The first chapter of the Intertwined series is now closed as we just sent issue #6 off to the printer. This was the easiest-hardest project ever. Challenges were many. But we made it to the end. We completed the first story arc. I’m proud of what we did. And before I address the future of the series, I want to give a special shoutout to the rest of the team:
1) Frederic Pham Chuong, my partner in crime. It’s an honor to have been able to work with him and let him grow from “just the guy I hired for a Kung Fu comic” to co-Storyteller on the series. His talent is incredible. He’s a powerhouse. I really see a bright future for him. I really hope other publishers see his potential. I have the feeling that Intertwined allowed him to progress as an artist too. In the beginning, Fred didn’t feel comfortable with the emotional scenes. He always preferred the action ones. But I’m sure that as he drew Intertwined, he let his emotional side talk. As a result, some of his non-action scenes are very very powerful. When you write a series, you have a vision. Comic Book writers can either impose that vision to their artist (I respect that) or share it and make room for their artist to expand that vision beyond their own imagination. We achieved that with Fred. I may have created Intertwined. But it’s now as much Fred’s vision as it’s mine. Despite some tension sometimes (it’s part of the creative process), I’m so glad I met Fred and developed Intertwined with him these past 2 years.
2) Veronica Lopez, our color artist. I can’t tell you how much I owe Amigo Comics honcho, El Torres for introducing me to Veronica. She’s an amazing color artist. She’s still young, she could very well be one of the future big stars of our industry. And she’s very fast too! Again, like Fred, I wish she can get her hands on bigger properties and show her colors (pun intended). I want to thank her for sticking with us, even when times were rough. Never complaining, always be supportive. Vero, you’re a terrific human being! 🙂
3) Matt Humphreys, Anthony Marques, Rich Young and Keith Davidsen at Dynamite Comics: you guys are mensches. You supported us from day one. Even in tough times. And there have been some! Forget everything you heard about this publisher. Truth is, they are great people, passionate about stories and content. The industry is facing major issues, but they were always by our side. Special shoutout to Matt and Anthony, our editors. You’re just the best.
4) The wonderful creators who supported us. On both sides of the Atlantic, we had incredible creators who showed us support, in and out of our pages. I’ll forget many, but thanks to Olivier Coipel, Gerald Parel, Roland Boschi, Nick Bradshaw, Danica Brine, Justin “Moritat” Norman, Mateus Santolouco, Stephane Roux and so many more! You were an incredible inspiration for us.
5) Last but not least: the Kickstarter backers and whoever bought our issues in stores. To the former: we disappointed you. We know it. But we’ll make it up to you guys. We’re working hard now to bring you Intertwined in a way no other publisher will. To the latter: stay tuned! The Intertwined ride has just started!
So what’s next?
We’re going to spend the next few months focusing on our Kickstarter backers. And Dynamite should release the collected edition of Intertwined in July. We have SO much material that no one has never seen that both audiences, the backers and the general public, will be happy with what we’ll deliver.
Again, Intertwined is a creator owned series. Apart from the initial funds gathered on Kickstarter (about 15% of the series budget), Fred and myself have been supporting all the costs. We NEED everyone to understand that we won’t get any royalties whatsoever unless our publisher breaks even. So, let’s make Intertwined an international success.
Again, Intertwined is a creator owned series. Apart from the initial funds gathered on Kickstarter (about 15% of the series budget), Fred and myself have been supporting all the costs. We NEED everyone to understand that we won’t get any royalties whatsoever unless our publisher breaks even. So, let’s make Intertwined an international success.
We NEED you. And hopefully, we can tell many more Kung Fu Noir stories in the future.
To be continued…
F.