An unexpected pinup.

Karin Rindevall has been a colorist on Teddy and the Yeti since there WAS a Teddy and the Yeti to be colored, and she recently surprised me with a fun little pinup of the characters. Never has the Yeti looked more cute.

Karin's not just a fantastic colorist, but as you can see here she's got her own distinct style with her drawing as well. I can't quite put my finger on the exact reason I like it so much (and I do), but I will say she mixes an Asian and European style (in my opinion) together better than anyone I've seen before. You can check out more of Karin's work here and here!

IN...TER...VIEWWWW

I was recently interviewed by Richard Vasseur on Teddy and the Yeti. I probably yammered on too long about things, but I figured that if I was going to have a chance to talk T&Y, I might as well talk A LOT. That's one of my very own keys to writing - if you can't do quality, the least you can do is quantity.

I'll post the first question and response here...because this post would be a little thin on words without it (not that that's stopped me before), but you can find the entire interview here. READ IT!

Richard: What is the basic storyline of "Teddy and the Yeti"?

Jeff: The first issue of any new title is a balancing act, I think, because you've got to tell a compelling story while fitting in a lot of exposition in the meantime. The first issue of Teddy and the Yeti is no different - we'll learn a little bit about our character's origins, but that serves as a backdrop to the main plot of the issue. Very simply, Ted is part of a global defense agency, and he's partnered with an Abominable Snowman. Their jobs, which will become more well defined over time, involve protecting the planet against anything that threatens it. In this first issue, Ted is kidnapped and the Yeti has to go after him, which sets up the reemergence of a character from their past.

Pat Olliffe covers Teddy and the Yeti

Pat Olliffe has a lot going for him in my book. He's got a smooth, consistent style, he's reliable in a time where artists seem to jump from project to project without taking the time to put their mark on a book, he's from the Pittsburgh area and as such almost assuredly cheers for the Super Bowl champion Steelers, and he's working on a cover to Teddy and the Yeti.

I met Pat, probably best known for his long run on Spider-Girl, a few years ago at the Pittsburgh Comicon, and it's always been one of my goals to work with him eventually. Since I've got the book coming out at the end of the year, it seemed like a good time to give it a try. At this year's con, I managed to have a conversation with him and over the last few weeks we worked on the details of the cover sketch you see on the right of this post.

Obviously, this is just a sketch and not a final product, but I needed to show it off in any case. I can't wait to see how it all turns out. Thanks, Pat!

...what's he LOOKING at?

To answer the title, probably a hot dog or something. Wait, scratch that...Rusty would never be so calm in there were a hot dog dangling over his head.

I got in contact with Carla Wyzgala a few months ago to possibly create a cover for Teddy and the Yeti. She's a great artist and her watercolors really stood out to me, and I thought that something of that nature might in turn stand out on a comic cover. We're still working the details out on the cover idea, but in the meantime I couldn't help but commission a spot illustration of my dog Rusty. Above are the results!

I love that dog. I'm going to try and get him in the book if at all possible.

And now...Paul Little!

New to the Teddy and the Yeti team is colorist Paul Little, who's helping to pick up some of the slack on a few of the pages in issue #2. Paul is something of a lifesaver - he's stepped in and kept things moving when the book could be mired in some fairly serious delays. Thanks to him and his great work, I'm confident that the second issue will be in stores on time.

Let me qualify that, I suppose - there was NO way I was going to let issue #2 slip from its in-store date (February 2010). But Paul has made it simpler for me, and with him at the reins I don't have to do an artist search and wade through samples to find someone whose style fits the book, and thank goodness for that.

In any case, I'm doing my best to make sure that each aspect of the book (writing, art, colors, letters, bananas) flows together as seamlessly as possible. While that's not always 100% possible, we're not missing a beat with Paul on colors. Welcome aboard, fella!

I have a hard time not getting excited by this.

Even though they've done their best to make the Hulk ridiculously strong to the point where I guess he can break planets in half, even though the same people have depowered the Thing to the point where he can't quite stand up to the Hulk in the same way he did back in the 60s, even though the Red Hulk isn't the "real" Hulk to begin with, even though there's no way they'd let the Thing beat the Hulk in the Hulk's own book at the very beginning of a new storyline, there's something about this that really makes me want to buy it. BEAT HIS ASS, THING! Friggin' Hulk.

pinup

Here's a new pinup of Teddy and the Yeti from Mario Wytch, artist on Arcana's upcoming Kutter Blaque. A colored version of this will show up in the second issue of the book! This is what Ted would look like if he decided to grow a beard. Awesome.

