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Wolf's Head Issue 18 on Kindle

I’ve pleased to announce that WOLF’S HEAD 18 is now available worldwide on Amazon’s Kindle platform. Now, if you’re asking yourself if this issue was later than normal, you would be right! The last number of months have been difficult to say the least and a lot of things went on the backburner. The big one was, of course, the death of my oldest friend Dave. In fact, this issue is dedicated to him. He had read quite a bit of WOLF’S HEAD and really enjoyed it. It was actually harder than I thought it would be to complete this issue, mainly because I know that he isn’t around to read it. So it goes and all that, but I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t thinking of him quite a bit while I was working away on this issue.

There have been a number of other events that compounded with Dave’s death to really slow things down. That said, things are back on track now and I’m very pleased to get back to WOLF’S HEAD, a series that I adore. One of the things that I love about serialized storytelling (as opposed to working on a “beginning-middle-end” stand-alone graphic novel) is that the story takes one in unexpected directions. Back when I was working on the early issues of the series, I never thought that Lauren, Sankō, and their friend the AI would have some of the adventures they’ve wound up having. That some of these events have surprised even me is pretty cool. I think (well, hope, anyway!) that this helps keep you (dear reader!) a little unsure of where things are going, too. That really is part of the fun of doing a series, regardless of its form. Back when I was working on those early issues, did I ever expect Lauren to be in Alaska and have the adventures she had there? Nope! Did I know about her road trip back down south, with her wonderful VW van and all of the rest? Nope! Did I know about the characters she’d meet along the way? Chuck Freight, Foolbert Bong, Fang Ting Him, Maggie Vraic, and all the rest? Nope! And did I know that Richard Blairstone, a bit of a “throwaway flunky” back in those early issues, would become the “heavy” he has? Nope!

Finding joy and being surprised in unexpected turns of events is amazing! It really is! I hope you find that, too, and with that in mind I’ll ask you this: if you enjoy WOLF’S HEAD, if you love it, please help spread the word about it. Review it! Tell your friends and family about it! Talk it up! Write me a letter telling me what you love and — gulp! — what you don’t! If you’re receiving this update via email as a subscriber, forward that to people you think might like the series and my work. Partner with me and help get the word out!

Folks, don’t forget this very handy tip: if you are shopping from somewhere other than the United States, simply replace the amazon.com part of that link with your preferred domain. For example, in Germany the “dot com” becomes “dot de” — therefore, the series can be found at https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08MTGCS49. Nice and easy, eh?!

Before I forget, here’s the trailer I did for the first hardcover edition of the series, collecting the first six issues. This book is beautiful to hold and early reviews have been very positive! This one, for example! There are many ways to engage with the series, but there’s something about holding the physical book in your hands that is pretty special.

Wolf's Head Book 1 Trailer

I’ve very pleased to share this, though it took quite a bit of work to get ‘er done. So! This a short trailer I created for my ongoing comic book series WOLF’S HEAD, specifically for the first hardcover collection. It took some doing, mainly because there are some short animated sequences; since I’m definitely not an animator, I had to learn some new tools to make it work. That’s the challenge of creating anything, but perhaps especially art, but it’s also part of the fun, too. It’s also really neat to see my art presented in this way. Still me, but different.

This is really a narrative trailer, for lack of a better phrase. I wanted to avoid just “throwing” artwork at viewers and try, as elegantly and succinctly as possible, to get to the heart of the story. I think the trailer does that, but of course, you will be the ultimate judge. ‘Course, if you like it, please do share it far and wide.

For those interested, I used Blender to create the animations and then put the whole thing together using OpenShot. Both software packages are free and are very powerful. Blender, in particular, is remarkable. Folks have made full length 3D animated films using it, but I was really taken with Blender’s 2D options.

The video is embedded below, but if you can’t see it, you can view it directly on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1llp9chMzw

Wolf’s Head Issue 18 Page 1 Process

I thought it would be fun to share some of the ol’ “process” behind a recent page from WOLF’S HEAD. In this case, it’s the first page to issue 18. And hey, 18 issues in for an indy comic book series is not too shabby, folks.

This page features Lauren Greene and Super Bob Sanchez chit-chatting in a diner in Alberta. The page also builds off of issue 17 and the various struggles that Lauren is currently going through. While I don’t think there’s any “right” or “correct” way of starting a comic, I’ve long been partial to opening with a splash page to get things going. This is especially useful here because the preceding panel in the previous issue was actually very small. So if one is reading these issues in sequential order, it should be fun to leave off last ish with a tiny panel and then start this one with a biggie.

I’ll start with the final coloured and lettered page and we can work backwards to the initial layouts. Oh, one important caveat: while some pages take a bit of visual brainstorming, in this case I knew exactly where I was going (building from last issue, right?) so I didn’t need to do that. That’s often not the case and many pages take a bit of thumbnailing (usually tiny thumbnails) to work out mentally how I want to approach a page. This is often especially true for covers; considerations of logos and whatnot influence how the page might look. In other words, sketching and “mucking about with page design” is a tried and true way to go.

WOLF'S HEAD issue 18 Page 1 Final Page illustrated by Von Allan

Next are the final inks, including screen tones (or, if you will, Ben Day dots or what I long called “zipatones”). Generally I do not include the lettering in the final inks (well, at least for colour work) and that is reflected here. Inking is one of my favourite things to do and this page was a blast to work on!

