Here are the colors or the limited edition Graham Crackers Comics edition of Hero By Night #1 that they commissioned.  Can you say, “Who’s your daddy?!”

When it’s available online, I’ll definitely let everyone know.

Being released around the web, issue 2 info- including the cover to issue 2…

Hero By Night #2 (of 4)
(W/A) D.J. Coffman
(C) Jason Embury

Young Jack King starts to learn about both the cool powers and awesome responsibility that comes with being a superhero. The positives: cool ring, invulnerability, and the ability to fly; the negatives: putting your friends at risk, and getting hunted down by the Iron Talon, the previous Hero By Night’s arch-nemesis!

WHO IS…JASON EMBURY? Jason is a 14-year comics vet who’s been working as a penciler, inker, and digital colorist. Some of his most recent credits include Shadowhawk, BombQueen, and Season of the Witch for Image Comics.

Full Color 32 pages $2.99

So, MailOrder Comics has an excellent service online, where you can pre-order books in advance at HUGE discounts, between 35% and 75% off the cover price of a comic.  In just a few clicks.  Sign up for an account with them, place your orders, and BAM.  Comic delivered to your door.  The best thing is, for people like me, who live about 20-25 minutes from a shop, and don’t have the 1 and a half to 2 hours to head to the shop each month….I’m actually saving money having books delivered to me.

So Hero By Night #1, created and drawn by DJ Coffman, with colors by yours truly, is available for $1.91 online there!!!!  Go snag yourself a copy and maybe one for a friend.  And if you happen to pick up a few other books while you’re at it…….all the better for you.

I know that a cool book like After the Cape, another great super-hero title coming out in March from Jim Valentino’s Shadowline imprint is a MUST have (click here for a 4 page preview of the book).  That artwork blows my mind with how great it is.  and at the discounted price you can get it for, .74 CENTS!!!! how can you say no. Howard Wong writes that, a good guy from the few times I’ve conversed with him he really has a passion for his stories.   All the best of luck to him, his artist and Jim and the entire Shadowline crew on that book (they’re some top notch people in my book)

So go forth in MASS and order yourself some great comics.  They’re bound to be great books, and they’re at a FANTASTIC price.

still working on the revamp to my portfolio site this year, and am incorporating the same sort of look into the blog slowly as well. after looking at so many colors all day (and lots of nights) it’s nice to see lots of black every once in a while. Reminds me of the back of my eyelids when I’m sleeping. sleep…………yeah, I like doing that every once in a while too. Now a deviation from the normal, laid back, relaxing posts that you’re used to from me.
I’ve been pretty quiet about a lot of the badmouthing and trashtalking going on the last few weeks/months etc…..about Platinum Studios. And rightly so, I’m just coloring a book for them, I didn’t create anything that they own the rights to, I don’t have any plans to submit projects to them any time soon. But you know, this is how I make a living. How I pay my bills. How I help support my wife and kids. So it does get to me when people say that they’re “looking out for the creators” or that, “they don’t mean any harm to the creators involved with Platinum” Guess what people, you ARE doing harm to us. You’re tarnishing the image and reputation of one of my best and biggest clients. You’re actively trying to promote animosity and ill will towards a company that is helping me make a living. You are, whether intentional or not, potentially hurting the sales of book(s) that I have a great investment of time, love and commitment in, and which I WANT to sell well.

Continue reading

The Hero By Night creation blog is in full swing now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!   Behind the scenes looks at artwork from the print book and webcomic, and commentary by myself and creator/artist DJ Coffman on how we’re working to put the print book and webcomic together in an almost completely digital environment now.  Updates galore as we approach the launch of the first issue.  Also be on the lookout for links to comic news sites and reviews as we’re getting pages ready for Platinum Studios to send out to all the major news sites in the next few days.  Fun, fun, fun!

Wow, when 2006 started, 75% of my income was coming from marketing/design clients. As the year ends however, I am amazed that virtually 100% of my income is coming from illustration and comic book coloring. It’s been a very bumpy ride this year, but things are shaping up for 2007 nicely so far, and it appears that the ride may be a bit smoother than it was this year.

