Tag: small press comics

Our 2022 in Numbers

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With just a few short days to go before Big Ol’ Santa Day (Christmas, in some cultures), we’ve taken a look back at the work we’ve put out this year, and broken it down for some clarity and a little pat on the back. This is: 

For some context, before we get into the nitty gritty, Limit Break Comics was set up in 2018, with its official launch as a collective at the Small Press Day celebrations in Dublin. Four and a half years into our little creative endeavour, which began with two collections of four-page comics, we’ve been through:

  • A global pandemic
  • A country change for one member
  • Fatherhood for another
  • Two jobs losses for the third
  • Bar exams
  • Broken bones

Just some hurdles. Aside from the pandemic and the Bar exams, the rest are quite ordinary occurrences, and everyone usually goes through one or another. The main thing for us was that through it all, we stuck together. So, let’s start with the small numbers first: the number of books published.

Books to Print

The small blessing of the pandemic was that it really makes our 2022 look exceptionally busy. As a group, we published:

  • Five new books, including three new titles
  • Four zines from two creators

It may not look like a lot, but given this is more of an expensive hobby than anything else at the moment, we’ll take it!

March 2022 allowed us to launch Meouch #2 and Plexus #2, alongside the first issues of Limit Break Presents and Old Game Plus, two new short story series. LBP is our way of showcasing the work by the creators in the group, while OGP is Seamus Kavanagh’s debut with Limit Break Comics. Joining them, collected in print for the first time, is the first Lens book, by Gary Moloney and Raquel Kusiak (edited by Claire Napier.)

Those five new books were launched alongside Turning Roads’ first big Irish show.

Fast forward five months later, Paul and Gary put together a collection of zines to launch at the big summer show. Taking breaks is for suckers. 

Then, to close the year, we launched Down Below, the first book that contains stories worked on by Paul, Gareth and Gary. It took a while.

Event Spaces

Launching books requires events. Mostly.

We’re not ones to shy away from a public gathering, so long as we get to hide behind the table whenever the crowds get too big. In 2022, we took to the road – and to the skies – to attend ten events in Ireland and the UK.

Included in the line-up were two new events for us – Glasgow Comic Con (with IrishComics.ie) and Offaly Libraries Comic Con – as well as a return to some of our favourites, like DCAF, Octocon and Thought Bubble.

Getting to mingle with readers and other creators is always a special experience, and the events that allow us to do so are always memorable.

We even got to take part in some programming at Dublin Comic Con in August and Octocon in October! More of that, please!

Telling a story… or a few dozen

In our first two calendar years – 2018 and 2019, before the world ended – we published 14 stories between 3 and 20 pages in length.

In 2021, we published just one new book: Turning Roads, with 18 short stories inside.

Not one to be outdone by ourselves, in 2022 the collective published 36 stories between 4 and 30 pages in length.

Between them, it’s 210 pages of comics. Not too shabby, if we do say so ourselves!

Meet the Creators

Aside from the number of pages we’ve put in print, no other number really explains what we do more than the number of creators who’ve been published under our banner this year. Granted, a lot of this from work included in Down Below, which does its best to bolster the other numbers in its own way. But still, including the founding members and the friends we’ve picked up along the way…

In 2022 we worked with 66 artists, writers and letterers (including colourists and editors and cover designers and… well, you can see why we stopped at those three words that sum up the work of comics succinctly.)

Not included in that count is our amazing printer for Down Below and Turning Roads, without whom the work of producing books of that scale would be impossible. Thank you Rich from Comic Printing UK, and we’re sorry about your floor. (But also, we’re going to order more books next year…)

Here’s to 2023

In case you missed it – even though we were really loud about it – we’re already looking forward to publishing Fractured Realms in 2023. This will be our third Myth Anthology, and promises to be even bigger than Down Below.

Paul was one of the lucky ones (okay, people have told him he has to stop saying lucky, because he’s worked hard at this stuff) to receive the Literature Project Award from the Arts Council. As part of that, one anthology and two graphic novels will be produced in 2023, with an aim towards launching them at the end of the year. We’ll have more news on the other books as the year unfolds, when we can reasonably estimate whether they’ll make it across the line according to schedule. (Life happens, and the artists don’t do this full-time, so we won’t be throwing them under the bus by promising anything before they’re ready!)

