Here’s a video of me pitching my book SMOKER as one of the finalists in the inaugeral Comic Book Challenge in San Diego in 2006:

We had to submit one page of art with our original 1-page pitch. The art that they all (including Marc Silvestri) mention liking so much was this page, by the talented Ryan Sergeant:

Don’t worry. This project is still happening. That somewhat beleaguered hat I’m wearing was a hand-me-down from my dad. For a couple years, I used it and another thrift-store hat similar to it in an experiement to visually brand myself when I went to cons. Apparently it worked, because last month at NYCC I still had people I couldn’t remember recognize me as the “guy with the hat”.

Ultimately, I’m quite glad Comic Book Challenge didn’t work out, because I wouldn’t own SMOKER if it had. This is a pattern I’m noticing. I think maybe signing away something (even partially) will be worth it in terms of exposure, but as the reality gets closer and closer I cringe more and more until I can’t really do it. I simply believe too strongly in owning my won work. Case in point, I’ve been developing a Zuda entry. My friend David Gallaher was the first winner with his and Steve Ellis’s comic High Moon, and when I talked to him at NYCC he had nothing…nothing…bad to say about them. But still, as I develop the project, now I want to take it to Image instead. We’ll see. It may still need to go somewhere like Zuda so my artist can get paid…