WOLF'S HEAD issue 18 Page 1 Final Inks illustrated by Von Allan

Next up are the final tight pencils. There is a bit of visual cheating going on here. I actually rarely rough out a page like this as one individual unit. Rather, I actually do various pencil sketches (and sometimes even inked sketches) on different sheets of paper, scanning them into my computer and finalizing the pencil layout that way. I like that approach, mainly because it allows me to isolate various parts of the illustration and work on that. In this case, the diner is a good example: isolating the perspective drawing from the figure drawing allowed me to play around with some ideas, something a bit harder to do if everything was on one sheet of Bristol board.

WOLF'S HEAD issue 18 Page 1 Tight Pencils illustrated by Von Allan

The next two illustrations showcase more of what I mean. First is the tighter pencilled perspective sketch of the diner and that’s followed by the very loose sketch (this time with my trusty Tombow brush pen) as I loosely laid down some ideas. These actually follow part of the same process I described here, but in this case I did do a round of tighter pencils rather than just go into final inks because I needed to be sure of a few different things. The trade-off is time, but I felt it was worth it in this case.

WOLF'S HEAD issue 18 Page 1 Tight Background Pencils illustrated by Von Allan

WOLF'S HEAD issue 18 Page 1 Loose Background Pencils illustrated by Von Allan

Not included here are the separate figure sketches. I generally do loose little gestures, often in ink, and then scan, check, print out, and tighten into final pencils. You can see the final result in that first sketch above.

Some pages are slow, some go surprisingly quick, and this one was somewhere in the middle. It was a lot of fun to do and hopefully starts off issue 18 in an engaging, intriguing, and beautiful way.

Smash Fascism!

Since apparently this still needs to be said, fascism and nazism are never cool. Never have been and never will be. Or, as Professor Henry Jones (!) once said, nazis are the “slime of humanity.” I decided to do a pin-up of Lauren from WOLF’S HEAD making the point… clearly. Art speaks for itself, right?

Lauren from the ongoing comic book series Wolf's Head tearing apart a Nazi swatiska flag by Von Allan

Wolf's Head Issue 15 on Kindle

First, the elevator pitch: “Lauren Greene has left Alaska in an old VW Bus, headed for Detroit with her dog Sankó and the young artificial intelligence they’ve befriended. Hoping that her return to Michigan will finally secure the AI’s safety, Lauren is shocked to discover that she’s being tailed. Mustering up her courage, Lauren challenges the ‘tailers,’ only to uncover a far greater danger to both her and the AI.”

This issue can be found at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GHFZTB8; as always, if you’re living somewhere aside from the United States, simply change the domain to reflect where you live. For example, I’m in Canada, so I just need to replace the “dot com” with “dot ca”; in other words, the link becomes https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B09GHFZTB8! Easy!

I truly love issues like this. Why? Well, last issue resolved a lot of the action and intrigue that Lauren Greene was experiencing in the mysterious town called Flat City in Alaska. This issue picks up some time later and spins the story in a different — and hopefully fun! — direction. Not out of the blue or out of character or anything like that, but taking the logic of the previous issues and continuing to build both the world and the characters. That’s something I find incredibly rewarding… and damn exciting, too!

My feeling is that if I’m excited, that will be something that the reader will pick up on, too. I hope so, anyway! Doing the research on this issue was also a great deal of fun; while I know a number of people from the north, I have never been to Alaska myself. To do it properly takes some research and adds, I think, a certain “verisimilitude” to the story. I actually learned a few things, which is part of the fun of doing research.

One of the inspirations of this issue is the just unbelievable artwork of Hasui Kawase (川瀬巴水, born May 18, 1883 and died November 7, 1957). If you’re not familiar with him, Wikimedia Commons has a decent collection of his artwork online. Take a peek and I think that you, too, will be blown away. See if you can spot his influence in this issue of WOLF’S HEAD — it shouldn’t be hard!

Wolf's Head Issue 14 on Kindle

Teaser image for the third story arc of Wolf's Head on Kindle

This is a big one! With this issue, we close the book on the third story arc of WOLF’S HEAD. That actually kinda blows my mind; when I was initially brainstorming the series, I had no idea it would ever get this far. Nor did I have any of this fully planned out. One of the wonders of episodic storytelling is just this: seeing where and how the story takes you. And often being delighted in the unexpected directions it goes!

This issue also features some special guest stars! Chuck Freight (of course!), but also Maggie Vraic, Fang Ting Him, and the effusive Foolbert Bong! What?! YES! I had a blast writing and drawing them and I dearly hope you enjoy getting to know them, too!

This issue also marks the end of the third story arc in WOLF’S HEAD, which is pretty remarkable from where I sit. It is amazing to think back to that very first issue and compare where Lauren, Sankō, and the AI are now to where they were back then. It is one of the things I love the most about comics; that notion of real change, of issues building on what came before, and leading into new directions. I won’t lie; it’s a lot of work and often very challenging to do, but it is truly rewarding. I hope feel the same way, too!

As always, here’s the pitch: “During an attempt to rescue a group of people who disappeared into an abandoned gold mine, Lauren Greene broke her arm… and still couldn’t find them at all. Lauren is now faced with pain, bills, and the pesky fact that the people she was looking for are still lost. If there’s any hope of finding them, Lauren has to learn to ask for help. But trusting others is the one thing that is not easy for her. With time running out, will Lauren enter the mine alone? Or can she get over her issues, find a team to go back into the mine, and face danger… together?”

And, of course, here are the usual links:

Wolf’s Head Official Site: https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/
United States of America: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GFN87DY
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B09GFN87DY
United Kingdom: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09GFN87DY
France: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B09GFN87DY
Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B09GFN87DY
Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B09GFN87DY
And so on!

