Brandon Thomas is a freelance writer and columnist. He has written over a dozen comics for several publishers including Marvel, Arcade, and DC Comics, and his long-running Ambidextrous column is now a weekly feature on Newsarama.com. He lives and writes in Chicago, IL.

9.03.09 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY)- JULY & AUGUST 2009

Ambidextrous 303-310

Ton of columns here that crossed through a very active summer, and effectively prevented me from talking about the elephant in the room, which of course is the production status of Miranda Mercury. As I hinted here last month, our colorist challenge went from rousing success to, well failure isn't the right word---let's say "disappointment" is more appropriate. It's a story I'm planning to officially tell one day, but I've been holding back a more complete explanation for a couple reasons. One, I don't want to approach it from a position of anger and negativity, which is hard to stifle given the myriad of strange happenings and strange people that continue to prevent this title from being published in a timely fashion. And most of this stuff I will never be able to tell anyone. Two, I'm well aware that once it goes up in print, there's no taking it back, and if/when I decide to take it there, it has to be done the right way for what is presumably the right reasons. But I will get to it, once we've officially taken care of the actual issue…and yes, preparations are being made to get it resolved and quickly.

So when things like this happen, it's always pretty easy to tell by the column's actual content, which immediately hones in almost exclusively on comics and aspects of the business that I'm enjoying. The good thing is that it leads to some nice material, as it was fun tracking down every issue of SOLO through online retailers just so I could profile it on the same week Wednesday Comics launched. And how impressive has that little experiment been? Hope it turns into DC's annual summer event. Can't wait until they release some details about the eventual collections.

Also managed to feature The Ultimates in a This is Why feature in the weeks before the launch of Ultimate Avengers, and I plan on a more targeted approach for some of these in the future. One about Bendis's Alias is likely on deck, and I'll be doing a big one (possibly spanning a few weeks) for Planetary in the weeks leading up to its long-awaited conclusion. Chomping at the bit to be able to read that whole thing from the beginning and experience it all over again, as the delays have cleared away many of the exact details from memory. Should be like reading it for the first time, which is an attractive prospect.

But yeah, it is possible to make some good of a bad situation, and think that applies to a lot of the recent columns I've had posted. Though it probably works better when I don't come straight out and tell everybody exactly what I'm doing...

{Redacted} Book Proposal

Other thing I've been working at around all of the columns, and the weddings, and the apartment moves, is an actual book proposal for an actual book. And believe it or not, the Miranda Twitter page is responsible for the initial invitation, thereby proving the theory I've been hearing ad nauseam for my closest friends and advisors for years and years---that social networking is an invaluable component of the game and I'm shooting myself in the foot for consciously ignoring it. So there's something else I was wrong about, for those keeping score at home.

Anyway, I've never written a book proposal before, so it's definitely stretching a slightly different muscle, but the publisher enjoyed my first draft, and I'll be hitting the changes up over the weekend and seeing what develops from there. No more can be said of this, but even being asked to pitch something was an exciting development, and proof that you never really know what's coming next.

And on that note...back with another progress report next month...

8.05.09 - CHICAGO COMIC-CON 2009

I will be in attendance this upcoming weekend, and will have a table in Artist's Alley (#3514) as well. I'll be selling copies of Miranda #295 for the con exclusive price of $2.00, and will have copies of everything else I've ever written priced at a single dollar. For every five books you buy off the table, get one free while supplies last. Hope to see some of you there, and please don't hesitate to stop by and conversate. Thanks.

7.15.09 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY)- JUNE 2009

Ambidextrous 300-302

I swear, writing that 300^th column somehow triggered the next stage of the voodoo curse that seems to find even more inventive ways of preventing Miranda Mercury from actually coming out. When I started the piece, we were awaiting fresh pages from our newly signed colorist, but by the time it posted only a few days later, a deadline had been missed and we were officially getting nervous. Before the next week was over he was no longer on the book, and over a month of valuable production time had just gone up in smoke. Extremely disappointing, as I thought we'd found the perfect artist and professional to inherit the reins from Felix after a lengthy search. A setback to be sure, but honestly, stranger things have happened to us and this project in the past, and this'll make for yet another funny story somewhere down the line. And trust me, we got quite a few.

