2000AD Creators Are Pagans!
Well, at least they are according to the final line on page 330 of the May Previews listing for 2000AD Extreme Edition #5.

2000AD EXTREME EDITION #5
...and comes with a zarjaz new cover by one of Tharg's hottest druids!

Yes I know some poor hassled proof reader at Diamond probably just did an automatic word replace from droids to druids, but it still made me chuckle.

Post-Bristol Comics Festival 2004
Two hour drive there, two hour drive back. And I'm fookin' knackered!

I only went there to formally meet PJ to chat about 'Nanas & Custard and Broken Claw. Caught up with him at the Black Library stand and we swiftly headed off for the Reckless Engineer (the official Comics Fest pub). It was good to finally meet PJ and I'm reworking the Broken Claw pitch script with his desires in mind - i.e., more goofiness! It was a pleasure to meet 2000AD/Warhammer writer Si Spurrier as well - an affable chap.

Would have liked to have caught up with Christian Dunn and Matt Smith, but I was only there for a couple of hours. There's always the Winter festival or Dreddcon I suppose...

Pre-Bristol Comics Festival 2004
Irk! Only a couple of days until the Bristol Comics Fest. Decided that I'm only going up for the one day this time. Drive up Saturday morning with Liz, leave her to go shopping in Bristol town, pop into the show for a few hours, and drive back that night.

Last year Liz and I drove up on the Friday, booked into a decent hotel, and got lashed up that night with friends who live in Bristol at a stonking 'ye olde' pub. Had a bit of a hangover on the Saturday at the show. Spent the hour or so I was there picking up some cheap-as-chips 70s Marvel horror comics, tried to quell nerves and look awake on the Bulletproof panel, and went for a pint with a mate at the local pub.

I remember that I met up with Christian from Warhammer for the first time on the Sunday morning. In a pub. Something of a theme for that weekend. Also met PJ at the same time, even though I never knew I'd end up working with him on 'Nanas & Custard a few months later.

It will be good to meet up PJ and have a chat about N&C as well as getting Broken Claw off the ground. Which reminds me, I was hoping to have tighter five-page script finished for the show. Nevermind, I'll speak to PJ about it and get it sorted for next week.

Marvel Submission Response
Got a reply back from the inquiry letter I sent off to Marvel yesterday. They've actually asked to see a sample of my work, which is encouraging. They specified that they only wanted one sample of my writing work, a policy likely to prevent them from being bombarded with someone's entire CV. It also focuses me on picking out what I consider to be my best piece of work.

Although I'm really fond of my one-page 'Nanas and Custard strips with PJ, they are probably not the best example of what I can do. So I've plumped for the five-page 'Mundizuma's Revenge' strip written for Warhammer Monthly #77. This is probably the one strip that I still really like, and the decision was helped by the lush art by Mike Collins and the fact that Liz thinks this is the best strip I've had published so far. And I'm not going to argue with her.

I'm refusing to get overly excited in case it all comes to nowt. But bloody hell, it's Marvel Comics!

Alan Davis Is Still The Dogs!

Uncanny X-Men #447 

It's a guilty pleasure, but I'm more jazzed about Uncanny X-Men than Joss Whedon's forthcoming Astonishing title. Although I am looking forward to that too. It's just that I have fond memories of reading Alan Moore and Alan Davis's run on Captain Britain the first time around - the whole Jaspers Warp/Fury thing was mind-blowing. (even if my 10 year-old self didn't appreciate the finer points of the trippy surrealism)

Magazine Madness
Got an email from Darren this morning regarding the magazine idea he wants me to develop. I'd sent an email last week with a breakdown of the suggested content and target audience. He's asked me to provide editorial for some sample pages that will be pitched to a couple of potential advertisers and distributors who have already expressed an interest in the product.

Without going into specifics, they've offered to provide content for a promotional item that could be given away free with the launch issue. I have a number of things on my wish-list as far as the content goes, but first things first. For now, I need to work on a cover, a contents spread, a review spread, and a feature. (may well be a spread or perhaps even a full-blown four-five pager) There is also a legitimate argument for having a comic strip in the mag as well, but again, must get the dummy finished first.