And don’t forget that the series page can be found at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08MTGCS49; and you can just change the “dot com” part of the url with your specific top-level domain. In Germany, changing the “dot com” to “dot de” means that the series can be found at https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08MTGCS49. See? Easy!

Lastly, issues 11 through 14 of WOLF’S HEAD form the third story arc of the series! Loads of great characters, tons of real change, boatloads of drama, a great deal of fun… plus, as always, a little bit of heartache, too. If you love the series and know someone who likes great comics, please consider sharing that love along!

Wolf's Head Issue 13 on Kindle

This issue is slightly bitter sweet. Why? Well, on the one hand I’m extremely proud of how it turned out. It’s a terrific issue, featuring some fairly terrifying elements and (if I do say so myself) some neat storytelling twists. However, it’s also the last issue that will be collected into trade paperback format. As many of you know, the way WOLF’S HEAD was serialized in print was a bit of a problem. The idea was simple; collected two digital issues into one approximately 60-page book, give it an ISBN, and get it into bookstores (probably a stretch), online retailers like Amazon (much easier), as well as Diamond so the series would get into comic book stores. It was that last point that proved such a massive headache and I’m still not sure why. I’ve written a much longer piece that goes into some of the “ins and outs” of this situation, but suffice to say it was (and is) pretty discouraging.

However, with a negative often comes a positive. In this case, there are two. First, the digital series will certainly continue! Awesome! Secondly, I’ll be moving the series into hardcover format very shortly. The first WOLF’S HEAD hardcover will collect the first six digital issues — the first story arc — and be about 170 pages in length. Other hardcovers will follow that. This means that readers will get a beautiful hardbound graphic novel!

What about this issue? Here’s the quick pitch: “While hiding in Alaska with her rescued Artificial Intelligence and dog, Lauren Greene has been pulled into a desperate search for a group of locals who’ve disappeared into an abandoned government complex. With no help from the police — and afraid that asking anyone else for assistance would risk revealing the AI to the people hunting it — Lauren chooses to return to the mysterious complex and search alone, despite the mysteries and terror she knows await her there.”

This issue can be found at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09FWD2Z8W; if you’re living somewhere aside from the United States, all you need to do is change the domain to reflect where you live. If you live in Germany, just replace the “dot com” with “dot de”; in other words, the link becomes https://www.amazon.de/dp/B09FWD2Z8W! The same idea works for the series page. On Amazon.com, it’s https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08MTGCS49. In Germany, it would be https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08MTGCS49.

Pencils and Inks for the cover of Wolf's Head 13

One of the things I'm not great at is showing work in progress, especially for my ongoing comics project WOLF'S HEAD. Here is a small effort to change that!

Up first is a cell phone photo of the tight pencils of the cover. In general, for interiors, I don't pencil this tightly. That's mainly because I ink my own work and I prefer to do some of the "drawing" in ink.

The pencils are followed by the inked illustration. This obviously doesn't have the cover logo and whatnot on it, but it's complete aside from that. I used to do all of my inking by hand, using a brush, but I found that the scanning process required a lot of very fussy work. Nowadays I digitally ink, in Manga Studio (now known as Clip Studio Paint), and that completely side-steps all of that pesky scanning and corrections. I do still ink "traditionally" from time to time, but I have to admit I really prefer digitally inking. Faster, cleaner, no scanning, and digital inking has the lovely advantage of "take-backsies" if I screw up. Nice!

And you'll actually notice I did screw up, so the inks also show a few corrections.

Photo of tight pencils of the cover for WOLF'S HEAD issue 13 by Von Allan

Wolf's Head Issue 12 on Kindle

This issue was both a great deal of fun and one helluva challenge to write and draw. Why? Well, so far at least, WOLF’S HEAD has had a lot of action, adventure, emotion, and drama. And while there have been terrifying moments (including when Patty, Lauren’s mom, died), there hasn’t been any horror. This issue does. And that’s pretty special.

Wait, why special? Well, one of my convictions about comics — as a medium — is that any type of story can be told. This was, once upon a time, a contentious argument. There were those people in North America who felt that comics told simple stories mainly aimed at young children… and that was the end of it. Case closed. Hah! While obviously a stereotype and not a particularly sophisticated one at that, the past few decades how clearly showed that this is not the case. Comics are a medium and thus can use genre to tell any type of story.

For WOLF’S HEAD, I’ve long wanted to explore horror. And, for me, that means character-based horror. Something that terrifies Lauren, the main character in WOLF’S HEAD, as well as the reader. That is not such an easy thing to do. I debated a lot on how to do this and how to make it work. Plus a lot of research, too. Andrea Subissati over at RUE MORGUE came up with a definition that I quite like: “Horror is any art that aims to recreate an extreme feeling of repugnance and fear by usually—but not always—using elements of violence and/or the supernatural. So how does horror, as an art form, accomplish this recreation of physiological responses and what might that look like? Well, that’s going to be the hardest part to explain to an alien because really that’s the most exciting part of being a horror fan. There are so many ways to do it and content creators are finding new ways to freak us out all the time. That’s part of what makes the genre so rich.”

Did I do a good job? I hope so. As always, you’ll have to tell me!

Oh, the elevator pitch: “Faced with the disappearance of a homeless man named Billy, Lauren Greene correctly guesses that he went inside Alaska’s mysterious and abandoned Safeguard Missile Complex. While searching deep inside the Complex for Billy, Lauren stumbles across an abandoned goldmine… and is confronted by a nightmarish creature that can’t possibly exist.”