301 officially concluded my This is Why feature series about Joe Casey's Wildcats run, and 302 was the last column I submitted before getting married. Technically, 303 was supposed to get turned in before the wedding as well, but we can talk more about that one in next month's installment.

Miranda Mercury Press Kit

The aforementioned voodoo curse made most of this prep work moot, but I suppose completing some of it now will make things that much easier on me later. Like I said, our marketing approach will be very different (and much more aggressive) this time around, and I've already started rewriting the actual solicits to reflect their new "two comics in one" publication scheme. Nothing gives me a heart attack quite like a fixed word count, but solicits are one of those things I hate doing, but love to have done. And I've been fortunate that most of the books I've done, I've been allowed to write my own solicit copy for. Like pitching, it's a skill set that I've only just begun to get a real handle on, so we'll see how it goes. Has anyone ever done interlocking solicits before? That just occurred to me, and could be an interesting experiment...

So this was something of a light month for me, largely due to getting married and entertaining family members from out of town. Don't know how Augie gets married, has babies, etc., without missing a single week of Pipeline. Simply incredible, and why I've been calling him "The Godfather" for years now...

6.4.09 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY)- MAY 2009

Ambidextrous 297-299

Now on paper, doing interviews in the column takes less time than preparing something completely from scratch. In actuality, they tend to need just as much time, and sometimes even more so. This is mostly because of how I like to do them, which is in 'rounds' of questions, that start from a base set that generally touches on everything I want to cover, and then builds outwards depending on their actual answers. I'm definitely trying to lead things in a certain direction, but that first set of responses tells me what the interview is really going to be about, and so I'll always feed into that with my follow-up questions. Then we rinse and repeat until it feels like it’ll make for an appropriately beefy piece. But I typically don’t use everything I get, and spend a lot of time working on the sequencing so everything flows naturally from one subject to the next.

So yeah, they take a lot of work, but I like doing them and this month I got to do yet another interview with Joe Casey, and one about John Layman's new Image book Chew. Which is great and is out now, so go buy it. My third planned interview wasn't ready by press time, so I did a quick piece on random things that were on my mind. As usual, I started it thinking it’d be a relatively shorter (1200 words) piece, but it ended up coming in near 1600 words, which happens literally every time I sit down to write something. Clearly I can't stop talking...

Miranda Mercury Marketing Manifesto

The upcoming re-launch will also see a few changes in how we get out there and actually market the book. In short---it'll be done much more aggressively and in a much more concentrated way. The website will be redesigned and fully operational when the solicits hit, instead of being under construction. There will also be a major treat posted up on the main site, but we'll get to that later. The preview material will be more complete and better coordinated to fall within that all-important pre-ordering window that ultimately determines the fate of one's independent comic. "Ordering coupon" will become two of the most important words in our approach, and the use of them will be strongly encouraged and supported.

We really (and quickly) became overwhelmed in our first go-round, partially because of the fact that nearly everyone on the creative team moved into a new home or apartment during our "press window," and partially because we (meaning me) were just unprepared and got things circulated way too late to be of much help to the cause. But this is one of the many things that we're very serious about turning into a positive effect of our unplanned hiatus. And so I wouldn't forget anything, I went and made some adjustments to the original "Miranda Mercury Manifesto" typed out last year.

The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury #300 (plot walkthrough)

Not starting this script until the entire thing is plotted out, cause here's the deal---the 300th issue of Miranda is going to feature three separate stories. One is the logical conclusion of the whole "Time Runs Out" story arc, and continues directly from the heartbreaking and emotionally wrenching cliffhanger of #299. One is issue #124, which just so happens to be the issue where the series was re-titled The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury in the first place, and features the first of many showdowns between Miranda and nemesis Cyrus Vega. The last one tells you what the book was called before it belonged to Miranda, and all I will say about this is that she was a part of the narrative before inheriting the book, but whom she inherited it from is very much tied into the contents of #300 and the cliffhanger that leads into it. Got all that? Good.