We’ll be back in January, properly, but you can always catch us on social media where we’ll be working towards helping folks team up for Fractured Realms ahead of its end-of-January pitch submission deadline.

Happy holidays,

Paul, Gareth and Gary

Fractured Realms: A Norse Horror Anthology – Coming 2023

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Good things come in threes… after the success of Turning Roads and Down Below, we’re delighted to open up pitches for our third myth anthology. Fractured Realms is an anthology of Horror comics inspired by Norse mythology. The book will be co-edited by Paul Carroll and Gary Moloney, with a cover by Nick Roche and JP Jordan.

With thanks to the Arts Council’s Literature Project Award 2023, we are delighted to guarantee the publication of the book and a minimum payment to its contributors in excess of our previous anthologies.

WHAT ARE WE LOOKING FOR?

Fractured Realms will feature 24 four-page comics. Your pitch should incorporate an element of Norse mythology – a god, a monster, a story – with a horror twist. We’re especially looking for stories in a modern setting. Stories can include elements of science fiction and fantasy, but must be horror first.

Every story should consist of four pages, with page 1 beginning on the right hand side of the book, in full-colour. Note that full-colour does not necessarily mean technicolour, and the Editors are happy to talk to people about the colour design of their comics to engage with the horror element of the book.

When preparing your pitch, consider:

  • What sort of terror can you inject into a Norse tale?
  • How recognisable is the story to the public?
  • Is your story unique enough when compared to existing materials?
  • How can you put a twist on a familiar tale?

Please note that we are not looking for:

  • A rehashing of ideas from The Wicked and the Divine (we love it, we just don’t need a re-telling of it!)
  • Stories that closely resemble those from Marvel Comics or the God of War franchise
  • Illustrated prose or poetry
  • Illustrations that are not comics

As with Turning Roads and Down Below, we are unlikely to accept multiple pitches examining the same aspect of Norse Mythology. Creative teams are permitted to submit more than one pitch.

Please note that we are only accepting pitches from complete teams (or solo creators). Writers and artists may only be included in the book once.

PROJECT TIMELINE

Pitches are open as of November 30, 2022. The deadline for pitches is January 29, 2023. More details on pitching and the link to the form are below. Please note that the form will close at 11:59pm (GMT) on January 29.

On February 26, applicants will be advised whether they have been accepted into the anthology. If you pitch more than one story, you will be advised specifically which one has been chosen.

On March 01 through to March 31, the book will be funding on Kickstarter.*

The deadline for final pages is June 18 with Kickstarter fulfilment planned for August.*

WHY PITCH TO US?

Limit Break Comics has been building its brand in Irish comics since July 2018, with the publication of eleven books, including short story collections, an on-going series and a one-shot story. 2021 saw the publication of Turning Roads, which received backing on Kickstarter from over 500 people. This was succeeded by Down Below, with over 880 backers on Kickstarter.

Fractured Realms seeks to build on the momentum of the project, to further showcase Irish and international talent. The project timeline allows for the book to appear at Dublin Comic Con, Octocon and Thought Bubble in the second half of 2023.

As well as offering a platform to lots of lovely comic readers, we want to pay contributors!

Payment of €65 per page will be made to each creative team in the book, made via PayPal. Teams are responsible for deciding how they split the payment. It is the intention of Limit Break Comics to increase this page rate through a pre-order Kickstarter campaign. Further details will be discussed with teams if they are successful.

Contributors maintain copyright over their work; Limit Break Comics is granted first publication rights for one calendar year

WHERE TO PITCH

Pitches should be made through this form. You may submit more than one pitch. We are seeking pitches from complete teams for this project, which includes creators who can complete all of the work solo.

When pitching, you do not need to submit sample art or a script related to the story. Please provide:

  • Portfolio links for each creator in the project
  • A working title
  • A logline for the story
  • A brief summary of the story
  • The myth your story is based upon

WHY KICKSTARTER?

We’ve built up a community on the platform, and we want to build upon that to increase the page rate we offer to our contributors.

