It’s always the way, isn’t it?

You have one hell of a productive morning – write a few emails, balance the books… maybe edit a script or two – and then you stop for bacon. Hard earned bacon, mind you. The kind of bacon that can set your clock to. The kind of bacon that says:

“Hey Jon, you’re working too hard, buddy. So what if you’ve got a stylish new study all decked out in gleaming white Dulux, and you’re anxious to fire some synapses. So what if you’ve sorted out your finances, fed the cat, ironed your clothes and cleaned the bathroom. Too much productivity can be a bad thing. Put that pen down and pick up a spatula.”

So, well fed, and with sweet pork juices filtering into my brain, I return to the desk, happily slumping into a carnivorous state of bliss. Side note: does anyone watch Misfits? Caught the opening of Series 3 last night, my first ever episode. Maybe not the best place to get started, but very enjoyable nonetheless.

So yeah, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? With moving house, half term and the recent redecorating, the blog has fallen by the wayside lately. Things have been busy on the comics front, however. Just this week, I happily learnt that our entries to two recent competitions have been accepted into the respective online galleries. Not necessarily a win, but it’s nice to be included.

First off was the Observer/Jonathan Cape Graphic Short Story Prize, which this year saw me teaming up with Jade Sarson to produce ‘Nightlife’, a daft reimagining of a recent holiday with the usual suspects: Snowy, Titch, Rayman and Peegs. You can see it in the official Comica gallery here.

This actually happened. Scout's honour.

The deadline has also just passed for the Northern Sequential Art Competition. In a couple of weeks I’ll be attending the Thought Bubble festival for the first time. Thought Bubble is (citation needed) the last big comic event of the calendar year, and after 12 months doing the convention circuit, learning the ins and outs, and getting to know people, I can’t wait to catch up with the crowd and see the year off in style. Come 2012 I plan to take Afterlife Inc. on the road as an exhibitor. It’s going to be one hell of a learning curve but I can’t wait to give it a shot.

Anyhow, Thought Bubble is also known for producing an anthology to coincide with the show. This book, co-produced with Image Comics, features a wide selection of established creators, although they do open the door to a few single-page comics as produced by aspiring independents. To this end, four lucky entrants to the Northern Sequential Art Competition will see their work included. Teaming up with Joe Ward and Vikki Robinson – and despite some email problems and last minute cramming – our entry, ‘Unearthed’, made it in time.

Underground weirdness courtesy of 'Unearthed'.

You can find ‘Unearthed’ at the official gallery here – assuming, of course, you can find it. It’s a bit like ‘Where’s Wally?’ over there. Or possibly a magic eye photograph. Squint hard enough and you get an image of Jack Kirby riding Devil Dinosaur. Obscure reference. True story.

Both ‘Nightlife’ and ‘Unearthed’ can be read in full over on the Extras page. It’s nice to be able to update with some non-Afterlife Inc. related material every now and then.

Speaking of Afterlife Inc. the epilogue to Dying to Tell – and subsequently the last chapter of the series – will be going up at some point over the coming few weeks. I hope the recent addition of some miscellaneous comic book action helps fill the void until then.

In other unrelated news, I recently had a nice transatlantic chat with Comfort and Adam of The Uniques. Those guys are doing some amazing work with both their ‘Uniques’ and ‘Rainbow in the Dark’ properties. Their business model and work ethic in bringing their worlds to life have been a massive inspiration in developing Afterlife Inc. As ever, I cannot recommend highly enough checking out their site and offering any support you can.

The past two weeks have also been dominated by some frenzied scripting and brainstorming for mine and Mike Garley’s new joint project. Although, given that it has now progressed from hare-brained scheme to imminent reality, it really needs a better name at some point… We’re being understandably secretive at this point, but I have to say I’m genuinely very exciting about this new opportunity – and having a blast working on new material. If you’re attending Thought Bubble why not grab one of us by the arm and pick our brains (it shouldn’t take long). Otherwise, keep your online eyes peeled for forthcoming announcements.

So until next time, folks. Happy days and restful nights. I leave you with the following ghastly evidence of a Halloween just gone – not to mention Titch’s latest birthday. Peace out!

Jon

Jade's caricatures of the Brain Trust writ large.

Professor Chaos in uncharacteristic good spirits.

Superhuman charisma - and all without rolling any dice. It's a D&D joke. Urgh...