(via the Forbidden Planet International blog): Comics artist Al Davison, perhaps best known for his critically-acclaimed graphic novel The Spiral Cage (incredibly, the Active Images edition is not available through amazon.co.uk), is busy with a new project about Dwarfism.
“I have been commissioned by Nowgen/Manchester University to produce a graphic novel about Dwarfism,” he reveals on his blog, where several pages of the new story, Alisa’s Tale, are previewed, and more will follow as they are completed. “I, along with actress and Psychologist Amy Silver ran a couple of drama workshops with a group of young people with dwarfism, and some average of height, they also kept diaries between the sessions.
“I then went over the results with Amy, and I wrote a treatment for the book. I created a character that started off isolated, having not met any other Dwarfs, her mother, also a dwarf, died when she was young, and her Father is average height, she is fifteen. We follow her journey to becoming self sufficient and discovering that she isn’t alone. Her story is paralleled by a children’s book her father is producing that, initially, reflects his inability to understand what his daughter is experiencing.
“… The book addresses issues such as access, prejudice, even the use of the word dwarf, amongst other things.”
• Read more about Al’s new work on the FPI blog
• Visit Al Davison’s blog
• Buy the Active Images edition of The Spiral Cage from amazon.com
• Buy The Spiral Cage from Astral Gypsy
- About the Author
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The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
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