WOOOOT!
about 4 years ago – Sun, Mar 29, 2020 at 09:04:55 PM

Hey! We did it. We funded Cthulhu is Hard to Spell: The Terrible Twos. 

We ended up with $31,889 in pledges across 757 backers! 

That's incredible. 

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey. I am so incredibly grateful to each of you. 

So, what is next? 

Now, I have to wait seven days in order to get all of the failed pledges cleared up. Then, I will know exactly how much I have to work with. 

Then, I have to connect with my printer for a final quote. With all the craziness happening in the world I'm hoping this can happen quickly, but I haven't talked to them for a month and the world has changed quite a bit in a month. I should have reached out to them before, but I am a superstitious kind of human and thought it might destroy the campaign. 

Then, once those two things happen I need to finish the Thank You page, which means all of you who pledged $50+ need to get me the name that you want to use for the thank you. I will message you about this, too. You have until next Friday, which is when I hope to have all of this sorted and be able to move onto the next part, which is sending off the files and commencing the printing. 

This is the longest process, and IDK what will happen between now and when books come in to port. However, if things run RELATIVELY normally, we should receive the books in June, and then I will ship them off to you, and we'll be done with this campaign. 

I will be sending out the digital files earlier if I can, and it's possible I can ship books that don't have Cthulhu is Hard to Spell volume 2 in them. 

I will be giving much more information as time goes on and I know more, but right now Kickstarter still has the funds, my printer has not returned my emails, and there are several dozen uncollected pledges. 

But we funded! And that is a sweet, sweet feeling. Thank you so much for believing in us. 

Russell  

The final countdown!
about 4 years ago – Tue, Mar 24, 2020 at 08:47:36 AM

We just crossed $25,000 this morning, which means we're just $600 from funding. I'm hoping we'll get there today with any luck, and by tomorrow at the very worst. 

I just unlocked the Fundle Bundle, which is our last (I think) free digital bundle, and there were some questions about it yesterday, mainly wondering if early backers will receive this bundle, too, or if it's just for people who backed in the last couple of days. 

I want to assure you that once you back, you get EVERYTHING we unlock from that point onward until the close of the campaign. Most early backers to my campaigns receive $50+ of extra digital content because we keep unlocking things as the campaign unfolds. 

This is my thank you for backing us early and believing in us. The earlier you back, the more free things you receive. 

I again want to thank you for sticking with this project, and believing in it. I know these are uncertain, daunting, and scary times. However, I do believe we will get through this together, and art can help. I turn to art whenever I am uncertain and scared, reading my favorite books and getting lost in comic books over and over again. 

I've been scouring Kickstarter looking for more cool projects to back to take my mind off...well all of this that's happening in the world, and I found a couple I really love, and thought you might, too. Many of you messaged me to tell me how much you liked my picks, and how I go to other areas of Kickstarter to find things for you that you might have overlooked, so I have a couple that I really think you'll love today. 

ELDRITCH TAROT -The full Cthulhu Tarot deck by Sara Bardi

Kickstarter link

Lovecraft and Tarot go together like...well boba and taro, my favorite boba tea combo. So many contributors to the Cthulhu is Hard to Spell books are into Tarot, like Christie Shinna and Katrina Kunstmann to name a couple. When I saw this tarot deck, I knew it would be something some of you would enjoy. I found this in the illustration section of Kickstarter, so I thought most of you would not have seen it. 

Three years ago we published a set of Major Arcana based on Lovecraft's stories, magnificently illustrated by Sara Bardi. The deck, composed of 22 cards, was presented in two editions, and since then we have been receiving messages from our beloved backers asking for a complete deck. Sara set to work with the new art... and  today we're proud to introduce you the new edition of the Eldritch Tarot!

This new black edition consists of 78 high quality cards, adding 56 Minor Arcana cards to our original Major Arcana.

This is one of the coolest tarot decks I've ever seen. 

