Unknown God Tour Interview: Dallas Comic Con

Hey gang, just got wind of the YouTube posting of an interview I did for the website TheSpectralRealm.com at the 2010 Dallas Comic Con.

*Also, editor Eric Shirey just posted his review of the entire Eye Witness series.

The interview did by Eric ran in two parts (since I had to stop the interview in the middle to answer questions at my table). Enjoy!

Part One:



Part Two:

Eye Witness Graphic Novels Come to iPhones

10/29/09

I'm very excited to announce that Eye Witness has now entered into a whole new method of distribution with its release in the Comixology iphone application.



To begin with, Comixology is the first place outside of our own website where comic and graphic novel fans can purchase the revised and remastered edition of Eye Witness: A Fictional Tale of Absolute Truth. This first graphic novel in the Eye Witness tetraology, is broken up into three parts for this app. Each part costs only 99 cents, so it's quite a bargain! The next chapter in the Eye Witness saga, (Acts of the Spirit) will be offered in a similar serialized format soon.


To purchase the Comixology app. for your iphone, visit the iphone app store. Once you have the Comixology app in place on your phone, you can search by Title, publisher (Head Press Publishing) or Genre (Christian), to purchase Eye Witness...or just go to the Eye Witness page on the Comixology website.

ABOUT COMIXOLOGY

Since 2007, through it's comiXology brand, Iconology, Inc. has been working to expose more people to the world of comics, through comiXology.com and related applications. We are uniquely situated to connect all parts of the comic book industry: consumers, distributors, publishers and creators. ComiXology.com, comic book retailer tools, iPhone and Blackberry apps and digital comics are all connected through the comiXology platform.




Here's a quick tour of the Comixology application and how it will revolutionize the way you read comics and graphic novels:


R. J. Luedke

http://www.headpress.info/

Dallas Comic Con appearance

Hey gang, though I've basically sequestered myself away in my studio-cave this summer to complete illustrations on Eye Witness: Unknown God, I've decided to poke my head out into the light of day (at least for two days) and attend this month's Dallas Comic Con...since it's right here in my own back yard.

Here's the scoop:

Saturday August 15th (11a to 6p) and Sunday August 16th (12noon to 4p)

Richardson Civic Center

411 W. Arapaho Rd.

Richardson, TX

If you live in the DFW area stop by and say hi. You'll get a chance to not only get copies of all three of the Eye Witness graphic novels, but also a FREE signed poster and if you're so inclined...and opportunity to watch me ink pages from Unknown God.

Also there is quite a nice lineup of Comic (including: Paul Smith, Bill Sienkiewicz, Brandon Patterson, James O'Barr ) and TV/Movie guests (Including: Yancy Butler, Dean Stockwell, Rene Auberjonois) at this show, so bring the whole family!

See 'ya all there!

R.J. Luedke

Advance Artwork for Eye Witness Book 4

Here's a taste of some of the advance artwork from the Eye Witness: Unknown God...the fourth and final chapter in the graphic novel series.

As I write this I am in the early stages of the illustration for the book, which will be somewhere in the area of 125 pages and is tentatively planned for a summer 2010 release.

The final piece is the color guide for what will eventually be the fully painted cover, (done by painter, David Rodriguez).

R. J. Luedke

http://www.headpress.info/

Free Graphic Novels on FREE COMIC BOOK DAY

Saturday May 2nd, is FREE COMIC BOOK DAY nationally...where comic shops, publishers and creators come together to give away comics at stores around the country. This is all done in an effort to help more young readers discover the joys of reading in general and reading comics in particular.


Since I'm already scheduled to make an appearance the ComicPalooza Comic Festival in Houston on May 2nd and 3rd, I'm going to contribute to the spirit of the day, by giving out FREE signed copies of Eye Witness (Book 1): A Fictional Tale of Absolute Truth.

This is only going to be offered on Saturday and only while my supplies last (since I am limited by what I can haul to this event). So if you plan on attending, come find me first!

In additional I'll also have some FREE 2 x 3' Eye Witness promotional posters to give out to anyone who stops by my table the entire weekend.