That is all.

Teddy and the Yeti - scourge of the Internets

Perhaps "scourge" isn't the right word, but it sounded so cool when I was writing the title, I kept it. We all live with disappointments.

One of the most satisfying things about slowly introducing Teddy and the Yeti to the outside world - and by "outside world" I mean "now more than three people potentially know about it" - is witnessing people I've never met discuss the book and characters. It lends a bit of relevance to them...or at least it's fun to find when I, once a day at least, type "Teddy and the Yeti" (using the quotes) into Google's search engine. Below are some of the results I've found, and they are each very exciting in their own ways.

Badger Comics, an online retailer, was to my knowledge the first site to offer Teddy and the Yeti #1 as a pre-order. In fact, it's listed first on the list of Google's results, even before the actual homepage. Why www.teddyandtheyeti.com isn't listed first is confounding - the website is the EXACT name you're typing in...but oh well. Perhaps that means that lots of people are going to Badger Comics and pre-ordering the book.

Exclamation Comics is a retailer based out of the Netherlands (the Netherlands!). For reasons unknown, they've "hand picked"(?) the first issue of Teddy and the Yeti as a title they think you, the discerning reader, will enjoy. They've even given me my own hyperlinked name that leads to a list of books I've worked on...which currently includes one book. Someone (ahem) should set them straight and let them know that I have two or three books out. Come on, Netherlands! Get it together!

On a Comic Book Resources blog about books coming out in December, my new best friend Josh B. asks "What about Teddy and the Yeti #1? It's right at the back of the comic section and easy to miss, but it's got a Phil Hester cover and the promise of at least one yeti!" Well, Josh, I hope I don't disappoint you when I reveal that the book only has one Yeti. It sounds like you were hoping for me. I swear that I do not know who "Josh B." is. The "Larry" who posts later on...yeah, I know him, so that one doesn't count.

Lastly, I just about fell out of my hypothetical chair when I learned that HOH Comics is taking pre-orders of the first issue on eighth wonder of the world eBay! I have no idea if anyone is ordering the book or not (the information on the site says that they have 100 available), but just having something of mine on eBay...it fills me with emotions that possibly amount to pride. Hopefully not of the "seven deadly sins" variety, but hey, I'll take what I can get.

Cover preview, part 4

Remember when I told you that I wasn't actively trying to produce more Mr. Massive material (ALLITERATION!!)? Well, it's still true. Even so...there was a time when I thought I'd make it big with the character, and I did try in earnest to drum up some support for a Mr. Massive title.

As we all know, judging a book by its cover is just fine and dandy, which is why people pay so much attention to comic book covers - they are always EXACTLY INDICATIVE of what is going on inside. As I was peddling Mr. Massive around the Comic-Con International in 2006, I managed to convince all around great guy Todd Nauck to draw a cover for the book - it was planned that we'd do a second issue and it would be the main cover.

For a number of reasons, that never happened, and the world was deprived of a great cover for far too long. As Mr. Massive will be featured in Teddy and the Yeti's second issue backup tale, I figured that I might not get another chance to use this gem of a cover. Obviously, I'm not going to use it as the main cover for the book, but I wanted to use it somewhere, so it's getting the back cover spot - a criminally poor place for such a great piece of work, but better than sitting on my hard drive indefinitely, gathering digital dust.

I've posted the black and white inked version on the main site, but here's a little clip of the colored version - Karin Rindevall once again helped out and did a great job. To find the cover on issue #2, here's some instructions:

1) buy the book

2) flip it over

Viola!

Other stuff, part 3 - Mr. Massive

Mr. Massive isn't a project that I'm actively pursuing right now, but it'll always have a special place in my heart because it was the first full-size book I actually took the time to work on from start to finish and self publish.

The character himself is something of a spoof of DC's Captain Marvel or maybe even the more obscure Prime - he's a kid who turns into a superhero with unbelievable powers, except he uses them for all selfish reasons and very few of the right ones. Think of a superhero with attention deficit disorder and you're on the right track.

