All panel compositions were chosen specifically so I wouldn't have to show (in other words, draw) the dead bodies that are still likely piled outside the saloon.
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Geoff’s Mark

May29
by on 29 May 2020
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Thought it has been stated in the notes for the previous page, I really like the contrast this ending creates with the middle chunk of the chapter. Like a song, it kind of returns to the timbre of the beginning, but it’s not the same. Long John is different, he’s made a decision, especially in light of the horror from the previous night.

As a chapter, I think “Dead Words” is my most complete work in terms of narrative, theme, and execution. All the pieces fit together here that gave the chapter its own voice and message while still being a part of the gestalt that is the larger Long John story. Of course, that’s how I feel about it; how you regard the chapter is completely out of my control, as it should be.

I speak more about it below, but “Dead Words” is the fastest I’ve gotten a chapter completed, believe it or not. A lot of that was, obviously, through my own motivation and eagerness to continue the project. However, it couldn’t have been completed without the continued support of my friends and family. I’d like to take the opportunity to give very thankful shout outs to everybody that has shown continued encouragement and support, especially over the course of the creation of this book. I dare not write out names due to the inevitability of leaving out someone important. With hope, you know my appreciation already; if not, I hope I let you know soon. Thank you.

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Chapter 5 is where the rubber really hits the road.

We get more of Long John’s story, of course––he knows his clothes are in Bridgeport with the Rook––but we also get more of the world around him. Light spoiler alert, I guess, but we will be seeing The Rook again, as well as finally meeting the ominous Rich Jack Langstrom!

What excites me most is that Chapter 5 sets up the endgame. Long John is outlined as a 7-chapter story; so, with the conclusion of “Dead Words” we are over halfway through the series––and my shoulders get a bit lighter any time I think about that.

Even though it’s been almost two years since the last page of Chapter 3 posted (the end of September 2018), this has been the fastest I’ve completed a Long John book. I started drawing the book at the beginning of summer 2019 and had it pencilled, inked and scanned by the end of October 2019 before the day job slowed down the coloring of the book (though coloring is already a slow process); however, production officially wrapped at the beginning of March 2020.

The point is that I’m excited to get going on Chapter 5, and I hope that, after reading Chapter 4, you are as well.

I’m equally excited about getting you a copy of Chapter 4 in your hands. To that end, keep an eye on the website and store for news about preorder bundles on Monday.

And since I mentioned the store, there are a few updates to mention:

  • The new “D. Bethel Comics & Art” store is the Official Long John store: I’m migrating away from Etsy to a new website through Weebly. This has nothing to do with Etsy at all––I’ll keep that store open if you prefer to shop through that website––and more to do with consolidating my storefronts. Weebly is owned by the same company I use to as a Point of Sale (PoS) service when selling at shows and conventions. Since that service––called Square––offers online storefronts as well, I played around with it and like what I saw. So, the new Square-based store is now active and open for business. To get there, all you have to do is click the “Store” link at the top of the website.
  • eBook versions of the books are now available through Gumroad: I’ve been really interested in making eBook versions of the collected volumes available for awhile, but I wasn’t really sure how to do it. Furthermore, once I learned, the one detraction I have with the new Square/Weebly system is that it doesn’t allow shop owners to upload files for purchasers to download immediately upon purchase. Instead, customers would have to wait for me to send them an e-mail with a link, which is a hassle and, frankly, outdated. So, based on my research, I found Gumroad to be the easiest website to use for customers and creators, it’s safe, reliable, and quite robust (and allows customers to download files immediately). So, eBook versions of all three books (and, soon, all four books) are currently available for the low price of $5. These eBook versions come in high-resolution files and contain everything that’s in the physical versions (they’re even a bit more current; featuring some design changes that will be present in future printings of books 1-3). What’s more, if I ever decide to update the pdf, it will let previous buyers know and they can download the updated versions.

There are more changes to come––new merch and opportunities––that I’m really excited to share with you. Until then, keep your eyes on the website, the official Facebook page, Instagram feed, or sign up for notifications through the new, updated store for all future news!

Thanks again for reading and I’ll be back soon with more blog posts, art updates, and news!

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Chapter 4 Livestream Video

May30
by on 30 May 2020

Here is the full video from yesterday’s stream.

I would recommend checking out the video description for the time stamps so you can jump around at your leisure. I open the stream by briefly discussing the writing process for Long John before running through some of my favorite pages from the chapter using the original art (light spoilers, I guess?). Then, before I start a live drawing, I preview some of the pages Josh Tobey drew for the Hellrider Jackie short story––”The Patient Feast”––that will be exclusive for Volume 4 (meaning, it won’t be going up on the website).

Thanks for watching and as I do more streams, I promise the quality and presentation will only get better. It’s always a learning experience.