But all three of these stories tie together in interesting ways, while also tying into issues #295-299, and without a carefully plotted blueprint, it'll take forever to properly script. Which it will anyway because it's three interlocking stories that interlock with a bunch of other stuff that came before. Sounds weird but I promise it'll all make sense in the end---only question then will be---should the hardcover print the stories in sequential order? A decision for another time, I suppose, but I could go either way on this.

5.7.09 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY)- APRIL 2009

The God Complex #4 (full script)

Now I can officially start looking for another artist, and again, once we get closer to the hypothetical release date of this book, I'll be posting up the results of the great "remix" experiment on this very site. Condensing the material from all four of these over-sized scripts into much smaller 16 page chunks was pretty challenging, but also a lot of fun too, and confirmation that I have gotten a bit better at all this over the years. This script is just one huge fight between Damon Cross and the Big Bad of this first arc, and originally what I was trying to match in terms of intensity and choreography was the brilliant Ultimates/Hulk throwdown from The Ultimates 5. Which should give you an indication of just how long ago this was written, but even in a slightly abbreviated space, it still works pretty well, and has a huge surprise that even a little age can't tarnish. Once I wrap up the monstrous 300th issue of Miranda, then I'll jump back in and finish the last two chapters of this initial arc and finally, finally move this thing towards some manner of completion.

Ambidextrous 293-296

Besides coming up with a new regular feature for the column (Priced to Move), the biggest thing that happened this month was the overwhelming response to my ad looking for a new Miranda Mercury colorist. If I'd known that we'd hear from over a dozen interested folks, I would've done it months ago and saved myself some nervous sweating. Not ready to announce just who the new person is, but he's already hard at work, will do a fantastic job with Lee's pencils, and fit in with the rest of us nuts just fine. With that final piece in place, we can start ramping towards the re-launch, happening early this fall from the slightly re-branded Archaia Comics. Might go ahead and announce more specific dates in the 300th installment of the column, which will likely be preceded by two or three interviews.

{Redacted} Treatment

Can't breathe a thing about this, other than to say it was the first time I've prepared a movie/television treatment and the actual persons interested in reading it were a great shock to me for a variety of reasons. Yes, that's likely the vaguest sentence I've ever written anywhere, but it does involve one of my creator-owned properties (obviously) and has just as much chance of turning into something as nothing. Such is the cruel, unpredictable mistress that is Hollywood...

{Redacted} Sample Script

Another thing that must remain top-secret for the time being. Got this half done before hearing back from the project editor that the book I was in the process of auditioning for likely won't happen, so this week I'm finishing it off for the practice, and for the possibility it'll lead to other assignments at the company. Maybe one day I can actually talk about just how many projects I've been up for that later experienced some kind of publishing calamity---this includes but is not limited to editors getting fired, companies going under and/or restructuring, and even deciding in one instance they didn't actually want to publish comics at all. It's almost enough to give a guy a complex...

4.2.09 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY)- MARCH 2009

The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury #299 (full script)

This was probably the fastest I've ever written an entire Miranda script, and naturally, I have some ideas on exactly why that was. Though I've weaned myself off this when it comes to writing columns, most of my scripts are first drafted out by hand in a little book composition book, and then later transferred into Word. I haven’t had enough experience where I can easily separate the writing of the script from the formatting of the script, so trying to actually craft a story, while being sure to tab things over just right is still distracting. So I do the real work with a pen and a pad, and in this case, a lot of the dialogue was already written weeks ago and just needed a little framing.

I also had a much tighter and focused outline to work from, having learned a terrible lesson from #298. Which wasn’t as necessary in this case, because the story is really contained in one physical space and doesn’t require the insane cuts and transitions of its predecessor. The story is about Jack and Miranda trapped in a horrible place they might not be able to get out of, and finally being forced to have the conversation that’s been on the tip of their tongues this entire arc. But to make it more interesting, this is something they have to do without their captors listening in, which will prove slightly difficult since they have cameras and microphones on them at all times. Is it possible to have a heart-to-heart without actually being able to speak?