The theme of the book is pretty much straight up comedy, which I'm a huge fan of but can realize that it's difficult to find an outlet for such a concept. The picture at top is probably the best work that artist and co-creator Artboy_X (I'm not sure if he's still calling himself that) has ever done - he certainly took his time and got all the details right. The book itself is one that I can still read and get a chuckle from, and I'm notoriously hard on my own work after I'm a little bit removed from it, so that tells me that something was right with it.

I'm taking the time to mention this because Mr. Massive will be featured in the backup story to Teddy and the Yeti issue #2, which I'm currently getting ready for print. The short story features art by the illustrious Paul Tucker and you can find a preview in the comics section of the main site.

Some characters that I work on or try to develop lose steam after a while, but I find myself able to write down new jokes for the big guy pretty much any time I give it a chance. Maybe some day I'll get to return to this character.

Other stuff, part 2.1 - The Partisan redesign

Paul Tucker is both prolific and consistently good at what he does, which makes him a rarity in the comic book biz (the "z" makes it sound cool). I mentioned a little while ago that he and I are working on a title called "The Partisan", which features our main character versus everyone else in existence.

While putting one of our many stories together, Paul decided that Duranko, the lead character, could use a subtle redesign, and here are his results. Almost every part of his outfit hails from a different part of the globe - it's easy to see early American, Chinese and African influences in each of these new designs. It's things like this that make it such a pleasure to work with Paul on the various projects that we've been a part of.

Paul has a pin up of Teddy and the Yeti in the first issue of the book, and if all falls into place, he'll be drawing the short Mr. Massive backup tale in issue #2. Maybe one day we'll get a collection together with all our Partisan stories and share them. I know I'd love to see it.

Cover preview, part 3

If you look back far enough, you'll find cover previews parts 1 and 2...posted December 12th and 13th of last year. This one is a bit overdue, but once the whole thing is seen, I think it'll be worth the wait.

Wednesday of this week is the deadline to send solicitation information and cover images to Diamond for inclusion in the December Previews catalogue, and as such, I thought it'd be a nice time to show a little preview of the cover to Teddy and the Yeti issue #2.

Issues #1 and 3 will have covers drawn by Phil Hester and Tom Scioli, respectively, but this cover is all Duane's, and I have to say that he's done a knockout job. The detail, the action, the...ninjas...it's all a sight to behold.

Colors on this cover are once again by Karin Rindevall. You'll be able to see the whole cover, logos and all, pretty soon.

(Very) Strange Tales

I think that Marvel's new indy-style anthology, Strange Tales (this has got to be at least the fourth time they've used the title) is something the bigger companies should emulate more often - lesser-known but nonetheless talented creators working on out-of-continuity stories featuring big-name characters. While it does seem like Marvel threw this compilation together from stories they just had lying around the office (The Incorrigible Hulk feature was supposed to see print in, I think, 2003), I still applaud the effort, which can produce such gems as Jacob Chabot's entry, "Lookin' Good, Mr. Grimm!"

Chabot is probably best known for his creator-owned The Mighty Skullboy Army, which I'm a huge fan of - Dark Horse published a digest sized collection after it appeared in their Strip Search publication (which, ahem, I was also a part of), though right now he's providing the artwork for Marvel's X-Babies miniseries. Yeah...X-Babies. I never quite got the point behind the concept, but I'll vouch for the artwork, at least.

In any case, one panel of the Fantastic Four send up caught my attention. As everyone knows, because I am so tremendously famous and wealthy as a result of it, I have an online webseries called Franks and Beans that is so hilarious you just might die after watching it. Or something. Anyway, one of the earlier episodes is titled "Mustache", which features me growing a mustache and saying the phrase "Hey, mustache buddy!" That's...basically the joke for the episode. It's also close to the phrase in this Strange Tales issue, but you can tell that they are quite distinctive as Chabot spells his phrase "moustache". Which, now that I think about it, might be even funnier.

It's amazing - sometimes I write things other than comics.