As an artist, the main thing you strive for in your work is growth. You want to improve constantly, and you can never settle for less than your best effort, often times realizing that your best effort still is not what you would like it to be. Perfectionists have nothing on the true artist. We are the most harsh, abrasive and cruel critics of our own work most times (unless you count the trolls that roam the internet looking to bash on artists work when they themselves have not the reputation, skills or knowledge to offer genuine constructive criticism ) So at this year draws to a close, I’m amazed to see a gigantic leap in my own skills as an artist, and equally amazed to see that others are noticing this growth as well, which is translating into more and more work (at higher and higher pay)

So in reflecting, I’d like to post a digital painting from the beginning of the year, and a digital painting which I just finished today. With today’s work, being the single piece I am most proud of in the last 12 months. Without further ado, the first piece, originall done for the Baeg Tobar online fantasy website,

and the piece completed today, for a art competition at the Gnomon Workshop,

as you can see, not only has my technique evolved, after much study and some great tutorials, but I think that my voice is finally starting to come though loud and clear inside my head. And as all artists will tell you, it’s those voices in our heads that are the TRUE creators of our work. I spent much time studying other artists in the last 6 months and their techniques, actually getting in touch with some of them for advice and direction in how I wanted to proceed in my artistic growth. Goals are important as an artist, as much as deadlines, and meeting your goals should be every bit as much of a priority as meeting your deadlines in my opinion.

Not only has my personal work grown this year, but my comic book coloring has taken HUGE strides of late, thanks again to various individuals within the industry that have given, and continue to give, me support/advice/help. I’ve gone from having 2 published titles under my belt in January, to having 15 published titles, (with many more on the way for next year) the vast majority of which have been through Image Comics. Below is an example of my coloring from the beginning of the year, and one that I just completed for my portfolio. Probably the single most dramatic advice that I recieved this year, was in the form of a professional colorist whose work I have admired for year, telling me to “not be afraid” and to show more confidence in my rendering. A big thanks and tip of the hat to that gentleman, as I think it was shortly thereafter that my work took noticeable leaps forward and the job offers started rolling in.

and this is the prize piece of my portfolio now, copyright DC comics of course, pencils by Jim Lee and inks by Scott Wiliams,

so, a rather short visual year in review, but fortunately for me, I’m so busy now that is all I can spare.  So back to coloring more superhero comics for me right now, and hoping for as much artistic growth as this year has shown me next year.  Because my goals as an artist are no longer small, but have also grown immensely, and I look forward to the journey that awaits me as I accomplish those goals.  Good luck to all you other artists out there next year, and may the New Year bring you much joy and success!

no, I’m not talking about the song by Staind. I’m talking about the fact that being self-employed often times means that you’re working even when you’re feeling lowsy. today, and most of yesterday, are just such days. Still deadlines, and the corresponding paychecks, wait for no one and nothing.

In happier news, the new Hero By Night Creator’s Blog, is set to launch the first of the year (or a day later depending on how well the creators are holding up from the previous night’s festivities) Make sure to check that out for behind the scenes looks at our process, how we’re working ALMOST 100% digitally on this comic, and how we often times help keep each other sane while cranking out the ENORMOUS volume of work we’re cranking out here. Because in case you’ve been living under a rock the last 2 months, we’re also putting out a DAILY Hero By Night webcomic on DrunkDuck.com. In fact, in celebration of our milestone 50th update (which technically is 100 since these updates are each the size of a double page spread) we whipped up this HBN goodness for you, which you can grab as a wallpaper at the everchanging, herobynight.com. enjoy! time to try and focus amidst the feelings of cruddiness that are permeating the studio today.

8pm on a MONDAY.  I just put on a fresh pot of coffee and am settling in for another long night of coloring Hero By Night #1.  Among other work like digital painting and coloring of the Iron Grip comic, the holiday madness is mounting.  I did get the cover to issue 4 of Hero By Night colored today, as well as tomorrows webcomic art (which is nothing out of the ordinary, although we WERE a few days ahead at one point last week)  Things have been nuts around here for us with so much going on, and DJ just moved into a new house and doesn’t seem to be having any luck at all.  Or rather, he’s having the same kind of freaking luck WE had when we moved into our new place in May (which ALSO means that his sanity will soon be leaving him)  My goal for this evening is 3 pages of colors.  Things would be better if I hadn’t pulled something in my neck this afternoon.  Motrin, coffee and sugar cookies, a good combination

