Off having some much needed downtime is where. Also, off down Australia way to touch base with the family, hang low. Was fast approaching burnout, so a good recharge of the batteries was in order. Hadn't really had a life free of immediate deadlines for close to 6 years. It's been glorious, a good time to take stock, think about going in new directions and now I'm itching to get back to it all. Am now taking the slow, scenic route back to the US in time for San Diego Comic-con 2009.

Yes, I'm going. Most definitely. Click the postery type image for the larger version with the full details. Oh, go on.Pretty please?



Most years, I get many people coming up to where I'm signing more by accident and because I have a habit of hanging around than actual knowledge of signing times...so this time I'm trying to let as many people know exactly where I'll be and when I'll be there.

Most of the time I'll be at Splashpage Art. Look for booth #4400 My official home for Comic-con this year. Original art for sale there and yep, I'll be able to do commissions as well! It'll be as many as I can fit in, so in case the list fills up quick, try to get me early so I can fit you in. Generally speaking, $150 for the smaller, letter sized paintings and $250 for the larger. But put any book I've done in front of me to sign and odds are if I'm not knackered I'll happily do a quick sketch for nothing. Never charge for signing books of course. Who would?

Been a strange year. Worked my absolute guts out, near burned out, stopped to smell the roses a little, got some amazing job offers I couldn't refuse and now thinking about all sorts of new stuff.

And to top it off, I'll be going to the UK TWICE later this year ( October and also November ) and Brazil. Not to mention, something planned in Chicago and also Washington DC.

Expect decent updates from here on out til Comic-con...and a fair bit of news coming from the con when it's on. It'll all be utter madness of course.

...and yeah, I love Mad Max a little too much.

Oh gods, look at my ugly mug spouting stuff. A Comicbook Orange, yay!

With an illo per chapter by me.

Should be out tomorrow, in all good comic stores, though it isn't actually a comic. Failing that, you can order it via Amazon where it should be out shortly and other online places. IDW doesn't appear to have it on their online store as yet though.

As you drive to the club, or the bar, or the pub you're going to tonight with your "girl", remember, you're a tough guy: http://tinyurl.com/22wo2g

Listening to...: Hood - Dy

As you get ready to go drink, have fun or do whatever else it is you do on a Friday night...

Listening to...: Else Has Had More Sex Tha

I've adjusting to working from home this week & finishing up a rather massive work load, so spending time updating the news/blogs I have around the place has been a bit secondary ( I do however, not shutup on twitter through the long work nights ).

So just to prove I can still post art and keep you guys interested while I go insane finishing some other stuff...

Can you guess what it is?

Ok, was meant to be a Turok comic of sorts, to be given away as a promo item at SDCC, many years ago. For some reason it never got that far, but I nonetheless did the comic. It's been aaaages now, so why not show a couple random pages since the stuff I'm working on right now isn't ready to see daylight just yet.

Yes, there's a lot I've done that never gets out there. You'd be surprised!





A Groom Lake #4 cover.



Hope you like where Chris Ryall and I have taken the miniseries thus far. ( the crotch and other dirty human/alien things mostly )

Here's one of the covers for #4...think I still need to do a "B" one though.

Heh. A Beatles, Nine Inch Nails remix to get me into inking some pages.

Listening to...: ther (NIN vs the Beatles)

Some throat singing to cap the night of work off. Very moody stuff.

Listening to...: -

I give you, a Dr Who song, in French, by Bill Baily. "Dr Qui". Lots of sexy Dalek talk.

Listening to...:

& so the Long Night of Work truly begins. Time for a bit of the ol' inout inout:

Listening to...: ic From A Clockwork Orange - Wa

Yes, I'm still awake. But not for long. Finished as much work as I could. Phoned parents on evil opposite timezone. Now: sleep of the damned.

Listening to...: s Dull and Ugly (Monty Python Sings) - M

When deep in work mode, I break out the STP.

Listening to...: tone Te

Absolutely brilliant. For Mad Max 2 fans.

Listening to...: Main Title from the Road Warrior (Mad Max 2)) - Original

And didn't really expect to.








Some art for Greg, who showed me a great time & hosted me for the signing at his Black Cat Comics.


