DICK TRACY #2, SPIDER-SOCIETY, THE QUESTION, The Strand, ALTER EGO, and more
Oh, right, and a boring social media chat
Hi friends!
I hope you’re doing well and staying busy -I sure am!
I’ll keep this quick since we have a lot of ground to cover.
DICK TRACY #2 IS OUT THIS WEEK
The second issue of our noir re-imagining of the Detective in Yellow hits on Wednesday, the same day as the reprint for the soldout Dick Tracy #1 arrives! Make sure you swing by your comic shop and pick up a copy of both, if that’s what you’re into!
I’m so blown away by the hugely positive response we got to #1 - from readers, retailers, reviewers, and colleagues. I’ve never experienced anything like it. But let me tell you - the big twist hits in this issue, #2. It’s gonna be a real ‘wow, did they really DO that?’ moment. Trust me.
So, with that in mind, here’s an exclusive look at #2, coming from me, Michael Moreci, Geraldo Borges, Chantelle Aimée Osman, Mark Englert, Jim Campbell, and the crew at Mad Cave. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
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SPIDER-SOCIETY IS COMING IN AUGUST
In case you missed it, Edge of Spider-Verse #4 hit last week, featuring a Spider-Society prelude story by me and the legendary Salvador Larroca - hinting heavily at the team roster you’re gonna see in August’s Spider-Society #1! That’s not all, of course - there’s a fun Spider-Rex story by Karla Pacheco and Pere Perez, plus the cover star, Spider-Woman, spotlighted in a story from Nilah Magruder and Marcus Williams!
Will we see more of Spider-Woman soon, too? Well, anything’s possible. I am very much enjoying the lineup speculation, I will say that much! And yes, that was an intentional Claremont nod above. So sue me!
Please, don’t forget to let your comic shop know you want a copy of Spider-Society #1 from me and artist Scott Godlewski, who is absolutely killing it on interiors! Oh, and we got to meet in person at Phoenix Fan Fusion! Look at these two bearded and bespectacled fellows! Doesn’t Scott look thrilled?
Speaking of events - I’ve been doing a lot of them lately, including Fan Fusion, Thrillerfest, and (briefly) Forest Hills Comic Con. It’s always a joy to meet fans and share stories with colleagues and friends. Here are some pictures! Highlights include hanging with pals like , Marguerite Sauvage, Yasmin Angoe,
, Vanessa Lillie, Shawn Cosby, Kelly J. Ford, John Copenhaver, and Marv Wolfman, holding a copy of The Dusk in my hands for the first time, plus seeing Spider-Ma’am, Gene Simmons’s clone (of Archie Meets KISS fame), and lots more. That pic with Marv was taken a good twenty minutes before I spilled coffee all over myself, too.![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_474,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F3581d27a-d353-4866-a26a-f0a842c2585b_4032x3024.jpeg)
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But the downside of doing a ton of events is that you sometimes get hit by con crud - so I had to bow out of last weekend’s CrimeConn event. Apologies to the readers I missed! I’ll do my best to be there next year if they’ll have me.
ENTER THE QUESTION
Just a reminder, but I’m writing a three-part Renee Montoya/The Question story running in the pages of Batman: The Brave & the Bold, drawn by old friend Andy Macdonald and starting in July’s #15 (you can see Simon Di Meo’s stunning cover above, and #16’s below!). Both issues are packed with great stuff, including stories from friends like Tim Seeley, Josh Fialkov, Kelley Jones, and more. It’s always a treat to write Renee, hands down my favorite DC hero. Extra special to pick up where I left off after my Lazarus Planet: Legends Reborn one-off with Clayton Henry, and to build off the great work John Ridley and Stefano Raffaele did in GCPD: The Blue Wall - not to mention the work of greats like Rucka, Hamner, O’Neil, and Cowan, who are just huge inspirations to me always. I love Renee because she’s flawed and messy, but always striving to do the right thing - the definition of a true noir hero. The story Andy and I are telling explores a lost, dark chapter of Renee’s past that comes to haunt her present. We hope you dig it. We had a great time crafting it. And hey, look, Question and Batman! How cool is that?
GOODREADS GIVEAWAY: ALTER EGO!
What’s that? You’d like to read an early copy of my follow-up to Secret Identity, Alter Ego? Well, good, you’re in luck! My amazing publisher, Flatiron Books just launched a Goodreads giveaway! Click on the link to enter to win a chance to snag one of 50 print advance review copies. Don’t miss it. And then tell me what you thought. As long as you’re nice about it.
