Lee Lai, Michael DeForge, Pa-Luis and more win 2021 Ignatz Awards

Annual awards typically presented at the Small Press Expo honor excellence in independent comics, graphic novels and minicomics.

The Small Press Expo, or SPX, has announced the winners for the 2021 Ignatz Awards.

The Ignatz Awards, which have been handed out since 1997, celebrate the outstanding achievements of independent comics, graphic novels and alternative political cartoons. Named for the mouse that appears in the Krazy Kat comics by George Herriman, the logo changes each as a new artist draws the mouse and his weapon of choice, the brick. This year’s logo was created by Theo Stultz, last year’s winner in the “Most Promising Newcomer” category.

Nominees were determined by a jury that included Sunmi, Daniel Elkin and Nguyên Khôi Nguyễn. Anyone could register online to vote for the winners.

Congratulations to all the winners:

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Get ready for Batman Day

Check out new comics this week from Kieron Gillen, Dustin Weaver, Dan Slott, Mark Waid, John Romita Jr., Jeff Lemire, Andrea Sorrentino and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital this week.

Check out a few highlights below, or visit Diamond’s website for this week’s almost complete list of new comics arriving in stores. You can visit Lunar Distribution’s home page to see DC’s releases, and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally.

I should also add that the list of what is actually arriving at your local shop can vary from what’s on anyone’s official website for a myriad of reasons — so always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

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Mail Call | Tynion offers first ‘Blue Book’ for free

Check out news and updates from Marvel, Dark Horse, Top Shelf, Image Comics and more.

Mail Call is a roundup of cool things we’ve received in our mailboxes recently from comics publishers, creators and more. Hit the links for more information.

James Tynion IV was one of the first creators out of the gate with his plans for his premium Substack newsletter subscription, announcing a new comic called Blue Book with artist Michael Avon Oeming that he planned to share with paid subscribers.

But even if you aren’t a paid subscriber, you can still check out the first one, which he posted for free a couple days ago.

Blue Book is a passion project for myself and Michael Avon Oeming,” Tynion wrote. “We share a lifelong fascination with UFOs and a lifelong frustration with how those stories have been adapted into other media. There is a strangeness in the original accounts of UFO sightings that usually gets swept aside, but Michael and I want to lean into the strangeness. These are human stories of ordinary people who brush against the unknown and must grapple with what they see there. There is a deeper truth, whether you believe in the accounts or not, that lies in the many ways people tell these stories.”

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Top Shelf will publish Peter and Maria Hoey’s ‘Animal Stories’

Top Shelf will release the six-story collection in December.

Top Shelf Comix has announced a new graphic novel by Peter and Maria Hoey, creators of Coin-Op Comics.

Animal Stories will collect six stories by the siblings that explore “the mysterious relationships between humans and other animals.”

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D + Q will publish Michael DeForge’s ‘Birds of Maine’ next year

Honorable librarians rejoice: DeForge’s award-nominated Instagram comic is coming to print.

Michael DeForge’s Birds of Maine will migrate from Instagram to print next year, as Drawn and Quarterly have announced plans to publish it as a graphic novel in the Spring of next year.

DeForge has been posting comics featuring a post-apocalyptic reality where birds live their best lives after the fall of humanity — until the last-remaining human crash lands from the moon.

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Jason returns this week with ‘Good Night, Hem’

New comics and graphic novels arrive this week from Joshua Cotter, Jeff Lemire, Chuck Brown, Valentine de Landro, E. Lockhart, Manuel Preitano, Zac Thompson and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital this week.

Check out a few highlights below, or visit Diamond’s website for this week’s almost complete list of new comics arriving in stores. You can visit Lunar Distribution’s home page to see DC’s releases, and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally.

I should also add that the list of what is actually arriving at your local shop can vary from what’s on anyone’s official website for a myriad of reasons — so always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

Continue reading “Can’t Wait for Comics | Jason returns this week with ‘Good Night, Hem’”

‘X-Men,’ ‘The Magicians: New Class’ win at the 2021 Dragon Awards

Congratulations to this year’s winners.

The 2021 Dragon Awards were announced this past weekend during Dragon Con, recognizing science fiction and fantasy books, movies, video games and comics.

The awards, which have been presented annually since 2016, recognize comics in two categories — “Best Comic Book” and “Best Graphic Novel.” After a jury selected the nominees, the winners were selected in an open vote from the general public.

The winners are:

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D + Q announces three new books for Spring 2022

Drawn and Quarterly will release new projects from Emma Grove, Rumi Hara and Travis Dandro next year.

Drawn + Quarterly has revealed three titles they plan to release next Spring from Emma Grove, Rumi Hara and Travis Dandro.

First up is The Third Person by Grove, which is about a woman who may have Dissociative Identity Disorder. They also announced Hara’s The Peanutbutter Sisters and Other American Stories, a collection of stories that range from science fiction to slice of life. And finally, Dandro’s Hummingbird Heart is about a teenager who moves in with his dying grandmother after his father commits suicide.

You can find more details from the publisher on each of them below.

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Can’t Wait for Comics | ‘Fear State’ arrives in Gotham this week

Check out new comics and graphic novels this week by Tom Taylor, Iban Coello, Peach Momoko, James Tynion IV, Riccardo Federici, A.C. Esguerra, Mark Russell, Benjamin Tiesma and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital this week.

Check out a few highlights below, or visit Diamond’s website for this week’s almost complete list of new comics arriving in stores. You can visit Lunar Distribution’s home page to see DC’s releases, and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally.

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Fantagraphics announces ‘Keeping Two’ by Jordan Crane

The new graphic novel arrives in March of 2022.

Jordan Crane, creator of NON, The Last Lonely Saturday, We Are All Me and The Clouds Above, will return with a new graphic novel next year. Fantagraphics will publish Keeping Two in March.

“I could not be more proud to publish Keeping Two,” said Fantagraphics VP/Associate Publisher Eric Reynolds. “It’s a works of comics by a master cartoonist at the very peak of his form. But it’s also a profoundly affecting story that I think strives to bring people closer by reminding us of our shared experience as human beings, at a time when we could really use it.”

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DC’s ‘Whistle’ OGN will introduce a new hero to Gotham City

The new hero Whistle will encounter the Riddler, Poison Ivy and Killer Croc in her debut graphic novel.

DC Comics has revealed more details on their upcoming YA graphic novel Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero by author E. Lockhart and artist Manuel Preitano.

As the title suggests, it’ll introduce a new hero to Gotham, Whistle, who fights crime with her dog, Lebowitz. It will also feature several Gotham villains, like Killer Croc, Poison Icy and the Riddler, who is a “family friend” and plays a big part in the story.

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75th annual NCS Reuben Awards nominees announced

Winners will be revealed in October.

The National Cartoonist Society has trickled out the nominees for this year’s Reuben Award and the accompanying NCS Divisional Awards over the last few months, as they prepare for the big awards ceremony in October.

The divisional awards include categories that cover comic books, webcomics, political cartoons and more. I’ve included the nominations that are relevant to the world of comics, but you can find the complete nominations lists here and here.

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