Looking back at 2013, and ahead....

A few more days and we're off to a whole new year!

That means another year's worth of experiences, new challenges to undertake, new goals to conquer....

For me specifically, it means continuing to pursue new opportunities for teaching my comics classes, as well as pursuing further venues in which to explore my art.

It's going to mean more comics, too. In the end, I like creating in various mediums, and I do mean to pursue more painting and gallery shows. But really, I want to continue in creating new comics, and further my skills in telling stories. Entertaining stories with strong visual identity, but also honing in on what makes storytelling in comics so appealing to me as an artist.

A large part of this past year involved putting a lot of work into organizing three comic conventions! In the end, the events were all worthwhile endeavors, but there's no way I want to spend 2014 as involved in organizing events on that scale. In between all the heavy lifting of putting on these shows, I managed to squeeze in various comics works and drawing assignments. Those moments seemed liked finding a heavenly oasis while marching through a large landscape of unending tasks.

As a co-founder and Creative Director of the Latino Comics Expo, we put on two shows this year. One in June at the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco, and another in Long Beach at the Museum of Latin American Art.

In between those two shows, I managed to work on the San Gabriel Valley Comic Book Expo, in my capacity as a Director of the Nuvein Foundation.

I've been on the Board of the Nuvein Foundation for some years now, and was the instigator of our first Comic Book Expo a few years ago. This past Summer though I informed my friends at Nuvein that I'd be retiring from the Board following the latest SGV Comics Expo so I could focus more on getting back to creating artwork and pushing to take the Latino Comics Expo to further heights.

One of the biggest projects I was working on in between all the conventions (and that includes the ones I appeared at that I wasn't involved with as an organizer) was putting together my first trade-paperback collection, the LOS COMEX CODEX. An anthology of 5 of my comics that are now officially 'out-of-print'.

Another anthology I published recently was COMICS!, a full-color collection featuring my 12 one-page Poster Comics. Three of those comics were actually created this year, the others dating back from December 2011.

I contributed a cover to a recent issue of DITKOMANIA, the zine devoted to the career of comic book legend Steve Ditko.

Wearing my writer hat, I also contributed to HEY KIDS, COMICS!, an anthology featuring essays by a variety of creative professionals about their early childhood memories of comics.

I did a pinup for THE NEW ADVENTURES OF THE HUMAN FLY, as well as doing the production design for the book. As a childhood fan of the Fly, it was a real joy to have worked on this book.

Another project that gave me a tremendous amount of pride to be associated with was LATINOS AND NARRATIVE MEDIA, a new scholarly work by Frederick Aldama. I was asked to write the forward to the book, which led to me also providing the cover. And it turns out that I'm also one of the subjects of the book, in an essay entitled 'Javier Hernandez's El Muerto as an Allegory of Chicano Identity'. No one was more surprised than I to find out about that!

I even managed to squeeze in a pinup for new friend of mine, Nathaniel Osollo. He asked me to contribute to an online edition of a new story of his series DARK MOUSE (which you can read here).

In light of my earlier lamentation of being too involved with organizing events this year, as I wrote this post it dawned on me that perhaps there was plenty of time to produce new work! Well, let's suppose 2014 will see even more work, because my plan is to focus on putting one one Latino Comics Expo next year, so that can only lead to more hours available for creating.

In between all of these events and publications, my comics workshops and classes kept me gainfully employed. It's always a rewarding experience working with new groups of students and seeing them create their own works. I also kept busy with numerous signings and appearances at other comics conventions and art events, so it really is a non-stop lifestyle, this 'art' thing.

Creatively, whether producing a convention or creating new artwork, the important thing for me is to leave a mark. Express myself in various ways to connect to people, to share ideas, to celebrate the imagination. Met lots of people, solidified some new friendships, made partnerships with other like-minded folks and organizations.... Basically just lived the life I had this year.

Just last month I debuted the first of a new series of comics I've entitled '4 Pagers'. Literally 4 page comic shorts. The inaugural one, DAWN OF THE DINOSAURIO, can be read here. The next one due in January features a trio of characters who've been living in various sketchooks of mine over the last several years. A superhero team operating in the 1970s.

Appropriately, the era in which I grew up in and fueled my imagination from so many sources (comics, television, music, toys, movies, etc) will provide me with my first story in the New Year. The past keeps me in the present, the future began so many years ago.....

DAWN OF THE DINOSAURIO- 4 page comic!

Here's a brand-new comic I've just finished today, on Thanksgiving. A 4 page color comic that's actually a prequel to one of my recent comic books, DEAD DINOSAURIO.

DEAD DINOSAURIO featured the story of a T-Rex that was awakened at the height of the Conquest of Mexico by a young Aztec boy, Eztli. Together they fight back against the Spanish Conquistadores, but ultimately they don't survive. They are however resurrected as Dead Dinosaurio and Eztli, the First Calaca...