RJ Luedke
http://www.headpress.info/

Are Christians Dumbing Down?

Hey gang....I just ran across a blog headline which grabbed my attention and I wanted to share and comment on it...since the site does not accept comments on it's posts.

Click sliceoflaodicea to read the original posting.

Addressing the part that got my attention (being someone who's championed the development of the spiritual based graphic novel), here's a taste...

Fast forward to 2009 and the rotting corpse of Western Christianity. This buffoonery is what now fills churches today—the entire idiotic scene inspired by a children’s cartoon of singing and dancing vegetables (which I assume refers to Veggie Tales). Infantalism rules, literacy is dead, and God-given intellects are dead, suffocated under years of video game playing, movie and television watching. Hard to believe that Christians used to produce books like “Bondage of the Will”, and translations of the Scriptures from the original languages. Today, pastors and church laity are reading “graphic novel” (comic book) versions of the Bible because they struggle to grasp anything beyond a one syllable word. Here are some of evangelicalism’s finest in action. Watch and weep.

Now, if you didn't visit the original posting, this commentary is mainly directed at a posted video showing a Christian congregation dancing, singing and worshiping in a way the author finds distastful and degrading. But for the purposes of my comment, I'm dealing with his/her misguided generalization about literature created for young people and/or the graphic novel.

This author seeks to make a point about the breakdown of sophisticated analitical thought and writing within the Western Christian culture by slamming things obviously not created to answer such demands by believers.

Raise your hand, if you think Veggie Tales was created to foster advance discourse on the tenants of Christianity among religious scholars! A Ridiculous question? Of course it is, but it's to make a point. Products like Veggie Tales and most literature (re: picture books) and video's aimed at children are not meant to teach advanced religious theory or complicated Christian Dogma, rather plant seeds of interest among children using forms and styles of entertainment that is prevelant among "our culture". Likewise with most Graphic Novels or Christian based comic books. DISCLAIMER: Before I go forward I will admit for the record, that in my Eye Witness series, I do attempt to dig a bit deeper and pair the Gospel as presented by the Biblical narrative with historical and cultureal data about the first century we now known, in an attempt to take the reader to the next level of interest...but will grant that is not the case with most product designed in this format of literature.

But I reject this author's base assumption that pastors and church laity are reading Graphic Novel adaptations of the Bible (and Christian based fiction) because they struggle to grasp the intrecacies of the Bible and anything beyond "one-syllable words."

First of all, I have yet to come across a publisher that is creating a graphic novel adaptation of the Bible, that is meant to replace the original prose form...that's not to say someone isn't working on one now and it will be a monumental undertaking...but for most of us following this course, I think it's a fair assumption to say that this form is meant to attract readers to the Bible narrative that wouldn't be reading it otherwise, or in other forms. With Eye Witness, I'm attempting to reach the skeptic or person that's uninterested in attending church or reading the Bible, but loves reading in the format of comic books, graphic novels and manga (which translates to comic books in Japan...but in general terms has come to represent the entire output of far eastern created works of that style). My goal is to attract that person through my use of dramatic graphic design and a fictional intermingling with the Biblical narrative to make the story come alive with a contemporary feel. The endgame is to get the attention of someone who wouldn't think twice about reading these stories otherwise and God Willing, to create a spark of interest that might lead them to their local church, teen ministry or even picking up the source material.

Once again, I'll make the assmumption that many of the titles being published today in this format, share a similar goal. Now is that a bad or good thing for "the Church Body"...especially when you consider the docuemented drop off that occurs among young people when they get to high school age? But could there be their churches out there using graphic novel adaptations in their sermons? If there are, I'd wager a guess they are a seeker church that is catering to a high school to college age attendee...and this is the way to get there attention.