This is a radically different story when compared to the last two scripts of frantic action and super-compressed storytelling. It should be an appropriate breather before issue #300 where everything speeds up again, and was really an opportunity to just focus on and further define Miranda and Jack’s relationship. As usual, the more these characters interact, the more I love them and the mechanics of their partnership, which is what I ultimately see it as. Though Miranda will often receive "top billing," I've been very conscious of making sure it’s clear that she sees them as absolute equals and genuine friends. Who sometimes don't see completely eye-to-eye…but great friends nonetheless.

My team really enjoyed the script, so hopefully it works as well as I was intending.

Ambidextrous 289-292

Couple of "impulse columns" mixed in here, along with a quick tour of my bookshelf and the start of another This is Why feature. Really interested to see what the response is to it, because this is by far the longest run of comics I've talked about, and I'll be using it as a template for the future---provided I don't get bored of doing 'em and people don't get bored of reading 'em. There's also a Miranda based one in there too, and the closer we get to our actual re-launch, the more this will obviously become a focus. Do want to change it up a bit, as the first time we launched, there were weeks and weeks devoted to nothing but my little indy book, which I think exhausted folks a bit. If I do my job and get things set up properly in the next few months, I won't have to lean on the column as hard as I did in the past. This time I want to attack on all fronts.

Last thing about that---this month's Previews (looking noticeable thinner than months past) marks Archaia's official return to the catalog, and there’s a nice full-page ad spotlighting all the titles returning to shelves in '09. Oh ___, is that Miranda down there on the bottom row...?

The God Complex #3 (full script)

Proof that I've come a long way in the last few years. The Damon Cross Reclamation Project continues, as I prep the series to work in a variety of formats, which may or may not include turning it into a series of OGNs, or just going straight digital with it. Haven't decided and want to keep all options open, but before we can figure that out, I'm taking the old scripts out of the secret files and giving them a new post-Miranda polishing. Because I lacked discipline (and honestly, skill) when they were originally penned, it’s been relatively easy (and fun) to chop whole pages and scenes out that were slowly moving and not nearly as effective as they could've been.

This particular story is centered on Kara and the reasons (or rationalizations) that she makes to excuse some of Damon's frequent disappearances and his general inability to tell time. The dialogue actually held up pretty well over the years, but the framing and pacing puts me to sleep. And now, thankfully, it doesn't. When the book actually releases, I'm going to post up the original first issue script side-by-side with the "remixed" version up in The Lab. Just because I think it'll be interesting.

Only one more previously completed script scheduled for surgery, and then I get real serious about finding a new artist...and deciding how I'm going to release it...and finding someone to release it...etc.

Pretty big month of writing for me, so excuse the length of this post.

3.1.09 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY) - JAN & FEB 2009

The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury #298 (full script)

Finally put this one to bed, and it’s easily the most complex script I've ever done. There were just so many scenes, characters, transitions, and locales to juggle that fitting everything into it, in a way that wouldn't drive the rest of the team insane, was incredibly challenging. My biggest mistake when I started this one was not realizing just how dense it was going to end up, because if I'd had, a more detailed outline would’ve been prepared. The opening and closing have been done for a while now, but the middle had all of the more difficult bits and the crazier transitions. As usual, with only the double page spread of pgs. 12 and 13 to wrap up, I decided it was all bad and combed through the entire thing, tweaking and polishing the dialogue and panel descriptions. After an entire weekend sitting on those last pages, I had a little brainstorm that made not just that portion, but everything else around it make complete sense. Why it took so long to get there is anyone's guess.

But #298 is essentially, "The Worst Day of Jack Warning's Life," while #299, though pretty bad for him too, could be called "The 2nd Worst Day of Miranda Mercury's Life." It was very deliberate, but until this point both of these characters have been pretty unflappable and on top of any problem they've run up against, but this is where you start to see some mistakes creep in. Where you find out neither of these people is perfect, which is an important idea to dispel at the arc's halfway point.