I was made to sign a Johnny Cash poster?



As well as comics I didn't do...but thought I'd spice them up a little.

To celebrate Groom Lake #2 coming out today, here's what to look for with #3 next month. Don't think I blogged it before. ( The other ones, though, I did a step by step, check the earlier blog postings )

What the flier says basically. Check it out. Make plans. Prepare the fresh baby meat. Yay, verily so, or whatever etc etc.

Please note *if you do* bring me fresh babies to eat, I cannot do so in public, due to legal reasons.

The completed cover. Title will obviously be changed to whatever "It Only Hurts When I Pee" in french or some variant name more specific for the french market of course, as Delcourt do their wonderful design/adaption stuff to it.

I love the way French Publishers package their comics, as well as their overall cultural respect for the medium which is a bit different from the US model. It's just a bit more cultural in feel over there, rather than purely commercial.

It's either that, or I'm just influenced by the French love of drinking at every possible opportunity. Who knows.

YES, there will be an english version hardcover of Wormwood Volume 02, probably be out by early next year. ( hey, they plan these things far ahead of time on the schedule ) but if you still want a copy of the first english hardcover, there's none left except if you're lucky enough to find one left on a shelf in a book store perhaps or ordering some of the last few IDW itself has left via their online store. ( and literally today is probably the last day I'll be able to sign any copies bought there. )

Remember this little book?



Well, a piece of it now lives on, thanks to Fryda, who has brightened my morning in the best way possible.

How the image is looking before I put it through the computer & perform magik tricks to try and piece it together. Finished image by the end of the day I hope.

Also, a quick little update on Wormy.

1. There *might* be some copies of volumes 1 and 2 left. They're trying to see if they turn up at distributor soonish.

2. There should officially be a Wormwood Volume 02 HARDCOVER by next year sometime. ( yay ) The first one sold out rather quickly. No, probably no reprinting of that for now. Got to order these things so they come in or run the risk you miss out!

3. Planning on doing a new miniseries/volume 04 for next year. It's already written in my ugly little head.

Also, I'll be leaving the IDW offices by the end of next week. ( Not IDW itself, just the offices ) so, this means if you can't find Wormwood anywhere else and are still interested in buying a copy SIGNED & PERSONALIZED or anything you want for no extra charge, this is going to be the last time you can get them done that way from the IDW online store. All the Wormwood stuff they have is here.IDW itself DOES have about 20 Hardcover volume 01's left. May me your last chance if you really want one.

A couple of "quiet" pages from Groom Lake issue 2.

Coming to a good comic store near you shortly...

If you missed the first one & still want it, ( it sold out at distributor level awhile ago ) you may still be able to get a copy at the IDW online store here.

Issue 2, as is the way with comics, is a smaller print run and usually isn't enough to meet demand so if you see it, get it quick or get your retailer to get some more in before they're gone too.

Some shots of the wrap around cover in progress...just laid down some washes on it at this stage.

Photo by J. Etheridge, portrait by...I do believe, the magnificent Dan Panosian. I wish I looked as good as how he drew me. This is from Orlando, where I was last weekend.

FX was a fun show, got to hang out with a bunch of very awesome people. Creators like B. Clay Moore, Ivan Brandon, Dave Johnson, Jim Mahfood, Ted Naifeh, Andy Kuhn, Jeremy Haun, Tim Townsend, Dan Panosian, Jonathan Hickman Jason Latour, & William Christensen and a bunch of others I forget ( Sorry! )

Not to mention all the fans who came out to see me during the day to get stuff signed. HUGE thanks to all you guys.

A little something specifically being done up for the French edition of Wormwood Volume 02 ( It Only Hurts When I Pee ) coming from Delcourt sometime soon. I love doing different covers for the French editions, since they're always done up in the French format of hardcover albums. Delcourt really give me a lot of support over there. Cannot thank them enough.

Sadly volumes 01 and 02 seem to be sold out from Amazon right now. Both will probably get new printings soonish since they're almost sold out at distributor level too, but volume 03 ( Calamari Rising ) is still available here. The hardcover of volume 01 is also near gone, though Amazon still appears to have a copies. If you spy one at your retailer, there may not be any more of them for awhile!

