Slugfest | Lemire + Sorrentino’s ‘Ten Thousand Black Feathers’ takes flight in September

A round-up of recent comics news and announcements from Marvel, Skybound, Image, Aftershock and more.

Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino kicked off their shared universe The Bone Orchard Mythos earlier this month with the original graphic novel The Passageway, and they plan to continue the story later this year with the miniseries Ten Thousand Black Feathers.

The Passageway introduces readers to the Bone Orchard and now with Ten Thousand Black Feathers we dig in and really start to explore this new universe,” said Lemire. “This is a story of friendship, coming of age and imagination that is equal parts horrific, mysterious and heart wrenching.”

Image announced the first issue of the miniseries will hit stores on Sept. 14 and also shared a preview:

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Comics Lowdown | Geppi resumes duties as president of Diamond’s parent company

Plus: News on #BacktheComeback, TCAF, Heavy Metal, Thought Bubble and the first graphic novel to win the Wodehouse Prize and have a pig named after it.

Diamond Comics Distributor’s parent company has a new president, kind of. Stan Heidmann, the president/COO of Geppi Family Enterprises who took that role about a year ago, will depart the company as Steve Geppi resumes the role. Geppi has been serving as Chairman and CEO since Heidmann joined the company.

“Under my guidance, the executive leadership team will support a comprehensive strategic review to position the enterprise for future growth,” Geppi said in the message posted to the Diamond website. “I feel a tremendous responsibility to our employees and the industry, and I fully intend to set all Geppi Family Enterprise brands on a path for robust growth. I am confident we have the right leadership with talented teams in place and I see enormous opportunities for GFE.”

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Smash Pages Q&A: MK Reed and Greg Means

The writing team discusses ‘Penny Nichols,’ ‘a graphic novel that will warm your heart while stabbing you in the chest.’

Penny Nichols is the new graphic novel from writers MK Reed and Greg Means about the making of a low budget horror film. The titular character is an aimless 20-something who stumbles across people making a movie and becomes involved in the production, taking on an increasing number of tasks, and in the process finding herself. It is a subtle and brilliant tribute to artists with day jobs, found family, and the passions that give our lives meaning.

Means is best known as the editor of the Papercutter and Runner Runner, and the person behind Tugboat Press. Reed is currently co-writing Delver, a comiXology original, and has written a number of other comics including Palefire, The Castoffs, Americus, Science Comics: Dinosaurs, Science Comics: Wild Weather. The two have collaborated before on the graphic novel The Cute Girl Network. Penny Nichols, drawn by artist Matt Wiegle, was just released by Top Shelf Comix, and the writers answered a few questions about the book.

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Smash Pages Q&A: Spike Trotman and MK Reed

The duo discuss their comiXology Originals title ‘Delver,’ the fantasy genre and much more.

Spike Trotman is the woman behind Iron Circus Comics, one of North America’s best comics publishers. She is also the creator of the webcomic Templar AZ and the book Poorcraft, the writer of Yes, Roya and Iris and Angel, and cohost of the podcast Dirty Old Ladies. MK Reed is the writer of many comics including Americus, Palefire and Science Comics: Dinosaurs, and the co-writer of The Castoffs.

The two have teamed up with artist Clive Hawken on Delver, a new series coming out from comiXology Originals. It’s the story of Temerity, whose life and town is changed when a portal opens, and the town and the region becomes overrun with adventurers. It’s a story that takes a look at the fantasy genre in a different way and asks a few of the questions that sometimes bother those who like the genre. The second issue is out tomorrow, and they were kind enough to answer a few questions about the series.

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comiXology adds seven titles to their ‘Originals’ line

New titles by Sam Humphries, Kel McDonald, Tyler Crook, Tim Seeley, Mike Norton and more join the growing line.

In June comiXology released four new titles as part of their comiXology Originals line, as they expanded the program to include creator-owned titles and a print-on-demand option. Today in San Diego, a dapper Chip Mosher, comiXology’s head of content, announced seven new titles coming to the line, four of which are available now.

“When we debuted the first wave of creator owned comiXology Original titles, we launched all five issues of the Superfreaks series in one day so readers could binge read the series at once. No one had ever done that before, and that’s just the tip of what we have planned,” said comiXology’s Head of Content Chip Mosher. “Today we are making history again with Goliath Girls, which is releasing simultaneously in English and Japanese. Going forward we’ll continue to push the envelope with new ways to connect with readers. It’s great to be able to offer the over 100 million Prime members worldwide the opportunity to experience these great books.”

The four book now available on their site include:

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