Ambidextrous 283-288

Catching back up the weekly schedule now that I have a lot more writing time than usual, so six articles (after having started in the middle of January) isn't too bad, but really the only one I want to say anything more about is 285, which was about Grant Morrison and some of the online criticism to Final Crisis. Actually, criticism is probably too kind a word really…derision might be closer to the truth. This one garnered a ton of mail and responses, and it was interesting to hear from the people that clearly "got it," and even from the ones that clearly didn't. The rant wasn’t about the actual quality of the story at all, and focused more on the incredibly creative ways we can effectively ____ on a comic book and/or creator, whose only crime was failing to entertain us. In a couple decades or succeeding brilliantly, mind you. The real secret of it was that the column was something of a Rorschach test…the people that read it and knew confidently that I wasn't talking about them dug it…certain others did not. Which is all good in the end, cause it definitely needed saying, and I was far from the only one who did.

The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury #299 (full script)

This one is a little more than half done as of this writing, and should actually be finished by the end of the week. This issue leads into the oversized #300, which is going to be a big challenge to write for several reasons that I can't divulge publicly for fear of ultimately spoiling the story. Let’s just say that if you’ve grown used to me complaining about beginning and ending a story in 22 pages, then the stories making up issue 300 are going to inspire probably an entire new series of writing-related nightmares. But that’s what ultimately makes the book fun to produce, and hopefully fun to read when it comes back. Anything goes, it's all on us, so why not? That's really the question at the heart of Miranda Mercury---why not?

Also, thought I'd drop off a "lost" interview about the book that Lee and I did over a year ago. The site it was originally going to appear on doesn't exist anymore, but it's found new life in another place, and should be an appropriate teaser for the coming months where we'll start building up to the official re-launch of the book. Check it out and enjoy.

12.31.08 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY) - DECEMBER 2008

This is how you go from "taking it easy" to writing 10,000 words of column in a single month...

First, you leave the final polishing of a magazine article you've been meaning to wrap for months now until the very last minute. This would be the same one that attempts to answer the question, "Is It True That Black Characters Don't Sell," in something of a reasonable fashion. Not sure I can reveal exactly where it'll appear, but I was incredibly flattered to even be approached to contribute, as the premise of this particular issue of this particular magazine is something I feel incredibly passionately about. Have for years and when this is announced, people are really going to get excited. And hey, never been published in a mag before, so that's cool.

Next, you write another installment of This is Why, because you talked too much in the last one. The original plan was to devote a single piece to Loeb and Sale's Batman minis, but as usual, the word count got in the way and they ended up split in two. Cool as they ended up, the larger problem is that in the next year, I really want to expand the scope of the series, which can't happen if I'm only talking about runs of comics less than two dozen issues long. Covering The Long Halloween and Dark Victory at once would’ve been good practice, but instead will have to serve as the last bad example of my inability to achieve brevity. However…was always more fond of Dark Victory and I think it showed in the final product...least in the word counter.

Finally, you come to your editor with this idea about a year-ending column that would allow (and even encourage) you to jump from one subject to another, painting an expansive picture of what comics meant in 2008. You tell him it'll probably fill two columns, but you're uncomfortable with them posting too far apart, because everyone is doing their year-in-review stuff and very soon everyone will move on. Before the IM conversation is over, you've agreed to write not two but three columns, and co-signed a crazy release schedule---three Ambis is one week!? I can't remember ever subjecting people to something like that before. Or writing three articles in less than a week. If you'd asked me beforehand, I would've insisted that my aging mind and hands no longer had it in them. Still, it was fun, got some folks talking, and was a perfect way to close the year out in an overly productive way.

So yeah, that's how you go up to 10,000 without planning on it. Hope everyone has a great New Year and Ambidextrous will return to Newsarama in a couple weeks. Also including some more updated photos of Drake experiencing the wonders of his first snow. Unfortunately, I'm still trapped in the frozen hell that is Chicago, so I doubt it will be his last.

12.13.08 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY) - NOVEMBER 2008

Ambidextrous 276-278

Only did three articles this month, but they were all wildly different and really exemplify just why I wanted to call the column Ambidextrous in the first place. Was pretty sure when I started that having to adhere to a highly structured format would automatically decrease the life of the column, and since the thing has been going since ’01, it's one of the few decisions from that time period which could be considered "smart thinking."