Secondly to generalize that those who read Graphic Novels cannot grasp anything beyond a one-syllable word, is this author basically showing their ignorance about the whole format. As anyone who's actually familiar with what's been produced in graphic novel or comic book form over the last 30 years can attest to, charagorizing the format as being simplicist or for those who struggle to read, is a blatent misnomer. Trust me, if you can grasp the involved prose of a Neil Gaiman (Sandman) or Alan Moore (Watchmen)....much of the Biblical narrative would prove to be a snap! Sure there are comics like those produced by Archie Comics and DC's animated line, that are rather simplistic, but than again they are targeting a 10 and under audience.

So what do we make of this uninformed rant? Not knowing the author, my guess would be they have a serious bone to pick with the western Christian Church and like a magician they seek to "pull things out of the proverbial hat" that will support their generalization that it has basically devolved into a chanting, dancing bunch of fools who have no foundation in advance learning or culture. Take a peek inside any Christian bookstore (or religious section of your local Borders) and you'll see their is an abundance of books being produced by contemporary authors every month, who seek to challenge the intellect as well as rouse the passion of the highly literate Christian reader.

Secondly, it's obvious the author has difficulty with the concept of OUTREACH and how it can be used effectively in our comminities. The Apostle Paul called upon us to discover our spirutal gifts and use them to advance the word among the people of the world. By his very actions, Paul demonstrated how we, as followers of Christ, we must be able to converse with "the world" in styles which they use...To the Jews, he was a jew, to the Greeks he became a Greek!

Using something like Veggie Tales, or Christian rock music, or the graphic novel, are all ways to speak to different segments of our culture (and/or age groups) that communicate in a way that they relate to and are attracted to. It surely doesn't mean that our message is deluted...but that it's just in a different language, metaphorically speaking! It's the same premise behind why we have four different Gospels, each written in a way to commuincate with a different aspect of the first century world.

R.J. Luedke
Award Winning Author/Illustrator
http://www.headpress.info/about.html

Explaining the Graphic Novel

As someone who is out there in the media and bookstore trenches, attempting to explain to people who didn't grow up reading graphic novels (or comics, or manga) what exactly they are, I think I've developed an explanation that I think helps make better sense of the whole conversation and if you're a fan of the format...could help to better explain it to someone who may not yet be familiar with it.

For many years now, literary critics, book reviewers and pseudo-intellectual bloggers have been pondering the graphic novel and where it fits into...or even if it fits into...serious discussion about literature.

Here's a current example of this kind of discussion, (by journalist Seth Sommerfeld for the online Gonzaga Bulletin), which is typically created for those who might new to the medium, by those who are vaguely familiar with it. Usually these kind of Graphic Novel 101 pieces, involves invoking one or more of the works that everyone knows since they have been successfully developed into other mediums, (Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, the upcoming Watchmen, 300, Sin City etc...). Within this competent piece, Sommerfeld restates the stock answer to the question, what is a graphic novel? "A graphic novel is a book-length comic. Everything one would expect in a traditional novel is present, they just happen to add illustrations to correspond with the story."

While much of that is indeed true, (and for the purposes of discloser...I've used a version of this explanation myself in interviews), I've grown to feel that much of that description is not only too simplistic, but just plain out and out misguided. First of all, what he's explaining here, is more akin to an illustrated novel, which adds illustrations every few pages or chapters, that "correspond with the story," and help flesh out the look of the characters for the reader. With a graphic novel, the illustrations don't just add to the story, they are integral to it. Ask anyone who's spent significant time reading or purchasing graphic novels (or comics) and more often then not, their buying decisions are based upon the artist (or art team), rather than the writer. There are exceptions of course, (Neil Gaimen, Alan Moore, Frank Miller to name a few), but typically if the art does not appeal to the reader he might as well be reading a novel (no pun intended)!

You see, when you break it down, a graphic novel is much closer in structure to the format of a screen play, than it is a novel. While you may find some GN authors who write their "scripts" similar to a novel outline, you find a greater majority create a document that looks and reads very much like a screenplay. This is because the creation of a graphic novel parallels the developmental course of a screenplay, more so than a novel.

