Masks Holiday Sale!

In addition to the book, I'll throw in bookmarks and buttons and other goodies.
The coyote mug, however, is mine.

It’s almost Christmas, and I am officially neck-deep in writing Volume 2 and finishing that Christmas surprise story for y’all … so why don’t you guys have some fun without me and buy some cheap books?

That’s right, Pocket Coyote is having its first-ever holiday sale! Through the end of the year, all signed copies of Volume 1 are $15.00 (as compared to $19.48 if you buy direct from the printer). It makes a great gift for the YA reader in your life, or anybody who likes superheroes … or mythology … or sarcasm … or really bad watercolors. I’m all about value.

For those of you who may have forgotten, the 412-page Volume 1 paperback includes not just all 32 chapters of Masks Volume 1, but also an essay about how Masks came to be, a feature on how I did the illustrations, the Hawkins Foundation’s secret files on a bunch of the characters, and an all-new short story, “The Missing,” which takes place between Volumes 1 and 2 and will never be published anywhere else. If you buy the book through Pocket Coyote, it also comes signed and personalized (that means I write in the recipient’s name and the brief message of your choosing—anything that’s unlikely to get me arrested, sued, or punched in the face). Once you’ve ordered, I’ll send you an email asking you for your preferred autograph text. Make sure you spell everybody’s names right; I will copy your spelling precisely, and you will be embarrassed if it’s wrong.

All books ship via U.S. Priority Mail, which means they get there within a couple of days if you live in the continental U.S. Unfortunately, Priority Mail shipping has gone up to $5.30, but if you order two books, I’ll refund your shipping costs on the second one. If you order three or more books, you’ll be the best reader ever and I’ll refund all shipping costs beyond whatever it costs to actually throw the books in the mail. I’ve never had to work this out before because nobody’s ever ordered more than two books at a time from me before; I encourage you to be the first person to give me this problem.

The package will also include a random assortment of Pocket Coyote goodies, including any or all of the following: signed bookmarks, handmade buttons, and goofy sketches I drew in the middle of the night while drinking too much tea. All of these make great stocking stuffers, unless of course I’ve had way too much tea.

That's a penny to show how thick the paperback is. 412 pages! With pictures!

You can order the books here. And whatever you’re celebrating this December, I hope you’ll enjoy having Rae and Trevor over to celebrate with you.

Home?

I moved a week ago, and I’m still adjusting to the new place. The commute to work is longer half the time, but on the plus side, the other half of my job now has me getting paid to write books from my apartment. (No, not novels—boring grown-up books about grown-up subjects. Still, it’s money for writing, and the work is interesting. Yay.)

So while I’m unpacking boxes and reorganizing my book collection (priorities!), here are two news items.

The first is … I have very good reason to believe that I’ll have a nifty Christmas present for y’all. Perhaps the niftiest thing I have ever done. You see, I began writing Masks all those years ago in part because I was thinking about a career in comic books, but a) I had no idea how to write a comic script and b) at the time, there basically weren’t any women writers in the industry (the list, as far as I knew, began with Ann Nocenti and ended with Louise Simonson … and Simonson hardly counted because she always seemed to co-write with her husband Walt) and I was pretty sure there was some kind of law against it. Plus, I couldn’t draw, which I thought would somehow be a major impediment to a career as a comic-book writer. So I applied myself to short stories and novels, because women obviously wrote those, at least sometimes.

Now, however … now, I just might have a little comic book for you guys. My first-ever comic script, drawn and inked and everything.

No details yet. But it’s coming along nicely, the art is stellar (not mine), and the artist says it’ll be ready for posting by Christmas if I can do the lettering. Oh, and it’s a Masks story.

Yeah, I need to work on my lettering.

The other piece of news is that sitting in a quiet room and tapping away on grown-up books is making me itchy for my non-grown-up books. I was a little burned out on the Masks-verse, to be honest, with all the pressure building up from the personal-lifey things that prompted me to move house in the first place. But now I have a little breathing room, and I find I miss my friends.

The first draft of the first grown-up book goes to the client today, gods willing. After which I’ll have at least a couple of days of needing something else to scratch my writer’s itch. And I keep hearing a conversation in my head between Trevor and the Masked Rider, one where the cowboy’s got an unexpected message to deliver …

More chapters soon? I would like that. And I think you would too.

Comics coming. Chapters coming. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. (And if you’re outside the United States, happy random week in November.)

Name that pup!

I’m feeling lazy. Let’s have a contest!

You guys might remember Rae has a bit of a thing about coyotes—if by “thing” I can mean “massive childhood trauma.” Rae lost her childhood friend, Sam, when her abusive family put her in a car and drove off with her, and Rae was unable to stop the car because she ran into a menacing coyote in the woods that blocked her from cutting off the car’s path. Rae has been creeped out by coyotes ever since, and really doesn’t like them. Late in the first volume of Masks, however, she had to face her fear in the form of her own memories—a spectral coyote that forced her to answer a question in order to rescue Trevor.

