NYCC Recap and Updates!

I'm so tired! But it's a good tired.

Hello, all! I hope your October has been treating everyone well. The weather has finally cooled off here in Chicago, which helps immensely with my creative output. The warmer it is, the harder it is for me to get things done! It’s crazy I know, but true for me. Onward!

I returned from NYC on Sunday after an eventful week of signing, sketching, and hanging. I flew out two Mondays ago to Jersey, where I sketched and signed on ALL of the “Ballin” TF issue 1 Felix Comic Art basketball variants.

Needless to say, there was a LOT of books to sign and sketch, but we got it done, and all orders have shipped! Keep an eye in your mailbox if you haven’t received yours yet. Thank you to Felix and Lambert (pictured above) and Yams for their massive help in this endeavor!

We then traveled into the city and got ready for the show. I took a few pictures that I’m happy with. By no means do I consider myself a photographer, but sometimes I capture something I dig and thought I’d share:

Apologies for the photography shots! I know you’re here for comic and illustration goodness :) After sketching my butt off earlier in the week I didn’t have much to do, so I decided to try and push myself to do some blank sketch cover drawings. Felix had brought a ton, so why not? I love how these turned out! Prepare thyself!

I realize a bunch of these were already posted on social media, but I want to get into the habit of sharing things on here, as I don’t know how much longer I’ll be on those platforms. If I’m honest, they seem to suck the joy of many parts of my life, and this newsletter is already a much healthier experience in the few posts I’ve made! These sketch covers will be available during Felix Comic Art’s New York Felix Con, starting this monday. Check it out!

I also had a young fan named Brandon that wanted to see me on Sunday, but I wasn’t going to be there for the last day of NYCC. Good thing his awesome dad brought me some fanart Brandon did for me! This piece is beautiful! Thank you, Brandon!

For all the people that brought me gifts at the show, thank you so much. I wish I had enough time to share it all, but I will do my best to highlight those things on my weekly Friday livestream!

And last but not least, there is an update coming to my shop at Danielwarrenart.com! I’m working on a NEW Do a Powerbomb tee shirt design, as well as re printing the black tee from last year. We will be taking pre orders this time, and leave it open for about a week in November so we can mail things out in time for the holiday. Keep an eye out for an email about that very soon, within a week! Here is a little WIP of the new shirt design:

This will be available in either long sleeve or short sleeve style. The front is being designed as we speak! Also, is anyone out there fluent in Japanese? I want to include Katakana on this shirt, but I want to make sure I do it justice, so that it not only looks correct, but AWESOME. Let me know!

And speaking of can’t wait, I’m traveling to JAPAN in a little over two weeks! The last time I went was in August of 2015. It was on the plane ride there that I wrote the first issue of Extremity, and in during the five days I was in Tokyo, I gathered a multitude of inspiration and excitement for making my own stories and sharing them with the world.

That last picture was from our last night in Tokyo. (left to right, it’s Nick Dragotta, Felix Lu, Garry Brown, Chris Mooneyham, James Harren, Nick Pitarra) We were all gathered around the lounge area of our hostel, drawing with our newly purchased brush pens and screentones. I remember being so pumped up, the lines flowing out of me like they were already drawn a century ago. This was the first time I felt like I was a true peer of my fellow comic book creators. Something clicked for me then. I knew what it was I wanted to do, and I had a good idea of how to get there. I left that place ready to hit the ground running and prove myself to the rest of the world. I’ll never forget that feeling. And now, eight years later, it feels like it was meant to be, as I build a brand new world with the sci-fi book I’m writing now, and will be drawing soon!

I will be doing my absolute best to give updates from Tokyo and Osaka, and I’m bringing my video equipment to show vlog style me hunting for some manga and artistic inspiration I know I’ll gather as I make my way though this beautiful country.

Let’s end things with yet another panel from The Forbidden Library:

This is taken from Tradd Moore’s DR. STRANGE-FALL SUNRISE series, and it’s my favorite panel in the whole story. This book is wild, punk rock, and richly detailed. It feels like it was a miracle it got made, and that miracle shines through every page. Thank you for this treasure, Tradd!

Until next time,

-DWJ