Saturday 30 January 2016

More Daftness!

Here's a little clipping from part of my next Daft Dimension strip that you'll find in the new issue of Doctor Who Magazine (No.496). It goes on sale Thursday 4th February, available from WH Smith, Asda, comic speciality shops and many other locations. Don't miss it!

Sunday 24 January 2016

Enniskillen for May

I'm pleased to add another event to my busy convention diary for 2016. I've been invited to the Enniskillen Comic Fest on May 6th/7th. I've never been to Northern Ireland before so I'm looking forward to it! 

I know that some of you can't always make it over to England for the comics shows here so I hope to see you at Enniskillen! For more info, check out their official Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/Enniskillen-Comic-Fest-1030761763641321/

Friday 22 January 2016

Visit The Astral Gypsy

I was in Coventry today taking my records to my accountant, so I thought I'd drop in at The Astral Gypsy in Fargo Village. This is an excellent shop selling art supplies, comics, and graphic novels, and is run by the fantastic artist Al Davison and his wife Maggie. It was good to have a chat with them and I bought a few tools of the trade while I was there, namely Zig Cartoonist Mangaka Flexible pens that I always use now, a new clutch pencil with blue leads, and a Kuratake brush pen, which is new to me.

If you're in Coventry, I reccommend you pay Al a visit at his shop. You'll find more info on The Astral Gypsy Facebook page here:
https://www.facebook.com/TheAstralGypsyCoventry/    

Wednesday 20 January 2016

The Daily Stringertoon - 18

Quick doodle.

Stick to the facts

A quick reminder that this week's issue of Marvel Fact Files spotlights the history of Marvel UK (or at least their superhero comics). Amongst the various features is an article I wrote, and you can find out more about it on this post I did on my other blog a few weeks ago:
http://lewstringer.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/marvel-uk-back-in-spotlight.html


Tuesday 19 January 2016

Sunday 17 January 2016

This Wednesday...

Here's a preview of a couple of panels from my next Team Toxic two pager in Toxic No.266, on sale this Wednesday. Toxic has been around since 2002 and I'm proud to say I've had work in every issue (even though it went reprint for a year in 2012). These days though it's all-new all the way and I'm still having fun creating new villains for the Team to fight, or bringing back the old favourites.

Toxic is published by Egmont and is the leading boy's magazine in the UK. I'm pretty sure some girls would enjoy it too, so if you have kids, why not pick up a copy for them this week? Toxic No.266, on sale January 20th from newsagents and supermarkets.

The Daily Stringertoon - 15

Only time for a very fast sketch today, but it's appropriate for the weather. 

Friday 15 January 2016

The Daily Stringertoon - 13

I've been thinking about the 1970s recently. This isn't a caricature of anyone specific but it is how some people dressed back then. Personally I never followed fashion trends but it was hard to avoid buying a shirt with a big collar or trousers that weren't flared to some extent. Platform shoes and high-waister trousers though? No way.

Thursday 14 January 2016

Sunday 10 January 2016

Saturday 9 January 2016

The Daily Stringertoon - 7

My hair started receding when I was 19, and by my early twenties I was bald on top. It doesn't bother me now obviously but it was traumatic back then. Even so, I've never tried to hide the fact. Why should I? My outlook was that if people have a problem with it, that's an indication of their childish attitude. I've never seen many convincing wigs anyway, and some even look like the one this chap is wearing. Poor guy. He'd look better without it.   

Thursday 7 January 2016

The Daily Stringertoon - 5

The stuff of nightmares. I don't know whose nightmares, but if it's yours see a doctor. 

Wednesday 6 January 2016

Tuesday 5 January 2016

The Daily Stringertoon - 3

Another day, another quick cartoon. These are all A5 size in case you were wondering. 

It's just occurred to me that if I'm away from home at any time I might have to miss some days. Perhaps I'll get ahead, or do digital sketches to upload or something. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. 

Monday 4 January 2016

Let Zygons be Zygons

Here's a clipping of part of my Daft Dimension strip for the next issue of Doctor Who Magazine. Issue 495 will be in newsagents, supermarkets, and comic shops this Thursday (Jan.7th), priced £4.99 for 84 pages. 

The Daily Stringertoon - 2

The second of my daily cartoons exclusive to the web. No, I don't know what it is either.

Sunday 3 January 2016

The Daily Stringertoon - 1

As if I wasn't busy enough, I've set myself a challenge to draw a cartoon a day throughout 2016, which I'll be showing here as well as on my Facebook page and on Twitter. The cartoons will mostly be separate to my regular strips, and all creator owned. If I'm pushed for time the cartoons may only be pencil sketches or roughs. Some may be more experimental. Who knows? I'll draw whatever comes to mind, and probably mostly new characters like the unnamed one above. Enjoy the journey! 

Friday 1 January 2016

Resolutions for 2016

I'm not usually one to make New Year Resolutions but one thing I'm determined to do this year is get one or two more self-published comics in print. Brickman Returns! had a successful launch at Birmingham's International Comics Expo in September and sales were brisk afterwards, so I'd like to get more of my creator-owned characters back into print. I'm not sure which comic I'll be publishing first, but this is one likely contender...
That's just a teaser of course, and the logo design may change before publication, but hopefully in a few months I'll be launching Suburban Satanists No.1 at one of the comic shows I'll be attending this year. The format will be the same as Brickman Returns at 32 full colour pages on quality paper. The artwork is already drawn as the strips originally appeared in Sweden and Norway nearly 20 years ago, but I need to colour and re-letter 28 pages of strip (as they've never been published in English). That's going to take some time to fit in between my regular paying comics gigs so don't expect it too soon, but it will happen sometime this year. It's possible I may publish a different comic first, while Suburban Satanists goes on the back burner for a while but I'll keep you updated of developments on this blog so stay tuned. 

Naturally, my regular work on Toxic, Doctor Who Magazine and other titles has to take priority and I'll be updating you on those strips as always. I'm also attending several comic shows this year, drawing sketches and selling comics (and possibly prints too) so I hope to see you at those if you can make it. Here's the list of events I'll be at... 

London Film and Comic Con: Spring
27th and 28th February 2016
Olympia,
Hammersmith Road,
London
W14 8UX.


Cardiff Film and Comic Con
5th and 6th March, 2016
Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff.


The Birmingham Comics Festival
Saturday 23rd April, 2016 
Edgbaston Stadium, Birmingham.


Manchester Film and Comic Con
21st and 22nd May, 2016.
Event City.
Phoenix Way,
Barton Dock Road,
Urmston,
Manchester
M41 7TB.


Lancaster Comics Day
Sunday June 5th, 2016.
(Not much info about this so far so stay tuned!)


London Film and Comic Con
29th to 31st July 2016.
Olympia,
Hammersmith Road,
London
W14 8UX.


Bristol Comic Expo
Saturday August 6th, 2016.
Double Tree by Hilton,
Redcliffe Way, Bristol.

ICE (The International Comic Expo)
Saturday September 10th, 2016.
The Studio, Cannon Street, Birmingham.