Sometimes, in fact, I write a blog about comics. And sometimes, just sometimes, I write (in traditional bloggish fashion) about food on my friend Lauren's themed website. The site is called "The Grouchy Gastronome", and the author pretty much exclusively blogs about food that she hates or makes her mad in some form or another. It's like a therapy session with Denny's as the mediator.

In any case, my friend was kind enough to write a blurb promoting Teddy and the Yeti, so I'm returning the favor by advertising her site to my millions and millions of readers. I've got a blog up there right now about Dairy Queen ice cream or some such noise, which is reason enough to check it out, though the other entries are okay, too...I guess.

The website is www.thegrouchygastronome.com, and it's definitely worth a few minutes of your time. SO DO IT!

the mailer.

Because you can never do enough advertising (or spend enough money on it...), a few days ago I put together a mailer that I'm sending out to a bunch of shops - some of the ones that didn't get the preview books in the mail. I included the previous advertisement that worked its way into the Previews catalogue as well as a pandering letter to comic book shop owners everywhere.

Will this work? Who knows. But the post office is very happy with me lately, I'll say that.

The Human Torch is kind of a wimp.

Fanboy Comics, the local comic shop down my way, is currently having an "alphabet sale" - every week, titles that begin with certain letters of the alphabet are 50% off. Since I am a sucker, I've spent quite a few dollars at the shop filling holes in my collection - one which, I'm sure, will never be complete (that's the nature of it, I guess).

Last week was the week for letters Q, R, S and T, and I picked up four old issues of Strange Tales. I'm trying to pick up issues 101 through 134, which feature the Human Torch and eventually the Thing (following through on my Fantastic Four obsession).

These are early issues - early 1960s - which means two things: they can get a little expensive, and they can get a little silly. Case in point, issue #113, which has the Human Torch versus the forgettable villain the Plant Man (who, I believe, is still around in current issues).

Now, it's just a fact that a super hero's powers tend to vary depending on the challenge he or she faces - Superman will be juggling planets in one issue and struggling to defeat the Prankster in the next - and the Human Torch is a great example of this. He goes from burning his flame at "nova" strength - as hot as a star, I guess - to getting doused by a wayward fire hydrant.

Nowhere more is this evident than on the cover to Strange Tales #113, where we see the mighty Human Torch kept at bay by...dew. Come on, Johnny Storm. Come on.

The List.

As mentioned earlier, I've sent a lot of preview books this weekend to comic shops around the country (and one...to Vancouver). Below is that list...because I feel like posting it. If you see a shop around you, well, perhaps you can pick up one of the preview books (for free unless the owner is a jerk!). The preview book is still online if you wanna check it out, so don't get too broken up if you don't get one.

Maybe the shop you go to is on the list! WOULDN'T THAT BE SOMETHING?!

ASTROBRAIN COMICS

1934 OLD HIGHWAY 31 S

SUITE 340

PELHAM AL 35224

KINGDOM COMICS SUITE

#119 1425 MONTGOMERY HWY.

