The New Pain Productions Substack

Sometimes it feels like it, sometimes it doesn’t, sometimes it feels much longer but I’ve been making comics for a long time. Professionally since 1993 although the math on that seems weird because I’m pretty sure I’m still only 23. I’ve been doing this long enough that I’ve seen the comic book industry shift and change more times than I can count, and not just because I’m so bad at math I still think I’m 23. I’ve worked extensively for the two biggest publishers in the business.

New Painiacs! There’s going to be an honest-to-goodness announcement in this thrilling edition of The NP Substack but first, some odds and ends. The New Pain Productions Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. In our LAST thrilling edition of the NP Substack (the interview with Jerry Ordway), you may recall that there was a mention of a comic that Jerry and I produced together, ALL-NEW ATOM #19.

New Painiacs! Hope you enjoyed last week’s guest column by Michael Katz! I imagine it must have been a refreshing change of pace to read a column written by someone with a brain for once. Unfortunately, that refreshing change of pace is over because… I’m back. The good news is I’ve brought a genuine, honest-to-goodness legend of comics with me. Are you perhaps familiar with the work of a young upstart named JERRY ORDWAY?

Howdy, New Painiacs! Keith Champagne has graciously allowed me to contribute an article to the New Pain Substack. I have created a number of books, including RIOT EARP (now on Kickstarter!), which takes place in the year 2055. I try to make it as realistic as possible, so I need to stay on top of technology. The New Pain Productions Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

The problem with great villains, plus more. Maybe there’s something wrong with me (well, there’s A LOT wrong with me; let’s stay on topic) but, with the exceptions of SUPERMAN and IRON FIST, I’ve always found the villains in movies/TV/comic books to be much more interesting than the heroes.

New Painiacs! Sorry about the lapse between newsletters, I’ve had a lot of life to deal with the last several months and my head hasn’t been as focused on work as it should have been. The New Pain Productions Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

New Painiacs! First, a brief bit of proselytizing. The New Pain Productions Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Independent comic book publishers are the lifeblood of creative freedom in the comics industry. While major publishers rely on established franchises and familiar characters, independent creators take risks, both creatively and financially.

I don’t know about all of you but I started the new year off tired. If one makes comics long enough, well, first of all, that person is probably crazy (looks in mirror). The New Pain Productions Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

RICK LEONARDI is one of the great American comic book artists. A fan favorite, an artist’s artist, there’s not much he hasn’t drawn over the course of his career. You may know him best as the co-creator of Spider-Man 2099 or the artist of Cloak And Dagger, I know him as the genius I was lucky enough to collaborate on a Superman issue with once, about 17 years ago. The New Pain Productions Substack is a reader-supported publication.

If you’ve ever spent any real time in comics, you know the industry is as contradictory as it is colorful. On one hand, it’s a business built on imagination, where a radioactive spider bite or a magic word can change the world. On the other, it’s an assembly line in spandex, churning out product that needs to hit shelves every Wednesday whether inspiration shows up or not. For decades, I lived in the world of the “Big Two” publishers—Marvel and DC.