MAY IS A MONTH OF TRANSITIONS in many ways. It's the ending of one book tour, for example, and the start of another which will focus on a new title releasing this month from Dark Horse Books—Sons of Ashgard: Ill Met In Elmgard. It's also my first graphic novel release with the publisher, which is something I've been looking forward to for quite some time. The idea was originally conceived of back in 2014 but really wouldn't take off until four years later when I finally found myself working with an artist and with a book deal to publish the finished work. But that finishing would take some time too—we'd have to deal with challenges from global pandemics to challenges in production and other varied matters that saw things ultimately delayed or halted until we could finally get something locked in for a release date...in 2023.
So to say I've been working on this for some time isn't an exaggeration. The best part, though, is that it's finally finished and going to be released in just a few days at the time of this writing. The last challenge we had to endure is having us work with a split release date that saw the comic stores getting the title on May 10th and the bookstores on June 6th. Not ideal, but still workable and still within the same month.
The better news is that the tour supporting the title will still continue as originally planned. So folks will still be able to pick up copies of their graphic novels wherever events have been established as well as comic shops nationwide from the start of the official release date. It's a bit of an odd development, I know, but shouldn't hinder folks from ultimately securing a copy of their own, which is really the true end goal of all of this.
May is also a busy time as I continue to work on proofs and edits for other stories while seeking to write some new ones as best I'm able, letting me have a sense of completion on one front while simultaneously pondering if I'm ever going to get ahead on the other. But it beats having nothing happening and certainly gives me something to look forward to and be about each day. I'll be looking forward to sharing more news about these and other things soon enough. For now, though, enjoy your May.