NEWS
Sequential Tart – Opening the Box of Bones
John Jennings and I were interviewed by Sheena McNeil of Sequential Tart, a publication dedicated to providing exclusive interviews, in-depth articles, and news. Here’s a sneak peek.
Sequential Tart: How and when did you first become interested in creating comics?
Ayize Jama Everett: First grade. I was going to get left behind because they were saying I couldn’t read. But I could understand comics. I got a bunch and started writing my own “scripts”, which was just mounds and mounds of dialogue. Hopefully, I’ve gotten a bit better since then. 🙂
You can read the full interview here.
Megascope: a Diverse Line of Graphic Novels by Curator John Jennings
Oh what’s that? That’s just the logo of Megascope, a new line of graphic novels curated by none other than John Jennings. They’ll be publishing one of mine, a retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo in comic book form. Their mission is to publish books that visualize new diverse narratives, and forthcoming titles include:
– Black Star by Eric Glover, illustrated by Arielle Jovellanos
– Blak Kube by Ytasha Womack, illustrated by Tanna Tucker
– The Count by Ayize Jama Everett, illustrated by Tristan Roach
– Dark Fear: Dedicated to Emmett Till by Christopher Benson, illustrated by Eric Battle
– Death’s Day by Daniel José Older and Baba Malik Duncan, illustrated by Chuck “Dragonblack” Collins
– The Eight-Fold Path by Steven Barnes and Charles Johnson, illustrated by Bryan Christopher Moss
– The Keeper by Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes, illustrated by Marco Finnegan
– The Resurrectionists by Ho Che Anderson, illustrated by Jeremy Love
You can find the full announcement here. Stay tuned for more details.
The Black Tribbles Show
I was recently on the Black Tribbles Show. The team reveals untold stories of geek history, showcases new and upcoming projects, and engages in thought-provoking conversation and provides critical insight into a culture often devoid of a black influence, all with an irreverent tone that delights as it educates.
Listen and get some black horror in your soul. Happy Black History Month!
Available on Mixcloud, Apple Podcast, or watch the video on YouTube.
Box of Bones 2 on Kickstarter
You read that right. Box of Bones 2 is on Kickstarter.
Volume 1 contains art from John Jennings, Sole Rebel, Damian Duffy, Frances Olivia Liddell-Rodriguez, Tommy Nguyen, Jarmel and Jamal Williams, and Bryan Christopher Moss with covers by Stacey Robinson!
If you Pledge $100 or more to our campaign, you’ll get a paperback copy of Box of Bones Vol. 1 and an in-depth critique on the first 5 pages of your work in progress. A good deal, right?
Back this project on Kickstarter.
Thank you for the shoutout, and everyone who promotes our Kickstarter.
The Process: John Jennings, Parable of the Sower Page 123 on Believer Mag
Interview with the living legend John Jennings for The Believer Mag. Ch-Ch-Check it out!
THE BELIEVER:
One of the few criticisms that have been leveled at Octavia Butler is that she doesn’t do a lot of character description. How did you go about the character design of these characters?
JOHN JENNINGS:
I didn’t find her descriptions to obscure at all. Butler gives us enough cues for us to do a solid rendition of the characters. But there were a lot of characters, and it was hard to keep them straight. Also, it’s hard to design a character and then put them through the wringer, or even kill them. You become close to them once you’ve drawn them so much.
To read the full interview, click this link: The Process: John Jennings, Parable of the Sower Page 123.
James Spooner Interview on Believer Mag
Oh that? That’s just me interviewing Afropunk founder James Spooner in Believer Mag. Big up to Spooner for sitting through it and Niela Orr for some bombass edits! Here’s an excerpt:
BLVR:
I’ve heard people ask where’s the punk in Afropunk these days?
JS:
Objectively, you can say “Oh, we have this Afropunk name but we get these complaints about it not being punk enough so let’s get these bands, whatever…” It doesn’t amount to punk because punk is about community and corporate sponsorship doesn’t align itself with grassroots communities. When people complain to me about Afropunk I’m like, “Dude, it’s just an R&B concert. Go enjoy yourself or don’t go.”
