Good afternoon from the icy shores of Prince Edward Island. I’m writing to you in the aftermath of cancelling my Christmas travel plans - which was devastating but ultimately the right thing to do. My Dad is high risk and bouncing between a few different airports while cases are skyrocketing across the country didn’t make sense. So we’re making the most of it. I got up early this morning and packed my family’s gifts into a giant box and shipped it across the country to BC. It’s hard spending another holiday season without my family. But I try to remember there are countless other people out there who are going through the same or worse.
I can’t believe it’s the end of December. Feels like I blinked and a year went by. I suppose it’s apt given how much I’ve done this year. Released three different comic book series (I Breathed A Body, Undone By Blood or The Other Side of Eden, and Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land), wrote and rewrote and rewrote and rewrote my first professional feature screenplay (PROECT WITHERING for those keeping score at home), wrote and rewrote an original TV series pilot (maybe we’ll talk about this experience one day), moved literally all the way across the country, drove from the west coast to the east coast, and bought a house.
At the end of it all, I feel so damn grateful to be able to live this life and do this kind of work for a living. I fucking love my job and it’s sincerely a dream come true to do this work. Because make no mistake, it’s work!
I’m in a perpetual state of wanting more. I don’t really know how to turn it off. A lot of this stuff is a culmination of a ten-year grind that often felt hopeless. It’s really gratifying to be sitting in my own home and watching the snow fall from my office window. But that’s not why I’m writing this…
Given all the insane shit I’ve done this year, you’d think I’d be consumed with comics and writing all the time. For years that was the case. Not so anymore. The sad truth is, when your hobby becomes your full time job (boo hoo, I know) you really have to find a way to carve out space for yourself.
So without further adieu…
Things that kept me sane in 2021:
SHOPPING LOCAL - I’ve redoubled my efforts to shop at local small businesses (which is considerably easier after moving to a small town). I know social media in general has talked a lot about this in the past two years but committing to it has really helped give me peace. I have a personal connection with the folks who grow my food, order my comics/books, and run the restaurants I frequent. I’m not super interested in giving more money to billionaires. No thank you.
GOING OUT IN NATURE - For anyone that follows this newsletter - you know I love to get outside and wander the woods. There’s something really calming and centring about being out in nature. The rest of the world fades and you become part of this infinite landscape - one that was there long before you and will be there long after you’re gone. There’s something really beautiful about that. I like to get out for a few hours and just focus on walking, looking around, and taking my time. Forcing myself to be present and looking at trees, watching animals, that kinda thing… maybe it seems weird but its done wonders to help reset my crowded brain during a busy year.
CYCLING - I don’t really talk about this a whole lot but I cycle everywhere. It’s a low impact way to get around and (most of the time) serves as a quicker alternative to driving. It’s a great way to clear my head and let my thoughts wander. I’ve gotten to the point where my bike feels like an extension of myself and I wouldn’t know what to do without it. Plus its a great way to exercise in an urban environment and lets you leave places whenever you want. No more waiting for the bus!
GETTING INVOLVED IN LOCAL POLITICS - Again, this is probably easier because I’m living in a small town. There’s this big vague thing called the climate crisis but then there’s these very real things going on in your immediate community. I’ve made an effort to attend public forums and research who my local representatives are. I’ve written to city planners about housing rights and cheered from the sidelines as our local Green party repealed “reno-victions”. Talking to the folks in my city, getting to know my neighbours, and advocating for change on a smaller level - renewed my sense of purpose in what felt like an increasingly futile fight for broad change. Focusing on what’s immediately in front of me helped create clarity about how much I can reasonably impact big picture problems.
OFFICE HOURS WITH TIM HEIDECKER - This one is a cheat. I’m just in love with Tim Heidecker and have come to appreciate him even more after listening to his podcast “Office Hours” for the last two years. Every Thursday at 10AM PST, Tim Heidecker, DJ Dougpound, and Vic Berger host a call in podcast where they just chat and feature cool special guests. It’s informative, funny, and honest. The Office Hours dudes have done a great job at fostering a community around the show. Like most podcasts, the longer you listen - the more you feel like you’re part of something special. Watch the holiday special above if you like to have fun or if you like to laugh.
Looking Forward to 2022
Let’s break down some work that’s coming your way next year.
