“A completely overlooked trilogy of graphic novels about the Antichrist. Drawn by Roach over a 20-year period on anything from typing paper to napkins to worse, from what I understand, it’s brilliant. Printed before its time; the right publisher could make a nice killing on its quirkiness. (While Googling, I found it’s now a webcomic over here: http://www.armageddonquest.com. Still needs a reprinting, though).”

–TOM SPURGEON, COMICSREPORTER.COM

This Issue:

BOOK THREE brings the Anti-Christ to his first major crossroads: he’s forbidden to leave the villa, due to the mysterious threat of “Anton Arcane” and his “Hellmen”, and yet…fame and fortune beckon! When Tazio becomes the toast of the town and the local star soccer player, he has to choose between feeding his own ego and obeying his nearly all-wise guardian, The Ulfae…and let’s just say this chapter ain’t called “EGO” for nothing! PLUS: Bonus INSPECTOR GARRAZZI Illustrated prose story in the back! Exclusive to this edition of AQ BOOK THREE!

The Series:

ARMAGEDDONQUEST is the story of Tazio, the reluctant Anti-Christ, as he travels from birth to the very moment of ARMAGEDDON. An epic modern-fantasy-horror adventure over 850+ pages and TWENTY Books all told! Created, written, and illustrated by Ronald Russel Roach (3R), this is one of the greatest of the lost and forgotten underground comix classics, now remastered and re-presented for modern audiences.

Screeensavers

Download Free Armageddonquest Screensavers at: http://www.robotcomics.net/armageddonquest-custom-kindle-screensavers

• Title: Armageddonquest Book Three: Ego #3 of 20
• Credits: Written and Illustrated by Ronald Russell Roach
• Publisher: Robot Comics
• Price: $1.99
• Screens: 65

Preview

Download

Armageddonquest Book Three: Ego #3 is available for download on the following platforms:

Amazon Kindle

The Kindle edition of Armageddonquest Book Three: Ego #3 is optimized only for Kindle 1 and 2.

Links

AQ Webcomic Site

AQ in Print at Indyplanet.com

New article over at Digital Media Buzz on the emerging industry of “eBook Brokers“, and Robot Comics’ own Dave Baxter gets quoted quite a bit!  Might have something to do with the fact that the article is written by one of our own authors, Ron Callari.  Hmmm…nah.  We’re probably just that quote-worthy.

Here’s a snippet:

By Ron Callari

Digital content distribution as an industry emerged as a result of books moving from the traditional world of publishing to online platforms such as PDFs, eBooks and other ePub formats. Some licensing brokers for eBooks like Ingram Digital grew out of their traditional publishing units that have been in the industry for more than 40 years. Others like Robot Comics emerged within the last few years to solely focus on digital formats for specific genres like graphic novels.

Other publishers acting as their own distributors focus on specific genres. While Robot Comics publishes graphic novels and currently works with Apple, Google and Amazon, its deputy director, Dave Baxter, refers to these companies as “marketplaces” or “storefronts” vs. distributors. According to Baxter, “in the digital world, there’s very little distinction between the store and the distributor, often none at all.”

Graphic novels have the inherent challenge of adapting color images to Kindle’s black-and-white-and-shades-of-grey format. Baxter indicates that “few are flexible enough to handle the needs of a graphic novel library and allow them to shine.”

READ THE WHOLE THING (Dave had even more brilliant things to say, oh, yes….)

And make sure you check out Ron Callari’s own Kindle Graphic Novel – CRUDE BEHAVIOR: a fundamental tale told by kidd millennium

“‘kidd Millennium’ distills the issues of the day into one-panel masterpieces. Callari and Pittman’s ‘kidd’ is funny, irreverent, insightful, and necessary.”
Brian K. Mahoney, Editor
Chronogram

“Let me introduce you to Kidd Millennium, who is older than his years, because he has already brought us a deep insight into two terms of George Dubya.”
Sancho, British Journalist
Tilting at Windmills Blog

“kidd Millennium won’t fix your car or cure my achy-breaky heart, but it might just make you forget those things for a minute or so–and get you thinking for a lot longer than that.”
Ted Rall, Editorial Cartoonist
Universal Press Syndicate

