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New York Comic Con is this weekend! It’s one of the biggest pop culture events in the country, and Graphic Universe is a part of it.
Please stop by booth 1140 to see our latest releases and exciting new series. Meet our authors and artists and buy a signed graphic novel. You can even take home a free My Boyfriend Bites or Lily Renée, Escape Artist poster!
Here is our full book signing schedule:
Friday, October 14
Tricky Journeys and Twisted Journeys
2pm, Booth #1140
Chris Schweizer – Tricky Journeys author
Shelli Paroline – Illustrator, Tricky Fox Tales
Yuko Ota – Illustrator, Detective Frankenstein
Alaya Dawn Johnson – The Goblin King and Detective Frankenstein
Zack Giallongo – Tricky Rabbit Tales
Saturday, October 15
The Elsewhere Chronicles
11am, Booth #1140
Bannister – All 5 ElseWhere Chronicles books
My Boyfriend Is a Monster
2pm, Booth #1140
Alitha Martinez – Illustrator, My Boyfriend Bites
Hyeondo Park – Illustrator, Under His Spell
Evonne Tsang - I Love Him to Pieces
Sunday, October 16
Manga Math
11am, Booth #1140
Tintin Pantoja – Illustrator, The Lost Key, The Hundred-Dollar Robber, and The Ancient Formula
1-2pm at the Autographing Area
1. Colleen Venable – Guinea PIG, Pet Shop Private Eye
2. Stephanie Yue – Illustrator, Guinea PIG, Pet Shop Private Eye
Melinda Thielbar is the primary author behind Manga Math Mysteries, our series for Grades 3-5 that relates math to everyday life through the eyes of the students at a Kung Fu dojo. Melinda is a statistician who has previously worked as a math teacher “in real life”.
What was the first thing you were paid to write?
Manga Math is my first paid writing gig, which is awesome and has probably spoiled me for other publishing houses. Everyone I’ve worked with has been professional, helpful, and focused on making the books their very best.
What’s it like working with an artist?
The artists are the best part of writing for Graphic Universe. It really pleases me when they take a script I’ve written and add their own character touches and interpretations. The
Do you write full time? If not, what else do you do for a living? Do you want to write full time?
I was actually chosen to write Manga Math because of my experience teaching statistics and mathematics. I’m now working as a consultant for a statistical software company. One of the really exciting projects I’m working on is saving the wild tiger with statistics. There is a group called WildTrack that uses animal footprints like human fingerprints to track endangered species. Two weeks ago, I got to stand outside a tiger’s cage and feed him treats. We were trying to get him to walk across a nice sandy spot so we could take pictures of his footprints. Of course he wouldn’t do it, but he appreciated the treats.
I love my job as a statistician. People are always excited to see me and have my help, and they’re more than happy to tell me all about their interesting projects. I have many friends who are full-time writers, but overall I think it’s not for me. Writing as a full-time profession often means writing things that are profitable rather than things that move you as an artist. Having a day job gives me the freedom to write what I want to write. It helps that my day job is one of the coolest jobs around!
Have you ever written someone you know into a story? Perhaps at their insistence?
Most of the Manga Math characters are based on my kung fu brothers and sisters. No, I won’t tell you which ones. Amy is actually named after Amy Lau, a writer from New York and a classmate from one of my writing workshops. Amy helped me with a lot of research for a novel I’m working on, so it seemed only right that I make her a character in one of my Graphic Universe books.
Manga Math #4, The Kung Fu Puzzle: A Mystery with Time and Temperature
This week I chatted with Der-shing Helmer, the artist behind Manga Math #4, The Kung Fu Puzzle: A Mystery with Time and Temperature. Der-shing has also done several Avatar the Last Airbender comics for Nickelodeon Magazine. Check out some sample pages here.
What computer programs and/or what kind of pens, pencils and brushes do you use?
I use Photoshop CS2 to do my rough work and my finished linework. I also use Photoshop to do my colors if I am doing colors for a comic. I like that I can achieve nice results with the program, and since I am not a precise inker, it is good to have the “undo” button!
What music (if any) do you listen to while drawing?
I actually can’t listen to music while I’m working… Listening to music makes me imagine things and go off task, which is not great for when you’re making art. I save music for when I’m doing less creative things, like grading papers.
I read in your bio that you’re studying to become a biology teacher. How old are your students?
Students in the science classes I teach are in 9th to 12th grade.
I was wondering, do you ever take your pet snake in to class?
Ha ha, sadly I haven’t had a teachable opportunity to take my snake to class. But I do get to share stories with my classes about my biology work in Yosemite, like how we caught live rattlesnakes(!) along with other endangered mammals, reptiles and amphibians in order to do population studies with them.
What comics did you read growing up?
Growing up I really enjoyed comics like Tintin and the comics in the (now out of print) Disney Adventures. Those comics made me excited about doing my own sequential art.
Did you go to college for art and/or comics, or something else? Which college?
I attended college at the University of California at Berkeley and majored in Integrated Biology. Having a background in biology is extremely useful for creating art that makes sense, and of course nature is an ultimate inspiration.
What is your favorite comics convention?
My favorite convention is APE con in San Francisco. I enjoy seeing my friends and the work of all the other growing comic artists who attend.
