In With the Old... In With the New
Transfuzion was started by Rafael Nieves and me to primarily collect our older material into trade paperbacks. Since its inception, it has expanded considerably from just our work to include many other talented folks. Surprisingly, we were also contacted by several creators to not just reprint material, but to provide an outlet for all new material.
Now, both Raf and I continue to work on new material but usually we had other publishing outlets (such as Desperado or Moonstone) for the new material. But the idea of putting out original work via Transfuzion had an appeal, yet I was hesitant. Releasing a smattering of new releases amongst all the reprint material would undoubtedly cloud the success of the new material since most people only thought of us as a "reprint" house.
We started to get more queries and in fact, at first, I turned them down. But it seemed that we had people who were willing to take the gamble with Transfuzion. Raf and I decided that if were going to launch any original graphic novels, it should be one of us to release the first book. Whether karma or incentive, Raf got going on his The Apocalypse Plan with artist Dan Dougherty who not only turned in a stunning visual job, but was exceptionally quick with it.
So, The Apocalypse Plan would be the first. We talked with Diamond Comics and they said that they liked it and even spotlighted it in the current Diamond Previews. Here's a brief blurb on it.
"What
if Heaven and Hell were corporations, and instead of sales, their charts tracked
souls? And what if one company decided to initiate a hostile takeover of the
other? It is
the story of Revelations as each company is vying for control of the 'market'
(mankind). And while there are battles, to be sure, the feel of them, for the
most part, are more akin to an action/adventure or espionage thriller than to
any Judeo-Christian/Greco-Roman, Biblical visualization. See why Brian Azzarello called it
'"A taut, terrific graphic
novel."
So, The Apocalypse Plan will be released in December. Following that, we have a number of all new books in the pipeline. From Aleister Gilgrim, the creator of Slave Labor's The Cemeterians, Ferrymen tells the story of a recently deceased girl and is transported to the after-life. She quickly discovers that the after-life is nothing compared to what she expected and is briskly swept up in a twisted plot of intrigue, deception and danger between the Dead Realms. This graphic novel grew from a short story for Rising Stars of Manga from TokyoPop.
Two all new tales of H.P. Lovecraft are in the works and I'll spotlight them soon. Both bring a new sense of dynamic illustration to the class works. In addition, there are some other projects which would be a bit premature to talk about but there are a number of original graphic novels coming.
But Transfuzion will also be releasing collections of previously published material that we feel deserves a compilation, especially with such gems as Vietnam Journal which we intend on collecting the entire comic series.
I look forward to telling more about some of these really exciting projects. For now, you can check out more information about Transfuzion's current and upcoming releases with out online preview magazine and catalog, Transfuzion Cap.
TITLE
SPOTLIGHT
GHOST
SONATA
A
young man, born with a rare ability to sense the feelings and thoughts of
others, is plunged into a family of despair and secrets from years gone past.
He becomes an unwillingly participant and joins the legacy of torment in the
poisonous lies and deceit that have invaded the house. A saga of lost
opportunities and vengeful hate. Based loosely on the play from August
Strindberg. Written by Gary Reed and illustrated by Andy Bennett.
CREATOR SPOTLIGHT
A brief
look at one of the creators from Transfuzion.
Andy Bennett grew up on Marvel Comics in the 80's, but his work today is far-removed from those 4-color Reagan-era titles. After graduating from the Columbus College of Art & Design in 1995, he fell into publishing with Caliber Comics. His projects ranged far and wide, from anthology shorts in the award-winning anthology Negative Burn, to single-issue stories for titles like Saint Germaine, to longer projects like the 4-part series Ghost Sonata. His rough-hewn ink work struck a chord with fans of comics work by George Pratt, Kent Williams, and Dave McKean. He continues to work quietly on the fringe, lending his distinct inky drawings to titles like Vampire: The Masquerade, Kolchak the Night Stalker, and others. He is also a member of the Columbus, Ohio self-publishing collective, PANEL.
Q&A x5
1.
What do
you consider your first major project and your thoughts on it?
Ghost
Sonata at Caliber was definitely my fist major project, and at around 100 pages,
is still easily the longest single project I've ever tackled. It kind of came
out of nowhere, too. I had been sending samples around for a long time to a lot
of places, and finally connected with Jim and Joe Pruett from Caliber at
Mid-Ohio-Con in 1995. Joe published a single-page story of mine in Negative
Burn, and then, out of the blue, I get a call about this project.
Looking back on it now, I see it as a tremendous learning experience; being thrown into the deep end, head-first, as it were. After being in comics now as long as I have, I know I would never have given me that job at the time! But the work ethic and skills I picked up over the course of those 4 issues still inform my process today.
2.
Of all the projects you've worked on, what was your favorite?
I don't
really have a clear favorite, honestly. But it was an honor to get to work with
Guy Davis on Saint Germaine: Man in the Iron Mask. Guy has always been one of
my favorite artists and top influences, ever since Baker Street, so that was a
bit of a star-struck moment, to get to work on a book with him.
3. If you could return to
any of your previous projects, which would it be?
I
enjoyed doing the White Wolf graphic novel adaptations at Moonstone. It seemed
like those always came along at bad times, and I could never really give them
the attention they deserved, though. I'd like to really un-cork on one of those.
But really, I'd rather move on to bigger and better things than return to
something I've already done.
4. If you could do any
project, what would it be?
I want
to work with Neil Gaiman. Ideally on an Endless project-but I'm not fussy J
5. Who has worked in
comics for awhile and should be much better known?
Michael Gaydos. I met him long, long ago when we were both at Caliber, and he's
been just splendid. Everything he touches is just positively inspirational.
Becky Cloonan. Like Gaydos, she should be a household name by now. She melds an
inky, Paul Pope approach to a distinctly Manga sensibility, and it's unlike
anything else out there. And she's an absolute powerhouse of productivity. One
of my heroes.
Information
I have a personal site at
www.B3NN3TT.com, but I update frequently on my DeviantART page as well, at
http://b3nn3tt.deviantart.com
What's Next?
By the time you read this, the 14th volume of PANEL will be out and
available from Ferret Press. It's an independent anthology series that I've been
associated with since issue #1, along with several other talented creators from
Ohio. I contribute a short story (usually 5 to 10 pages) to every issue; it's
published twice a year.
I have a story in Matt Dembicki's "Trickster", which is a collection of Native American folk-tales written by noted Native American writers. It will be showing at Book Expo this spring from Fulcrum Press, and released to bookstores shortly thereafter.
I'm currently working on an issue of The Phantom: Generations for Moonstone Books, and providing art for a comics-based PC game, tentatively titled "EX1LE", from Brighter Minds Media.
Gary Reed is the publisher of Transfuzion Publishing and was the former publisher of Caliber Comics. As a writer, he has written a number of graphic novels and comics including Saint Germaine, Deadworld, Baker Street, Renfield, Raven Chronicles, A Murder of Scarecrows, and others. Outside of Talking Transfuzion, he has his regular blog covering a wide variety of topics at reedgary.blogspot.com and his website www.garyreed.net
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