“Can the movie be far behind?”
Nathan Cobb, Correspondent
Boston Globe

KIDD MILLENNIUM is the unofficial heir to R.F. Outcault’s 19th century newspaper comic sensation, THE YELLOW KID.  In this epic Graphic Novel sized outing, the kidd goes after the “War on Terror”, Energy Committee, the no-bid contracts, the PSAs (Production Sharing Agreements), Government-employed mercenaries, outing a CIA Agent, the firing of U.S. Justices, the relinquishment of Civil Liberties the failings of the US’ 43rd President and the continuous havoc wreaked by his nefarious VP..  The denouement actually unveils the creators’ best guess for the next president of the United States to be elected in 2008 (and which, now, after you read this Graphic Novel, you’ll know if their prediction came true or not!).

Since this is a parody, some identifiable real life celebre-du-jours are interwoven into this tale. Any resemblance to a White House intern, an Iraqi stand up comedian and a Left Coast teen gone Mullah…is purely intentional. While the creators doubt that these micro-celebs had any direct relationship to the history that unfolds in CRUDE BEHAVIOR, they embedded them into the story for pure comic relief and as architects in moving the plot along.

CRUDE BEHAVIOR is one of the first books to expose the current geo-political scene in vibrant color (or in this Kindle edition’s case, in 16 slick shades of gray).  Satire that takes prisoners and asks questions later! Other treatments have been done, but none that slice through the clash of fundamentalist beliefs and the pursuit of oil with as much vigor and humor.

• Title: Crude Behavior: A Fundamental Tale as Told by kidd mullennium #Complete Graphic Novel
• Credits:
  • Written by Ron Callari
    
  • Art by Jon Donohoe
  • Adapted by Chris Northrop and Dave Baxter
    
• Publisher: Robot Comics
• Price: $4.99
• Screens: 128 Pages

Preview

Download

Crude Behavior: A Fundamental Tale as Told by kidd mullennium #Complete Graphic Novel is available for download on the following platforms:

Amazon Kindle

The Kindle edition of Crude Behavior: A Fundamental Tale as Told by kidd mullennium #Complete Graphic Novel is optimized only for Kindle 1 and 2.

Links

KIDD MILLENNIUM WEBISTE

“A completely overlooked trilogy of graphic novels about the Antichrist. Drawn by Roach over a 20-year period on anything from typing paper to napkins to worse, from what I understand, it’s brilliant. Printed before its time; the right publisher could make a nice killing on its quirkiness. (While Googling, I found it’s now a webcomic over here: http://www.armageddonquest.com. Still needs a reprinting, though).”

–TOM SPURGEON, COMICSREPORTER.COM

This Issue:

BOOK TWO begins with our lovely Anti-Christ’s indoctrination into the real world – school, shopping in the local town market, confronting the clergy, making friends…but all the while, secrets of his past begin to rear their ugly collective heads. Who is THERON? Who is ANTON ARCANE? Also: Tazio’s mother, MARIANGELA, decides it’s time to kill her prophesied-to-be demonaic (but awfully loveable right now) son once and for all! Pathos, bathos, and incredibly intricate storytelling make up this second of twenty books! PLUS: Bonus FATHER GIORGIO Illustrated Prose story in the back!

The Series:

ARMAGEDDONQUEST is the story of Tazio, the reluctant Anti-Christ, as he travels from birth to the very moment of ARMAGEDDON. An epic modern-fantasy-horror adventure over 850+ pages and TWENTY Books all told! Created, written, and illustrated by Ronald Russel Roach (3R), this is one of the greatest of the lost and forgotten underground comix classics, now remastered and re-presented for modern audiences.

Screeensavers

BE SURE TO DOWNLOAD FREE ARMAGEDDONQUEST CUSTOM KINDLE SCREENSAVERS AT: http://www.robotcomics.net/armageddonquest-custom-kindle-screensavers

Details:

• Title: Armageddonquest #2 of 20
• Credits:
  • Written by Ronald Russel Roach
  • llustrated by Ronald Russel Roach
• Publisher: Robot Comics
• Price: $1.99
• Screens: 75 + Short Prose Story

Preview

Download

Armageddonquest #2 is available for download on the following platforms:

Amazon Kindle

The Kindle edition of Armageddonquest #2 is optimized only for Kindle 1 and 2.