WHO ARE THE EDITORS?

Paul Carroll is the editor of Turning Roads and co-editor of Down Below, as well as the writer behind Plexus and Meouch. In 2021, Paul co-founded IrishComics.ie. When not working in comics, Paul writes prose and publishes short story anthologies through Cupán Fae, and is Chair of Octocon in 2023.

Gary Moloney is Limit Break Comics’ resident law-talking guy, both as a profession and as a genre-expert. He is the writer of Lens, along with a number of crime stories, following his debut collection Mixtape, and co-editor of Down Below.

QUERIES?

Any queries should be sent to limitbreakireland (at) gmail (dot) com.

*These dates subject to change, but contributors will be notified in advance.

How to Write a Short Comic: Our DCC Panel

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Limit Break Comics was founded on the back of a shared desire to see Small Press Comics grow in Ireland. Over the years, Limit Break have put out 10 titles which have created opportunity for Irish Comic Book Creatives to find and work with liked mined Individuals to realise their ambition of creating their own comic books.

On Saturday 6th August 2022, Limit Break took this initiative in a new direction with their first Dublin Comic Con panel on how to create short comics. Paul Carroll, Alice Coleman, Seamus Kavanagh and James Killian joined together to speak about editing, lettering, writing and illustrating comics respectively. While Paul is a Founding Member of Limit Break, Alice, James and Seamus have all contributed to Limit Break titles in recent years.

The purpose and aim of the panel was to educate those in attendance on how short comics are made, in the hope that examples within the presentation will be the inspiration needed for others to create their own comics.

Seamus Kavanagh began by speaking about how he wrote the 4 page comic “A Warrior’s Journey” from Old Game Plus #1. He began by speaking about how he looked at his love of running, Street Fighter games and travel lead him to inspiration about a story that would take place at locations around the world, locations selected from his own previous travels. 

Seamus then highlighted how he framed the story about a Fighter losing toward the final round of a tournament, which opened up a reason for that Character to reflect on their journey, fitting into the travel theme with global locations. The story was then tied together with an upbeat ending that allowed the main Character to look positively toward the future and the next challenge. 

Creative credits for the above: (Illustration) Ruairi Coleman, (Inks) Barry O’Sullivan, (Colours) Timothy C. Brown, (Letters) Kerrie Smith

Finding inspiration for a story can be difficult so it was certainly useful to learn how a story can be inspired by different ideas and then distilled into a structured short piece.

James Killian as Illustrator then spoke about his process for bringing scripted pages to visual life. This was a highly educational part of the presentation as James covered the basics of the materials he used and then went through a step-by-step breakdown on how to draw a comic; covering what to note when reading the Script, how to research and gather references, Layouts, Pencils, Inks and final Edits.

James delivered excellent detail for each of these stages and went so far as to provide some of his own reference phots which he has used for Character poses, as we can see with the image below:

James then finished his piece by showcasing some of his recent work, visible with the image below. James gave focus to the elements he regards as important in the illustration process. The structure and layout of a page can add to the story elements of the Script by helping to focus on key areas and enabling a flow for the eyes across the pages.

Creative credits for the above: (Illustration) James Killian

James finished up by detailing some of the overlooked basics such as saving the work as print size, the right file type and ensuring a smooth hand over for the Colourist and Letterer. 

Next up, Alice Coleman delivered an insightful presentation on comic book lettering. An often-undervalued piece of the comic book process, Alice detailed how a Letterer has opportunity to really elevate the work of the creative Team and add their own contribution to the story and world of the comic.

Alice’s process for lettering begins with studying the script, planning the flow, establishing the graphic language, executing the plan and finally adding in special effects. With a deep and varied body of work to pull from, Alice was able to showcase some great examples to illustrate the various stages of her process. 

The slide below from Limit Break Present’s #1 features a Millennial Adventurer interreacting with an Ancient Guardian. Many comics would feature standard and uniform word balloons for such an exchange between regular type characters yet Alice chose to give them separate and fitting font types. The Millennial Adventurer has a standard and clear text where the Ancient Guardian has an archaic style to his text, further helping to recognise that Character’s voice.