This issue can be found on:

Amazon.com at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08H41QNSB
Amazon.ca at https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08H41QNSB
Amazon.co.uk at https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08H41QNSB
Amazon.de at https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08H41QNSB
Amazon.fr at https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B08H41QNSB
and so on!

Wolf's Head Issue 11 on Kindle

Eleven issues? Who would have ‘thunk’ it? Not me! When I was first brainstorming what would become WOLF’S HEAD, I had the first six issues roughly locked down. I had some loose ideas for what could come next, but these weren’t ‘firmed up’ plans. Of course, many of these did find their way into issues 7 through 10. That, however, was that. I had nothing written for what came after those loose plans.

Scary? A little. Exciting? You bet! That’s one of the great joys in storytelling, regardless of the medium. Letting the story take you in different, unexpected, and weird directions. There is a great deal of fun to be had in that. Not to mention some nervous moments, too. I always feel like I’m juggling raw eggs; not only might they all tumble down on top of me at any moment, but I’ll have literal (ahem… if you’ll excuse the metaphor) egg on my face, too.

I’m very pleased to say, though, that I love how this issue turned out. The first ten issues were set in Detroit, Michigan and I tried very hard to root those issues in place. This issue the story changes focus entirely to Alaska. And that means new situations, new challenges, and new characters. The reasons for the move, hinted at last issue, was something that Lauren decided to do deliberately. Will it work out for her? Time will tell. That’s fun, too! Join me, won’t you?

The quick pitch: “Lauren Greene, her dog Sankō, and the young artificial intelligence she recently befriended have left Detroit and have ventured north to Flat City, Alaska. As Lauren attempts to restart her life, she’s confronted with the frustrations of trying to make ends meet in a tough economy. At the same time, she’s forced to keep a very low profile in order to safe guard the artificial intelligence from the grasp of the people who want it back… at any cost.”

Here are the usual links!

Wolf's Head out on Amazon's Kindle!

Hot on the heel's of yesterday's announcement that WIZARDS FOR HIRE - CHEAP! is now available on Amazon's Kindle ebook reader, comes the big news! Hey, how 'bout we let the series star share the news?

A six panel tease featuring Lauren from Wolf's Head to announce the digital release of the series on Amazon's Kindle

Yes, that's right! The first ten issues of WOLF'S HEAD are now available on Kindle! A lot of work went into ensuring the series works on that device and I think the results are pretty terrific. Like WIZARDS FOR HIRE - CHEAP!, the series can be read on larger devices like tablets, but I've also worked hard to make sure that the series fully supports a "panel to panel" view. Looks pretty sharp if I do say so myself.

And don't forget that you can learn more, a lot more, about WOLF'S HEAD by visiting the series' dedicated mini-site over at https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/.

Wolf's Head Issue 10 on Kindle

This is a very special story! Why? Well, ten issues in, we see Lauren coming face to face with the antagonist that she’s been dealing with for the past number of issues. And this forces her to make a critical decision, one that will play out over the next few issues.

One of my goals since the series started was to deal with racism in a different way than is usually depicted in comics as well as other media. What do I mean? Well, since Frank McRossiter’s introduction way back in issue 1, I wanted him to be racist without directly saying so. In other words, it’s his deeds that make him a racist, not just his words. At the same time, I wanted it to be relatively subtle; Frank doesn’t wear a Klan outfit. He also doesn’t attend racist rallies, write racist screeds, or any of that. But he is racist and that’s influenced how he’s treated Lauren right from the get-go. In some ways he’s the most heinous antagonist that the series has seen so far and his racism played a key role in that. He’s simply unable to see Lauren as the human being she is. And this is despite the fact that she saved his life back in issue 6.

I’ll leave it to you to judge how I did. I will say that coming up the twists and turns in this issue was a great deal of fun! And I think it pays off a number of plots and character points that I had established earlier. As always, that’s part of the fun of creating comics. Establishing little threads and then paying them off later on. I think (hope!) that it rewards careful reading and works on a lot of different levels.

Elevator Pitch: “Lauren Greene, her dog Sankō, and their young Artificial Intelligence (AI) friend are on the run from a bounty killer with a contract to kill Lauren. Hiding at a friend’s place, Lauren gets a phone-call from a potential new ally named Super Bob Sanchez; he has information that will rid Lauren of her villainous pursuers once and for all, put some money in her pockets, and give her a way out of Detroit… if she can trust him. But before Lauren can sort out her next steps, she discovers that an old foe has kidnapped her best friend; he’ll trade that life for Lauren’s. If Lauren refuses, her friend dies. If she accepts, she dies. Faced with an impossible situation, Lauren must make a terrifying and heartbreaking decision before time runs out.”

Here are the usual links:

Wolf’s Head Official Site: https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/
United States of America: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08B3CP3M2
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08B3CP3M2
France: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B08B3CP3M2
Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08B3CP3M2
Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B08B3CP3M2
United Kingdom: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08B3CP3M2
And so on!

And don’t forget that the series page can be found at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08MTGCS49; and you can just change the “dot com” part of the url with your specific top-level domain. In Canada, changing the “dot com” to “dot ca” means that the series can be found at https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08MTGCS49. See? Easy!

Lastly, issues 7 through 10 of WOLF’S HEAD form one terrific story arc, full of great characters, loads of change, and a lot of fun… plus, as always, a little bit of heartache, too. If you love the series and know someone who likes great comics, please consider sharing that love along!

