Forbidden Tales of the Sky Pirates!

My new book Forbidden Tales of the Sky Pirates is available on iTunes for free. So search for it. The book is split up into issues to continue the story in a serial. The purpose of course is to continue the series forever and to always return to your favorite anti-heroine. The first story arc: Queen of the Sky Pirates is written and will span four or five monthly issues.  I'm finishing up the cover for issue two and will be putting it together in iBooks shortly. This issue will cost money... $1.99 I think.

The next arc is Death to the Sky Pirates, which you may be familiar with. DTTSP was my comic that is currently shelved because I'd rather write the story than illustrate it. You can find the first issue on comiXology. You'll have to search for it, cause they have me in the Submit ghetto of their app... but hey, it's there. The second issue of DTTSP is mostly finished, so I'll probably post the pages here in the future.

I decided to write Death to the Sky Pirates and include it in Forbidden Tales simply because it will be better--the story that is. The problem is that reading is fading to alternative forms of simpler entertainment; but if you are like me, you still crave the emotional/psychological/spiritual complexity of a good novel. Thanks for reading.

My new iBook Forbidden Tales of the Sky Pirates Issue 1 is available on iTunes. This first issue is free. You will have to search for it since it's not a bestseller yet. While you're at it, visit the new Facebook page. Just search Forbidden Tales of the Sky Pirates. I'm sure it's the only one.

So what happened to Death to the Sky Pirates?

What happened? Oh... you know, so many things. Specifically, I had a hard time with the artwork, meaning: I didn't like it. I was trying to cut corners so that I could keep a regular schedule with it. Cutting corners killed it for me. I simply need to put more effort into the project and that means more time which is not achievable at this time.

So what did I do with all that time since the last issue? I wrote a slim novel for Bevi and her sky pirate horde which I hope to put up on ComiXology shortly. It will be a serialized novel with a bunch of great covers that I intend to paint. The first five issues of this fiction magazine are written, so it should come out regularly-monthly.

Steam Punk? Steampunk?

So what's Steam Punk, you ask. I should probably wiki it, but usually, it is an alternate fictional  history where there is high technology or magic during the steam age... There's a lot of steampunk in RPG games and fantasy novels. My favorite 'steampunk' novels are The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling and The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson.

The Diamond Age is my favorite Neal Stephenson book. You should definitely check it out. I actually listened to the the audiobook version... while I was drawing comics of course. It's this book that saves face for all his lame books. Does Neal Stephenson write any lame books? I meant long books. All I know, is that when a new book comes out from him, I get it, even if I can't even hope to finish it like the Baroque Saga. The thing about The Diamond Age is that the book actually had emotional resonance with me- it moved me. So now for better or for worse, I'll probably continue to pick up Neal Stephenson books till he's dead. I recommended it to a friend and his reaction was meh. So it's not for everybody. I heard that Hollywood is making a mini series for The Diamond Age. When I say Hollywood, I mean it disparagingly. I hope it is good, but just read the book. I'm one of those guys who hasn't seen Game of Thrones on TV yet. But hey, I'd rather watch Game of Thrones than another Spiderman movie.

Tomorrow I'll talk about The Difference Engine!

Death to the Sky Pirates #1 cover

Here's the cover for issue one coming shortly... I had a previous version similar to this. I prefer this one, but I'll post the other some other time.

Welcome to the Mass Transit Comics blog. I hope to meet readers of my comics here. So far Immense Robot is available on Graphicly via their website and on iTunes. Check it out. Issue two is free. I'm setting up this blog because I am about to release my second comic Death to the Sky Pirates... also free on Graphicly and iTunes. Because I am so busy working on the comic, I won't be posting daily; but I'll try to post as often as I can. I will probably post pictures and unfinished pages as I work on them. Pictures are usually more interesting anyway. Thanks for checking out the blog!

-Dave Smith