With a novel you have the writer and then the editor (or team of editors) who help craft the story into a marketable form. But as far as the foundation of the story goes, (the creation of the characters, their descriptions, the settings, the mood), unless there is a ghost writer involved, the writer is the sole person responsible for the creation and vision of the work and he gets the lion share of the credit (not to mention the royalties).

With a graphic novel, you still start with the writer (and also most likely an editor) to craft the story into a usable form. But from that point, the progress of the work will veer into the direction of what happens with a screenplay. With a GN script, the writer is responsible for pointing out what is taking place not only in each scene, but on each page of the scene and depending how they work, sometimes in each individual frame within that page.* With some exceptions when a graphic novel script is completed, it then goes to an artist (some times one person, sometimes a team of people) who take the script and break it down into layouts based upon the descriptions in the script; then pencil illustrations are done; then fully inked renderings are created from these illustrations; and then (in some cases) fully colored-painted artwork. In that case the writer of the script is closer in definition to the writer of a screenplay, since this is the basis on which to total presentation is built. The penciler, inker and colorist (sometimes all the same person) are akin to the cinematographer, director of photography, casting director and director...in that what the writer has indicated in the script, is now translated through their eyes onto the page. The process then comes full circle as the words are then added to the artwork, to create a whole that is now much greater then the sum of it's parts.

So unlike most novels, graphic novels are the result of the vision of more than one person (unless of course you work like me with Eyewitness...actively involved on almost every level). And like movies the final appearance of a graphic novel, can drastically deviate from the original story as envisioned by the writer in his script...because after all, we all visualize a bit differently. How many times have you read a good novel and had a real solid visual image of what a character looked like (based upon the writer's description) only to have him/her look dramatically different on film. That's similar to the impact that a casting director has on a screenplay and/or your pencil artist has on a graphic novel.

Now, when you have one person who is not only the writer, but also the artist and editor of a GN project, you have what could be related to in the world of cinema, as an indy film...one that is driven by the creative vision of one man who not only writes the screenplay, but is also director and cinematographer...rather than an ensemble cast of participants.

So the next time you hear someone trying to talk down graphic novels, because as a literary form, they do not adhere to the basic tenets and accepted practices of a prose novel, politely correct them, that graphic novels are more closely related to movies than they are novels, (which is why they are so easily adapted to that format, since a lot of the work of the director, cinematographer and director of photography has already been done), and so should be judged accordingly! You'll not only most likely "smack down" a literary snob, but you'll sound darned prolific doing it!

Robert James Luedke
Author and Illustrator
http://www.headpress.info/


*There are basically two different formats most GN writers work in...the Marvel Style and Full Script. Peter David, in his seminal work, Writing for Comics, explains it this way, "In the Marvel Style, (Made popular by industry icon, Stan Lee), the story is presented in a general manner , like a short story written in present tense. It includes some, but not necessarily all, dialog and gives the artist much latitude in how he visually paces the story. Once the artwork is done, the writer then scripts the story, adding dialogue, captions and sound effects. When you write in full script, you're telling the artist everything that's going to be on the page...how you want it framed, at what angle, what's in the background, what's the character's expressions, where are their hands...by their side or in their pocket, what's the weather like, etc..."

Clark Kent meets Peter Parker?

Now's this is what you call a GRABBER of a headline, from one of the L.A. Times fanboy blogs.....at least it got my attention!

SUPERMAN MEETS SPIDER-MAN!?

(by: Geoff Boucher)

Ah, one of the great moments of my childhood was in 1976 when all the rules of physics seemed to stop and the impossible happened: Superman met Spider-Man. What happened? Well, they started punching each other, of course.

The book had GREAT cover drawn by Ross Andru (based on a Carmine Infantino layout and tightened by Dick Giordano inks) and a fun story by Gerry Conway with Lex Luthor and Dr. Octopus as the bad guys. It was sold as one of those great oversized tabloid editions.

I was thinking of that landmark DC-Marvel crossover this morning when I saw footage of Brandon Routh, the most recent Man of Steel on the silver screen, meeting the considerably shorter Tobey Maguire, who was pitch-perfect as Peter Parker in Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" films. If Warner Bros. brings Routh back as the last son of Krypton (that's no done deal, of course) perhaps we'll see a summer showdown between the two signature heroes of the top comic-book companies. That would be cool.