Now, I’m not dropping too many spoilers here, but the adorable little coyote at the top of this blog entry will play a small but important role in Volume 2, helping Rae deal with some of that trauma (and providing much-needed cuteness). But I’m having a devil of a time naming him! So whoever can come up with the right name—the one that clicks in my brain and helps me figure him out—will win a signed copy of Masks Volume 1, in either paper or in finished-soon-I-promise ebook form. (Yes, I can sign an ebook. Win the contest and find out how.) The winner will also receive a limited-edition (because I don’t have them made very often) Masks button or two, including the design above—and a handmade Pocket Coyote of your very own, to be named whatever you like. You’ll also be mentioned, by name, in the acknowledgments of Volume 2.

Now, here’s how to enter! Simply leave your suggested coyote pup name in a comment on this blog entry. You may enter as many times as you like, but each name counts as only one entry; if ten people enter the name “Spot” and I choose that name, the first one to suggest it gets the prize. Except I’ve just suggested “Spot,” so that one’s taken now.

Ground rules (also known as “things I won’t even consider, so don’t bother suggesting”):

1. No naughty words. This is a PG-13 site, so the pup won’t be named anything you can’t say twice in a PG-13 movie. Naughty-word suggestions will not make it past the comment moderator to be entered in the contest, so you’d basically be wasting your time.

2. No Wile E. Coyote references. So no Wiley, no Whylee, none of that. In the unlikely event Masks gets famous enough to attract the attention of lawyers, I don’t need Warner Bros. suing me for copyright infringement.

3. No Cervantes jokes (unless they’re really unusually clever). There’s already been a Don Coyote cartoon, so this pup will not be named Don or Dawn or anything of the kind.

4. The pup cannot be named Kirby, or any variation thereof. Sorry, but Amadeus Cho’s coyote pup was named Kerberos, shortened to Kirby, and because I enjoyed the adventures of Kirby and Amadeus, I consider the name permanently taken.

Other than that, the sky’s the limit! I can tell you so far that the coyote is male, and basically orphaned as a pup; Rae will name him, somewhat unwillingly; he will really like eating black licorice; and he will, of course, be more than he appears, including just a bit magical (in the manner of the Masked Rider … whatever manner that is). He’ll also be a bit bitey when he first shows up, with a habit of gnawing on people’s fingers, as young canines tend to do.

I will announce the winner … ehh, pretty much when I’ve got one. But the sooner you suggest your name, the sooner you can win all that lovely loot!

Free Comic Book Day preview!

It’s almost that time again!

Yes, this coming Saturday is Free Comic Book Day, and you know what that means—Masks is back!

On Saturday, I’m posting a new story on Pocket Coyote and on this blog. It’s called “Ghost Dance,” and it will introduce at least two heroes you haven’t seen in Masks before, including the man who gave his name to heroes who might be nonpowered but are never powerless—the Black Mask himself! And that’s not even the best part!

Set in 1947, “Ghost Dance” follows Clayton Ross, a.k.a. the Black Mask, as he tracks down an old ally and recruits him for a daring rescue mission. Clay hasn’t seen Ben Wise, a.k.a. Eagle Eye, since the early days of the Second World War, and while he’s heard a few rumors about what happened to the kid behind enemy lines, nothing can prepare him for what he finds. Once a costumed vigilante who relied on a pair of mechanical wings to fight crime, Ben was captured by the Nazis and subjected to horrific experiments as the scientists tried to discover the source of the powers he didn’t actually have. Ben emerged from the ordeal with a set of Pyrrhic superpowers and a growing distance from the people he once loved.

Can Clay remind him of what it means to be human before it’s too late? And can Ben pull it together enough to help save an old friend from a fate worse than death? The answers lie in the southwestern desert, along with a few surprises that will lay the foundation for Volume 2 of Masks …

Did I mention that’s not even the best part?!

I am so excited about this that I am literally vibrating as I type, so pardon the typos, but here it is—I wrote a comic book!

An actual comic book! With pictures and everything! I’m hoping it will be done in time for FCBD, but if it’s not, it’ll be because I was late finishing the script and not because of the artist because the artist is freaking amazing, you guys. No, you don’t have to put up with my art this time around—I’ve got THIS GUY!

 Yeah, the guy who drew, oh, the best Masks art ever. His name is Derrick Fleece, and if you’re not already a fan of his work, you should be. He was the first guy to give Trevor a face that actually made sense—a face I liked so much that I immediately changed the way I drew Trevor just so he’d look more like Derrick’s interpretation. 

