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Long John

Losing Every Thing Changes Everything

One Page Left

Oct31
by DBethel on 31 October 2016

Tomorrow, the last page of Chapter 2, “Bird’s Eye,” will go up and we’ll head back into the silence until Chapter 3 goes up.

I sincerely hope you have enjoyed Chapter 2; it starts getting to the heart of what kind of story I want Long John to be. I’m incredibly happy that it’s so different from Chapter 1 (and will be so different from Chapter 3––I hope you like action) and that it acts simultaneously (I think, at least) as a sort of standalone story and as a continuation from “Sunza.” I hope you’re still guessing; I hope you’re still intrigued.

A lot has been going on behind the scenes at the Long John Livery, stuff I can’t talk about yet but am excited to share with you as soon as I can, but Chapter 3 is in development with the hopes of pages getting drawn by December and a book by next summer. I’m frankly surprised that, despite the hiatus, I was able to keep on a book-a-year schedule and I plan to get Volume 3 printed in 2017 so I can actually establish a pattern.

In the meantime, Long John Volume II is already available for sale for a meager $7 (+ $3 shipping). With it you will get a sketch from me and a bookmark. I will also get a two-book bundle up on there for a deal.

lj02

As for a second installment of Hellrider Jackie’s side-story. I really want to do one. I need to develop it and pitch it to Josh, but he has been incredibly busy since moving to Oregon from Colorado and already getting ensconced in the local art scene. The dude’s on the rise and I don’t want to stand in his way (but we’ll see what we can do).

I am excited to get back to some writing, more Sketch Fridays and blog posts are planned for, perhaps with a Sketch Friday book down the line if I can figure out the logistics of it. My main qualm has been to decide whether to include the essays (or, at least, the good ones) with the drawings or if it should just be the drawings alone. To me, the latter seems kind of boring and a little off the D. Bethel brand, but it would be much easier to produce. What do you think? Let me know!

Also, my nerdy-geeky podcast, A Podcast [ , ] For All Intents and Purposes, is still going strong. We’ve got a brand new website, too, to which we publish not only the podcast episodes but also original written content that you may enjoy. I’ve also started recording and streaming videos of me playing video games, culminating in a “show,” called The Dan & Rusty Video Game Power Hour, where I play video games with silly commentary over the top while my dog makes noise in the background. We’ve also got a bunch of other videos on there; check them out if you like them (and subscribe to our channel).

More than anything, if you like the comic, please share it. Spread it around. Post it to places. Help get the word out. It’s not about getting more money; It’s genuinely about the fact that I think it’s a good story and something that people will enjoy.

I’ll see you on Tuesday! I hope you like how it ends.

 Comment 

Reader Question

Oct29
by DBethel on 29 October 2016

A reader asked, via Tumblr:

Just purchased Long John from Ben at Empire Vault…He recommended your book….I do like westerns but reading your blog you don’t consider Long John a western comic…will there be a third print book?? I will be following your website for add-ons…I like what you and Josh are doing with this book….I once lived near the Grand Canyon so this sparse landscape of Mono Lake seems familiar…

I guess I am being a bit hyperbolic by saying that Long John is not a western comic. If anything, I say that because I never sat down and said, “I want to make a western.” Instead, I had thought of this character and thought, “I want to tell this story.” In the course of making Long John, I have made choices that were right for the telling of that story instead of making the “right” choices because of what would make it “more western.” I am also hesitant to call it a western because the major stylistic influences on Long John are not any westerns in particular. Mostly, it’s Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo and noir fiction all put into a western setting.

Yes, indeed, there will be a third book as soon as it gets written and drawn! It’s plotted right now and I will be (with hope) writing/laying it out soon. There is much more story left to tell of Long John.

As I said recently on the website, I hope to work with Josh again to make another installment of Hellrider Jackie’s story. He has been very busy lately with moving and getting his art up in galleries where he lives in Oregon. He and I are also working on a new project that is still in its early stages, and I don’t want to wear the dude out.

I’ve been to the Grand Canyon a few times and it’s hard to relate its majesty to people. Even while standing there at the top of the canyon, it’s hard to comprehend the sheer scope of it. I haven’t been since they installed the “Skywalk,” but I really want to do that. I’m sure it enhances the experience quite a bit.

Thank you for reading Long John and spending the time to ask some questions, I really appreciate it. (And thanks to Ben Schwartz at Sacramento’s Empire’s Comics Vault––one of the best local comic shops.)

 Comment 

Shadows & Blood – Josh Tobey Art Show

Oct07
by DBethel on 7 October 2016

If you like Hellrider Jackie, then you like Josh Tobey. Josh was the artist for the Hellrider Jackie short story, “Save the Bones“, which posted after Chapter 1 finished (with luck, we’ll get him to do another Hellrider Jackie story).

He is a recent resident of Oregon, having just moved from Denver, Colorado, and has already started to become a staple of the art scene in his new state.

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Starting today, a few of Josh’s works will be featured at Wells & Verne in Portland, Oregon, home to the “Shadows & Blood” art show. “Shadows & Blood” is a group show featuring not only Josh’s work but work by other talented artists, including:

  • Adriana Michima & Joe Salmans
  • Courtney Potter
  • Satan’s Spawn
  • Erik Schultz

Wells & Verne is a self-described “nu-Goth Alternative Shoppe” and much of the art featured will complement the venue nicely. From what I’ve seen of the other artists, it is all a nice blend of disturbing, challenging, and creative work that Josh will be sharing space with and if you’re in the area, I recommend that you go see the work (it’ll be up at the store for about a month). More importantly, and I recommend this, if you want to meet and talk about art with Josh, head down to the shop on the evening of Friday, October 7 (tonight); he’ll talk your ear off. When Josh was in Sacramento, we spent about six hours inside the Crocker Art Museum, talking about nothing but art the entire time. So, if you want to get deep talking about art, Josh is up to the task.

Josh will have a few prints available at the venue during tonight’s event, so you can actually take home some of his work in addition to seeing it in person. Below are the pieces he’ll have hanging at Wells & Verne.

jtcerberus

Cerebus, oil on canvas, 2013.

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Children With Sticks, oil on canvas.

To be honest, while the images themselves are pretty cool, seeing them in person is quite a different experience; they are huge.

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