VESTAVIA HILLS, AL 35216

BOSCO'S 1

2606 SPENARD ROAD

ANCHORAGE, AK 99503

THE COMIC BOOK STORE

9307 TREASURE HILL ROAD

LITTLE ROCK, AR 72227

ALL ABOUT BOOKS & COMICS

5060 N. CENTRAL AVENUE

PHOENIX, AZ 85012

ATOMIC COMICS

4537 E. CACTUS RD

PHOENIX AZ 85032

SPAZDOG COMICS

21610 NORTH 35TH AVENUE SUITE 162

GLENDALE AZ 85308

COMIC ODYSSEY

SUITE 106 3400 E 8TH ST

NATIONAL CITY CA 91950

COMIC ODYSSEY

SUITE 106

3400 E 8TH ST

NATIONAL CITY CA 91950

COMICS FACTORY

1298 E. COLORADO BLVD

PASADENA CA 91106

EARTH- 2 COMICS

15017 VENTURA BLVD

SHERMAN OAKS CA 91403

GOLDEN APPLE

7018 MELROSE AVE

LOS ANGELES CA 90038

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA COMICS

8280 CLAIREMONT MESA BLVD #124

SAN DIEGO CA 92111

COMIX EXPERIENCE

305 DIVISADERO ST.

SAN FRANCISCO CA 94117

ALL IN A DREAM

2901 EAST COLFAX

DENVER CO 80206

ALTERNATE UNIVERSE

1181 CHAPEL STREET

NEW HAVEN CT 06511

THE BOOKIE

155 BURNSIDE AVENUE

EAST HARTFORD CT 06108

FANTOM COMICS

UNION STATION

50 MASS AVE. NE

WASHINGTON DC 20002

CAPTAIN BLUE HEN COMICS & ENT

280 E MAIN STREET SUITE 101

NEWARK DE 19711

BAD APPLE COMICS - UCF

12225 UNIVERSITY BLVD

ORLANDO FL 32817

SUPERHEROES UNLIMITED #2

1788 NE 163RD STREET

N.MIAMI BEACH FL 33162

YANCY STREET COMICS

9409 US HIGHWAY 19

UNIT 709A

PORT RICHEY FL 34668

DAVES COMICS & COLLECTIBLES

107 RAINBOW WAY

FAYETTEVILLE GA 30214

GECKO BOOKS & COMICS

1151 12TH AVE

HONOLULU HI 96816

LIMITED EDITION COMICS

2225 COLLEGE ST

CEDAR FALLS IA 50613

CAPTAIN COMICS, INC

710 VISTA

BOISE ID 83705

FIRST AID COMICS

1459 E 53RD ST SECOND FLOOR

CHICAGO IL 60615

GRAHAM CRACKERS COMICS OF DOWNERS GROVE

1550 OGDEN AVE

DOWNERS GROVE IL 60515

GRAHAM CRACKERS COMICS OF LINCOLN PARK

2562 NORTH CLARK ST.

CHICAGO IL 60614

METROPOLIS COMICS

821 FIRST STREET

LA SALLE IL 61301

BOOKS COMICS & THINGS

2212 MAPLECREST ROAD

FT. WAYNE IN 46815

DOWNTOWN COMICS

11 EAST MARKET ST

INDIANAPOLIS IN 46204

PRAIRIE DOG COMICS

4800 WEST MAPLE SUITE 122

WICHITA KS 67209

COMIC BOOK WORLD

6905 SHEPHERDSVILLE ROAD

LOUISVILLE KY 40219

LOUISIANA DOUBLE PLAY

2834 SOUTH SHERWOOD FOREST BLVD SUITE C-5

BATON ROUGE LA 70816

LARRY’S WONDERFUL WORLD OF COMICS

66 LAKEVIEW AVE

LOWELL MA 01850

NEW ENGLAND COMICS

95 PLEASANT ST.

MALDEN MA 02148

NEWBURY COMICS

FANEUIL HALL MARKETPLACE NORTH MARKET BUILDING

BOSTON MA 02115

CHUCK'S COMICS

530 EASTERN BLVD.

BALTIMORE MD 21221

THIRD EYE COMICS

15 OLD SOLOMONS ISLAND RD SUITE 102

ANNAPOLIS MD 21401

CASABLANCA COMICS

151 MIDDLE STREET

PORTLAND ME 04101

VAULT OF MIDNIGHT

219 S MAIN

ANN ARBOR MI 48104

COMIC BOOK COLLEGE

3151 HENNEPIN AVENUE

MINNEAPOLIS MN 55408

ALL AMERICAN COLLECTIBLES/MO'S COMICS

6510 CHIPPEWA ST

ST. LOUIS MO 63109

FANBOY COMICS AND CARDS

3901 A WRIGHTSVILLE AVENUE

WILMINGTON NC 28403

HEROES AREN'T HARD TO FIND INC.