It's just as well I've booked off a week from work starting Monday 7th June. I need to meet up with Darren one night this week to go over the direction we're going to head in, but I'll then have plenty of time to get the dummy out of the door.

It feels good to be flexing this particular kind of creative muscle again. The last time I was this involved with a magazine, was for a PlayStation2 title called Engine. It was launched the same day as the console arrived in the UK. (although, if I remember correctly, there was a shortage of hardware right up until after Xmas)

Engine only lasted four issues, but was warmly received by the games industry and its small but respectable audience. We even had a monthly column by Warren Ellis, but it's really embarrassing that he only got paid for the first one. (unfortunately, he and the rest of the freelancers - as well as the employed full-timers - got shafted by the publisher on that score)

We got half way through producing the fifth issue before the plug was pulled by the publisher. In fact, I got a phone call from the publisher about a week before pay day, telling me that he couldn't foot that month's salary bill. I explained to him that there was no way the team (including myself) would carry on working once I put the phone down to tell them they couldn't pay their rent that month. He agreed, told me to tell them that they were likely to be made redundant, that he would be over in an hour to pick up the computers and make sure everyone returned their keys before they left the building.

And that was the last time I worked full-time in magazines. Can't think what put me off.

Tau you doin'?
Just completed a prose synopsis that I've email pitched to Christian over on Inferno! magazine. The Hearts of Darkness/Apocalypse Now influence is fairly obvious, but with the absence of any drug references or stripping Playboy Bunnies. And that's only because I'm assuming that they are in short supply in the 41st Millenia.

The pitch focuses on the Tau, a pioneering race of aliens who believe everyone should follow their lead for what they deem as the 'greater good'. There is plenty of scope with these guys, as not so much has been written about them in comparison to the other races in the Warhammer 40K universe. But ironically, I've found them a little hard to get my head around. Guess I'll just have to wait and see what Christian thinks about this pitch and the other Tau one that I sent a couple of weeks ago before I'll know if I'm on the right track.

It's interesting that Games Workshop chose to feature the Tau in their PlayStation2 debut 'Fire Warrior' last year, instead of the Space Marines. Wouldn't mind playing the game, but I've only got an Xbox and Cube. And I'm not going to buy a PS2 on point of principle (being; it's not a particular good machine compared to my beloved Xbox, and there are hardly any games exclusive on PS2 to justify the expense).

Right, better start winding down and see if I can get to watch Alias tonight...

Custard Capers
Matt at Toxic felt that the 'Nanas and Custard script I sent him was "suitably gross." A winning endorsement if ever I've heard one. It seems that vomit, farting, and excrement is usually a guaranteed ingredient for a successful Toxic strip. And since my sense of humour usually centres below waist level, I think I may have discovered my true calling.

Currently jotting down notes for the next N&C strip. Listened to the excellent Scissor Sisters CD on the way to work and had this scene in my head of Captain Custard and 'Nanas doing the disco thing at the hypnotic behest of the villainous Disco Diva. Throw in a fart gag or two and it's a bootylicious something or other.

Really must get out more...

Dr. Devious Takes A Holiday
Woke up before the alarm again this morning, probably because of the unexpected early summer sun pouring through the gap in the curtains (or the kebab from last night). Had a half waking dream image that got me thinking of the concept for the next 'Nanas & Custard strip: Dr. Devious checking into a hotel reception for his annual hols.

Should I start worrying about myself if this is the kind of thing that pops into my head first thing in the morning?

As always with N&C, the script writes itself. Got it polished off and emailed to Matt and PJ by lunch. I had real problems getting my head around writing one-page gag strips when the series was in development, but now I feel like I'm really hitting my stride with them. Can't wait to see what PJ comes up with for Wicked Wilma the Empress of Evil and Dr. Devious's Vomit Gun.