Started the month with #276, which was the conclusion of my "How NOT to Break Into Comics" series, and was one of the few pieces I’ve ever written where I was completely satisfied with what posted. Especially regarding the final sections of it, which I often feel loses the momentum the articles open with. Plus, there's this thing I do, which applies to both columns and scripts---I'll plow through it feeling really good about what’s going down on the page, until I get just this far from the end. Somewhere in that final stretch, I'll decide the entire thing is crap and wonder how I can justify turning it in. Happens every single time. Every time except this one, where I actually got this little twinge of excitement when sending it off to Brady. Just very confident that it was one of my better showings, and really, it needed to be, given the subject matter.

And at the exact same time I was finishing that one up, I was also writing #277, which is another thing that doesn't happen ever. We got this cool ass Mac desktop a couple months back, with a monitor that is just large enough to place two Word docs on side-by-side, if you're so inclined. So I was writing the one above and the piece about Long Halloween in an energetic session that had me jumping back and forth between documents, dropping a couple hundred words here, couple hundred there. It was more fun and less confusing than I expected, so I'll be doing something similar when it’s time to wrap the last two Miranda scripts. Oh, and by the way, Long Halloween and Dark Victory were supposed to be discussed in the same column, but I talk too much and ran out of space, so they ended up as two separate pieces. Trying to get a better handle on the format (and length) of This is Why so I can talk about runs much longer than 12 or 13 issues.

#278 was an interview with the head of Arcana Comics. Talking up independent publishers was something the first couple years of the column were all about, but I've gotten to the point where I feel like I've talked to almost everybody at some time or another. Still, I want to do more interviews like this in '09, and more profiles of up and coming writers, as that’s something I’m obviously quite invested in.

The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury #298 and #299 (full script/outline)

The Infinity Class issue (298) was continuing to kick me around, so I thought it best to move onto something else and come back with a different outlook. Usually, if I've done a decent enough outline, I can jump out of the sequence that's bullying me, script a later or earlier scene and by the time it’s done, I've figured out what the actual problem was in the first place. Because it's never quite what I think it is. But anyway, I didn't do a very detailed outline for 298 and it keeps coming back to bite me in the ass---which led me to shift almost entirely to issue 299.

This one has a ton of dialogue (though most of it isn't spoken), so I've been getting all of that down, while building the frame around it. The setting for it is highly claustrophobic, Jack and Miranda trapped somewhere no one wants to be, and then after they escape (spoiler alert!), the 2nd worst day of Miranda's life gets even worse. The absolute worst is shown in 300, but more on that at a later date. I'd like to tag-team these throughout December and have them ready to show to the guys around the New Year. As if to say, "Welcome to 2009, and yes, I know you’ll want me dead after you read these, but isn't it somewhat healthy to want the writer to have his hands broken every few pages?"

Hopefully next month, I'll be able to say just why Miranda Mercury has again become priority one for us all, but all of you net-savvy folks can probably connect the dots. Until then.

11.04.08 - WHAT I WROTE (AND WHY) - OCTOBER 2008

Ambidextrous 271-275

The column always sets the tone for me, because it's the one thing I'm guaranteed to write each and every month. And this month I wrote five, which I'm pretty sure has never happened. Couple times a year, I hit the right vibe and the material just pours out of me, so it's only a matter of keeping up. Finally doing a series on "How NOT to Break Into Comics" probably has a lot to do with it, as it's something I've wanted to write for months now, but kept finding reasons not to. Always felt strange (or incredibly presumptuous) to declare that I've officially become a part of the comics industry, and therefore have any degree of "knowledge" to impart upon others. On top of that, I've always been cautious about detailing my various failures in public, which is really dumb, as that's sort of the entire point of Ambi. Bottom line though---people seem to be enjoying it, and the seemingly endless quest to break into the industry is something a lot of people can relate to.

Also, the "This is Why" series should be showing up quite a bit in the future, as it's an opportunity to re-read some of my favorite runs in comics, and then speak glowingly about them. As you most likely know, much of the comics related talk on the 'net is not so intentionally positive, which I guess makes Ambidextrous "counter-programming."

