Off to war.

No not me personally as FDF(Finnish Defence Force) has not issued mass consription or anything.

But comicswise.

you see I am a warnerd.

I am and have been interested in the many facets of warfare in both it's terror and beauty. The fact is many of us owe more to warfare than it is PC to think.

Most painkillers, penicillin and majority of modern western medicine were in fact developed to keep the fighting forces fighting longer and in better shape than the advesaries troops (no, not a Fables reference. But if you have not read the Fables go do it. NOW!).

but it's not just advancement in thinking that war brings out. It brings out the absolute worst we are capable as species. And the absolute best.

War creates heroes. No I do not believe that there are the "Good guys" and the "Bad guys" but there are brave people on all sides as there practically never are just two sides to any conflict.

Working slowly on a comic project influenced by DMZ, Unknown soldier (Dysart Ponticelli version) and Blazing combat and naturally gazillion reference books and documentaries.

Proud dad of a zombie chimpanzee

Well actually I do have a great son, but as a scriptwriter I just saw in the artist's blog a sketch of a zombiechimpanzee. see:

Even better then I thought. Man am I lucky to have such talent to breathe life into these demented creations.

And you guys thought it is possible to survive a zombie apocalypse...yeah right

My girlfriend calls me retard. I think she's right.

So I started this blog ages ago and then life just once more happened. The woman I share my life with has asked repeteadly why I stopped writing my blog.
I actually had no good reason what so ever.
As I have not stopped reading comics nor writing comics and according to her people do read this...the title stands correct as it is.

I have delved lately into wonderful world of superhero comics and written around 200+ pages of that subject matter.
latest of these is upcoming Koneballeriina (finnish, my native speak, for "machineballerine") that I have high hopes as art is supplied by wonderfully talented Katja Louhio.
And while here I blabber about boring writing stuff (as us egomaniacal writers do) the gorgeous art can be seen at vampkis.blogspot.com , a blog most definately worth checking out.

Well that wasn't so hard. Even for a lazy hermit.

Of Cats and Women

They say (the ever so mysterious "they") that one should write on what you know.
That sounds logical.
And nowadays I am writing more and more on subjects I know jackshit about.
Mainly, cats and women.

I was asked on a panel in Helsinki Comic festival that was named: THERE IS A HOLE IN POWERGIRLS SHIRT a.k.a superhero affiacanados speak about subject they know nothing about , Women (but only imaginary ones)

For those unfamiliar with the esteemed Powergirl:


yeah, so the panel went well, in my opinion, after all I am once divorced guy that has had his share of relationships and still gets confused by females (other than usual the straight man getting confused by feminine charm).

So apparently I was the right guy to speak about bondage in-built in Wonder woman.
But me being me I also talked about Final girls, you know girls like Laurie Strode in Halloween movies.
The innocent female who is the only one capable of defeating the unstoppable slasher.
The women in Horror fiction are truly empowered but still most assume the role of women in horror is solely that of a victims abused.
Not so.

But cursory glance to the imagery of horror and comics might give that impression, I ' ll grant you that.
Searching a picture of any superheroine leads to pictures of bound and submissed primarily sexual objects in fan art.

no, I wont post those.

But this panel strenghtened my view that world needs more superheroines and final girls.
I personally dig strong women, women with their own heads and plenty of spunk.


Cassie Hack (above) is one of those.

And I think that there needs to be more of them.
And if no one else is going to do it...well at least I can write them.

As I have already written part one of Tuuli Noidantytär, a superhero witch (basicly my excuse for having it all: Horror, Fantasy and Superheroes all under one roof)

and to up the ante I have thought of a couple more female heroes.
few to other books and one on Tuuli's book.

(yes the cover is by Sari Sariola. and seen much better in her blog:
http://sarisariola.blogspot.com/ )
end shameless advertising.