Novel Proposal
Got an email from Black Flame yesterday asking me to flesh out a pitch for a novel idea. Don't really want to mention names, characters, etc, in case I jinx anything. There's already one pitch going through a review process at the mo which I was pleased with. But you can never tell with these things. It's been slow at work this morning, so I had the chance to polish off the one-page synopsis and got it emailed to BF by lunch. Fingers crossed!

I Can Post Bloody Pictures!
'Nanas and Custard by PJ Holden 

Well, it's about time I worked out how to get some visuals on to this thing. This is a panel from the next 'Nanas & Custard strip, which features the first (and arguably the last) appearance of the Astounding Man-Ant!

Right, I'm going to finish watching Derren Brown and head to bed. G'night all.

True Evil
Reading and writing comic books - particularly the superhero genre - does tend to give you a skewed and simplified perspective on good and evil. In fact, this black and white simplicity originates from their source inspiration: the creation myths of our ancestors. It used to be that a maniacal, and strangely camp doctor proclaiming that he was going to "conquer the world" was enough to show us that he was evil. But times have changed.

Watching someone, so wrapped up in their fanaticism - their religious conviction of right and wrong - behead another human being live on the Internet whilst they were still alive... now that's true evil.

Obviously the news did not broadcast all the macabre footage. They didn't need to. It was enough to watch the leader pull out a knife from behind the bound hostage, who I hope was unaware of what was going to happen.

What want on in the American P.O.W. camp was wrong. The pictures released and what they depicted was repugnant. However, it still does not come close to justifying this kind of action. Nothing ever could.

Warhammer Monthly No More... Say Hello to Warhammer Comic!)
It's just been officially announced on the Black Library website that Warhammer Monthly has a title and frequency change from issue 85. Nothing too major, as it's now going to be called Warhammer Comic, with the omission of the 'monthly' due to it being bi-monthly and only six issues a year (rather than the 13 issues that they have been regularly breaking their backs to print).

Christian, the editor, let me know this last week after I chased up regarding a number of submissions that he's had hold of the past month or so. This is a bit of bugger, as he has now been prevented from commissioning any new comic strip material for the foreseeable future, or at least until the inventory is used up (astoundingly, there is apparently enough material to take WC through to 2007).

From a purely selfish viewpoint, this is a shame, as I've really enjoyed writing the self-contained one-off comic strips for them, and I was really hoping to at least get a series in print within the next year or so. There's always prose fiction for Inferno! magazine though, so it's not as if the door has completely closed.

I've got two strips that have been completed that have yet to see print: The Bad, The Warped and The Insane, drawn by Mike Collins (which I think is going to be in issue 43 of Inferno! mag). And then my final Tales From The Ten-Tailed Cat - 'The Reikmarshall's Tale', which is going to be drawn by Tom Carney. No scheduled date for the latter which, fittingly, is the one I enjoyed writing the most, but it looks like it could a good year away.

So what am I doing at the moment?
Put together a few more pitches for Inferno! magazine - haven't had any prose published by the Black Library yet, so it's something new to try out.

Started to jot down some more 'Nanas and Custard strip ideas (weird to see it on the shelves in Tescos supermarket the other week - almost like it's reaching a mainstream audience!).

Need to flesh out notes I've put down for 2000AD Future Shocks/Terror Tales/Past Imperfects.

Should hopefully also hear back soon from Black Flame regarding a proposal I've put together for them.

After having a look at their submission guides, I sent out an inquiry letter to Marvel over the weekend. Apparently they guarantee a response in around two months. I've fond memories of receiving exactly the same form letter, bar a different date, four times in a row back in the mid-90s (but I'm pretty sure my story ideas were shit).

Working on a new magazine launch for someone I last worked with four years ago - really excited about this one. Been a long while since I was in a position to edit and launch a magazine from scratch, but the buzz I've started to get is just as strong as it was back then.

Really need to speak to Matt at Egmont and see if he's made any more moves about San Diego in July.