Strangeways

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 23, 2008

HIGHWAY 62 PRESS AND BLOG ANNOUNCE JOINT SYNDICATION FOR STRANGEWAYS: THE THIRSTY

Matthew Maxwell, creator and author of the Western-horror graphic novel STRANGEWAYS, today announced the serialization of the sequel, THE THIRSTY, at Blog @ Newsarama. The series will debut on Monday, Oct. 27, with new pages posted every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

"I'm very pleased to enjoy this opportunity," Maxwell said recently. "I talked to quite a few potential partners before deciding to serialize THE THIRSTY on Blog @ Newsarama," Maxwell said. "It isn't a typical webcomic, as it wasn't written with online publication in mind. So, I sought a different kind of partnership. Working with a comics news and commentary site as opposed to one known for syndicating webcomics seemed an intriguing and beneficial arrangement. It's my hope that many more readers who've never followed STRANGEWAYS will be introduced to the series now."

THE THIRSTY, follows ex-Union officer Seth Collins from the events of MURDER MOON as he drifts a little further west to a town called Cedar Creek, which is about to find itself under attack from people who are neither dead nor alive, but somewhere in-between. However, just as MURDER MOON was about a lot more than just cowboys and werewolves, THE THIRSTY is more than just cowboys and vampires. Those readers who liked the concept of "Lone," which was the backup feature for MURDER MOON, will eat up "Red Hands," which will serve a similar role in THE THIRSTY.

THE THIRSTY is illustrated by Gervasio and Jok, who drew the story "Lone" in MURDER MOON. Luis Guaragna also returns, although not in the main story, but instead in a backup feature. "It's great to continue my relationship with all of these artists," Maxwell said. "They understand what the stories need visually, which is a deceptively simple task, it seems."

Planned for a print publication in Spring of 2009, THE THIRSTY is the second STRANGEWAYS graphic novel, continuing to deliver a great western comic infused with horror. It is anticipated that the print version will again be published by Highway 62 Press. MURDER MOON, the first STRANGEWAYS book, is still available through Diamond Comics Distributors (JAN083670), Baker and Taylor Books, Amazon and Khepri.com.

Matt Maxwell is a comics writer and has been a comics commentator since 2003, which saw the publication of the first installment of FULL BLEED (then at Broken Frontier, now at Comics Waiting Room). He's also blogged at his own Highway 62 since 2004, and has written for Newsarama.com and Comicon Pulse. His first original graphic novel, STRANGEWAYS: MURDER MOON was published in early 2008. He is a lapsed animator, having forsaken the compelling lunacy of Southern California for life with his family in the Sierra Nevada Foothills.

Highway 62 Press

highway-62.com

Posted by Matt M. at 10:53 AM | Permalink

Looks like this:

Take a look, leave comments if you like.

Posted by Matt M. at 01:25 PM | Permalink

Greetings, everyone. Let's make this the official announcement for the next Strangeways graphic novel, shall we?

Strangeways: The Thirsty is coming. It's written, save for about ten pages. Overall, the art is about two-thirds done, minus the bonus stuff, which I haven't had time to organize just yet. I've run the first three pages of art along with the original script at my personal blog, Highway 62, but I'll collect all the links for easy consumption, if you haven't seen 'em yet.

Page 1
Page 2
Page 3

Note that I reserve the right to change the dialogue upon my whims, but it seems pretty solid right now. And if you think you recognize the artist, you do. Gervasio and Jok, who provided the artwork for the backup feature "Lone" from Murder Moon, have returned to do the main story this time around. Fans of Luis Guaragna will be happy to know that his work will be represented, too, in the form of the second feature "Red Hands", which will likely not be serialized on the web, but for a teaser.

I can't yet announce a date of print publication, other than "next year", hopefully in the early summer if not a touch before. My ongoing plans for web serialization have proven to be rocky. I'd certainly welcome someone else hosting it, all other things being equal, but finding a group that I mesh with whether it be in terms of content or whatever. May end up doing it myself (and have been encouraged to take that step: just as much as other folks have encouraged me to join a collective.) The idea was to run the entirety of The Thirsty on the web before the print edition. We shall see if it actually comes to pass.

I'm in the process of uploading a preview animation based on these art pages as well. There will be a post when it comes to pass.

If you're here looking for the Murder Moon preview, then follow the link below to read the first chapter of the first Strangeways book online for the unbelievable price of zero cents.

Murder Moon Chapter One.

If you like, you can order the book on Amazon Mind you, it's still available through Diamond (JAN083670) and Baker&Taylor books as well.

Posted by Matt M. at 11:57 AM | Permalink