Creative credits for the above: (Illustration) John McGuinness, (Colours) Ellie Wright, (Letters) Alice Coleman and Writing (Seamus Kavanagh)

In the next sample, from Irish Graphic Novel The Guards, Alice gave a great example of finding opportunity to trying something new and fun. In the context of the below panel, the Character is beginning to lose interest in what is being said to them and so Alice was able to trail the text off toward the end section and see it break away, reflecting the action of the comic at that point in the story.

Creative credits for the above: (Illustration) Kevin Keane, (Letters) Alice Coleman and (Writing) Shane Ormond

Finally, Paul spoke about one of the more practical first steps in getting your first comic created; finding Collaborators. He highlighted some of the regular comic book focused events that take place around the Country where it’s possible to meet people creating comics and make connections to find writing, illustrative, colouring or lettering collaborators. Paul also spoke about great online Irish Comic resources, such as IrishComics.ie, a website which publishes a new comic page by a different creative team each weekday. IrishComics.ie has become a great showcase for Irish Comic Book talent. It hosts a database of Comic Creatives, detailing their skillsets, and has a great archive of completed comics to view for free.

As Editor of Limit Break Comic’s Anthologies Turning Roads and the forthcoming Down Below, Paul gave examples of opportunities to pitch to have your comic published and gave some tips on how best to pitch your comic. Covering the basic of preparing and hosting a portfolio, Paul gave practical guidance for pitching toward the theme of the target Anthology what should and should not be included and how best to make your submission stand out.

Each of the Panellists crafted an informative presentation, full of useful and practical tips against their own areas of illustrating, lettering, writing. Summer 2022 Dublin Comic Con was a sold out show and the Convention Centre Dublin was full of energy and enthusiasm about comic books across Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th August 2022. Limit Break hope to return at future Dublin Comic Shows with more panels to help aspiring Creators to get that first short comic made and be on their way to their own full comic book.

Limit Break Comics & Small Press Day

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Once upon a time, before the founding of Limit Break Comics, there was an event. Specifically, the 2017 Small Press Day celebrations organised by Forbidden Planet Dublin. At that time, Paul and Gareth were working together on a few little Meouch projects under a different label, with the first zine – How to Live With Your Cat (When Your Cat is an Internationally Renowned Assassin) – launching on Small Press Day. It was before Paul’s first Dublin Comic Con behind a table, before any grand notions of publishing several books a year, and before the Irish comic community really found its place in the wider world. (A lot changed very quickly on that front.)

Just before that 2017 event, an article popped up online. Why the Comics Industry Needs Small Press Day. It got a lot of people talking, not least because the writer was Irish, and highlighted the Irish event on a US-run site. When said writer showed up on the day, there was an easy talking point already established, one that led to post-Small Press Day drinks.

If you haven’t already clicked the link to the article, that writer was Gary Moloney.

Over the next 12 months, the three founding members of Limit Break Comics would find themselves talking more, working together in different ways (Gareth literally helped Paul get a real Grown Up Job when he was out of work), attending events together (like the Cork Comics Expo in April 2018) before finally figuring out a name for their little collective.

On Small Press Day 2018, Limit Break Comics officially launched with its two debut titles: Mixtape and Life & Death.

Four years later, we’ve had: four successful Kickstarters (including two mammoth successes), multiple anthology appearances, one change of country (we miss you Gareth!), one addition to the team (hi Seamus!) and one new-born (Baby Moloney), along with job changes, exam successes, convention staffing, the founding of a webcomics platform, a viral spreadsheet tweet, and the small matter of a global pandemic.

With all these changes, the 2022 Small Press Day event in-store at Forbidden Planet Dublin was slightly reduced in scale for the LB team (and generally speaking!)

Paul Carroll represented the team in-store, alongside Leeann Hamilton, Clare Foley, Hugh Madden and Barry O’Sullivan. Even with the limited LB space, thanks to the shape of our projects, every single artist at that table had been published in at least one book under the label.