Well, I always was keen on showing some adventures of my cobalt-colored tyrannosaurus back in his heyday (some 65 million years ago, give or take an epoch or two!), DAWN OF THE DINOSAURIO does exactly that. I have more tales of Dinosaurio to tell one day, as well as a series of 4 pagers featuring all-new characters and ideas I'd like to produce as well. Four pages are relatively quick to produce, and they work in a printed format as a double-sided color print folded in half... Viola, a 4 page comic! 

After my series of a dozen one-page comics (Poster Comics), I've gotten real interested in creating short, tightly compressed stories. For now, I'd like to move onto these 4 Pagers, which will allow me to continue to explore a new batch of characters, and be able to do so in color.

By the way, the Poster Comics are collected in a printed comic book called COMICS!, and are also available to read online here. DEAD DINOSAURIO is now out of print, but it's available in my trade-paperback collection, THE LOS COMEX CODEX.

For now, please enjoy this first comic, the inaugural Los Comex 4 PAGER!

Pre-orders for "COMICS!" now available!

My new comic book is available for Pre-orders from my webshop. Here's the full, wraparound cover:

COMICS! is a full-color book, making available for the first time in one collection my series of one-page comics (Poster Comics). That's 12, full-color comics, plus 7 pages of behind-the-scene extras, including character designs, production art and commentary on creating comics in one-page stories.

 (A sample of the Poster Comics)

 (A page from the behind-the-scenes extras)

Every copy of COMICS! that's pre-ordered will come with an original piece of art: a 5" x 5" sketch on Strathmore Bristol illustration paper, done with color markers, of one of the characters featured in stories. COMICS! is printed in a large magazine size, 8" x 10.5", comes with a cardstock cover, and features 20 pages in full color.

(Esperantos and Kaiju Kamen color sketches)

If you haven't already purchased THE LOS COMEX CODEX (my 138 page trade-paperback collection), you can order it together with COMICS! and get a package deal for both, saving you about $5 in shipping costs! Pre-order the 2 for 22 deal!

 

To Pre-order COMICS!, visit the Los Comex Webshop. Independent comics creators like myself appreciate the direct support from the readers!

Pre-orders will run until Monday, November 4!

"HEY KIDS, COMICS!", plus a few other books I've contributed to recently

I have an essay in the new anthology called HEY KIDS, COMICS!, which has just been published and is available to purchase online. The book features essays by such comic book veterans as J.M. DeMatteis, Steve Skeates, Steve Englehart, Robert Greenberger and others.

The book is compiled and edited by Rob Kelly, an illustrator and writer (winner of the Comic Book Writer of the Year award for the ACE KILROY web comic, Philadelphia Geek Awards). Basically I wrote about my earliest experiences with comics, and how that evolved into a childhood of not only reading comics but watching superhero cartoons and tv show, as well as playing with action figures and collecting anything with superheroes on it. Eventually, all that led to my eventual career as a comic book creator (or so I like to think!). 

For the latest issue of DITKOMANIA, I've contributed a full-color cover. 

Published and edited by Rob Imes, the zine is a quarterly publication dedicated to the work of Steve Ditko, the legendary comic book artist who co-created SPIDER-MAN and DR. STRANGE, as well as creating THE CREEPER, HAWK & DOVER, MR.A and host of other characters. You can order copies directly from Rob. Info at the DITKO-FEVER website.

THE NEW ADVENTURES OF THE HUMAN FLY, the revival of the 1970s Canadian stuntman/superhero (who starred in his own comic book from Marvel Comics from 77-79) was published this summer. 

Edited by Michael Aushenker, the book features an all-star cast of creators, including artists who worked on the original series. I contributed a pin-up, as well as having worked on the production of the book. Currently available online as well.

Published in August, my own LOS COMEX CODEX is available directly from me in my webshop. It's a 138 page collection of 5 of my out-of-print titles, including DEAD DINOSAURIO, THE COMA and WEAPON TEX-MEX Vs EL MUERTO. 

And coming up on the horizon this Fall is a new book by Frederick Aldama (Arts and Humanities Distinguished Professor of English at Ohio State). The book is called LATINOS AND NARRATIVE MEDIA: PARTICIPATION AND PORTRAYAL.

I not only contributed the artwork for the cover, but I also wrote the forward. The book features essays on the topic of the media and popular culture as created and influenced by Latino authors, artists and other creative professionals.

It turns out that I'm also one of the subjects in the book as well! David William Foster wrote an essay titled "Latino Comics: Javier Hernandez's El Muerto as an Allegory of Chicano Identity". Flattered, to say the least! The book will be published by Palgrave Macmillan and is due November 7.

