very specific, very detail oriented, very realistic style.

But “Enough Space for Everyone Else” takes a very different approach, preferring to promote artwork that is much less realistic and almost childlike.

I’m not advocating one style of art over another, I’m simply saying that this comic anthology is different from what a lot of people normally associate with science fiction and that’s a good thing.

Which brings me to the biggest reason why I think more people should support this project: it’s different from so many other stories out there.

Whether you like it or not, the past forty years of science fiction has been dominated by two pop culture behemoths,

Almost every work of mainstream science fiction has tried to emulate these two franchises in theme, tone, and visual aesthetic from the idea of a giant galactic war that threatens to tear entire galaxies apart,

to re purposed colonization and exploration stories that used to be about the Wild West but now take place in outer space.

Personally, I think it’s time that science fiction tries to break away from these two narratives and tries something new.  It’s time for a change and “Enough Space for Everyone Else” is a great start.

So if you’re interested in promoting and encouraging science fiction that seeks to bring a new diversity of ideas and stories back to a genre that we all know and love, consider donating to this campaign.

Kickstarter link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1638576966/enough-space-for-everyone-else-an-anthology?ref=home_featured