Authors Rally for Tommy Donbavand with Obverse Books project

By John Freeman on July 8, 2016

As we’ve previously reported on downthetubes, Scream Street creator, Beano writer, Doctor Who author and all round lovely guy, Tommy Donbavand, has been diagnosed with cancer and is currently recovering from a series of painful and unpleasant treatments as he battles to kick this horrible, horrible disease into touch.

If you follow Tommy’s blog (www.tommyvcancer.com) you’ll know that one of the worst things he has to face, in addition to the physical and mental pain, is the inability to write and visit schools – a major part of the income he and his family rely on to live.

Although the good news is that’s he’s just been discharged from hospital after many weeks of treatment (hopefully for the last time), it will still be some time before this marvellous creator will be back in action.

Being writer types, Paul Magrs and Stuart Douglas at Obverse Books thought it might be a good idea to put together a Doctor Who short story collection, with all the profits going to help Tommy in what really is his hour of need.

And, due to the kindness and commitment of a plethora of authors, including Paul Cornell, Steve Cole, Barry Hutchison and Una McCormack, that’s what they’ve done.

“A Target for Tommy seemed the perfect title for a book where anything Who-ish goes – any Doctor, any companion, any sort of story,” says Stuart.

The book will be published in the summer.

“Tommy’s one of our own and right at this moment he could do with our help.”

• Pre-order A Target for Tommy here on the Obverse Books web site

• You can also support Tommy through his Patreon page

CONTENTS

Sharon Tregenza – Street of the Scream
Barry Hutchison – Curse of the Bog Women
Paul Magrs – Miss Hawthorne and the Alpaca of Doom
Andrew Hunt – The Triplet Impertinence
Sarah Hadley – Sweetie
Elton Townend-Jones – The Blurred Man
Iain McLaughlin – The Other Three Doctors
Lawrence Burton – The Time Wrestlers
Andrew Hickey – The Bogeyman
Daniel Blythe – The Channel Hoppers
Kara Dennison – Doctor Who and the Viking
Andrew Lawston – Time War Cutaway
Nick Campbelll – The Secret Keeper
Nick Wallace – @allnewdoctorwho
Matt Bright – Eyebrows and Fish
Rachel Redhead – The Doctor and the Witch
Philip Ardagh – What the Who?
Philip Marsh – The Palace
Roy Gill – Deus Ex Food Machine
Ian Potter – Leo Reflects
Simon Forward – Companions
Blair Bidmead – Significant Others
Stuart Douglas – Mapp, Lucia and the Lords of Time
Una McCormack – Directors Cut
Simon Bucher-Jones- The Ox Bow Train
Stewart Sheargold-Pearce – Rock n Roll Alien
Paul Cornell – The Last Doctor
Steve Cole – Dr Who and the Mytex Power

John Freeman

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.