Tag Archives: Nick Abadzis

“Curses! Foiled Again”, “Nico”, & The Phoenix

“Curses! Foiled Again”, the sequel to “Foiled” by Jane Yolen and I, is set to be released on January 8th, 2013 by First Second Books. A bunch of very good advance reviews are already in from Kirkus, Booklist, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal and Voya, and the book’s been awarded a 2012 Junior Library Guild Selection. That all adds up to a great beginning for the New Year. Check out the reviews on the “Foiled” page, HERE.

Meanwhile, I’ve been working on a few things, including a project at Aaron Augenblick animation studios here in Brooklyn, where I was able to learn quite a bit of Flash, spent some time working on a Cintiq tablet, and met a bunch of very awesome animators and cartoonists. Meanwhile, I’m still plugging away at Decelerate Blue, my current graphic novel with author Adam Rapp for First Second Books, making my way through the pencils, a little slower than I’d like, but getting good results, I think. Also, just finished writing, penciling, inking and (hand!) lettering a new Nico Bravo story for The Phoenix Weekly Comic Magazine in the U.K.

The Phoenix is a British weekly anthology comic magazine for kids with contributions from cartoonists like Nick Abadzis, Patrice Aggs, John Aggs, Gary Northfield, and many others, including myself. The comics themselves are beautifully produced, funny, silly, sometimes even educational, and (stunningly) are all creator-owned! I can’t think of another comics magazine that’s even remotely similar. I don’t normally rave about something I’m actually contributing to, but every so often you get the opportunity to participate in something that you know is special and unique, and almost too good to be true. The Phoenix is one of these.

This week, The Phoenix launched their iPad app and are offering a pretty amazing introductory subscription rate — six months of weekly comics for £9.99 (UK) / $13.99 (US) if you place your order during the first week of the app’s launch.

It’s a great way to introduce yourself and some lucky young comics fan to the variety, fun, and quality The Phoenix has to offer.

The link to the iTunes app is:
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/phoenix-weekly-story-comic/id583824799?mt=8

You’ll get the whole first book of CORA’S BREAKFAST by Nick Abadzis and future episodes of NICO BRAVO by me, plus many other stories by top-notch British cartoonists. Please lend your support by sharing the link, especially with parents of kids who are into comics.

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MoCCA weekend

I had a better time at this year’s MoCCA Arts Festival 2011 than I’ve had there in the past couple years, certainly since the Festival’s move from the Puck Building downtown to the 25th Street Armory. I’m not sure what made the difference this time around. It may all come down to my own disposition.

I sketched for an hour each day at the MoCCA gallery table. $25 – $35 per sketch, all proceeds going to the gallery itself. Also there were artists Rick Parker, Simon Fraser, Dean Haspiel, Bob Sikoryak, Bill Plympton, Nick Abadzis, Mo Willems and others.

Mo and I worked together for many years on the Cartoon Network animated series “Codename: Kids Next Door.” Since he launched his juggernaut children’s book career, I haven’t seen much of him, so it was nice to chat for a while. I did a few drawings: a femme fatale, Savior 28, and Ben 10.

Got to talk to the folks at First Second Books, who published my graphic novel with Jane Yolen, “Foiled”, and are publishing the sequel, “Curses, Foiled Again!” (I’m working on it…)

Also met and spoke with Doug Bratton, the NY Metro area chapter head of the National Cartoonists Society.

Of course, I picked up a few gems. Please pardon the lousy Mac camera photos.

From the Abrams table, the single-volume collection of Brian Walker’s “The Comics”, one of the most exhaustive written histories available on the subject of newspaper comic strips in America.

From the NBM table, Nicolas De Crecy’s “Salvatore”.

I didn’t actually get this at the con, but the enormous “The Mighty Thor” Omnibus arrived yesterday. It collects all the Walter Simonson Thor comics from the 80’s. It’s huge. The recoloring, by the way, is a great improvement over previous editions and collections of this material.

www.mikecavallaro.com
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