The two actors met at a charity event, here's the lowdown from MTV: "They were on hand at Abram Simon Elementary to perform some community service as part of the president-elect’s call to community action on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. But the momentous meeting was the kind that comic geeks salivate over. Maguire was hard at work with volunteers in a classroom at the school trying to figure out how to build the IKEA-style shelving units, when Routh walked by just behind him, but the superheroes-in-street-clothes barely acknowledged each other as they pitched in while wearing their civvies ... Though Maguire was kept busy screwing panels of the shelves together, a short time later, as Routh pulled books from boxes to stack them in the newly built cubbies, he happened across a — no joke — Spider-Man book, and walked it over to his super-brethren. 'I think this is yours,' he said, handing Maguire the book. The web-slinger laughed, and the actors shook hands and chatted for a few moments before Routh walked back across the room to shelve 'I Can Read: Spider-Man 3, Meet the Heroes and the Villains.' 'I think I can probably beat them all up,' Routh said. 'Just kidding.'" [MTV]

EYE WITNESS TAKE NAT'L BOOK AWARD

Dallas, TX – USABookNews.com, the premiere online magazine and review website for mainstream and independent publishing houses, announced the winners and finalists of THE 2008 NATIONAL “BEST BOOKS” AWARDS, (NBBA) on October 20, 2008. Robert James Luedke’s Christian based book, Eye Witness: Rise of the Apostle, (Head Press Publishing, 2008: http://www.headpress.info/eyewitness3.html), was honored as the Winner of this award in the category of Comics: Graphic Novels.

Luedke created the Eye Witness series, as a way to share the spiritual, historical and dramatic nature of the Bible, in a way that is both attractive and entertaining...especially to teen and young adult readers, who may not attend church or read the Bible, but are avid readers of comics, manga and graphic novels. His unique combination of a Biblical adaptation with a modern day action-thriller has proven successful not only in comic outlets, but also with mainstream and Christian booksellers.

This is the third major book award that Luedke’s Eye Witness series has garnered. In 2007 the second book in the Tetralogy, Eye Witness: Acts of the Spirit, (http://www.headpress.info/eyewitness2.html) was a winner at the Hollywood Book Festival in the category of comics/graphic novels (http://www.hollywoodbookfestival.com/past.htm) and a silver medalist at The Independent Publisher Awards in the category of Dramatic Graphic Novels (http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=1157)...not to mention being chosen as a finalist for the FOREWORD MAGAZINE book of the year awards.

Jeff Keen, President and CEO of USABookNews.com, said this year’s contest, now in its fifth year, yielded an unprecedented number of entries, which were then narrowed down to over 500 winners and finalists in over 140 categories. A complete list of the winners and finalists are available online at http://www.usabooknews.com/. Winners and finalists traversed the publishing landscape, from large publishing houses: Simon & Schuster, Tarcher/Penguin, HarperCollins, Hyperion, St. Martin’s Press, McGraw-Hill, John Wiley & Sons…to hundreds of independent publishers, including Head Press Publishing.

Head Press Publishing was established in 1995 and is dedicated to outreaching teen to young adult readers through creating works in the format of comic books and graphic novels, which are not only entertaining, but also feature a spiritual foundation. For further information, visit: http://www.headpress.info/

November Book Signing Events

I just wanted to let everyone know about my upcoming book signing events...which should be the last of my promotional appearances for Eye Witness (Book Three): Rise of the Apostle. After this, it's back to the studio to being work on Eye Witness (Book Four): The Unknown God.

November 1st and 2nd, I'll be in Austin, TX....for the Texas Book Festival. The event, which is in it's 13th year, has generated over $2 million dollars for libraries in Texas! The event features authors from all genres not only signing, but also doing readings from their latest releases. For more information, visit: http://www.texasbookfestival.org/

Look for me in the exhibitors area, booth 118, just off the intersection of the Capital Driveway and Colorado Street.