 The 8-page story, titled “Pick Your Poison”, should be available on or shortly after Free Comic Book Day, and it picks up where “Ghost Dance” leaves off, with Clay making a decision that will change his life forever—and turn Rae’s and Trevor’s lives upside-down. Derrick wanted to draw some noir, so I gave him all the shadows and muddled morality I could, and the results are unbelievably awesome. And if all goes well, you’ll get all of it this coming Saturday.

If you’ll excuse me, I need to go find a way to speed up time … 

What's next for MASKS

 

Well, Masks is rapidly barreling toward a conclusion over on Pocket Coyote, I’m working on the ebook, and people are starting to come at me with that special glass-eyed stare and ask, “When is Volume 2 coming out?”

Yeah, okay, only two people have asked me that, but I hate conversation enough that I’m going to blog about it so I can refer people to this blog next time they ask. So this is a time-saver for me, and a sneak peek for you guys. Win-win, right?

(Don’t give me that hurt look. I like talking to all of you, I really do … it’s just that I have to curl up in a ball for an hour afterward. I used to get migraines from chocolate, too, and it didn’t stop me from loving it—or eating far too much.)

(There was going to be a point to that anecdote, I swear.)

So what’s next in the magical world of Masks? Well, without giving too much away, I can tell you that the current serial will end with Chapter 32, after seven months of weekly superheroic action. The main plot will be tied up at the end of the serial—we’ll find out Cobalt’s secret, the good will end happily and the bad unhappily (well, mostly; I have mentioned that I like to kill off characters, right?), and most of the trailing threads will be tied up. There will be a clearly identifiable ending, with just a bit of a teaser for future adventures. Then we’ll take a break. Just a short one.

No whining, now! How many TV shows produce 32 episodes in a single season? Or air one episode a week, without interruption, for seven months? This stuff takes time to produce, and I’m working three jobs, so there will be a little bit of a delay before the action picks up again. You’ll probably want a bit of a lie-down after Chapter 32 anyway, and if you’re absolutely desperate for more Masks, you can buy the Volume 1 paperback or the ebook (available soon!), each of which contains a previously unpublished 4,500-word short story, “The Missing,” that takes place after the end of the first serial and drops lovely little clues about the second one.

Oh, did I say second serial? Yes, there’s going to be one. I’m not getting as much traffic as I’d like (invite your friends, for God’s sake, it’s a free book!), but I’m getting some, so I’m planning a big Volume 2 launch. Just not yet.

I have to finish work on The Novel before I do anything else, and work on the ebook and a couple of videos, but I expect to start writing Volume 2 around the time Volume 1 wraps up on Pocket Coyote. To tide you over while you’re waiting (or recuperating), I’m planning my usual madness for Free Comic Book Day, a big free story that, er, doesn’t have a title yet but will be a complete rip-roaring adventure and also set up quite a bit of what happens in Volume 2. This story will expand the Masks universe by introducing three heroes who haven’t appeared in the series before—one of whom is the Black Mask. That’s right, the Black Mask will actually show up in person instead of in grainy video footage, he’ll bring two unlikely pals along with him, and you’ll get to find out at least one rather embarrassing secret of his. That story will hit the web—as a PDF, as a Pocket Coyote entry, and as a free download—on May 5, 2012. There will be pictures, although I’m not sure yet who will draw them.

Meanwhile on Pocket Coyote, there will be more news, regularly—the release of the ebook, at least two (maybe three!) videos, and lots of spoilers about Volume 2, which I hope to start up sometime in early July. I’ll be ramping up the advertising, too, and there will be opportunities for you guys to get involved in promoting the Masks universe.

Because I really do need your help, folks. Tell your friends and family, tell strangers, tell your Facebook buddies—this series is awesome, and you can read all of it (well, except the bonus features) for free! And because some of them will very sensibly point out that there’s no such thing as a free lunch, and ask what I’m getting out of all this work, you can tell them that as long as they’re looking at the site, I’m getting exactly what I want—eyeballs. All I want is proof of concept; I want a bunch of people reading my stories each week so I can shove my raw traffic numbers in the faces of people who think nobody reads my stories. I want people to read my stories. You like to read my stories. You are people. Win-win.

As for what’s in Volume 2 … well, I can’t say too much without giving away the ending of Volume 1, but let me see how many hints I can drop. 

1. Dead people will turn up in unexpected places.

2. Romance will bloom in other, equally unexpected places.

3. Trevor’s foxhounds will catch up with him.

4. Rae will make a new friend and a new enemy, perhaps at the same time.

5. The secret cause of the superhero purge will be revealed.

6. There will be a truly ridiculous amount of running, punching, and stuff blowing up.

7. Trevor will get kissed and concussed again (probably in rapid succession).

8. Rae will wear leather pants, but not for the usual reasons.

9. The Masked Rider has a plan.

10. There will be a cute fuzzy animal in a prominent role. And Moon and Soleil will be in the story, too.

There, I think that’s enough spoiling for now, don’t you? I can’t wait to see what happens next …