Here's a little work in progress on a Groom Lake #4 cover. See more on my flickr.



From Friday and thru the weekend I'll be down at the FX Orlando con thingy. So if you're a local, come see one of my rare appearances anywhere vaguely on the east coast, certainly the closest I'll probably come to visiting the true south. ( Is Florida actually considered part of the southern states? I have no idea! )

I'll hopefully have plenty of time to actually get some commissions done, ( Which I only really can find the time for at cons sadly ) so if you want one, drop on by. I should have some books, original art & maybe some prints available too.

Here's what I usually do for commissions:

All are painted, tonal with watercolours etc. Usually grey tones, with spot colours for effect. Anything you like. Small: $150, Larger $250 See blog for previous examples.

Quick sketches are always free, certainly if in TPB's or on books in general. Signatures and chatting to you nice people are what I'm there for.

Here's the info: APRIL 17-19, 2009

Orange County Convention Center, Orlando

Check the FX show website for more.

Just got some preview copies in my hot little hands, plus just signed a whole box full of them for the special signed editions also going out soon.

Issue #1 has completely sold out from the distributor, including the quite decent overprint, so in celebration, here's a look at #3's cover.



First off, some sketchy pencils. I leave the big stuff to the inks, which is a luxury someone who does both has really.



Lay in the basic lines and start on the crotchwork.



Blacked in the bits I needed to, now I start on the watercolour washes...



Lots more watercolour, with a bit of white pen and such at the end before it's ready to scan...



And after a few colour washes, some contrast adjustment and a little airbrush, Groom Lake #3 Cover A is born!

If you didn't know, Groom Lake #2 is still available, just ask your friendly retailer to use this code: MAR094324 to get one in for you. Otherwise it probably isn't going to magically appear on the store shelf for you. Issue #1 has already sold out so make sure you don't miss it!

Issue #3 just became available to order, so tell your retailer APR090874 is the code for the good stuff.

Cheers to everyone who bought and dug the hell out of #1! ( It apparently was quite a lot of you! )

Have just gotten word that a rather famous chap is going to be doing the intro for the eventual collection too.

...to everyone who came out to see me at the Emerald City Comic-con up in Seattle over the weekend. Was again super surprised at the turnout and amazed that again I sold out of all the stuff I'd brought! A special cheers to those who got commissions. Sorry I had to knock back a few, the list filled up rather quickly! Was a great show, and I finally got to have half decent chats to a whole bunch of people, despite the fact I barely had time to leave my table the entire time.

Next con for me is in Orlando, Florida. See the side bar of my website ( www.templesmith.com ) for details of the FX show...and all my shows actually. I know a bunch of peeps read this only on blogger or various other places instead of the main site, with all it's extra info. Sadly I had to pull out of Heroes Con this year in June, due to other travel/personal commitments. Sorry guys! Next year.

Here's some commission photos as well as possibly the best Wormwood ( and Leprechaun ) costumes I've yet seen. These ones will be tough to match. Still waiting to see some strippers with the dragon tattoos walking around a con. ( I think if you tried, you may be arrested sadly! )

Yes indeedy, I'll be over at the Emerald City Comic-con this weekend, along with a whole slew of creators and fun peeps.

It's one of those shows I'll probably have plenty of time to actually get some commissions done, ( Which I only really can find the time for at cons sadly ) so if you want one, drop on by.

Here's what I usually do for commissions:

All are painted, tonal with watercolours etc. Usually grey tones, with spot colours for effect. Anything you like. Small: $150, Larger $250

Quick sketches are always free, certainly if in TPB's or on books in general. Signatures are what I'm there for.

Details for the con are:

4th April - 5th April 2009
Emerald City Comicon Seattle
Washington State Convention & Trade Center
Seattle, Washington State USA
Check www.emeraldcitycomicon.com for further details.

Marking my big return to the 30 Days of Night universe!




Well, no, but it was a good April Fool's gag last year. I still get random emails asking me "if it came out" or "can I help them find it as they've had no luck" etc. Sadly no, this was and always will remain a joke I just mocked up a cover for.