More news to come on Monday!

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Chapter 4 Wrap Party on YouTube TOMORROW

May28
by on 28 May 2020

Tomorrow brings the last page of Chapter 4 – “Dead Words”! To celebrate, I’ll be hosting a livestream at noon on YouTube where I’ll do some live drawing and be open to talk about Chapter 4 (the comic and the videos) as well as anything else you might want to talk about––comics, art, music, movies, (nearly) anything!

I hope you stop on by (to interact in the chat, you’ll have to be logged into your Google/YouTube account) to watch, listen, and interact! It’s been really fun bringing Chapter 4 out, page by page, and I would love to hear what you enjoyed about it! If you have any questions or comments you want me to address, leave them in the comments below and I’ll be sure to talk about them during the stream.

I hope to see you tomorrow for the last page of the chapter and, at noon, on YouTube for the stream!

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The Long John Primer, Part 6

Feb27
by on 27 February 2020

Chapter 4 marks a strange new beginning in some ways. It acts as an interlude, one about Long John dealing with what occurred in the previous three chapters and preparing––unknowingly as it may be––for the chapters to come. However, like the very first chapter, “Dead Words” is a standalone work, one that takes the temperature of not only where Long John is at this moment but also of the entire region at this point in the story.

To set the tone, there will be two posts this week that will help readers get into the mindset of where Chapter 4––and the subsequent installments––comes from, though it may not always be comfortable. So, reaching back to before the release of the first chapter, we add to the previous five entries of “The Long John Primer”––the things that help to make Long John what it is, has been, and will be.

6. The Indie Comics Factor

I’m a bit embarrassed that this honestly wasn’t the first or second post of the primer back when I started the website, but it has surely been my guiding force creatively since deciding to pursue this story in the first place.

That being said, it wasn’t the indie comics community that specifically motivated me. To say that it is would be making a big promise––indie comics is a huge industry comprised of industry professionals, professional amateurs (or “Pro-Am”), and people just doing this for fun or for the learning experience. The community is also regional––both geographic and where they interact on the internet. It’s divided by genre, as could be expected. It’s all over the place, but it’s also a tight-knit community of rugged individuals.

So, to say that they are a factor in the creation of Long John, I mostly mean in terms of the ethos that drives those that consider themselves “indie.”

Cover to Prophet: Earth War #2 by Giannis Milonogiannis. A high-quality print can be purchased at InPrnt.

I’ve talked about it before––perhaps to an annoying degree––but I can’t stress how much of a personal impact the creative team behind the 2012 reboot of Rob Liefeld’s ’90s comic, Prophet, had on me. If anything, the connection to the ultraviolent ’90s comic was what got me in the door. More than anything, it was more about answering the question of “Why?” and “How?”, only to find that the questions I asked once opening those pages were “Who?!”

Fortunately, I already had a familiarity with series co-rebooter, Simon Roy, and the eventual second head-artist of the series, Giannis Milonogiannis, but it was their approach to making comics and as advocates for independent comics––especially those made by writer-artists––that made them a personal pantheon of creative drive. Not only were they proud independent creatives, they were vocal proponents of that side of the medium, with Graham and Roy loudly condemning, in many ways, how the mainstream industry treated writers, artists, and intellectual property in general.

But it was their “buckle down and just do it” approach that certainly gave me the confidence to charge into “Sunza”, which was honestly a continuation of the basic ethos that launched Image Comics in the early 1990s, a phenomenon I witnessed in real time and undoubtedly influenced me at a young age.

A drawing of Taurus Comics’ character, Xob the Lightning Wielder drawn by D. Bethel

However, I’d be remiss to leave out the wonderful indie community Long John has been accepted into. Being able to become colleagues––and friends!––with the likes of Taurus Comics‘ Kyrun Silva, Above the Clouds‘ Melissa Pagluica, Vorpal‘s Jason Tudor, B-Squad‘s Eben Burgoon, John Cottrell, among many, many others (honestly, please take no offense if left unmentioned) has shown that even isolated weirdos like me (like us?) can link arms and lift each other up to do bigger and better things (not to mention the incredible support given by local retailers like Ben Schwartz and Tony Asaro at Empire’s Comics Vault and Gene Farley at Comics & Collectibles).

Obviously, I think that Long John is good––or can be good, at the very least––but getting to be a part of this loose but supportive community also creates a motivation to not let any of them down, either. So, as Long John himself always picks himself up and trudges forward, I do the same through any self-doubt and fear, because I’m the only one that can tell my story.

So, that’s the Long John primer. Also, read about The Eastern Sierra Nevada Factor, The Kurosawa Factor, The Hamett Factor, The Western Factor, and The Heavy Metal Factor.

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