Teaser image for the first story arc of Wolf's Head on Kindle

Wolf's Head Issue 9 on Kindle

This issue stars a bounty killer! What?! Yes! And is, in some ways, the most action issue of WOLF’S HEAD yet! Action can be tricky to do well; while it’s such a staple of super hero comics, so much of it rings pretty false to me. Why? Well, the classic stereotype goes something like this: hero is minding their own business with ye olde villain decides to act. The hero, often just wandering by, decides to intervene. And lo! A fistfight is the result.

Can this be fun? Sure. Is it fun when it happens over and over again? For me? Nope. Now, the big question is why? I can only give you answer that works for me; as always with art, how one feels about this is pretty unique and can change with both experience and time. I think the problem with the stereotype is that it makes the villain active and not the hero. Often, the hero just wants to be left alone. This is not a recipe for an engaging story, especially if the villain is of the “one-and-done” variety (i.e.: the villain makes one appearance and then disappears, typically to jail or maybe to their seeming death, only to reappear a year or so down the road).

The big problem is that pesky notion of being “active.” We want — or rather, I want — an active hero. A hero that is trying to do something, something that is clear to the reader. When that’s lacking, when the hero just wants to be left alone, there’s a problem. So, in other words, an active hero combines with an active villain, each with clear goals. And one of the stronger resolutions, not always possible in fiction, is when resolving the problem the villain presents also resolves other issues the hero is facing.

This doesn’t mean that the goals have to be external. Often the best struggles are internal to the hero. Yeah, yeah, a hero could be scrounging up money to by a car and are actively trying to solve that problem. It’s often funner — at least to me — when the hero wants something intrinsic to their character; a simple example could be a fear or phobia.

Does this always have to be the case? Of course not. Sometimes the hero really is just minding their own business, perfectly happy, when the villain appears. If that’s always the situation, however, then I’d argue there’s a problem. One of the things I work very hard on with WOLF’S HEAD is to keep Lauren active. It’s a challenge, but man oh man is it ever rewarding when it works well. I think it did here, though you’ll have to let me know what you think!

The ol’ Elevator Pitch: “With the villains who have been pursuing Lauren Greene and the Artificial Intelligence she’s befriended in the hospital after an abortive attempt to steal it, Lauren feels like she has some breathing room to figure out her next steps… but she hasn’t counted on the anger and racism from one of the villains, Frank McRossiter, who has a personal vendetta against her. Unable to kill her himself, McRossiter hires a bounty killer (!) to do the job for him. And when that bounty killer lands in town and shows up at Lauren’s apartment armed with a gun and an electronic magnetic pulse weapon to deal with the AI, things start to go very badly very quickly. Also in this issue: Can Super Bob Sanchez repair ‘Old Bess’ (his truck!) and get back on the road before police find him?”

Here are the usual links:

Wolf’s Head Official Site: https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/
United States of America: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08B38GV68
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08B38GV68
United Kingdom: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08B38GV68
France: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B08B38GV68
Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08B38GV68
Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B08B38GV68
And so on!

Wolf's Head Issue 8 on Kindle

WOLF’S HEAD is the first time in the series that I’ve tried something a little bit different. This issue is a “split” book. What’s that? Well, it’s an issue with two different stories with two different main characters. In this case, Lauren Greene is the star of the first story and Super Bob Sanchez is the star of the second!

“Split” books fascinate me; back in the 1960s, Marvel Comics faced a unique situation. Due to their distribution arrangement with Independent News Co., Marvel could only distribute a certain amount of titles per month. Why? Because Independent New Co. was owned by National Periodical Publications, the company that owned DC Comics. As Stan Lee noted in an interview, Marvel’s output was “eight or 12 books a month, which was all Independent News Distributors would accept from us.” “Split” books were one solution to the problem this distribution restriction represented. By having two stars rather than one, I presume that Marvel hoped they could gain more sales. Eventually, Marvel grew so strong that they could avoid these restrictions. Characters that rubbed shoulders with one another in the “split” books now could star in their very own titles.

I have a soft spot for a lot of the “split” books, though. Primarily STRANGE TALES, but also TALES TO ASTONISH and TALES OF SUSPENSE. Part of the idea with this issue of WOLF’S HEAD was to celebrate these titles. However, I also faced a practical problem that was tricky to solve. With WOLF’S HEAD, I wear all the hats. I knew I needed to introduce Super Bob into the story, but I wanted his story to run separately to Lauren’s. Well, I could have launched a second title. Yikes! Even if I wanted to launch a second title, I simply don’t have enough time to do it. So what to do? One solution was to “cross-cut” their narratives, basically using parallel editing. While I’ve done that before, this was not my preferred solution this time. Trying to brainstorm a solution, I remembered these ol’ “split” books. And that’s the way I decided to go!

Why did I want to dedicate so much space for Super Bob, a character that Lauren hasn’t even met yet? The answer to that, he says cryptically, will become apparent next issue and even more so in issue 10! So stick around; it’s going to be a great deal of fun!

With that out of the way, here’s the ol’ Elevator Pitch: “Lauren Greene is a young Detroit woman whose life is turned upside down after her mom saves a newborn life-form, a kind of Artificial Intelligence (AI), from a secretive corporation that intended to use the powerful baby for war. When her mom dies, Lauren is left alone to figure out what to do with the new life-form… while also trying to make ends meet in her real life. Desperate for help, she has reached out to ex-scientist, Jack Dhillon, who has a very personal hatred for the AI’s creator. Lauren hopes that Dhillon will teach her to work with the AI, but can she convince him to help? This issue also introduces a new character, Super Bob Sanchez, a truck driver who is not (under any circumstance!) a hero.”

