Writers behind some of last year’s most critically acclaimed works have been honoured at the 2020 Writers’ Guild Awards ceremony, including Danny Brocklehurst, Shola Amoo, Season Butler, Gillian Juckes and Jimmy McGovern. Awards also went to the writers of the Danger Mouse animated series, the… Read More ›
Books
John Russell Fearn’s SF, including Golden Amazon stories, back in print
If you’ve been enjoying the adventures of the Golden Amazon, drawn by Ron Turner, in Spaceship Away, then you may be interested to know that a number of novels starring the warrior space heroine written by John Russell Fearn are… Read More ›
In Memoriam: SF author Mike Resnick
Author Lou Anders pays tribute to award-winning American science fiction writer and editor Michael Diamond Resnick, whose death on 10th January 2020 was announced by his daughter Laura last week after battling cancer. A much-loved creator, he won five Hugo… Read More ›
Limited edition Wally Wood exhibition catalogue now available to order from Festival International de la Bande Dessinée d’Angoulême
Three of the major exhibitions at this year’s Festival International de la Bande Dessinée d’Angoulême in France are accompanied by a substantial, deluxe, limited-edition hardcover catalogues, including the Wallace “Wally” Wood exhibition
WebFind: We Are The Martians – The Legacy of Nigel Kneale
If you have access to BBC iPlayer, then you may already know the broadcaster’s 1958 serial Quatermass and the Pit is available to watch right now for free – and a terrific piece of vintage SFTV it is too
Read P. Craig Russell’s Complete Comic Book Adaptation of O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi”
Just before Christmas, in the spirit of the season, Wayne Alan Harold, who’s busy publishing Fine Art Editions of the work of comic artist and illustrator P. Craig Russell, offered his fans the opportunity to read his Complete Comic Book Adaptation of O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi”
WebFind: “Hidden Wyndham: Life, Love Letters”
Mention that John Wyndham’s classic science fiction eco-thriller The Day of the Triffids passes out of copyright next year (in the United States and Canada, at first), led to discovery of the recently-published Hidden Wyndham: Life, Love, Letters by journalism lecturer and writer Amy Binns
The Art of Roy Cross out now
Eagle and Swift artist Roy Cross’ new book The Art of Roy Cross is finally out from Crowood Press and includes a chapter on his comics work along with his later Airfix work and his more modern aviation and maritime fine art paintings
Coming Soon: Martin Bower’s World of Models
Co-author Shaun McClure has announced there’s not long to wait now for the release of what’s looking to be an amazing book – Martin Bower’s World of Models
“The Life of Charlie ‘Chas’ Grigg” biography released in time for Christmas
Charlie “Chas” Grigg was a cartoonist who drew Desperate Dan, Korky the Cat and many other characters for the DC Thomson’s comics – Dandy, Beano, Topper and Judy, from the 1960s to 1980s. Now a new book about his life and work has just been published – and his family are dedicating half the proceeds The Alzheimer’s Society and Dudley-based dementia support group, Me, Myself & I.
His much-admired work will also be celebrated at a special event at the Wolverhampton Literature Festival next year.
New “Beano Booktopia” book subscription service launched
Beano has today launched Beano Booktopia – a new book subscription service for kids offering newly published books across a wide range of authors and genres. The tailor-made programme will include fiction and non-fiction books specifically chosen by Beano experts based… Read More ›
Charlie Adlard chooses LIFE over Walking Dead
LIFE is a new hardcover by Charlie Adlard, a collection of art from Charlie attending life art evenings at Hive Shrewsbury using various techniques
Katie Kirby’s “Hurrah for Gin” gets licensing deal
Licensing agency Riverside Brands has just added the popular online parenting series, Hurrah for Gin, to its portfolio, a comedic pastiche of modern day parenthood survival by Katie Kirby
Crowdfunding Spotlight: “Bods” by Greenspike hits target in just six hours
After the crowdfunding success of the illustrated guide to the hidden world of the trolls of Oxford, The Oxford Trollomicus, it’s great to see the first novel set in the same world, Bods, has smashed its target goal within six hours of launch
Sir Lenny Henry writes comics!
Just out in bookshops is Sir Lenny Henry’s memoir, Who Am I, Again?, which is not only a terrific read, but also includes comic vignettes of his life story, written by the comedian, drawn by Mark Buckingham and lettered by Todd Klein
Bag of Holding Fundraiser under way to support games publisher Battlefield Press after arson attack
Bundle of Holding, a company that presents time-limited collections of tabletop roleplaying games, or books by RPG designers, as DRM-free ebooks, is running an offer to help support award-winning games publisher Jonathan Thompson, the owner of Battlefield Press after an… Read More ›
Tricks of the Trade: Writing a Comics-inspired Novel, by Steve MacManus
Former Tharg, comics editor and writer Steve MacManus shares his experience of writing his first novel, The Sheerglam Conspiracy, a story set inside the world of 1970s British comics. 40,000 words long, it took 14 long months to write –… Read More ›
Steve MacManus parodies 1970s British comics in “The Sheerglam Conspiracy”
Former Tharg Steve MacManus is back on our reading list here in the downthetubes dungeon, this time with his first novel, The Sheerglam Conspiracy, a thoroughly scurrilous jab at the British comics industry in the 1970s. London, 1973. For 40… Read More ›
Dark Metropolis novel trilogy launched by comics retail veteran and publisher Howard Lee
Howard Lee, a Chicago-based champion of pop culture both British and American, founder of Tomatovision TV and Nexus Entertainment Group Publishing, has just self published the first in a trilogy of SF novels under the umbrella title “Dark Metropolis”. The first, Planetsong, is available now
Former Tharg David Bishop gets two book historical crime fiction deal at Pan Macmillan
For years, comics editor, writer, author and writing tutor David Bishop – perhaps best known to many downthetubes readers as a former editor of both 2000AD and Judge Dredd Megazine and author of Thrill-Power Overload – has been threatening to write a series of historical mystery novels set in Renaissance Florence. Well, now he’s done it – and the results will be published by Pan Macmillan starting in February 2021