Dear Gamma Heads,
Before I get back into the serious stuff I thought I’d do a breakdown of what I’ve been reading and watching lately along with some shop talk about my creative projects. Let’s get cracking.
Comics: Dead Boy Detectives
Creative Team
Writer: Pornsak Pichetshote
Artist: Jeff Stokely
Colors: Miquel Muerto
Letters: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
I have to give a lot of credit to this creative team. I have, and this might get me in trouble, never read Sandman. My only experience with those characters was an episode of Doom Patrol where the Dead Boy Detectives join up to help solve a murder. But this book grabbed me from the get go and had me engrossed within seconds. The art is whimsical and terrifying. To me there is something about the topic of death that instantly draws me into a book. I want to go deeper and understand people’s viewpoint on what they think happens after death. It’s a common theme in my writing, that credit goes to my religious trauma. This book captures the spirit realm in a new way compared to the rest of the DC Universe by addressing other religions and regions of the world besides the traditional European views on spirits and death that persist.
Books: On the Road
Written by Jack Kerouac
This book means a great deal to me. My grandfather, probably one of the most important people in my life, was a huge fan of Kerouac. After he passed I inherited his copy of On the Road. I’ve been trying to read it for about 6 years now. I keep starting and stopping it. It’s a beautiful read but boy is it dense. I keep trying to break through it. The story is rich, full of humanity that can’t be displayed in any other medium and in a lesser writer’s hands this book would not be nearly as good. If you’ve ever wanted to travel across America, there’s no better voice to follow.
TV: Extraordinary
This show flew under the radar and deserves so much more recognition. The summary is: Jen lives in a world where everyone has a superpower, except her. She struggles to find meaning when she is so different from everyone else. It doesn’t help that she is also a bit of an asshole. This show is absolutely brilliant. It combines a simple premise with dark humor and a big heart to show the power of people. The actors are amazing, Máiréad Tyers as Jen is a breakout performance. I want to see her in everything.
Next Newsletter
Next week’s newsletter is going to be a behind the scene into my writing process on Psychedelic. Remember that book that came out a few years ago? We’re going to break that down. Want to read it in advance? Find it free here!
Thanks for a great newsletter! I’m going to have to check out Dead Boy Detectives.