I’m excited to share the release of the seventh issue of the award-winning anthology series, Strange Times, with the world!
Every issue of Strange Times is a different adventure. Theme, format, content…everything changes from issue to issue. This series was intended to be my place for an “anything goes” approach (a respository for my non-spandex hero interests at first, growing a little beyond that now), so let’s look at what we have here.
There’s even more to the book/zine than the video shows, so I’d like to share some thoughts below on the different aspects/elements.
First, format because that’s easiest. The book/zine is small. 4.5″x6″ small. It’s paperback bound as all Amazon-printed books are. Matte cover, cream-colored recycled paper interiors. You get the feel of a pocket book, but the paper really picks up the ink better than Amazon’s bright white paper.
Plus, there’s a 1980s black/white comics boom feel that I enjoy. I’ve used it with The Collected Cranium Frenzy by Steve Willis and Edward Bolman’s Noble Head Funnies and likely will continue in the future. It just feels right.
(And yes, the Noble Head Funnies experiment in small-sized publications was a big influence on this book. There’s an attraction to the small form factor that I have a hard time explaining, but it’s there.)
Now, theme. The book is subtitled American Gothic Revisited. We start with a look at Grant Wood’s classic “American Gothic” painting, which hangs in the Art Institute of Chicago:
It’s classic 1920’s-30’s Americana. But what has happened over the past 100-ish years? How has our society changed? How has art changed?
It was time to re-look at American Gothic from a modern perspective.
Next, the call. Considering the diversity of creators that I’ve come across – style, geography, creative medium, age, gender…everything, really – I cast a VERY wide net for submissions and was lucky enough to get a fantastic “creative mosaic” of perspectives. Creators include:
- Matt Feazell
- Allen Freeman
- Bob Corby
- Brandon Hicks
- Brad Foster
- Dale Martin
- Matt “Doc” Hoffman
- Doug Chapel
- Ana Lavagnino
- Marina Variadaki
- Fernando Palenzuela
- Melanie Strangemoon
- John Muller
- Livor Mortis
- Joe Sikoryak
- Keith Newsome
- Matt Levin
- James Easterly
- J. M. Hunter
- Brian Canini
- A. “Junior” Vigorito
- Richard Chapel
- iestyn
- Carl Lucas
- Hannah Jill Johnston
- Steve Willis
- Joseph Morris
- Micah Lisenfeld
- Phil Chapman
- (And me)
Some you might know. Some you won’t. The great thing about this gang of 30 creators is that there is next to no creative overlap. Every page is a fresh perspective, a different mirror reflection on our strange times.
You can take the book as a whole. You can look at each piece and reflect on what the individual creator is trying to say. Either way, it works.
In addition, every facing page on a creator’s spread gives them space to say what they want to say. If they want to discuss their submission, great. If they want to promote their work, awesome. Some designed and executed their own facing pages. Some gave me text to typeset. But every creator’s contact information is presented so you can engage with them should you wish.
This was a fun book to make. It was a joy to work with all of these amazing contributors. I’m so pleased with how it turned out. Hopefully you will be, too.
Strange Times 7: American Gothic Revisited is a blast of creativity, one that will make you admire the creators and think about what they’re saying.
I invite you to take a look for yourself. Strange Times 7 is on sale now – available worldwide as a print-on-demand book. It’s a good one. Check it out!
Phoenix Productions 