Here are the usual links:

Wolf’s Head Official Site: https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/
United States of America: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089Y4PMP2
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B089Y4PMP2
United Kingdom: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B089Y4PMP2
France: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B089Y4PMP2
Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B089Y4PMP2
Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B089Y4PMP2
And so on!

Wolf's Head Issue 7 on Kindle

In some ways, this is the most important comic I’ve ever written. Wait? Does something world-shaking happen in it? Actually, no, but it still means it’s probably the most important comic I’ve written. Why? Well, to answer this requires a step back to look at WOLF’S HEAD broadly.

Previous to WOLF’S HEAD, I’ve primarily written either stand-alone graphic novels or stand-alone short stories. In other words, stories of variable length that have a definitive beginning, middle, and end. The closest I had come previous to this was my abortive series METAL GODS; while that series did give me some valuable practical experience, it only lasted four issues. And, critically, I had a lot of it mapped out in advance.

The same was true for the first six issues of WOLF’S HEAD. While I didn’t every single issue written before I started drawing issue one, I did have the overall arc in mind that I wanted to do. After that? Well, I had some loose brainstorming ideas… and not much else. Since issue six also resolved a number of storylines, the sky was the limit with issue seven. I could go in any direction. Did I want to keep the story grounded in Detroit? Or did I want to move it to some other location? With Jeremy Hamilton, the main antagonist over the first six issues, sidelined with horrific injuries, who would be the antagonist going forward? Should their even be one? And what about Lauren, the main protagonist? She had faced the death of her mom, the adoption of her mom’s dog Sankō, and the embracing of the young artificial intelligence that her mom had befriended, but where was she going to go from there?

On top of all that, WOLF’S HEAD is an ongoing series. That’s the key word: ongoing. Where do I go from the end of issue six? Figuring that out took some doing and it challenged me in some unexpected ways. That was both fun and a little scary, but I’m extremely pleased with how it turned out. Why? ‘Cuz I think it builds on what came before in logical ways. Lauren continues to grow and change; she’s not the same character as she was back in issue one. That’s exciting to me. I dearly hope it’s exciting to you, too!

Okay, so here’s the Elevator Pitch: “Lauren Greene has begun working with the young artificial intelligence (AI) she's encountered, but is having a difficult time creating a bond. The AI, similar to a child, either does not understand or simply cannot comprehend everything that Lauren is asking it to do. Frustrated, Lauren realizes that she needs help and begins seeking it out as best she can. At the same time, Lauren realizes that her friends are in danger simply for knowing her and she decides to protect them as best she can… with difficult results.”

Here are the usual links:

Wolf’s Head Official Site: https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/
United States of America: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089YCM4PJ/
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B089YCM4PJ/
United Kingdom: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B089YCM4PJ/
France: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B089YCM4PJ/
Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B089YCM4PJ
Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B089YCM4PJ/
And so on!

And don’t forget that the series page can be found at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08MTGCS49; and you can just change the “dot com” part of the url with your specific top-level domain. In Germany, changing the “dot com” to “dot de” means that the series can be found at https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08MTGCS49. See? Easy!

Lastly, the first six issues of WOLF’S HEAD form one helluva story arc, full of fascinating characters, loads of change, and a great deal of fun… plus a little heartache, too. If you love the series and know someone who likes great comics, please consider sharing that love along!

Wolf's Head 7, 8, 9, and 10 on Kindle

Teaser featuring issues 7, 8, 9, and 10 of Wolf's Head on Kindle

Kindle has just released issues 7, 8, 9, and 10 of my ongoing comic book series WOLF'S HEAD! Not only is this a significant release for the series (matching last week's release of issues 1 through 6), but it also brings the series right up to date. In other words, I'm currently drawing issue 11. What a journey its been! Whew! And don't forget that there's a dedicated website for WOLF'S HEAD at https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com (with previews, a press kit, links to the documentary film I'm in, and more!).

I should add that these issues also represent two complete story arcs (the first is told in issues 1 through 6 and the second is told in issues 7 through 10). That said, one of my main storytelling goals for the series has been to make sure that each issue could be read on its own. In other words, each issue works individually, but when taken together a much larger world is built. And, of course, when the two story arcs are read together, I think they tell one helluva story.

These latter issues also introduce one of my favourite new characters, Super Bob Sanchez. He is a great deal of fun and adds a very different element to the world of WOLF'S HEAD. He cameos in issue 7 and then has a back-up story in issue 8 and 9 before guest-starring in issue 10. One of the things I love about adding new characters to an ongoing series are the questions they allow. For example, can Lauren trust him? Should she? What are the consequences to both Lauren and those she loves if she takes the chance? And, of course, what happens next?

The links to each issue can be found below:

Issue 7: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089YCM4PJ
Issue 8: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089Y4PMP2
Issue 9: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08B38GV68
Issue 10: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08B3CP3M24

I'm not quite sure when issue 11 will be released, but it should not be too long.

Lastly, doing a full colour independent series is both fun and a major challenge. Aside from supporting the series directly by buying it (and each issue is very affordable), please spread the word and share the love. The only way for a series like WOLF'S HEAD to survive is if readers tell their friends about it. So please, do just that. Shout it from the rooftops!