I’ve asked people who know nothing of Afropunk’s history, “Did you leave the festival feeling like you’ve gained community?” So far no one has said yes. They’ve had a great time, they’ve taken awesome pictures, they might have seen some bands. But they didn’t make new friends. They didn’t come home with a second family. The thing is you can’t expect that from a once-a-year event. For a scene to exist it has to be happening on a regular.
To read the full interview, click this link: The Process: James Spooner, The Afropunk Festival.
Attending Comic-Con, and remembering Rory Root
Guh! Comic-Con! Last time I was there, Wesley Snipes was the only Blade there was! So dope to be at the 50th anniversary of SD Comic-Con as a new Blade, the incomparable Mahershala Ali was crowned. It’s changed. Far less comics than my last time, over 15 years ago. My last time there I was working for the sometimes infamous, always legendary Rory Root, owner of Comic Relief.
That comic book store was my gold standard from the first days I came to California before I even lived out here. More than Forbidden Planet in NYC, my childhood epic comic book shop, Comic Relief encapsulated what I loved about comics; the underground, DIY, epic fantasy and proletariat tales of crime, responsibility, power, and imagination. Plus, the store had a cat. Rest in peace Pia. Rory’s gone on to that big comic book store in the sky, but somehow he’s imprinted on me as the gatekeeper and agent provocateur of taking comics seriously.
Before Vertigo and Dark Horse became the big dogs that they were/are, it was Rory and his ilk, comic book shop owners who sold books to libraries, went to college classes to speak about the industry. They spoke as the organic intellectuals that books like Maus, the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers, and Paul Auster’s City of Glass produced.
Those days are gone now. It’s possible to get a Ph.D. in comic scholarship. There are full-blown academic courses in writing and creating comics, and every other minute there seems to be some supposed luminary coming out as a comic book “scholar.” I’ve been guilty of that appellation myself. Back in the day, it’s was just the heavy set dude with the cowboy hat, sweat stains everywhere with a big mug of coffee, and a cigarette dangling from his mouth named Rory Root and his friends.
That’s what Comic-Con will always be to me. Rory was no saint. He stiffed me out of more than one paycheck. And don’t ask how many times I saw him naked, seemed to be a rite of passage more than one Comic relief employee had to endure. But he also got me hooked on taking the funny books I love so much seriously. So for me, Comic-Con will always be Rory Root’s spot.
One of the highlights of my Comic-Con experience was hanging with @marinchef, which is always awesome.
Celebration for a contract signing
If you like hand-rolled ice cream, check out swirls creamery in San Gabriel. Celebration for a contract signing. See what I did there? It’s called a tease…
I’m looking forward to working on a comic book remake of a classic novel. Stay tuned for more updates. In the meantime, check out my other works. I also update through Twitter and Instagram regularly.
I interviewed Hugo Award-winning author Sarah Gailey
I interviewed Hugo Award-winning author Sarah Gailey at Cellar Door Books yesterday. We talked about their new book, Magic for Liars, a clever and fast-paced magical mystery that came out this month. Check that out.
Special thanks to them, Cellar Door Books, and everyone who came by. Here are some photos.
The Real Men Read Program
On Wednesday I had the privilege of meeting with young men at the Youth Treatment and Education Center in Riverside as part of the Real Men Read program.
Not only was it fun to talk to them about the power of reading and writing, they also helped me with some plot points for a pitch I’m working on. I love combining my two favorite things: youth work and writing.
Real Men Read is a young men’s literacy and mentorship program operated in every Riverside County juvenile lockdown facility. Since its inception in 2013, incarcerated youth have read more than 1.1 million pages of literature.
3 Minutes with fellow author Tenea D. Johnson
I had fun doing the interview with Tenea D. Johnson, a Kentucky-born spec fic author, poet, and musician. He is the author of a poetry/short prose collection, Starting Friction as well as the novels, Smoketown and R/evolution.
You can read the full interview here.
Maddie M. White interviewed me on her blog, Ask the Author
Maddie is an awesome Flash Fiction writer, and her shorter pieces have been featured in Flash Fiction Magazine, Rhythm and Bones, Mojave Heart Review, Stigma Fighters, and many others. She has a daily blog called Ask the Author where she interviews fellow authors about their published works and promotes it to her readers.
I was stoked to have her interview me, and you can find the full interview here.
I had a fun time in San Diego
I joined Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore’s celebration of its 26th birthday in San Diego. I read an excerpt from my book The Entropy of Bones, along with fellow author Stephen Blackmoore.