Leeann appears in both Plexus #2 and Turning Roads (with Kerrie Smith). Clare was part of both of our debut titles, Mixtape and Life & Death, as well as working with Emmet O’Brien on a story for Turning Roads. Hugh Madden worked with Hugo Boylan on a story for Turning Roads, while Barry O’Sullivan was one of the artists in Plexus #2. The number of creators in Ireland that Limit Break worked with is enormous, so it’s easy to accidentally load an event with people in our books.

With limited space for each creator, the Limit Break titles made available for Small Press Day 2022 were: Plexus #2, Limit Break Presents #1 (to get something by Seamus in there!), Lens (since Gary couldn’t attend) and Turning Roads (the book that most people know us for.)

It took some effort, but we managed to get a selfie. (The problem was getting Hugh to walk the six foot to be in frame.)

So much of our history is embedded in Small Press Day. We’re delighted every time we get to attend an event. With some luck, Paul and Barry will be able to team up again next year to make the day even bigger.

And, we suppose, we should probably get some new button badges for that event to celebrate our fifth birthday.

Thanks again to Forbidden Planet Dublin for organising and hosting Small Press Day. The Irish comic community needs events like this to continually remind the public that yes, we exist, and yes, the books that are put out by the dozens of creators around the country are as worthy of your time as those from distributed labels. And hey, we want people to support our friends.

See y’all at the next event – the Dublin Comic Arts Festival, September 10th-11th in Richmond Barracks. For now, we’re only tabling on the 10th. Come say hi!

Small Press Day at Forbidden Planet!

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Four years ago, Limit Break Comics made its debut at Small Press Day. And now, at the tail end of a pandemic, we’re coming back.

One week after Dublin Comic Con, Paul Carroll will be representing Limit Break Comics at Forbidden Planet’s in-store event for Small Press Day. The group of five creators, including Leeann Hamilton (Turning Roads, Plexus #2), Clare Foley (Turning Roads, Life & Death), Hugh Madden (Turning Roads) and Barry O’Sullivan (Plexus #2) will be present from 1-4pm on Saturday August 13th.

The afternoon will represent the return to in-store creator events for Forbidden Planet, and the first Small Press Day to happen in-person since 2019.

Each creator will have a range of 3-4 titles with them, to highlight some of the diversity of work available from Irish comic creators.

Dublin Comic Con: Comic Creators on Creating Short Comics

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This Saturday, Limit break Comics is entering the world of convention programming with a specially curated panel for Dublin Comic Con: Comic Creators on Creating Short Comics.

The panel will be moderated by Seamus Kavanagh, whose latest title Old Game Plus marks his debut with Limit Break Comics. Seamus has previously run panels on writing for comics at Dublin Comic Con.

This weekend’s panel will focus on the craft of creating short comics, with a specific focus on the teamwork involved. Seamus will speak as a contributing writer.

Joining him are James Killian and Alice Coleman, the artist and letterer respectively of their forthcoming story Strength in Numbers, to be published in Down Below later this year. Alice has previously worked with Seamus on his stories for Old Game Plus and Limit Break Presents #1. This story marks the first time Seamus and James will have worked together.

Paul Carroll will be on the panel as an editor, speaking on the ways in which anthologies come together, the sort of things editors look for in submissions, and how creating teams like that of the other panellists can serve to strengthen an application.

The panel will take place from 2pm-3pm in the Geek Ireland Panel Room on the 1st floor in the Convention Centre – outside the entrance to the Artist Alley.

[Press Release] Limit Break Comics to Release Range of New Books for Dublin Comic Con

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Limit Break Comics is set to launch five new books at Dublin Comic Con this coming weekend, March 12 and 13. Among the new releases are second issues to the collective’s 2019 titles, Meouch and Plexus, and the introduction of a new creator.

The five books to be launched at Dublin Comic Con consist of: Meouch #2, an action comedy for grown-up kids; Plexus #2, a science fiction anthology series focusing on human connection; LENS, an espionage thriller collected in print for the first time; Old Game Plus #1, a collection of shot comics inspired by video games, and; Limit Break Presents #1, a new anthology series of stories connected by a theme. The new titles serve to re-introduce the collective to the Irish convention scene following the cessation of events during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Meouch #2 picks up where the 2019 issue left off. Creators Gareth Luby (Artist) and Paul Carroll (Writer) teamed up with Rebecca Nalty (IDW, Boom!) on Colours and PanelXPanel Editor Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou on Letters to bring the next chapter in the story to press.

