House of Fun Newsroom

The Dark Horse Book of Witchcraft is now available at comic shops and bookstores (as well as directly from darkhorse.com). This is the second volume in the DHC horror series of hardcover graphic novels based on a particular theme, the initial entry being the Book of Hauntings. The editors for the series are Scott Allie and Matt Dryer.

Several artists from Hauntings return with stories, including Mike Mignola, who provides another all-new Hellboy tale. New additions to the series roster include Tony Millionaire (Maakies, Sock Monkey), Mark Ricketts (Nowheresville), Sean Phillips (Hellblazer, The Invisibles), and Scott Morse (Soulwind, Ancient Joe).
Jill Thompson (Scary Godmother, Sandman) and I have contributed another story featuring the characters from "Stray", our entry in the Book of Hauntings. The book also features a vintage Clark Ashton Smith prose story illustrated by Gary Gianni, and an interview with a NYC-based Wiccan High Priestess who is also a lawyer and filmmaker. No, I'm not making that up.

Anyway, the Dark Horse Book of Witchcraft is 96 pages for $14.95, and sits on the shelves of professional comic shops and book stores as I type just waiting for you to pick it up.

On a related note, the aforementioned "Stray" story from the Book of Hauntings will be made available as a free giveaway comic from Dark Horse and Diamond Distributors this Halloween. Retailers can order bundles of the promotional booklet through Diamond Previews, 25 copies per bundle for a measly $3 to give away to kids and adults alike. There will also be Marvel and Archie Halloween-themed promotional books available as giveaways. If you're a retailer who is interested in this program, here's the links to check out:

www.86thfloor.com
http://www.86thfloor.com/Advance%20Order/July2004/catalogue/1_Diamond.htm

Posted by Evan at 10:27 PM | Permalink

I will be the emcee for this year's Harvey Awards presentation ceremony, which will be held this Saturday, June 25th as part of the MOCCA art festival taking place this weekend in New York City at the famed Puck building. Being the emcee means I will introduce presenters, attempt to crack wise and make an utter fool of myself without the safety shield of the comics page.

The Harvey Awards are given out each year to comic creators and projects in a variety of categories, which are nominated and voted for by creators and industry professionals. This year will be the first time the ceremony will be part of the MOCCA arts festival. The keynote speaker will be Neil Gaiman, and scheduled presenters include Jerry Robinson, Chester Brown, Kyle Baker, Joe Quesada, R.C. Harvey, Jeff Smith, Patrick McDonnell, among others. Many nominees are attending as well, so it should prove to be a fun evening, especially if anyone gets three sheets to the wind and gives a nutty speech. Other than me, that is.

There are still tickets available for the awards banquet, which allows attendees to enjoy a dinner before the ceremony, and I believe tickets will be available during Mocca on Saturday (but that might be a dicey proposition). The $60 tickets go directly to funding the awards program, renting the room, paying for the awards themselves, etc. Mocca attendees can take their chances and show up at the event at 9 p.m for free available seating (or standing) that is left, first come, first serve. I believe they might be asking for a suggested donation of $10, which isn't necessary for getting in, but such donations would help defray the very expensive costs of presenting the ceremony. If you can't make the awards, by all means try to make the festival, it looks like it will be a fantastic show, with scores of amazing creators on hand to sign, sell and talk about their work. For information on the Harvey Awards and the MOCCA festival, simply use the links provided below. Hope to see you at the show!

Harvey Awards
MOCCA

Posted by Evan at 12:08 AM | Permalink

Mad #443 features a one-page Dork-style comic strip I wrote and drew, making this my first solo contribution to the magazine. The strip is a parody of the VH1: Behind the Music series, chronicling the sordid career of Def Leppard drummer Rick Allens' severed left arm. Other contributors include comic Sergio Aragones, Marc Hempel, Danny Hellman and Peter Kuper. Mad #443 is now available at comic shops and newsstands for your purchasing or browsing pleasure.

Posted by Evan at 05:43 PM | Permalink