Thanks to the folks who came by!
Mysterious Galaxy Birthday Bash 2019
When:
Saturday, May 11, 2019 at 10 AM
Where:
Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore at 5943 Balboa Ave Suite 100 San Diego, CA 92111
Details:
Please come join me in celebrating the 26th birthday of Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore, an independent genre bookstore specializing in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, young adult, romance, and horror.
I will be reading an excerpt from my book The Entropy of Bones, and other authors like Isabel Quintero (My Papi Has a Motorcycle), Astrid Scholte (Four Dead Queens), August Norman (Come and Get Me), and more will be reading from their books, too.
See you there.
Click here to see who else would be there, and for more details about the event.
Great reading at Skylight Books
I read an excerpt from my forthcoming book at Skylight Books yesterday. We had a full house and people seemed to enjoy the work a lot. Followed by an awesome party hosted by the Editor-in-Chief of the LA review of books. Big up to Carley Badger, Alicia Mosley, Kate Weinberg, Katy Gurin, and all the other badass readers.
Looking forward to seeing my book in print soon. Stay tuned.
I am a nominee of the 2019 Glyph Comics Awards
I got nominated for the 2019 Glyph Comics Awards by the East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention. The Glyph Comic Awards recognize the best in comics made either by, for, or about Black people and accomplishments that Black artists and writers have made in the comic book industry.
I am so proud that my work and I have been nominated for these categories:
Best Writer
Ayize Jama-Everett, writer; BOX OF BONES #1
Rising Star Award
Ayize Jama-Everett, writer, John Jennings (interior) & Stacey Robinson (cover), artists; BOX OF BONES #1
Best Cover
BOX OF BONES #1; Ayize Jama-Everett, writer, Stacey Robinson, artist
I started sending out my monthly newsletter
I gave a brief recount of what’s been happening, and events I’ll be attending in the near future. If you want to receive updates about me or my work, you can sign up for it. You can find the sign-up form at the bottom of the page. I hope to connect with you soon.
Sarah Gailey Interview
When:
Sunday, June 29, 2019 at 6 PM
Where:
Cellar Door Bookstore at 5225 Canyon Crest Dr., #30A, Riverside, CA 92507
Details:
I will be interviewing the award-winning author, Sarah Gailey. Their book Magic for Liars is a clever and fast-paced magical mystery and will be coming out in June 2019.
Stay tuned for more updates.
UC Riverside MFA Students Read From Their Work
When:
Sunday, April 28, 5 pm
Where:
Skylight Books Los Angeles at 1818 N Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Details:
Please come see me and other candidates from the University of California Riverside Master of Fine Arts writing program read from their work. I will be reading with Isabela Agosa, Katy Gurin, Marcos Damián León, Alicia Mosley, Joe Satran, Jasmine Elizabeth Smith, Kate Weinberg, and faculty readers Allison Benis White and Tom Lutz.
Independent Bookstore Day Celebration
When:
Saturday, April 27, 10 am
Where:
Cellar Door Bookstore at 5225 Canyon Crest Dr., #30A, Riverside, CA 92507
Details:
Come celebrate Indie Bookstore Day with me. Independent Bookstore Day is a one-day national celebration taking place at indie bookstores across the country. You can also catch storytime with Jose Chavez, a book signing with Larry Burns, and more. If you’re up for it, there’s a costume contest for adults (and kids) and a science trivia. It’s also worth mentioning that they have a 20% in-store discount for select genres and a 40% in-store discount for physical audiobooks. There’ll be exclusive IBD items and you’ll get a chance to win a free book.
1000 Follower Giveaway on Twitter
For those of you following me on Twitter (if you don’t, you should!), I did a giveaway to celebrate reaching 1,000 followers. The winners will get an audiobook copy of The Liminal People.
Update:
The giveaway is now closed. The winners were two of my followers, @twoshotgurl and @masonsmvp, and newsletter subscriber Paul A. Congratulations! Your audiobooks are on the way.
Signed with Elizabeth Kaplan Literary Agency
I signed with Elizabeth Kaplan Literary Agency They are shopping my next book around. I’m excited to see where it will end up.
Started working with Coriolis Company
I started working with Coriolis Company on my author platform. They focused on connecting me with potential readers and industry professionals.