PROJECT TIAMAT
A comic book maxi-series with Hayden Sherman and Jim Campbell. Epic in scope with giant fucking extreme-wide storytelling (think DUNE). Hayden is both drawing and watercoloring the whole thing. It’s the most ambitious story I’ve ever told and feels like a culmination of a lot the formalism I’ve played with in other stories. It’s a love letter to survival stories like The Descent or Annihilation. With a huge focus on the ongoing climate crisis and our inability to fully comprehend its magnitude. I don’t want to give much away just yet… but we’re going to make sure this is a big fucking deal for readers and retailers alike.
Hayden and Jim are going to blow people’s minds. This is just a mere taste of the insanity that we’ve got coming your way.
PROJECT XII
A historical neo-noir miniseries with Eoin Marron. Based on a true story from Canadian history. We’re delving deep into British Columbia’s past to expose the weird occult undercurrents of the west coast. Ever since I moved out west I kept hearing rumours about large communities of occult magicians and the like… so I decided to do some digging. I was pretty fucking pleased/disturbed with what I found. Project XII is throughly researched but is told through the lens of a fictional character. It’s embedded in neo-noir elements but (as always) we’re subverting familiar tropes. There’s also a slight undercurrent of horror and environmental themes. Sensing a pattern here…
Eoin is a dream collaborator. His pages are legitimately mind blowing and I think we’re really trying to both push each other every step of the way. The comic has some really wonderful visual language that we’ve both really come to embrace. I can’t wait for people to read it.
PROJECT MAZE
A work-for-hire miniseries that fits firmly within the “battle royal” horror sub genre. In production long before Squid Game, okay!
It’s a love letter to splatter fest horror movies with strong comedic undertones. I’m working with an artist that I really admire on this book, they’re just fucking phenomenal and I really think they’re going to blow minds with their pages here. We’re trying to keep this book light with an emphasis on fun. But of course there’s environmental themes! Though they’re a faint undercurrent if anything. This is just a big love letter to movies I love like those in the mood board. Sorry, I can’t show off art just yet. I don’t control the rights to this one!
We’ve got an extended page count (and issue count) on this series which has really let us lean into experiments with pacing on the page. So big action beats that would normally happen over 1 or 2 pages - sometimes play out over 8. I can’t wait for folks to check this one out. No clue when it’ll hit just yet.
PROJECT S.I.N.E.W.
A horror novella.
160 pages. Two characters trekking through the back country of the Rocky Mountains. Inspired by the work of Thomas Ligotti and my own pack in/pack out back country camping trip from 2020. It’s about the isolation and connection you gain when you’re totally immersed in nature. Remember that thing about connecting to an infinite landscape that I mentioned above, this is something like that.
I’ve been slowly picking at this one for about a year now. Those who’ve been following my career may know - I’ve written 5 different full length novels. None of them have gone anywhere - and I’m thankful for that honestly. The last one I wrote got a very encouraging rejection letter that sorta spawned this project.
Unlike those other books though, this one is much shorter and much more focused. I’m going to release it on my own, and publish it on my own terms. I’m in the process of hiring artists for some interior illustrations (there’s still room. So, if you’re reading this and interested - hit me up). So y’know those of you who like my writing paired with pictures will get 5 or 6 of them.
This project is born from a frustration/inability to distribute my own work. It’s a total experiment and there’s a lot more to it than I’m letting on. More about that in the new year…
Thank You
If you’re still here reading this - THANK YOU. If you’ve picked up something I wrote this year - THANK YOU. If you wrote about one of my stories this year - THANK YOU.
I don’t take this kinda support lightly. It really gives me purpose and fuels my passion. I’m working overtime to ensure that every year I’m telling bigger and more ambitious stories. It’s surreal to see things like I BREATHED A BODY being name one of the best comics of 2021 by both ComicsXF and HorrorDNA. It never feels normal but I never, ever stop appreciating it.
UNDONE BY BLOOD or THE OTHER SIDE OF EDEN is out today in most (shipping delays be damned) comic book shops. I’d love for you to check it out.
Until Next Year
Take some time to disconnect, relax a little and take some time off (if you can) - this year was hard and you’ve earned it.
Peace,
Z - 12/22/21