Nope, not to the upcoming big illustrated novel of it, but a little foretaste of it. One of those "do your own covers" which I really get a kick out of. Just so nice to do a random illo on an actual book sometimes. Great to take a break on from the pressures of the regular work.



Here's basically how it went, from start to finish. If you like the end result, I put the final book up on ebay. I dig doing these book things but have no desire to just keep it to myself. Figure there's someone out there who'd probably like a Drac cover by me so... see the listing here.


Sketchy sketchy.

Inking with a fine artline pen. A 0.1 basically.

Filling in the blacks. When in doubt, black it out.

a bit of black watercolour. Some drips for the background. General washy-ness.

White pen time. Just a little.

Finally a dash of red for the eyes and title.

And another little doodle in the front of the book just because.

Finally! I know I plugged some of the new prints I put up in my Cafepress On Demand store last week, ( Of which the image above is one ) but finally the store section on my actual website ( You know, www.templesmith.com ) is now a little more current too. All the major stuff that's currently in print ( err, unless it's now sold out ) like Wormwood, Fell & 30 Days are now up with convenient little links to their Amazon pages and a few of the Cafepress prints nd sketchbooks are as well.

Don't know what I'm on about? Well this blog stuff gets put in a variety of places, like:

Blogger
Tumblr
Myspace
Flickr
Livejournal
ComicVine

...but ultimately shows up on my *actual* real site, you know, the one with an online archive gallery, appearance schedule/dates and yes, links to how you can actually get some of the stuff so I won't get quite so much email saying "I really want it but I can't find book X, please how can I get it?" which actually happens quite a bit.

I should be adding a bunch more stuff to the online store over time now, so if interested, keep an eye on it. Now I have to work. Monday's are best taken out back & put out of their misery in a quiet & dignified manner, possibly with a shotgun.

Surprised how mega tired I look in this interview. Also, I was almost at the point of losing my voice. I was literally on my last legs but had a lot of fun. The guys over at "America's Bad Kids" did this up.

Yet more Dracula images, this time, some finished pieces.

The time has finally come. I'm clearing out my Cafepress store. From tomorrow, all the old prints will be gone and a whole bunch of new ones, which are already up, will be what's left. Put up quite a variety this time. Cafepress isn't too bad for prints, though be advised these aren't the fin art prints I do up myself, these are a POD type deal. Give em a click and see what you think.

This here is a new image to celebrate it.

Next step is to finally have some t-shirt/extra stuff up. I've neglected this sort of stuff for too long! I have plans...oh do I have plans...

Some more work in progress shots of a bunch of the art.

Things of beauty.

I often forget the small things that inspire me. One of them is old currency. I have a small collection. These are pre Bolshevik revolution Rubles. The further back you go in time, you can literally see why we call these things "bank notes". They literally used to be these huge notes from a bank saying "yeah, we agree to pay blah blah X amount".

The artistry and style that goes into these things is amazing. And even better, you can pick up these little bits of history really quite cheaply from a bunch of places.

Have I posted these before? Aww, I don't care. I like em.

If you're a Windows OS fanatic, best to stop reading this post at this point.

For everyone else, specifically artists, interested in actually being productive, I went Mac a few years ago, at the insistence of M'lady...who dragged me into the store kicking and screaming almost. ( And this was after I'd had a PC, with all it's cheap generic hardware fail me, destroying a months worth of work I had to quickly get redone in a week. )

Once I got one and experienced some sort of functional, user friendly OS for the first time in my life, I never looked back.

Now I'm onto my third Macbook Pro. This little baby you se here arrived last thursday. Damn near 3 GHz, with 8 GB ram.

I'm lucky enough to make artworks for a living. I finish them off on computer. I really found if I put the money into a quality machine, I end up recouping the costs pretty quickly.

I use macs because I want to be productive. If I buy a car, I don't expect to have to have the knowledge of a mechanic just to drive the damn thing. Yet this is pretty much my experience with Windows. I want to be productive 100% of the time I choose to be on my computer. My MBP gives me this around 98% of the time. If it's 3am and I have a deadline, I am not interested in anything else.