The cats are mainly because I live in flat with five cats(mainly because the cats came along with the woman....)
And those interested: I am a dogperson.
But like They say (before they come to take you away, haha!) : write what you know

Something new, much old and not a lot of blue

It's been hectic past couple of months.
Been writing like a small animal. It's hard to type with paws you know.

No actually been starting up new projects (easy way to fool yourself when there is about 16 000 ongoing projects unfinished) mostly superheroics but some horror too.

For the Helsinki Comic festival MKKentertainment did Rautasarjat (Ironseries or Iron tales) that featured some of my short form work with quite good artists


the cover by ever so talented Katja Louhio features Ukko, a character originally created by Veli Loponen, in the story Law of the Streets written by yours truly.
A gentle and kind tale...or maybe not.
As my significant other said "like Watchmen's Rohrschach with serial number filed off"
which I naturally took as a compliment.

Will return on the short stories, "House that Death built", "Employment office" and "The endless marshland" later on.

for next issue there will be Koneballerina (Machine Ballerina) a female superhero in tale called Vampires and kitty litter art by Katja Louhio
a blog of it in finnish here:
http://vampkis.blogspot.com/

Sketches and concept art or reason 1 to have an artist....

Ok so here is one concept art/ reboot design for a comicbook villain by yours truly

ex-soviet worldconqueror-to-be.

oh well.

here is no earlier try for my start to finish own creation:


and in order to get rid of the rest stumbling upon here few hours sketch of apparently low fantasy setting:



will return to writing ASAP

no fear of the Dark

Good guys are boring, villains aren't. That is why horror will always prevail. In real life we all want to meet nice people, people we can trust.

Safe.

Those are the ones we marry and hope to get as co-workers.

But still both sexes go for the bad boys or girls. To feel unsafe, alive, for a dare.

Horror comics don't lie to you the are about baser instincts and about truth veiled in social interaction and small talk. It has no reason for political correctness or respecting you, your friends or your enemies.

Death is unavoidable, pain is part of life and bad things happen.

But why would someone want to read about these things even more? If you ask that seriously, go somewhere else to grow up as a human.

Those of us enamored by horror know the allure. We are not adrenaline junkies as such but we like our fear.

We have understood that we are not the top of the foodchain nor pinnacle of creation. The world is not fair or safe. And it never, ever, will be. Horror tells us that but it shows both sides of the coin.
There is quote I vaguely remember saying how Stephen King "tells about most awful world where bad things happen to bad people and bad things happen to good people"

And horror comics have one advantage: there is absolutely NO limit how over the top you can take it.
Want to blow up australia? sure. Have a team of flying were-hogs hunt your sadistic vampirekilling necromancer assassin? there you go. Zombie apocalypses of biblical proportions? Why thank you, dont mind if I do.

Yes, as a most writer I get the "easy" chores, that is thinking up twisted things as much as I can and hope that the artist is up for the challenge.
After all it is his/her talents that significantly make or break the entire thing.
I am a guy who follows the writers but even the best of them would be in trouble if their visions were finalized by autistic chimpanzees.

If someone would ask what current horror comics one should read I would tell them(heck, usually I just rant before they have time to run away) these:



















































The Walking Dead -by Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard
The Crossed - by Garth Ennis and Jacen Burrows
Locke & Key - Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez
Hellboy- by Mike Mignola et al
B.P.R.D - by Mike Mignola and Guy Davis
Hack/slash- by Tim Seeley et al

is that all? No.

There is loads of vibrant hungry beasts out there, from the great The Living Corpse to Jesus hates Zombies.

there are dark overlords after your hearts and minds and just you wait :I am applying to their ranks.

So, within few weeks on here I plan to have zombies, vampires, supernatural assassins, demons, slashers and other fun.
Pack your bags as I plan to go to war on the balkans, hunt for artefacts and lost places on europe and tear up american soil.

Some drawn by yours truly, hopefully most by people who actually know what they do.
And if any of you are fluent in drawing buxom final girls but is stuck on a storyline...in your service.