Rattle of Bones by Robert E. Howard, the creator of Conan

Kickstarter link

If you're a deep cut can of Lovecraft, then you probably know that one of his best friends was Robert E. Howard, creator of Conan. In fact, Lovecraft's mythos often creeped in to Howard's work, and became one of the first crossover books. Lovecraft's work permeated many other stories throughout the years, but during his life, Howard was probably the most famous writers to use his gods and monster. Also, Howard and Howard shared a name, as Howard was H.P. Lovecraft's first name. I found this in the publishing section, like a couple of others I showed you. 

Rattle of Bones & Other Terrifying Tales is a collection of short horror stories by Robert E. Howard with new illustrations from Eisner Award Winning artist, Gabriel Rodríguez, and an afterword by the horror master, Steve Niles.

This special Clover Press collection of 8 horror short stories will be presented in a beautiful clothbound hardcover book with a mounted book plate cover.

By backing Rattle of Bones, not only do you get an amazing book for your shelf, you enable Clover Press to keep creating beautiful books, and through your comments and pledge survey answers we hope to hear from you about what we should do next!

I mean, Howard and horror seems like a perfect fit for Lovecraft fans. 

Snow White Zombie Apocalypse #1 and #2

Kickstarter link

There are few things I love more than Apocalypse stories, and one of them is fairy tales. Bring them both together and I'm in literal love. When I saw this comic, it smashed together so many things I love into one package. Plus the art is so beautiful I simply...can't even. 

"A brutal, bloody, and badass mashup of fairy tale magic and undead horror... if you like your comics with hyperkinetic action and pitch-black comedy, then look no further than SNOW WHITE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE." - David Pepose (Ringo Award-Nominated Writer of SPENCER & LOCKE and GOING TO THE CHAPEL)

One of my favorite things about comics is how they twist stories that I love and find new ways to tell them. This is one of my favorites, and it's another one published by Scout comics, one of my favorite indie publishers. 

So there you go, three more awesome projects to back, all of which successful, which means if you back them now they're guaranteed to fund by the end. 

I love making things, and I love finding other people who are making awesome things as well. Thank you again for all your support. Hopefully, we can push this one over the edge today and send an awesome book to you in the next couple of months. 

Until next time, 

Russell 

Some campaigns you might have missed
about 4 years ago – Sat, Mar 21, 2020 at 09:31:04 PM

Hi, 

We are so close to funding. We're about $500 from me unlocking the Fundle Bundle, which is an amazing group of digital rewards which you will get for being awesome enough for helping us get to funding. 

Funding is a magical moment when all of your work finally becomes reality, and I'm so excited to share it with you. 

Today, though, I want to highlight some campaigns from people I know that you might have missed for one reason or another. 

This campaign has been particularly hard with all of the COVID-19 issues, conventions canceled (I've had six cancel on me so far that were set to take place in just the next month), and I know all creators are struggling, so I thought, while not help some out when I can and shine some light on them. 

You are all amazing for supporting this project, and there's no pressure to support anything, but I've personally vetted all these campaigns to bring you the one I think you'll like the most, and ones that don't have quite the backer totals as this campaign so they tend to get lost in the Kickstarter pile. 

Backers always tell me they enjoy that I highlight other books, especially because of the care I take to select only ones I really think you will enjoy. With 150+ campaigns going live every month, it's hard to know which are worth it, and for my money, all of these are worthy. 

I hope you find something you love. 

The Few and Cursed: Painting the World Red

Kickstarter link 

First up is my friend Felipe Cagno's The Few and The Cursed. Why might you have missed this one? Because it's NOT in the comics category, it's in the publishing category. I don't know why he launched it over there, but I wouldn't have even known unless I decided to scroll through this morning and it smacked me right in the face. Felipe's a great guy, and Few and the Cursed is amazing. 

I have never seen him deliver anything that isn't mindblowing. 

The Electric Black Presents

Kickstarter link

Joe is an old friend of mine, and this happens to be the first book in his new line of books from Scout comics. It's a horror anthology, which means you might like it if you like this book, as they are aesthetically the same, especially since that sure looks like Hastur on the cover to me. Joe told me that he's "loosely based on the yellow king. This chancier is called the yellow stranger.  [A] cosmic hive mind of sorts". Kind of sounds like the Cryptkeeper mixed with Lovecraft, two things near and dear to every horror fan's heart. 