so, it’s 10:30 am Friday morning. Yeah…I’m a bit tire here. But what have I done since Thursday morning? Only flat the last 15 pages of Hero By Night 1. That’s right, I went to bed this morning at 4:50 am or something insane, had a minor snaffu with sleep during the time the wife was getting the kids around for school, had a puppy jump into my face a bit after they left this morning, but other than that, I got a 3 hours of sleep on top of the bit I got before everyone woke up. Does that seem like much, nah. not to most people maybe, but flatting my own work has been something I decided to do this month to save some money, and I really feel like I MANNED UP last night, and got in a zone where I was flatting a page an hour. HIGHLY detailed panels on almost all the pages too, I can’t explain it. I’ve NEVER worked so fast or accurately before. I’ve been a wuss in the past maybe, and paid to have pages flatted, but from here on out, I’m just doing it this way (until I start pulling down consistent 3 digit page rates that is) I mean, I’ve NEVER gotten 15 pages of flats back within a 24 hour period.  And these were flatted with the actual colors I’m going to be using, not pinks, and yellows and grays.   What does that mean really? well, it means that I probably just pulled about a WEEK ahead of schedule, and will end up spending just over 2 weeks to color this entire issue when all is said and done. It also means, that you’re thinking a I’m a huge geek if you understood little of that, or think that I’m a bit too excited.  But….I color comics books, I probably AM a geek at heart.   On top of all the coloring work this week, I’ve also managed a couple digital paintings, started another couple, and done some character concept work for another project. So….time for more coffee and since I’m feeling productive still, I’m going to jump straight into the actual coloring of those HBN pages now and see where I can get by Monday.

Announcement time! HERO BY NIGHT book #1 of 4 is now in the Diamond Previews ordering catalog! Not only that, but it’s under the IMAGE COMICS section, as all Platinum Studios Comics books will be published under Image!

Now, while the daily webcomic http://www.drunkduck.com/Hero_By_Night_Diaries/index.php?p=101795 takes place in the 40s and 50s with the original hero, this comic book series kicks off right as the hero disappears, cutting to 50 years later as a new guy, Jack King, discovers the lair of the hero with all his gadgets, etc. When Jack tries to cash in on the find it attracts the attention of the hero’s arch-enemy a villain even the Hero By Night could not destroy.

What’s all this mean to you? Well, you can totally help out the cause by calling up your local comic shop today and asking them to carry the title or pre-ordering one for yourself, they’re only $2.99! If you’re short on cash, you can still ask your shop to carry it, and I bet they will. You don’t even HAVE to preorde the book, just call and ask if they’ll carry it, or mention it if you happen to be IN your local shop. Most retailers, and by most I mean close to 3/4 will order 10 books for every inquiry into a title they get.

Finding a local shop who uses the catalog is EASY! Just go to http://csls.diamondcomics.com/default.asp the Comic Book Shop Locater Service online and type in your zip code and it pops up all the shops in your area, their addresses and phone numbers…. then call em up! It’s just… that…. easy.

Tell your retailer to check out the full page color ad in the Image Comics section! page 161! I can’t tell you how cool it is to be listed in a prime spot of the Diamond catalog, let alone with Image Comics, and on top of that to have a full page feature???

We have a REAL chance to do something different here. HBN is the FIRST webcomic to run a DAILY prelude, chock full of backstory on a PRINTED book that’s coming out 3 months from now. That’s right, when this book hits stands, there will also be over 110 episodes of webcomic that have preceded it. It sends a strong message of the viability of webcomics in the comic book marketplace– I mean think about it, more people read HERO BY NIGHT online than a monthly issue of Spiderman or Superman. To me, that’s already saying something loud and clear. And those numbers are only climbing every week. This might be the first print book to tap that internet/webcomic audience in ways that no other webcomic has before (we’re not just collecting webcomic strips in a printed form, we’re telling a HUGE tale online, then printing a 4 issue mini-series of completely different content, which has all sorts of things in it that you can go back and reference in the webcomics)

So if ANY of you guys or gals can help out, I’d appreciate it. You don’t even need to preorder the book, again, just a phone call would help out. Or a mention of it. If people ask about something, retailers usually will check it out. And that full page ad in Previews is REALLY going to stick out if they’ve heard people asking for the book. THANKS! Back to the Studio of Solitude, and more superhero coloring for me now!