This is the first time I've had work appearing in such a variety of publications coming out within the same year. In my 15 years of creating comics, in addition to publishing my own work, I've had pinups published in other comics, but the scope of titles I've contributed to this year is a career high for me. I'm glad to warrant the work, and really, it's doing something I love. Hope you enjoy some of these!

Pre-Order the LOS COMEX CODEX

I'm currently taking Pre-Orders for my new book, the LOS COMEX CODEX!

The CODEX is a 138 page collection of 5 of my out-of-print comics. Measuring 8.5" x 11", this hefty volume reprints  Weapon Tex-Mex vs El Muerto, The Coma, Man-Swamp, Dead Dinosaurio and "A Day at the Beach" from MANGA MUERTO Vol 1. The covers are in color, the interior pages are b&w (some stories are toned in gray, one is drawn entirely in pencil).

The book will debut at the upcoming LATINO COMICS EXPO LA, being held August 17 & 18 at the Musuem of Latin American Art in Long Beach, CA.

But, if you're not a local, or just can't wait, you can now order a copy of LOS COMEX CODEX, which will include a full-color marker sketch on the title page. Here's one with The Coma:

The drawings will be signed, and if you'd like, I can personalize it to you or someone else if you're in a gift-giving mood!

Here are some pages from the book:

 

Pre-Order price is $20.00, which includes Priority Mail via USPS. Visit my Webshop to place your order.

I also put together some Archive Editions, featuring a page of original comic book art. The pages are the actual ones I drew to create the original comic books. Most of these are 8.5"x11", but the Weapon Tex-Mex/El Muerto page is 11"x14" and the cover artwork to the COMEX CODEX is 11"x17". 

Check out my Pre-Order section over at my Los Comex Webshop for prices and the complete selection of Archive Editions. By the way, the reason I don't have any Dead Dinosaurio pages available is that most of the pages sold when I had that comic on Pre-Order last year. 

And the Manga Muerto pages? Well, that one's tougher to explain. A few years ago, I had my car stolen, and inside were the original pages to this particular story. I was sharing them with my students at one of my comic book classes the day before, and unfortunately didn't remove them from the car the following day. At least I had already scanned the pages!

Pre-Orders help me to get the book printed, so I appreciate anyone who buys a copy. All orders will begin shipping by August 22, so everyone who bought a copy will get them by the end of August. It's possible I might start shipping a few days earlier, I'll notify folks via email once the books are mailed off.

Pre-Orders for the LOS COMEX CODEX will end on Wednesday, July 31. Order through the Los Comex Webshop.

Here comes THE LOS COMEX CODEX

I'm currently in production on my first trade-paperback collection:

('Codex' is the name of the ancient manuscripts composed of sheets of hand-written content. The Aztecs and Mayans were known for their folded codices, one large continuous paper featuring their hand-drawn & colored stories and histories).

THE LOS COMEX CODEX is going to be a hefty book, at 8.5" x 11" some 130 pages or so. I'm collecting several of my titles in this volume, some of which will soon be out-of-print in their current comic book format. The stories being collected are: Weapon Tex-Mex vs El Muerto, Man-Swamp, Manga Muerto in "A Day at the Beach" (from MANGA MUERTO Vol 1), The Coma and Dead Dinosaurio.

The Codex will not only function as a collection of my work, but also marks the 15th Anniversary of Los Comex, my imprint from which I've been publishing all my comics work since I started in 1998. I'm writing a foreward to the book, featuring some recollections of the comics that inspired me as a kid, what drove me to draw and my motivations to create my own comics. Plus there'll be a brief introduction to each story, sharing some insight into the making of that particular comic. 

I'm having a great time designing the book, as it allows me play around with a lot of creative choices in terms of presentation and graphic design. That's one of the things I love about self-publishing, having the freedom to make creative decisions on the look of the whole book. The entire publication becomes a reflection of one's artistic voice, in addition to creating the story and characters.

As a kid growing up in the 70s, some of my favorite books were a series of paperbacks written by Stan Lee, writer and co-creator of the original Marvel Comics superstars like Spider-Man and Fantastic Four. I first saw ORIGINS OF MARVEL COMICS advertised in the comics themselves, then one day at a local store, BOOKLAND, I saw the entire series up on their wall behind the cash register. Well, with my allowance money (and extra pestering of Mom and Dad), I eventually completed my run of all four books in the series.

Each book featured Stan's recollections on the creation and development of each title. As a kid, it was fascinating to read such behind-the-scenes revelations, and I'm sure it sparked in me the idea of creating my own actual stories.

So, with the upcoming LOS COMEX CODEX, it'll be a nice nod to those early books, but also a way to introduce new readers to my work. If you already have copies of some of my floppy comics, perhaps you'd still like to have something a little heftier to put on your bookshelf alongside your Shakespeare and Stephen King novels!