The Electric Black Presents offers two twenty-four-page issues with Kickstarter-exclusive covers. From the Chilling Pages of The Electric Black, we present to you a new horror anthology series centered on four of its most insidious characters. Brace your souls for these stories of cosmic horror, revenge, murder, and mayhem.

I believe in Joe, and Scout. 

Stake #1: Women of Comics Exclusive Cover Collection

Kickstarter link 

This one I've been following for a while, ever since it came to Kickstarter, and watching David Byrne just flying higher and higher. It's amazing to see a creator come into their own and take their career to the next level. He's gotten nearly 4x more backers than his highest previous campaign, and he's blown past his goal by more than double. 

Dusk County Chronicles: Nightfall #1- Horror Survival Comic

Kickstarter link 

Joel terrifies me. I'm just going to put that out there. He sends me all his stuff and they are all legitimately terrifying. This one is more action than the his previous books in the series, but if you are a horror fan, then you need to check this one out. 

Joel is also a contributor to the Cthulhu is Hard to Spell: The Terrible Twos anthology, and seriously saved our butts twice in this campaign by doing last minute lettering on two of the stories literally AT the deadline with almost no notice. 

He's incredible. 

The Empties: You are who you eat! (A Horror Graphic Novel)

Kickstarter link 

The previous four campaigns have already funded, but this one hasn't yet. I'm sharing it with you because I have watched every single step of the process of creation of each issue, and how hard she works. She's done everything she can to make this project a success, including deciding to change the name of the book halfway through the campaign. I usually only share funded campaigns with you, but this one is an exception because the human behind it is exceptional. 

------

That's it for me. I hope you found something awesome. Do you enjoy when I highlight other campaigns at the bottom of my updates? 

I hope so. 

And keep your fingers crossed that I can come back in a couple of days and tell you that we're funded. 

Russell 

'The Mountains of Madness' wallpaper giveaway
about 4 years ago – Wed, Mar 18, 2020 at 01:52:05 PM

Hi, 

I found the coolest Lovecraft comic project the other day, and I've been working with the creator to do something special for you all. This one is a really cool adaptation of At the Mountain of Madness.

Kickstarter link

In 1932, two years after the first Antarctic expedition, a second expedition sets off. Before the expedition leaves, a stranger gives a notebook to the director of the cruise Howard Pym – who is a professor at the University of Miskatonic – asking him to read it before they reach Antarctica. Preoccupied with the voyage ahead, he forgets about it.

If you back both Mountains of Madness and Cthulhu is Hard to Spell then you will receive the fantastic tablet and phone wallpapers shown below!

If you've already backed both, then there will be a question during fulfillment that will get you our free wallpapers. 

All you have to do is back this campaign, which you've done, and then back Simon's campaign at ANY level, and you'll unlock these awesome wallpapers. 

I hope you dig it. 

Russell 

500 backers!
about 4 years ago – Wed, Mar 18, 2020 at 01:51:19 PM

Hi, 

We just passed 500 backers! That's amazing. I'm always so thrilled to see how many people show up to support the Cthulhu is Hard to Spell series. 

We're now just over $3,000 from funding, and this week I'm going to be unveiling our Fundle Bundle, which you'll get just for having backed, along with anything we unlock from here on out. 

You've already unlocked our Quarantine Bundle, even if you didn't know it, which will show up after the campaign ends, along with anything else we unlock along the way. All you have to do is literally nothing and you'll get everything else we unlock. 

Thank you so much for your support. It really means so much to me. 

Russell 

Another Kickstarter to check out 

The Comic Book History of Animation

Kickstarter link

I found this Kickstarter the other day and thought it looked fun, and since Aaron Alexovich and several of the other creators in Cthulhu is Hard to Spell work in animation, I thought you might like it as well. 

The writer/artist team behind THE COMIC BOOK HISTORY OF COMIC BOOKS, Fred Van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey, returns with a brand-new series! From Aardman to Zoetrope, Disney to Miyazaki, Hanna-Barbera to Pixar, and everything in between! The perfect companion piece to CBHoC, The Comic Book History of Animation tells the story of the triumphs and tragedies of the film makers and beloved characters of the past century and a half —essential for hardcore fans of the medium and noobies alike!

Check it out.