Wolf's Head Issue 5 on Kindle

Whew, this was one tough issue to write and draw. Why? Lauren is dealing with the death of her mom Patty. I wanted to make damn sure I handled that death as realistically as possible. While comics can tell any story in any genre, I feel that for WOLF’S HEAD, realism is what counts. Knowing that Lauren is poor meant having to figure out the costs of a funeral actually are. And how cold and inhumane so much of how our society, both American and Canadian, handles death. While Lauren certainly isn’t naive, she’s still shocked when she comes face-to-face with it, and we see that and feel that in this issue.

At the same time, I didn’t want to wallow in Patty’s death. Lauren is strong and while her grief overwhelmed her, the strength she possesses was something that she could fall back on. That and the love of her friends. That love and empathy forms a big part of the story and is an aspect of the series that I don’t talk too much about. Perhaps I should, but I think it shines through when one sits down and reads an issue or two.

Of course, the death of Patty isn’t a loss Lauren feels alone. And when a certain character also feels that loss, Lauren is shocked… perhaps more shocked then she really ever has been. That was a great deal of fun to do and I think builds very plausibly from what occurred over the course of the previous issues. How will it all play out? Well, that’s something we’ll see begin to unfold over the course of the next few issues. Especially the next one, where the seeds of certain events finally start to grow.

Death is always hard. I’ve dealt with it a fair bit in my own life, some of which I’ve discussed here and here. I wanted to do a story that drives that loss home, but I think in a way that creates a great deal of hope. This issue also represents some of the best art I’ve ever done, especially the light house scene that ends the issue.

With that said, here’s the Elevator Pitch: “Lauren Greene is forced to deal with the recent death of her mom Patty. Trying to place the massive loss, Lauren’s situation is made all the harder as she struggles to come up with the money for the funeral, deals with the disappearance of her mom’s dog, and attempts to communicate with the strange artificial intelligence her mom had befriended.”

And here are the usual links:

Wolf’s Head Official Site: https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/
United States of America: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089XFBPFL
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B089XFBPFL
Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B089XFBPFL
United Kingdom: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B089XFBPFL
France: https://www.amazon.gt/dp/B089XFBPFL
And so on!

Farewell to Patty, Lauren's mom and one of the main characters from the ongoing comic book series WOLF'S HEAD

Wolf's Head Issue 4 on Kindle

This issue marks a significant turning point in the life of Lauren, the protagonist and star of WOLF’S HEAD. The problem is that it’s hard to talk about without giving spoilers to this issue. Huh. That’s a conundrum, right? How to talk about a significant event in a character’s life without ruining the reveal of that event. Tricky!

Let me see if I can get at this way. For stories to work — and I mean that broadly, in variety of mediums and genres — readers have to care about the main characters. That goes without saying, right? If a character is just some weird cardboard cutout that we, as readers, don’t give two shits about, then everything else doesn’t matter. The plot might be exciting, full of twists and turns, but if we don’t care about the characters, then all of the other stuff just falls apart.

One of my goals with WOLF’S HEAD was to make the characters as real as possible. Okay, there’s always a bit of a “wink wink nudge nudge” going on here; you know that your reading fiction just as I know I’m writing and drawing fiction. That’s obviously true, but we also have a sort of “handshake agreement” here: for you to lose yourself in the narrative, I need to make sure that the characters are as believable as possible. If I screw that up, then that agreement is broken. So I work really damn hard not to screw it up!

One of my frustrations with so many corporate comics is that they do screw this up. Losses that a character goes through (be it death or other hardship) is often “reset” and the slate wiped clean. I suppose, when I’m feeling generous, I understand it. Corporate characters are literally corporate intellectual property (or IP); for that IP to have “value” (at least to the corporation that owns it), they have to produce value. If a character is killed or otherwise “on the shelf” for a long period of time, that value is often destroyed — regardless of how the readers feel about it.

When I was a kid, the deaths of Marvel characters like Jean Grey (“Marvel Girl”) or James MacDonald Hudson (“Guardian”) really moved me. Ditto for the death of Barry Allen (“Flash”) over at DC. When all of those deaths were “undone” later on, it rang hollow. Unbelievable. Fake.

I’ve desperately tried to avoid that sort of thing in my own work. When you read this issue, you’ll see what I mean. Hopefully you’ll be moved, too.

With that said, here’s the Elevator Pitch: “Lauren Greene has been kidnapped by Jeremy Hamilton, the powerful man who invented a self-aware Artificial Intelligence (AI) that is now in possession of Lauren’s mom, Patty. In trade for Lauren’s freedom, her mom surrenders herself and the AI machine to Hamilton. Freed by Hamilton’s goons and assured that her mother will be released the next day, Lauren returns home to wait. But later that night, she learns, to her horror, that Patty has been suddenly hospitalized in critical condition and the AI is missing. Since the AI has protected her mother in the past, Lauren races against time to find it, hoping that it can save Patty yet again. As she searches frantically, and with her world turned upside down, Lauren must confront an old enemy, dodge new ones, and find the AI, which might not want to be found… before it's too late for everyone.”

And here are the usual links:

Wolf’s Head Official Site: https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/
United States of America: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089X8Q7WN
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B089X8Q7WN
Mexico: https://www.amazon.com.mx/dp/B089X8Q7WN
Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B089X8Q7WN
United Kingdom: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B089X8Q7WN
France: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B089X8Q7WN
Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B089X8Q7WN
And so on!