A week later, on Nov. 7-9th, I'll be in Arlington, TX...for Wizard World Texas. This is the largest pop-culture convention in Texas and will feature people involved in the world of: Movies, TV, comics, graphic novels, movies, gaming, video gaming and collectibles. For more information, visit: http://www.wizardworld.com/home-tx.html Look for me in the Artist's Alley area.

See ya' all there!

bob-
http://www.headpress.info/

Texas Release Party Benefiting Heroes 4 Heroes

Weds. August 13th is the national release date for the third book in the Eye Witness series...Rise of the Apostle (http://www.headpress.info/).

To celebrate, we are holding a Texas Release Party on Satuday Aug. 16th at Titan Comics of Dallas...where you can get your copy signed by me, colorist Mike Lagocki and cover-designer David Rodrigues (both of: http://www.artlovemagic.com/). And to make things even more exciting, for every copy of Rise of the Apostle, (or any of he Eye Witness books purchased) I'll donate a copy to the Dallas based Charity, Heroes 4 Heroes, (see: http://www.heroes4heroes.org/). They have worked diligently over the past few years to collect and ship all sorts of entertainment media to our troops in the middle east...and received cudos for their efforts all the way up to commanding Gen. Patraeus!

We are encouraging everyone who joins us, to bring an item to donate. So if you have: Comics, Graphic novels, books, recent magazines, Music CD's, DVD's, MP3, players, video games or gaming systems...laying around your house collecting dust, bring in on down and help entertain our men and women serving overseas!

To prime the pump a bit more, for everyone who brings something to donate, you'll recieve a FREE exclusive, autographed Rise of the Apostle poster...which is only available at my personal appearances!

And if that wasn't enough, Dallas' own Space Gun Studios (www.myspace.com/space_gun) will be on hand to premier their new anthology, Synesthestic.

What: Rise of the Apostle...Texas Release Party
Where: Titan Comics, 3701 W. NW Hwy, Dallas (call: 214-350-4420 for directions)
When: Sat. Aug. 16th, 12noon to 3pm

Hope you can join us!~ Contact us with any questions.

Bob-
http://www.headpress.info/

Comic Con 2008 Report

As a creator and publisher of Christian based graphic novels, I view the world of pop culture and the conventions which worship it's icons as my great mission field. And for those of you unfamilar with this world, Comic Con International, held each year since the mid-'70's in San Diego, is the largest of these events in North American. This last year it drew over 125,000 people over it's 4.5 day run.


Comic Con '08 has come and gone....The good? We had our best year EVER at CCI by the number of Eye Witness books we sold and gave out. Since we were doing the world premier of Eye Witness book three: Rise of the Apostle, I assumed we'd be selling mostly copies of it, (since we had had books 1 and 2 there for the last three years), but to my surprise we sold mostly sets of all 3. That is a very true indication that we were attracting new fans to our series, (and Chrisitan works in general), that might not been open to it in years past....as I kept hearing the question, "have you guys been hear before?" So these were people who may have gone by our table in years past without giving my books a second thought. woo--hoo! Also good news was, that I met a group of young people that had traveled from Colorado to come to Comic Con and hand out tracks. This was a mission trip for them!

The Bad? It seems like there was less of a presence by Christian creators, (by that I mean indy, small or self publishers...always plenty of closet-christian creators). Of course the Christian Comic Arts Society (CCAS: http://www.christiancomicarts.com/) was there, like always, but I was disappointed to see that Michael Davis and the Guardian Line of Christian comics was a no-show (http://www.theguardianline.com/)! And I know that, since they were suppose to have a booth right across from me. But other than that, I was unware of any other Christian or spiritual based books being exhibited.

But during the annual Sunday Chapel service I put out a call for all those in attendence, (Since I did the sermon), to dig deep over the next year...discover your spritual gifts...and determine how you can use them in God's service. For those in attendence gifted artistically, that could mean more comics, graphic novels, (for the exhibit hall), original art or sculpture(for the art show), indy films (for the film festival), or costumes (just to walk the convention in, or for the masquerade ball). For those gifted for ministry, it could mean walking the room and handing out comic style tracks or maybe having a table for those in need of help.