Plexus #2, written and lettered by Paul Carroll, features three stories illustrated by Irish artists: Leeann Hamilton, Barry O’Sullivan, and Donna A Black. The stories focus on human connections, and the monsters we meet along the way.

LENS, written by Gary Moloney with art by Raquel Kusiak, is a one-shot following Jane Danner, an award-winning photojournalist by day, assassin by night. The first chapter of LENS was published in Bun&Tea, with the whole story collected in print for the first time.

Old Game Plus #1, written by Seamus Kavanagh, introduces Kavanagh as a creator for Limit Break Comics. Kavanagh’s stories – illustrated, coloured and lettered by an all-star collection of creators – are inspired by a range of video games across multiple genres.

Limit Break Presents #1 collects three stories, written by Gary Moloney, Paul Carroll and Seamus Kavanagh. The trio of writers are joined by John McGuinness and Rebecca Reynolds on art, Ellie Wright on colours, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou and Alice Coleman on letters. The book serves as the first issue in a series, with stories connected by a single theme.

Along with its new titles, Limit Break Comics is bringing Turning Roads to an Irish convention for the first time. The book was featured in the Irish Times list of Graphic Novels 2021 and awarded the Irish Comics News Award for Best Anthology 2021. It contains 18 short stories by 35 creators, telling stories inspired by Irish folklore.

Limit Break Comics is a Dublin-based comic publisher, formed on the back of a shared desire to see small press comics grow in Ireland. It was founded by Paul Carroll, Gareth Luby and Gary Moloney.

Limit Break Comics to Crowdfund Irish Folklore Comic Anthology – Press Release

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Limit Break Comics to Crowdfund Irish Folklore Comic Anthology

February 26th, 2021, Dublin

Dublin based comic collective Limit Break Comics has launched a Kickstarter campaign for its Irish folklore comic anthology, Turning Roads. The book contains stories by over 30 comic creators, retelling Irish myths and legends in modern and future Ireland. The anthology is due for publication in the summer of 2021.

Turning Roads is edited by Paul Carroll, taking a science fiction and modern fantasy approach towards retelling familiar stories. 18 short comics from Irish and international creators address legends including the banshee, the headless horseman, Tír na nÓg, and the Children of Lír. The crowdfunding campaign aims to raise €6,000 before March 28th 2021, with an online focus on Irish folklore planned for St Patrick’s Day.

“By utilising a crowdfunding platform like Kickstarter, we hope to emulate the communal traditions of Irish storytelling in a distinctly modern setting,” says Carroll.

If successfully funded, Turning Roads will join Limit Break Comics’ previous titles, Plexus, Meouch, Life & Death and Mixtape. The showcase of Irish creators in Turning Roads is set to raise awareness of Irish small press comics talent in domestic and international markets.

Limit Break Comics is a Dublin-based comic collective, founded on the back of a shared desire to see small press comics grow in Ireland. It is made up of Paul Carroll, Gareth Luby and Gary Moloney.

# # #

Check out the Kickstarter campaign here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/paulcarroll/turning-roads-an-irish-folklore-comic-anthology

For more info, email limitbreakireland (at) gmail (dot) com or visit our Contact page.

Contact person: Paul Carroll

Creator list (alphabetical by surname):

Ned Barnett, Fawn Blackwood, Hugo Boylan, David Browne, Jason Browne, Brian Burke, Paul Carroll, David B Cooper, Colin Craker, Richard Davidson, Josh Davison, Dominique Duong, Triona Farrell, David Ferguson, Aaron Fever, Clare Foley, Colm Griffin, Leeann Hamilton, Reese Hannigan, Dave Hendrick, Ember Johnstone, Mark Kielty, James Killian, Alice Leclert, Hugh Madden, Pete Marry, Aisling McGee, Gary Moloney, Emmet O’Brien, Colin O’Mahoney, Mari Rolin, Kerrie Smith, Kato Thaggard, Steven Young.