Links

ARMAGEDDONQUEST WEBCOMIC

ARMAGEDDONQUEST IN PRINT

AUTHOR’S WEBSITE

“I picked up a pile of comics last night for $5 at a yard sale. Some Ross Andru Spideys, a Mysterymen, and two Desert Peaches. There were about forty comics in the stack. I breezed through the balance of them in the time it took me to read those two Peaches. Man your writing is dense. Value for the dollar.”

–Mark Campos (long-time illustrator for Marvel and DC, and indie comix creator of ‘El Mago Szazbo!’, ‘Exapno Mapcase’ and ‘E. Soames’)

THIS ISSUE:

“A Day at the Beach“ – Rumors of Allied submarines along the African coast motivate Pfirsich (The Desert Peach) and his infamous brother, Erwin (The Desert Fox), to try a brand new sub-locating tactic – SURFING! Yup, time for lots of nude surfing atop wooden coffin tops in search of enemy subs! And just in case you think that’s ludicrous, wait’ll you see what happens once they FIND one!!!  By far the most insane – and inane – of all the Desert Peach books ever produced.

THE SERIES:

“Love, Honor, Death and Tea” — that about sums up the life of The Desert Peach, the Desert Fox’s gay younger brother. This classic series swings wildly from tragedy to belly-laughs, as World War Two flaunts itself at its weirdest. THIS IS THE KINDLE 1 & 2 EDITION and made specifically for those devices. If you would like to see a DX edition, please let us know by emailing us at contact@robotcomics.net

Screensavers

And don’t forget to DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE CUSTOM KINDLE 2 DESERT PEACH SCREENSAVERS at – http://www.robotcomics.net/desert-peach-kindle-screensaver-images

Details

• Title: The Desert Peach #3 of 30
• Credits:
  • Written by Donna Barr
  • llustrated by Donna Barr
• Publisher: Robot Comics
• Price: $1.99
• Screens: 111

Preview

Download

The Desert Peach #3 is available for download on the following platforms:

Amazon Kindle

The Kindle edition of The Desert Peach #3 is optimized only for Kindle 1 and 2.

Links

THE DESERT PEACH WEBCOMIC

THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY

THE DESERT PEACH IN PRINT

At long last!  The third and FINAL part to our Kindle Tutorial Trilogy of Terror! (no, seriously, try it, it’s terrifying…*shiver*…)

You can read PART 1: OPTIMIZING THE IMAGES by CLICKING HERE

You can read PART 2: THE HTML DOC by CLICKING HERE

So now you’ve put together your images, your text, and wrapped it all up in a nice HTML bow.  Time to put this puppy up and online for Amazon shoppers everywhere to buy it!  How best to go about it?  Are there any tips you should know about?  And, heck, how exactly does publishing content on the Kindle store work?

Digital Text Platform

You’ll need to sign up for a “DTP” account – the DIGITAL TEXT PLATFORM is Amazon’s special platform for publishers (independent or otherwise).

Continue reading »

Follow the story of Tazio, the reluctant Anti-Christ, as he travels from birth to the very moment of ARMAGEDDON. An epic modern-fantasy-horror adventure over 850+ comic pages and TWENTY Books all told! Created, written, and illustrated by Ronald Russel Roach (”3R“), this is one of the greatest of the lost and forgotten underground comix classics, now remastered and re-presented for modern audiences.

A completely overlooked trilogy of graphic novels about the Antichrist. Drawn by Roach over a 20-year period on anything from typing paper to napkins to worse, from what I understand, it’s brilliant. Printed before its time; the right publisher could make a nice killing on its quirkiness. (While Googling, I found it’s now a webcomic over here: http://www.armageddonquest.com/ Still needs a reprinting, though).

–TOM SPURGEON, TheComicsReporter.com

• Title: Armageddonquest #1 of 20
• Credits:
  • Written by Ronald Russel Roach
  • llustrated by Ronald Russel Roach
• Publisher: Robot Comics
• Price: $1.99
• Screens: 77

Preview

Download

Armageddonquest #1 is available for download on the following platforms:

Amazon Kindle

The Kindle edition of Armageddonquest #1 is optimized only for Kindle 1 and 2.

Links

ARMAGEDDONQUEST WEBCOMIC SITE

Creator RONALD RUSSELL ROACH’S Site

POLITICAL OP-ED JOURNALIST RON CALLARI BRINGS HIS COMICS CREATION, KIDD MILLENNIUM, TO ROBOT COMICS

KIDD MILLENNIUM is the unofficial heir to R.F. Outcault’s 19th century newspaper comic sensation, THE YELLOW KID.