It will be interesting to see how that call in answered over the next 12 months.


bob luedke

-http://www.headpress.info/

RIP Michael Turner

I was blown away this morning by hearing of the passing of one of the comic field's truly nice guys and huge artistic talents....Michael Turner.

After doing some digging I found out the some of the details:
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Artist Michael Turner has died after a long battle with cancer. He was 37. Aspen Comics’ Vince Hernandez told CBR News Saturday morning that Turner passed away Friday night at 10:42 Pacific Time at Santa Monica Hospital in California.

The news spread quickly at Wizard World Chicago, during what would have otherwise been a riotous night at the hotel bar, the mood suddenly turned somber with remembrances of Turner from friends and acquaintances. A minute of silence will be observed during Wizard World Chicago Saturday afternoon.

Turner is an artist best known for his work on books like “Witchblade,” where he got his start in comics, moving on to titles such as “Black Panther,” “Superman/Batman” and his very own creator owned series “Fathom” and “Soulfire” through his publishing company Aspen Comics. A prolific artist, he’s done work for both DC Comics and Marvel Comics, and has provided covers to some of the best-known comics published in the last ten years, including Brad Meltzer’s “Identity Crisis.”

In 2000, Turner was diagnosed with cancer -- chondrosarcoma in the right pelvis, which resulted in his loosing his hip, 40% of his pelvis and three pounds of bone. What followed was 9 months of radiation. The cancer has gone into remission and returned multiple times since he was first diagnosed.

For anyone who’s met Turner, they’re likely to tell you what a genuinely nice guy he was and how his spirit for life was higher than anyone else they had ever met. Oddly, my path crossed with Turner’s numerous times. We both live in Los Angeles, and on at least five different occasions we would run into each other at clubs or special events around the city. He seemed like the kind of guy who was up for anything and had a great sense of adventure, especially as evidenced by his love and excellence at water-skiing and martial arts.

Turner’s fight with cancer was truly inspirational. He fought it with dignity and grace.
More details concerning Turner’s passing are forthcoming.

Those wishing to send their condolences to Michael Turner's family are encouraged to send them to:
Aspen MLT, Inc.
C/O Michael Turner
5855 Green Valley Circle, Suite 111
Culver City, CA, 90230

Aspen Comics also encourages anyone wishing to make a charitable donation in Turner’s name can do so to his requested charities, The American Cancer Society or The Make-A-Wish Foundation
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The entire article can be viewed at: Comic Book Resources (CBR)....http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=16988
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On a personal note, I first met Michael at a convention in Tulsa back in the mid-90's, when I was promoting my Template series...and we we kicked butt in a game of hotel-bar-trivia one night! Michael was just beginnings to shake up the industry with his work on Witchblade at that time.

Over the years I saw him almost annually at most major events around Texas, (and of course San Diego) and he always seemed to be very supportive of the indy and small press creators who would approach him for insight, advice or comments on their artwork and never took a "holier-than-thou" attitude because of his success.

His kindness and compassionate nature, not to mention his incredible artistic talent, will sorely be missed.

R.J. Luedke
www.HeadPress.info

Hollywood Festival Honors Acts of the Spirit

(Hollywood, CA/ August 2nd, 2007): The second book our my graphic novel series, Eye Witness: Acts of the Spirit, took home the top honors in the category of Comics at this year's Hollywood Book Festival, which was held on Saturday July 28th, (see: http://www.hollywoodbookfestival.com/ ).

The purpose of the festival and the awards, is to honor books that deserve greater recognition from the film, television, game and multimedia communities. Criteria used in selecting winners are the story-telling ability of the writer and the potential of the work to be translated into other forms of media.

This is the second major book award for Acts of the Spirit. In June, the book was awarded a Silver medal in the Independent Publisher Awards, (which were announced at this years BEA Convention in New York; see: http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=1157 ), in the category of Dramatic Graphic Novels, as well as being named as a finalist for the FOREWORD magazine Book of the Year Awards.