And yes, Macs are not good for games. Boo hoo. That's why Mac allow you to dual boot, allowing me to even do that if I want to. But this is primarily a work machine. If you want to be serious with your work, I definitely recommend investing in your work flow and going mac unless you're some sort of specialist that for some reason really does require a PC.



Look at that. They're interested in communicating clearly with you.

Beautiful.





My old Macbook Pro and my new one. When you upgrade a mac, they have this thing called Migration. With 3 clicks you basically transfer your old laptop ( not just the contents but your user settings, passwords, literally a carbon copy of your old machine ) onto your new one. It's painless and easy.

And then I went back to work.

Huzzah huzzah.

Bloody hell, I don't know what it is about my little book Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse but it just doesn't seem to die. It's into it's technical 5th printing now of volume 1 ( with that basically sold out now too and hopefully a new one coming ) and we just did a hardcover version. Now that the New York Times is nice enough to give comics some love and respect with their own bestsellers list, I've made it onto there for the first time, which is super nice. It's actually one of the books I'm most happy with too. Gave it a complete redesign, lots of extra material/backmatter...so really, this is just icing on the cake.

Huge thanks to all of you who've ever checked out Wormwood. It really is a labour of love for me. Been through so much with that little book. Had a bunch of award nominations, some from completely unexpected quarters ( like the International Horror Guild ) but really, what makes it most worthwhile is meeting the fans that dig the book and tell me it actually makes them laugh. So cheers. Here's to more Wormwood in the future. Look for a new miniseries and then TPB next year, probably called "Bingo Night in Valhalla "

Graphic Books Best Seller List (Hardcover)

1 WATCHMEN, by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. (DC Comics, $39.99, $75.) This epic tale from 1986 signaled a new maturity in comic books.
2. JOKER, by Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo. (DC Comics, $19.99.) The Joker, newly released from Arkham Asylum, deals with the rivals who have carved into his territory.
3 BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE, by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland. (DC Comics, $17.99.) This critically acclaimed story from 1988 offers a possible origin for the Joker.
4 ALL-STAR SUPERMAN, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. (DC Comics, $19.99.) These stories, free of the barnacles of continuity, include an encounter with Zibarro, the only sane resident of the Bizarro world.
5 BATMAN: R.I.P., by Grant Morrison and Tony Daniel. (DC Comics, $24.99.) Thomas Wayne, the father of the caped crusader, is cast in a sinister light.
6 HUMBUG, by Harvey Kurtzman and others. (Fantagraphics, $60.) The 11-issue run of this satirical magazine from the 1950’s receives the hardcover treatment.
7 TARZAN: THE JESSE MARSH YEARS, Vol. 1, by Gaylord DuBois and Jesse Marsh. (Dark Horse, $49.95.) Witness the Golden Age adventures of Tarzan.
8 EERIE ARCHIVES, Vol. 1, by various. (Dark Horse, $49.95.) The gruesome magazine, following in the steps of its cousin Creepy, in a hardcover collection.
9 WORMWOOD: GENTLEMEN CORPSE, by Ben Templesmith. (IDW Publishing, $24.99.) Humor and horror team-up in this series about a maggot that animates corpses and solves supernatural problems.
10 THE COMPLETE PEANUTS: 1971-1972, by Charles M. Schulz. (Fantagraphics, $28.99.) Sally Brown is the cover girl in this latest collection of newspaper strips.

Want a signed one?

And now for the shameless plug. If you want a copy, I personalize/sign them for free ( since I'm currently in the IDW offices, ) over at the IDW online store. It just costs a bit for shipping is all.

Some more images from the Bram Stoker's Illustrated Dracula

Well, Groom Lake #1 hits all good comic stores today. ( And if it didn't ask your retailer why and tell them you're perhaps willing to kill and eat small children if they don't use the order code: JAN094293 and get one in for you. Diamond still has plenty copies for just such things currently.) For those of you nice enough to Mr Ryall and I to pick up a copy, hope you dig it! It's an odd little book, but not as odd as others I've done. This one actually has some coherence to it, thanks to Chris's writing. Hope you'll be along for the ride with #2!