ASSASSINS ANONYMOUS LAUNCH AT THE STRAND TONIGHT
It’s not every day that you get to be part of an event at the Strand, one of the most legendary bookstores in the world. I’m honored and excited to be in conversation with my good friend Rob Hart, who’s launching his kinetic, can’t-miss new thriller, Assassins Anonymous. I loved the book, and I can’t wait for you to read it. If you’re in the area and want to swing by, grab your tickets here! It’s happening TONIGHT!
LINKS AND STUFFZ
I wrote the intro to the new edition of Michael Gilbert’s classic Game Without Rules collection from Union Square & Co.! My name is on the very fancy cover! You can order the new edition here!
I’ll be part of ProWritingAid’s Crime Writers’ Week later this month!
My friend Preeti Chhibber’s Jubilee one-shot hits next week! Buy it!
I was on The Batman Book Club podcast talking about one of my favorite Batman stories ever, Venom, by (shocker) Denny O’Neil, Trevor Von Eden, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, and Russell Braun.
This was a fun piece by Chris Claremont on crafting a story at ::checks notes:: Men’s Health? Enjoy!
ATTENTION: I have three, one-month subscriptions to
- the newsletter of my good pal and super-talented friend, . Hit me up in the comments if you want one. First come, first served, etc.I really loved ’s listicle on the top Krakoa/X-Men moments. I’ll have more to say about Krakoa (perhaps in an essay next week), but I was exceedingly honored to have played a teeny-tiny part in the whole thing via my Sunspot short in Marvel Voices: Comunidades (with art by the amazing Alba Glez!) and my four-part Polaris story X-Men Unlimited Infinity Comic, with noir-tinged art by Alberto Albuquerque.
Remembering Latino Comic Expo co-founder Ricardo Padilla.
An old, but still great, Elmore Leonard appreciation. God, I love his books.
A fascinating look back at the Game of Thrones TV show, and what it means to today’s top showrunners.
and Garry Brown’s new creator-owned series, Falling in Love on the Path to Hell, has sold out at the distributor level. Make sure you let your comic shop know you want a copy.
X-Men: Heir of Apocalypse #1, from pals Steve Foxe and Netho Diaz, is dropping soon. Check out a preview here.
THE ONE ABOUT SOCIAL MEDIA
This post, which my good pal/sometimes collaborator/great writer shared across his channels, got me to thinking - a lot. It also dovetailed with me re-launching and re-importing my contacts/posts/subscribers to another newsletter platform (with a monthly fee), all while logging into a new social media platform (doesn’t matter which one - spin the wheel and it might land on Cara, Bluesky, Threads, Post, Hive, Mastodon, Ello, you name it), and, well, it’s just too much. I’ve had enough. I brought the newsletter back here because it’s easy to use, I can monetize my creative works, and I can easily support my friends on here.
I want to write a newsletter and keep y’all informed, I want to share silly and fun photos with some promo, I want to chat with readers and friends, and I want to absorb the same. The end. All platforms, including Substack (this is a very topline overview of the most recent issue), are flawed and broken and profit-minded. When they screw up, they should be called out and have to explain themselves.
All that said, support the creators you admire, be it here, Patreon, or crowdfunding. Buy their work. Read their work. Spread the word. These platforms will come and go, but the work is what remains. Anyway, join me here, Instagram, and on my new Discord, which is just getting off the ground. Those are the only places I will be engaging. Everything else - like Bluesky, Cara, or Threads - will be broadcast-only as time permits.
Thanks for reading this. I hate posting about posting, but ya know…
Anyway, mark your calendars, folks!
UPCOMING RELEASES
DICK TRACY #2 (Mad Cave) - June 12
BATMAN: THE BRAVE & THE BOLD #15 (DC) - July 23
SPIDER-SOCIETY #1 of 4 (Marvel) - August 14
BATMAN: THE BRAVE & THE BOLD #16 (DC) - August 27
SPIDER-MAN: STORIES FROM THE SPIDER-VERSE (Disney Books) - October 1
DARK SPACE (Blackstone Publishing) - October 8
ALTER EGO (Flatiron Books) - December 3
ENCANTO: NIGHTMARES & SUEÑOS (Disney Books) - December 3
Love this sneak peek and getting to see you at Thrillerfest!
Seriously one of the best con weekends I've had recently! So good to hang