HISTORY

With his jug ears, two buck teeth, beady blue eyes, and yellow nightdress, the Yellow Kid hardly looks like an icon for comic and commercial success, but that’s exactly what he became in late nineteenth-century America. Created by middle-class artist R.F. Outcault, who later went on to draw the even more successful Buster Brown comic strip, the series of images in which the Yellow Kid appeared presented a turn-of-the-century theater of the city, in which class and racial tensions of the new urban, consumerist environment were acted out by a mischievous group of New York City kids from the wrong side of the tracks. READ MORE ABOUT “THE YELLOW KID”

The Yellow Kid has long since passed away, but op-ed journalist Ron Callari believes we once again need YK’s style of off-the-cuff commentary for the next generation. “On January 1, 2001, kidd emerged as a full-blown character and an ongoing, self-proclaimed spokes-kid for the next generation,” Ron states on the kidd millennium Official Website. “Estimated at 3.9 million American children, societal forecasters believe that this new population group (born post 2000) will eclipse the attention of the boomers, the last major bubble to have moved through the population funnel. Based on that premise, kidd millennium comments, with attitude, on his brave new world from a narcissistic and questioning point of view.”
Continue reading »

Armageddonquest Book One: Tazio comes to the Amazon Kindle 1 & 2

The first book in Ronald Russell Roach‘s 20-Book Armageddonquest series has been released onto the Amazon marketplace, fully adapted for the Kindle 1 & 2 screen formats. Originally published in part by Starhead Comix and then in its entirely by Sirius Publishing in the 90’s, Robot Comics is proud to bring this forgotten work to modern eReading audiences. The thick black art of “3R” translates beautifully onto the eInk Kindle screen, coming across clean and smooth and crystal clear. BOOK ONE: TAZIO is on sale for $1.99 and contains 77 Screens of comix storytelling glory!

I welcome those of you lucky enough to be discovering AQ for the first time. In 1993 there were just two issues available, covering about 160 pages of the story. The print runs were humble and the book was very hard to find. I was jealous of Starhead for publishing such an important new comic. I lusted after it. Like Tazio, this selfish motive inspired me into action, that I could not stop until I was satisfied. It was difficult to believe that Ron’s story truly spanned over 800 pages, as advertised in those comics. I had to see it. I had to read it. Within the second issue from Starhead was a message from Ron urging for support of the series to come from those that really wanted to see it keep coming out. I was completely hooked by what I had read so far: I needed to see more. I had to have it. I had a lust to read AQ.

Believe the hype. You have never, ever seen a comic like AQ. I have been into comics for (gulp!) 20 years. They were my first obsession. Reading and collecting comics offered me more than just incredible worlds and information you didn’t learn at school. Comics became a constantly renewable source of business opportunities for me. Yet in all my reading and in all my retailing and publishing, I have never, ever seen a comic like AQ.

–Robb Horan, Publisher, From his Introduction to the 1997 SIRIUS Edition of AQ, Volume 2

Continue reading »

UPDATE: We’ve updated the info below to better reflect the current Amazon/Kindle marketplace.

LAST UPDATED 10/28/09

Time for Part 2 (of 3) of our vundubar CREATING COMICS FOR THE KINDLE tutorial series!

You can read PART 1: OPTIMIZING THE IMAGES by CLICKING HERE.

You’ve got your images all squared away. It’s yea many pages in length and they’re all lined up in the proper reading order. Not that they have to be, but I recommend making the next part easy on yourself and make sure to call all the images something simple and obvious, like “page1.png”, “page2.png”, etc.

What next? Next it’s time to create the dreaded HTML Document that acts as the actual layout for your Kindle comic. All you need to do is have all your images in a single folder on your computer, then add an HTML doc titled “index.html”. So long as the images and HTML doc are all within the same folder, the link to the images can be relative and so all you need to use are the image files’ names.

For those unfamiliar with HTML, here’s a sample:

<img src=”page1.png”><img src=”page2.png”><img src=”page3.png”>, etc, etc. This puts all the images in the proper order when read on the Kindle when you upload the folder as a single ZIP file.
Continue reading »