Just had a review pointed out to me over here.

If you want to get an extra special signed/personalized copy, you can find them on the IDW store here. Since I'm currently in house, all orders of works with my name on it get a complimentary signature/note.

If you did enjoy #1, you can still order #2, incidentally, as IDW have staggered the release to make it easier for retailers to know the response to the initial issue. Often second issues get a huge drop off due to the fact no one even knows if the #1 is any good, ( which is hard enough to gauge support but at least it has a fancy #1 in front of it. )

If you want in on the crotchtasms, let your retailer know the order code: MAR094324

A few shots of work a I do up images for the upcoming Dracula book.

Here's another peek at how I drunkenly veer from sketch on a piece of paper to a final cover finished on the computer. This one's for Groom Lake #2 by crotch enthusiast, Chris Ryall and I. Like it? Like #1? Then tell your friendly retailer ( and the not so friendly ones too that it's code to get a copy in for you is: MAR094324



Didn't get a shot of the basic sketch/pencils. Here it is with some of the basic line work laid down. If I paint things up I usually don't bother with much in the way of line weights. At this point though I didn't know if this image was going to amount to amount to anything usable.



Laid down some watercolour. This is after a couple passes, letting it dry each time. Think I arsed up the sky.



Adding in some white paint. It's water soluble oils. Just trying to get a feel for what I want.



Fine tuning and adding some details. You can probably tell, I don't give a crap about warping the paper. This is still just a rough thing, I plan on doing more to it once it's scanned in. Never really care about making something look "impressive" as just paint on paper. It's just production to me here.



Add in the elements, especially the sky...darken//lighten bits and add a little airbrush.



Added some washy colours...and of course some smoke, messed with the lighting a little. Whalaaaaah...I liked it enough and so did Mr Ryall, the writer so off to being a cover it goes.

I went to Las Vegas last weekend for a whirlwind birthday trip. We did a bunch of things, among them, shooting a bunch of Uzis, Tommyguns and Greasguns. Lots of fun. The results for me? Not so good. The best I could do with 2 shots from a Desert Eagle. One complete miss and this....


At least I don't totally suck with machine guns.





Some images from the upcoming Bram Stoker's Dracula I'm providing some illos for.

Done for my 10,000th tweet on twitter. I guess I have a problem.


Yeah, I talk a lot. I was on there before it was "cool" though.


If you ever want to ask me a quick question, hear me rant about genitals, politics & disturbing weird news feel free to follow me on twitter here.

No, not the official Illustrated Bram Stoker's Dracula that I'm doing for IDW ( more on that later ) I just did up these blank book cover novel versions of it and Emma for a couple good friends as super late gifts. ( Yes I am rather overloaded when it comes to doing art for gifts for things but they happen within a year or two of when they actually need to, honest. )

Well yeah, just maybe. See, the nice folks over at 1492, Chris Columbus's outfit, have decided to option my little Werewolf prison romance book. News just went up at Variety. Officially the first thing I've ever written to get a sniff of hollywood basically.

I'm also bloody chuffed Variety gives a mention to Wormwood:Gentlemen Corpse too. Heh.

And as a shameless plug ( Hey, I can't grow a beard as well as Billy Mays but at least I'm not as loud ) if you still want to pick the book up you can grab it off Amazon of course, or if you really want to, signed/personalized editions off the IDW Publishing online store.

The Deviant edition! I got my copies so they're no doubt going to be in stores soon.

A hardcover version of The constantly selling out Birds Bees Blood and Beer collection, it's got a few extras in it, complete new design I did and a bunch of wordy bits. This is kind of the way I wanted the book to look from the start but was never able to do back then.

Enjoy. And big cheers if you manage to pick it up.

Yep, I already have a copy sat on my little desk. The book was one quite in advance of it hitting stores and then there's a gap between #1 and #2, ( so retailers, you can see how good #1 does and then order #2 with a bit more knowledge we hope ). So far the advance reviews on it have been pretty much great! I'm going to say that aren't I, but here's some links I've found:

Comicspants.com
Bookspotcentral.com
Calliopesrealm.net

Coming out this month so here's a little flick through!

Current Location: San Diego