This was a very surprising and ironic event for me after returning from a week at the Comic Con International. After listening to enthusiastic fans of the series ask me all weekend about whether I had began development of the books in other media...especially an animated version... then to come back to Texas and see that the Hollywood Festival's judging panel also believed the book deserved further recognition by other media, really blew me away. Although I created the series as a way to convey the story of the birth of the Christian Faith, in an entertaining and attractive way to lovers of comic books and graphic novels, I am not opposed to seeing it adapted into other media, as long as those wishing to do so, do not stray from the original core goal of the project.

We are currently in production on Eye Witness (Book Three): Destiny Road...which is slated for a later summer 2008, release date. We just came to terms with a "world class talent" cover artist for book three, that will blow everyone away! Stay tuned for more details!

For more information about Eye Witness series, come visit our main website: http://www.headpress.info/

Head Press Publishing Making Waves at CCI '07

Beside selling copies of the graphic novel series, Eye Witness (books 1 & 2: http://www.headpress.info/ ), Head Press Publishing will be offering a convention exclusive at this year's Comic-Con International 2007, in San Diego from July 25th-29th, (to purchase advance tickets go to: http://www.comic-con.org/ ).

But this years booth promises to be even more special than in year's past, because HPP will also be the home for a handful of carefully selected RED-HOT Christian themed entertainment items, that will available nowhere else at the convention!

Here's a quick list of what you'll find this year at our table in the Small Press Pavillion (Table P8 Aisle 1900):

-The EXCLUSIVE COMIC-CON ashcan edition of, EYE WITNESS: DESTINY ROAD. This is an advance sneek peek at the third and final book in, Robert James Luedke's, Award-Winning Eye Witness Christian graphic novel series. There will be a limited edition of 100 signed and numbered copies available on a first come first serve basis....so visit us as early in the con as you can before they are gone. The finished 160+ page graphic novel will be ready in time (hopefully) for CCI '08.

-NEVER CEASE, a novel by Sue Dent (http://www.shoutlife.com/profile_view.cfm?uid=2236 ). A vampire and a werewolf....can the two who were wronged make it right by their faith? Find out in this highly praised horror novel with a Christian foundation. Never Cease, was on the peliminary ballot for the Bram Stoker awards, (http://www.horror.org/stokers.htm ), in the catagory of Superior Achievement in a First Novel & was named Book Club Choice of the Month (in April '07) by the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW: http://www.americanchristianfictionwriters.com/).

-T-Shirt creations by Life Co Brands (http://lifecobrand.com/shirts.php) ...featuring their NO EVIL & I KILLED JESUS designs.

-The wonderfully irreverant and cutting edge anthology magazine, MEGAZEEN (http://www.megazeenonline.com/ ), which features some of the most talented creators working in the genre of Christian comics today.

-and....For the gamers out there we will feature the PRINCIPALITY collectable card game by EPOS, (see: http://www.epos-ent.com/Principality/). We will have both master decks, (which has everything you need for a 2 player game) and also the A CHOIR OF ANGELS EXPANSION PACKS.

So don't miss out on stopping by and taking a look at all these wonderful products.

Like last year Head Press Publishing be located right next to the Christian Comic Arts Society (CCAS: http://www.christiancomicarts.com/ ), so our little corner of the Small Press Pavillion will be guarenteed to be the center of the Comic-Con universe for Christian oriented products and creators! And speaking of the CCAS, they will be sponsoring a SPIRITUAL THEMES IN COMICS PANEL, (on Sat. 7/28, from 10:30-11:30am and the CCAS PANEL & CHAPEL SERVICE (Sun, 7/29, 10:30-11:30a).

And Finally:

Author and Artist of the Eye Witness series, Robert James Luedke, (http://www.headpress.info/about_luedke.html ), will be on hand for the entire convention, signing autographs, working on pages from Destiny Road, drawing sketches and in general talking to fans about: creating comics, writing, inking, composition and using graphic arts in ministry....so make sure to stop by and say hi.