VODKA O’CLOCK 2021-01:

PAT SHAND

VOC logoAMBER LOVE 11-FEB-2021 My work is supported by the generous backers at Patreon.com/amberunmasked who appreciate my reviews and my stories; and they also get first access to what’s happening with my books and podcast.

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PAT SHAND

He has created/co-created the comic books BREATHLESS, SNAP FLASH HUSTLE, LITTLE GIRL, FAMILY PETS, PRISON WITCH, AFTERGLOW, and DESTINY, NY as well as writing for established properties, such as CHARMED, ADVENTURE TIME, DISNEY PRINCESS, and ANGEL. In addition to his work as a comic book creator, he has produced off-off Broadway theatre and worked as a novelist on original stories for Marvel, including Guardians of the Galaxy: Space Riot, Iron Man: Mutually Assured Destruction, Avengers: The Serpent Society, Spider-Man: Spideyography, and Thor: Crusade of the Forgotten. He runs the independent company Space Between Entertainment in New York, where he lives with his wife Amy and their army of cats.

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We start the show talking about his previous work on the comic BREATHLESS (2018 with artist Renzo Rodriguez with colors by Mara Jayne Carpenter and letters by Jim Campbell). BREATHLESS is a sci-fi based on the real troubles we have in the United States about getting medication in a world where mega-corporations control the economy of medicines. I mentioned BREATHLESS in my list of early pandemic reads and entertainment.

Jim Campbell comes back to partner with Pat on DESTINY, NY as the letterer and designer. They’re joined by various artists who change with each volume; not to mention that there are back stories at the end of each collected volume done in an anthology style. Pat discussed how he included people who were not from the comics world and together adapted works into the medium. DESTINY, NY is done in grayscale/black and white. We talked about the choices why that helped the budget for the projects and also that Manuel Preitano’s art from volume one worked well without color.

“While I love color for certain stories, I don’t think it’s a need for all stories.” —Pat Shand

Around the 29:00 mark, Pat shared one of the most memorable comic con stories I’ve ever heard. It’s about how he was pitching to a publisher when a drunk person vomited and fainted next to them. What’s an even better take-away from Pat’s stories about pitching is that it’s not always a quick approval and turn around process.

From Black Mask Studios

That’s the problem facing Logan McBride in DESTINY, NY, the ongoing comic book series launching in March 2021 from Black Mask Studios, the Los Angeles based indie publisher of acclaimed titles including CALEXIT, LOUD, 4 KIDS WALK INTO A BANK, KIM & KIM, and BLACK. Together, writer Pat Shand (Black Mask’s SNAP FLASH HUSTLE), artist Manuel Preitano (DC Comics’ THE ORACLE CODE), and cover artists Elisa Romboli (upcoming ALICE IN LEATHERLAND) and Rosi Kämpe (SPIDER-GWEN) have created a grounded story about the magic of young adulthood, star-crossed modern romance, delayed coming of age, and finding your place in a world too busy to notice you.

In DESTINY, NY, Logan grew up a “prophecy kid” attending the elite NYC boarding school DESTINY, NY for children with magical prophecies. At twelve years old, she faced down a cataclysmic crisis and rescued the entire planet… but hardly anyone even knows what she did, and since then she’s been directionless. There’s no prophecy for what Logan is supposed to do with the rest of her life… she’s having a midlife crisis despite being in her 20s. But when Logan falls for Lilith, the estranged daughter of a mystical crime family, their new love puts the entire school in jeopardy.

Issue 1 will feature a special, limited edition cover by Terry Moore (STRANGERS IN PARADISE). On contributing to the project, Moore said “Destiny, NY is an engaging modern love story written with hope and compassion. Drawing a cover for a book like this was a privilege.”

Art vs The Artist

We ended up in a short discussion about how our place in public social platforms has turned into a way for bigots or the merely ignorant to show their standpoints. As I post this, actor and former MMA fighter Gina Carano was just fired from The Mandalorian for her insulting posts. Comic book examples of needing time for the stories to unfold in order to show more diversity and inclusivity are BITCH PLANET and MAN-EATERS; in the case of BITCH PLANET, the creators were open and welcoming to dialog on Twitter. However in the case of MAN-EATERS, writer Chelsea Cain continuously wrecked her comics career because she exhibited bad behavior towards readers who wanted to see trans characters even though the series did eventually include one and it ended on a positive note.

Links:

  • Twitter @patshand
  • blackmaskstudios.com

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Founder and Editor-in-Chief of AmberUnmasked.com and Vodka O'Clock Podcast. Author of The Farrah Wethers Mysteries, comic book short stories, prose, and non-fiction. Cosplayer and figure model.