Wolf's Head Issue 3 on Kindle

One of the things I love about comics is when you have well-established characters with different goals coming into conflict. To do that properly requires setting up each character so that they are as real as possible. When you know where a character is coming from — what they want and why — then it becomes a great deal of fun to put those goals into conflict with one another.

Conflict, from a writing point of view, is not Character A punching Character B. Conflict results from when a character can’t get what they want (or need). I think my favourite definition is by Keith Wilson in his book BODY TRAUMA: “Conflict is the core of all fiction. Without conflict there is no story. When obstacles prevent a character from obtaining his or her goals, there is conflict. It is also necessary that the consequences of not attaining the goal be profoundly significant for the character.” There’s no right way of doing this, but it obviously has to be crystal clear to the reader. If not, then the reader simply won’t understand the “whys” of the character’s actions.

An obstacle can be internal or external to the character. Here’s a simple example: a sixteen year old wants to get their driver’s licence. That’s their goal. An external obstacle could be a lack of money; they just can’t afford to pay for the licence and the driving school to learn. See? Simple but clear conflict. Then it becomes a matter of going through what the character does to get that money. Do they make good or bad decisions? What are the consequences of it? How do they act to overcome those consequences?

An internal obstacle is something intrinsic to the character. In the case of our young driver, an internal obstacle could be fear. They’re scared of driving. Maybe they were involved in an accident as a little kid? Regardless, they are scared and since that prevents them from accomplishing their goal, there’s conflict.

These obstacles can even work in conjunction with one another. Our teen wants to drive, but doesn’t have the money (external) and is terrified (internal). If we throw on another external obstacle (maybe they were offered a dream job, but it’s too far away and public transit is too poor to get there without a car). Here’s another: what if their mom is scared of them driving, too, and can’t face that their child has grown up? See? Now we have a number of situations where the teen is going to have to go through a lot to deal with the conflict and achieve their goals. So, with Lauren and her mom Patty, that’s what we have. Both women have goals, but their goals are different from one another. How that resolves is part of the fun of this issue!

With that out of the way, here’s the ol’ Elevator Pitch: “Lauren Greene and her mother, Patty, have a huge disagreement over the future of a self-aware Artificial Intelligence (AI) that her mom saved from a lab and sheltered from its war-mongering creators. Angry at her mother’s stubbornness and terrified of the world they’re suddenly involved in, Lauren storms out — only to be kidnapped by Jeremy Hamilton, the powerful man who invented the AI.”

And here are the usual links:

Wolf’s Head Official Site: https://wolfs-head.vonallan.com/
United States of America: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089VJYMT2
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B089VJYMT2
Mexico: https://www.amazon.com.mx/dp/B089VJYMT2
Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B089VJYMT2
United Kingdom: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B089VJYMT2
France: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B089VJYMT2
Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B089VJYMT2
And so on!

Teaser image featuring a feisty Lauren Greene from Wolf's Head announcing the release of issue 3

Wolf's Head Issue 2 on Kindle

This issue picks up immediately after issue 1. Literally moments after. I don’t often do this and I suspect it will be a bit of an anomaly with the series itself, but it was a lot of fun to brainstorm! Especially the opening page, since it picks up right after the final page of the very first issue of WOLF’S HEAD.

Last issue saw the reveal of the weird shape-changing artificial intelligence that Lauren’s mom, Patty, befriended. This issue starts delving into the background of that; how did Patty meet it? What’s their relationship like? And just what the hell is this weird AI “thing” that is now a big part of Patty’s life? Lauren has a lot of questions and her mom — much to Lauren’s frustration — is not exactly forthcoming with answers.

Throw in the other problems in Lauren’s life and it’s a recipe for a lot of drama. Even without her mom’s new complication, Lauren is still struggling to find a job and pay rent. That creates a great deal of pressure on her and her struggle to resolve that plays a big part of this issue. I don’t know about you, but I actually really like grounding characters in reality. One of my immense frustrations with a lot of contemporary stories (regardless of the medium) is when we can clearly see that the lives of the characters are not realistic. Yves Smith on her Naked Capitalism site wrote a great piece on this that’s well-worth a read. She noted, “Not only does TV show how the better-off half lives, TV and the movies regularly depict characters living in better circumstances than the incomes that go with their jobs would allow.”

A reader named Clive then wrote a wonderful comment on that post. A quick (and hopefully fair use) excerpt: “Once I started noticing a phenomena (…) TV houses having unreasonably large rooms or characters having a standard of living not commensurate with their jobs (…) the author has to conjure up some outrageously contrived explanation and scenarios as to how the central characters have the time and resources to participate in whatever story arc they are about to be launched upon. (…) Where do the participants get their money from? If they work, what do they do which gives them the energy to pursue the plot line?”

One of my goals with WOLF’S HEAD was to avoid this. For me, the ordinary day-to-day struggles that characters have are important. It rings true because for so many of us it is true. One can tack on the fantastic on top of that, but that core of realism is a big part of the story. And a big part of WOLF’S HEAD.

Okay! With that said, here’s the Elevator Pitch: “After Patty Greene helps a young Artificial Intelligence escape from a secretive corporation under the cover of a huge research factory fire, she turns to her daughter Lauren for help keeping it safe. Giddy with excitement, Patty doesn’t recognize the danger she has put herself in… but Lauren does and she is terrified. As Lauren does her best to help her mom, the tensions over the Artificial Intelligence erupt between them, leaving Lauren on her own. Broke, down on her luck, and needing a job very badly, Lauren turns to her friends for aid, all the while keeping her mom’s discovery a secret.”

And here are the usual links: