New goings-on for the end of April

Just got back from a really great trip to New York Comic Con. That was a really great show. I think I may do that one now instead of San Diego. It's a bit less crowded and seems to focus more on comics. I noticed that all the editors that I'd been hoping to get to see were there, and they seemed a lot less over-worked than at SD, and more interested in chatting. I got some exciting business done, and hope to have some cool announcements in the next couple of months. Thanks to DC and Marvel for putting on some really nice parties, and thanks to Vince and Adam for having me at the DC signing on Sunday. Also, big thanks to Brian, Nora, Tim, Josh and Mike for having me at the Devil's Due signings each day of the show.
Also, a big thanks to my pal David Hahn for coming out to NYCC with me all the way from Portland. David, it was really fun to share a table with you buddy, and even better to just get to hang out with you again---It's been a long time.
*NEWS OF THE RAY* Ray Snyder stayed home from NYCC and worked. I'm sorry to report that he did that around regular trips to the hospital to visit his brother, who fell from a roof and pretty well shattered his leg and foot, as well as his mother, who suffered a light stroke. Hope they're both doing better, Ray.
*New Link!* If you look over in the Links column, you'll see inker Marc Deering's blog link. Marc inked penciller Lee Ferguson when he filled in on Supergirl #26 while I was recovering from my Appendectomy. They did a great job in not much time--Big thanks to them! Check out Marc's blog---He does nice work, and he has a great group of links.

Ray's not dead!

That uh...That was my bad. I didn't think about how that last headline looked....My apologies for the fright.
Um...Sorry Ray.

The cleaner version...

Over on my gallery at comicartfans.com (see link on the side of the page), I put up the published version of the cover pencils for SUPERGIRL #28. She's really muddy, especially around her face.
My original pencils kept her face a little clearer of debris, but I've got to give it up to Matt Idelson--She's crawling from the grave--She probably wouldn't look all clean and pretty...Unless you're looking at her here, revealed for the first time in all her clean-ish glory...

Now they can be shown...

Here's some of the design sketches that I did for the recent appearance of RESURRECTION MAN in SUPERGIRL #28---I didn't wanna let 'em out til the issue came out. Here they are---warts 'n all.
The head and shoulders shot is the second version that my editor and I liked. We came up with the idea that he cuts his own hair short, but each time he gets killed and is reborn, his hair grows back out again---Hence the scene in the desert. Also, note the facial tattoo---It's an uruboros (dunno if I spelled that correctly...), symbolizing rebirth. We wanted to give him a little bit of a new look for his re-emergence onto the scene, but alas---it was cut in the end.
I just finished my work on issue 29, which features more Rez Man. He's been rather fun to draw, and an interesting departure from some of the, well, tidier heroes I've drawn.

We'll miss you, Ray....

Looks like due to a large workload, my good friend and inker, Ray Snyder will not be attending New York Comic Con this year.
Gotta give it up to Ray---He's eating a fairly expensive plane ticket to make sure he gets his books inked. I pressured him to come any way, just 'cause David and I were looking forward to getting to see him, but in the end I realized I wasn't helping and stopped being a jerk about it. We'll miss you, Ray, and Kim as well...It won't be the same with out you.
THE GOOD NEWS FOR FANS OF SUPERGIRL: Here's the silver lining---Though I'm not selling any of my penciled pages or covers yet from our run on SUPERGIRL, I will be selling Ray's inked SUPERGIRL pages for him at the New York Comic Con, in an effort to help him recoup his losses from his unused plane ticket. Come by Artist's Alley and check 'em out! If you buy one of his pages, we can call Ray on my cell phone, put him on speaker and he can thank you personally. Well...He might be busy...We'll see.

Upcoming Appearances!

The weekend of April 18th, you can see me at NEW YORK COMIC CON along with my great pals Ray Snyder and David Hahn. If you're in town, come by and say "hey". Ray and I will be signing our NYCC variant GI JOE cover at the Devil's Due Productions booth at varied times throughout the weekend, and David, Ray and I will be signing at the DC Comics booth on Sunday from 3pm-4pm. The rest of the time we'll be hanging out in Artist's Alley.
May 3rd, Free Comicbook Day, I'll be appearing at METROPOLIS COMICS in Bellflower, CA with my lovely wife Karen Carnegie-Johnson, re-take director on THE SIMPSONS. Also, she worked on THE SIMPSONS MOVIE. Come by and say "Hello", and maybe we'll draw something cool for you.
To answer the folks who've been asking lately, I won't be attending San Diego Comic Con this year, because our NEW BABY is due shortly before the con in July. I might make it down there briefly, but just to see some friends. Karen and I will see you there next year, though, with our new tyke along for the ride.