The God Complex #2 (full script)

Complex has been in development forever, but was recently granted new life when the artist that was long attached to the project was forced to move on to other things. And slightly before that even, when an indy publisher accidentally drummed up some minor Hollywood interest in the property. After that, my contact at the company suggested a slight format change that has seen me returning to the original, long-completed scripts and remixing them to more accurately reflect my current skills. The material was pre-Miranda, and that's really how I'm classifying all my work now, because writing that comic has forever altered my understanding of how many ways there are to tell a story.

Complex felt positively slow and pedestrian in comparison, so now everything moves faster and better. Two of the four scripts have undergone this treatment and been turned in thus far, so hopefully that'll lead to an official signing, then a new artist (likely Lee Ferguson maybe) and finally seeing this book released sometime next year. It's just been hanging there for so long that getting it into people's hands will be more of a relief than anything else. The process of taking something from 2003 to the current day will likely appear in The Lab section of the site when the time comes around.

Secret Pitch #1

Can't get too specific on this one because it's still in play, but this started out as a pitch for Virgin's Sci-Fi imprint. The concept was something that I thought could work both as an effective comic, and quite possibly a television series, which is what Sci-Fi originally called for. Great hook, great title, but made almost completely unusable after the Wanted movie came out. One of the central conceits in the film version of Wanted was almost identical to one in this proposal, so I'd been sitting on it awhile, waiting on an appropriate brainstorm to salvage it. Or not.

Along comes Lee Ferguson, wanting to pitch another project together (because Miranda Mercury and The God Complex isn't quite enough obviously) and it was really him that helped turn the entire premise on its head. Now, the point-of-view is shifted in the opposite direction, with a new and more interesting series lead, while still maintaining my original goals for the book. Again, it's in play, so who knows what'll happen, but we're incredibly excited about it and it would make a fantastic semi-regular addition to this company that shall remain nameless. More details when available.

The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury #298 (full script)

This continues to kick my ass on a weekly basis, but the first couple weeks in November are all about wrapping this baby up. The first and last three pages have been written for some time now, and Lee has finished the pencils for the cover, plus the design work for the 10 or so new characters that'll be introduced in the story. Honestly, I think part of the problem is that this was the script I was working up when the news about Archaia's restructuring hit, which really stopped all of us dead in our tracks. Think we swore that wouldn't happen, but for a while, it was hard to think about the book without feeling a little hammered about the publishing situation. Simple math then suggests that something is different recently, but I don't want to say too much...for once anyway.

Hoping to turn this into a monthly feature on The Fiction House, if only because it'll force me to update the site on a more regular basis. Thanks for reading and back soon.

09.19.08 - PROJECT DRAKE

Some of you know that my dog, Shadow, passed away shortly after the San Diego convention. A miserable gut-wrenching experience to be sure, but not enough to deter us from eventually rescuing another dog. Well "eventually" didn't last as long as we originally thought, and we've recently welcomed a new Labrador pup into the home, and after weeks of deliberation, have settled on calling him Drake.

The rescue shelter's site described him as "calm" and "laid-back," which was either their version of sarcasm, or the product of him having kennel cough and a small case of worms. Now healthy, he's growing at a frightening rate and trying to chew everything in sight, which includes us, as he doesn't seem to understand that our fingers and toes are actually an extension of our bodies. But it's been a great experience thus far, even though I've begun to embrace a general sense of exhaustion, and am continually reminded that I have in fact become an old man.

Expect occasional updates on his progress here (and possibly in Ambidextrous) and enjoy some cool pics of the little guy doing his Drake thing. Thanks again for all of the support throughout this whole situation, and stay tuned for his continued misadventures...

08.09.08

Welcome to The Fiction House, my interpretation of a personal website. Please make yourselves comfortable and feel free to explore the house. Some things you may find interesting in its rooms---a comprehensive index of all 260 plus Ambidextrous columns, along with a short list of my personal favorites, exclusive features about the continuing development of Miranda Mercury, creator commentaries, and interviews. Also, for the aspiring writers and process junkies out there, the full script for the critically acclaimed The Many Adventures of Miranda Mercury #295.

Again, make yourself at home, and watch this space for further announcements in the coming weeks…