1957 EAST 7TH STREET

CHARLOTTE NC 28204

THE SPLASH PAGE

2545 CENTRAL AVENUE

SUITE C

BILLINGS, MT 59102

PARADOX COMICS-N-CARDS

26 ROBERTS STREET

FARGO NC 58102

GROUND ZERO HOBBY

794 FT. CROOK ROAD SOUTH

BELLEVUE NE 68005

CHRIS'S CARDS & COMICS

341 SOUTH BROADWAY ROUTE 28

SALEM NH 03079

THE FALLOUT SHELTER

27 BAYARD ST

NEW BRUNSWICK NJ 08901

TRADERS OF BABYLON

265 FIRST STREET

HOBOKEN NJ 07030

COMIC OASIS

3121 N RAINBOW BLVD

LAS VEGAS NV 89108

ALL HEROES

4410 LAKE AVENUE

ROCHESTER NY 14612

CHAMELEON COMICS & CARDS

3 MAIDEN LANE

NEW YORK NY 10038

FORBIDDEN PLANET

840 BROADWAY

NEW YORK NY 10003

JIM HANLEY'S UNIVERSE

4 WEST 33RD STREET

NEW YORK NY 10001

MIDTOWN COMICS

200 W 40TH STREET

NEW YORK NY 10018

ALL AMERICAN COMICS AND CARDS

1295 BORDMAN CANFIELD ROAD

BOARDMAN OH 44512

CAROL & JOHN'S COMIC BOOK SHOP

17448 LORAIN AVE KAMMS PLAZA

CLEVELAND OH 44111

THE LAUGHING OGRE

4258 NORTH HIGH STREET

COLUMBUS OH 43214

SPECTRUM COMICS

4328 MARKET ST.

YOUNGSTOWN OH 44512

MAMMOTH COMICS

4616 E 11TH STREET

TULSA OK 74112

COSMIC MONKEY COMICS

5335 NE SANDY BLVD

PORTLAND OR 97213

BRAVE NEW WORLDS

45 N. SECOND STREET

PHILADELPHIA PA 19106

DREAMSCAPE COMICS

302 WEST BROAD STREET

BETHLEHEM PA 18018

EIDE'S ENTERTAINMENT

1121 PENN AVENUE

PITTSBURGH PA 15222

IMPOSSIBLE DREAMS COMICS

523 WASHINGTON AVENUE

BRIDGEVILLE PA 15017

NEW DIMENSION COMICS

516 LAWRENCE AVE

ELLWOOD CITY PA 16117

NEW DIMENSION COMICS 2

3075 CLAIRTON RD #940

CENTURY III MALL 3RD FLOOR

WEST MIFFLIN PA 15123

NEW DIMENSION COMICS- MCMURRAY

113 E. MCMURRAY ROAD

MCMURRAY PA 15317

PHANTOM OF THE ATTIC

PARKWAY CENTER MALL

1165 MCKINNEY LANE

PITTSBURGH PA 15220

YUKON CARDS AND COMICS

1722 WEST MARKET STREET

LEWISBURG PA 17837

CAPTAIN'S COMICS & TOYS

1209-D SAM RITTENBURG BLVD.

CHARLESTON, SC

PLANET COMICS

2704 N MAIN ST

ANDERSON SC 29621

COMICS & COLLECTIBLES

4730 POPLAR STREET #2

MEMPHIS TN 38117

RICKS COMIC CITY

2710 OLD LEBANON RD SUITE 3

NASHVILLE TN 37214

AUSTIN BOOKS & COMICS

5001 NORTH LAMAR

AUSTIN TX 78751

AWESOME CARDS & COMICS

8420 ABRAMS RD STE 202

DALLAS TX 75243

BEDROCK CITY COMIC CO

6517 WESTHEIMER

HOUSTON TX 77057

LONE STAR COMICS

6465 E. MOCKINGBIRD LANE SUITE 362

DALLAS TX 75214

LONE STAR COMICS

1215 S. COOPER ST.

ARLINGTON TX 76010

UTAH

BLACK CAT COMICS INC

2261 SOUTH HIGHLAND SRIVE STE A

SALT LAKE UT 84106

DAVE'S COMICS

7019-F THREE CHOPT ROAD

RICHMOND VA 23226

DANGER ROOM COMICS

201 4TH AVENUE W.

OLYMPIA WA 98501

OLYMPIC CARDS & COMICS

4230 PACIFIC AVE

LACEY WA 98503

LOST WORLD OF WONDERS

6913 W. OKLAHOMA AVENUE

MILWAUKEE WI 53219

THE GREAT ESCAPE MARK’S COMICS AND GAMES

340 N MILITARY AVE

GREEN BAY WI 54303

COMIC BOY

3462 FAIRMONT ROAD

MORGANTOWN WV 26501

GOLDEN AGE COLLECTIBLES

852 GRANVILLE STREET

VANCOUVER BC V6Z1K3

CANADA