Rum Row 1-2

Over 200 Backers!
almost 7 years ago – Sat, Jul 22, 2017 at 10:34:17 PM

Hey Gang, 

You guys are awesome! We're past the 200 backer amount and 60% funded. Thank you so much for making that a reality. Only 15% more to go, and we unlock another milestone goal and a free comic. 

In this update, I wanted to include some more behind the scenes stuff. We received a lot of really positive feedback on the last one, so I think you'll like this as well. Today, I want to show you the process of how we came up with the look and style of the sky district Harlem Skyland. A big influence was the old jazz clubs during Prohibition, particularly the Cotten Club. Here's some pics I gave Michele for reference:

We wanted to take that big lights, glitz and glam, and partying feel to the skies. Take a look at Michele's initial concept sketch for the district. He really blew me away.

Don't you wish this was actually real? Heh, I want to go there! I mean just don't look down I suppose...

Well that's it for our little process bit this update, but before we go I wanted to highlight another great Kickstarter I backed. It's Unmasked Vol. 2 by Michael Sarrao and John Broglia. 

UNMASKED VOLUME 2: PROMETHEAN is an action packed superhero adventure, and the continuation of the successful Unmasked series that kickstarted in 2012. This is actually the book's 5 year anniversary! Some of you believe it or not might recognize John's work elsewhere as well. 

That's right, John did a pin up for Rum Row for issue #1! John's an amazing talent, and Michael has set up a great concept. Definitely check them out here.

Alright, I'll leave you all to have a great weekend. Feel free to message me if you have any questions. Please spread the word on social media if you can. We're just under 2 weeks to go, with 40% to go, so let's get this project funded! Thanks again.

Best,

Andrew

Turning Garbage into Art
almost 7 years ago – Tue, Jul 18, 2017 at 10:57:45 PM

Hey Gang,

We're at almost 200 backers with 17 days still to go! If we end up meeting our funding goal, we'll just about double our previous campaign record. That's amazing. Thank you everyone for the support, it really means a lot. 

I know we didn't get to touch on process stuff in the last update, so I wanted to include a quick little segment that I thought you would all enjoy. There's a big "back and forth" aspect that goes into making comics. Writers and artists pitch ideas back and forth (at least ideally), until the best possible outcome is reached. Hopefully with a piece of each creator, making something entirely better than either could have made on their own. This process can get bogged down though, since most of the communication is done via email. We may get a quick Skype call in, but with different timezones and even different languages, email may turn out to be the best option. Although sometimes, words just aren't enough. That's where my horrible drawings come in. Then despite my garbage, my extremely talented collaborators are able to turn them into art. Let me show you some examples:

My version of the aerial map I did for Rum Row: 

Michele's Version:

A little different huh? Then take my sketch I sent Goran Gligovic for his art print. 

 Now Goran blowing me clean out of the water and into another galaxy. 

Pretty cool right? It just goes to show you, that as long as you can get your point across, that maybe everything will turn out okay. (As long as you're working with superstar talents of course). But you know...

So that's all for this update, but I wanted to spotlight another couple awesome projects out there I backed recently on Kickstarter. First up is Fraser Campbell and James Corcoran's Alex Automatic. 

Driven mad by illegal Government experiments, a young agent believes he is the robot super-spy hero of 70s TV show, Alex Automatic. With that art, and that story premise, how can you not read this?! I gobbled up this first issue when it launched on Kickstarter, so I was beyond ecstatic when this went live. Check it out here.

Then we have The Wild Cosmos by Curtis C and Mauro Mandalari. This book is beautiful! 

Explore derelict space stations to lush alien rainforests with captain Cooper and his crew of five. I was so sold. Not to mention Curtis is a local Southern California creator like myself. You can check it out here.

That's all for now! I'm here if you have any questions. 

Best,

Andrew

Milestone Goal Unlocked
almost 7 years ago – Fri, Jul 14, 2017 at 06:49:52 PM

Hey Gang,

We did it! We are now over 50% funded, with 3 weeks still to go. Even better, that means we unlocked another milestone goal. More free comics for you guys!

For this reward, I wanted to include another gem that deserves more attention called Silence. Silence was fully funded on Kickstarter, and written and drawn by Devin Kraft. 

The story follows a band of girls in a yellow submarine as they try to stop the sirens that sang the men in their coastal town to shipwreck.

It's a beautiful book, with an original and fresh premise. Definitely give it a read. You can download Silence and our previous 25% milestone goal, Archon for free here.

Before we go, I wanted to spotlight a couple other great titles I recently backed on Kickstarter. The first is Rohan Fraser's Blokkan: Robot Stories. I first came across Rohan's work when I saw this cover from the series, and I was sold. 

It's a bright, action-packed comedy series about robot adventures! What else do you need? You can check it out here.

Next we have Curse of the Vessel by Micheal Leal. 

The story follows a cursed criminal, vengeful ghosts, sass mouthed witches & grizzled lawmen as they collide in this Supernatural Crime Thriller! Art and premise looks great, and I can't wait to read it. Check it out here.

Well that's all for now. I promise to have some more process stuff next update, but I wanted to make sure you guys get your milestone goal rewards. Keep up the great work of spreading the word on social media, every little bit helps. I've seen the tweets and shares, that's huge. Talk to you soon. 

Best,

Andrew

Almost halfway there!
almost 7 years ago – Tue, Jul 11, 2017 at 03:53:17 PM

Hey Gang,

We're moving right along, at a nice brisk pace thanks to all of you. At 146 backers with 24 days to go still, I think we may end up beating my previous backer records. Not to mention, at 46% we're only 4% away from our next milestone goal. Which we know means more free comics, just for being a backer! If you've only backed recently, you can download the first milestone goal comic - Archon, here. 

In our first update, you got to see a quick character concept for Rum Row issue #2. As we move forward with the updates, I want to continue to sprinkle in little process and behind the scenes bits. Maybe throw in some real world history as well. The goal is not to overwhelm anybody, or bog you down with too many updates of course. But just add a little extra spice to each update when we post new information. For this update, I want to include some random photos I came across in my research, that I just have to share. Some of these you may even recognize making it into the final product. Who's to say? So let's began...

So that wraps this portion of "Rum Row Behind the Scenes"... (Placeholder title for this segment of course. Open to taking suggestions). But before we go, I just wanted to highlight a few other great Kickstarter projects out there for you to check out. 

First off is Plague Doctor, another alternate history project that looks fantastic. 

Welcome to 13th century England. The most deadly plague in history, The Black Death, has ravaged the country claiming millions of lives. Our story concerns a young Plague Doktor and his calling to help the sick and dying. But as our Doktor enters the next infected village on his journey, he finds himself in a surreal, metaphysical battle for the fate of all humanity! A tale that spans millennia awaits! You can check it out here.

Second is Word Smith. A Steampunk Fantasy Adventure.

Adventure, Excitement and WORDS! Victoria can craft physical manifestation of words but what happens when a word goes awry? Check it out here.

Lastly we have Eon Break. Metroid + Nikola Tesla = Eon Break. Old-school platformer gameplay with brand new mechanics. 

How can you beat a video game starring Nikola Tesla? The answer is you can't. Check it out here. 

Now normally we'll keep the project spotlights to two, but a couple of these are ending very shortly, and I really wanted to help get the word out. Feel free to message me if you have any questions. I hope you enjoyed the reference photos, and let's try and share and get us another milestone goal. Thanks again!

Best,

Andrew

It's a go!
almost 7 years ago – Mon, Jul 10, 2017 at 07:39:39 PM

Hey Gang, 

We're off to a great start! We made it on "Projects We Love" on Kickstarter, and are at 34% funded with 27 days to go. I've noticed quite a few backers from our previous projects, along with some brand new ones as well. So welcome, and thanks to all of you for the support. Here's a little sample of some awesome back matter sketches from Michele, of what you'll see in issue #2: 

I hope you enjoyed that, because there's so much more to see.

In addition, on this campaign I'm trying something a little different. Instead of only doing stretch goals after we've been funded, we're going to do milestone goals along the way (25% funded, 50%, etc). This way you get something extra for supporting us in the first place, which is more than deserved. That means free comics!

We're a little past the 25% marker, and I apologize for that. My internet was down for the last 24 hours, complicating things. But better late than never I suppose though. Our first milestone goal belongs to the title Archon by John J. Perez & Marco Maccagni. 

Synopsis: Las Vegas, 1981. Gareth Thompson, a Vietnam veteran and single father, has just accepted a security job at the new fantasy-themed “Archon Hotel and Casino.” However, he’ll soon discover all the Orcs, Elves and Dragons at the Resort are not people in costumes, but actual creatures of myth and legend. 

It's a great book that deserves more attention, and you can download the first issue for free by downloading it here:

Archon

One other title I wanted to point out, is a Kickstarter I just backed that looks gorgeous. Also another fantasy-esque title called Drachein by Daniel Curtin with art by Allen Watson.

Drachein is an American fantasy epic, set in a vast and diverse land. Follow Aiyana as she finds her way and learns her true destiny. I'm a sucker for these type of stories, so I had to check it out. Feel free to do the same here.

That's pretty much all for now, but don't hesitate to send me a message if you have any questions. Thank again!

Best,

Andrew