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Autumn Check-in

By Allison O'Toole —

Happy Fall! Things are cooling down and it's the season to curl up with some tea, a blanket, and a comic book!

It's also an uncertain time in the world of small press comics (and, well, the world in general). The recent elimination of the de minimis exemption for lower-priced goods coming into the US, for example, is taking a big toll on Canadian small businesses. Questions around tariffs are ongoing, travel to the major US comics shows is intimidating, and the printer we wanted to work with--Maracle, Inc., who printed Shades of Fear--recently went out of business.

All this is to say that we here at Balustrade Press are trying to take it one day at a time. Staying flexible is the best way to handle all of this uncertainty at the beginning of a new endeavor, so we're keeping our timelines somewhat loose--but we are making progress!

On that note, here's some development art from two of our books:

8 different facial expressions on a character with a round face, multiple ear studs, big eyes with winged liner, and jaw-length hair half-up in a messy bun
character designs by Jade Armstrong
10 different facial expressions of a character with long, tightly-curled hair in different styles, like multiple braids or two ponytails.
character designs by Jade Armstrong
next to the cover for Slumlord Ethics by sunshine gao are a number of white sheets of paper with pencil illustrations showing the layouts for comics pages
layouts by sunshine gao

Outside of the Press, I'll be exhibiting under my own name at this weekend's Little Ghosts Festival at the Tranzac Club in Toronto. At 1:00 pm on Saturday, October 4, I'll be moderating a panel about horror comics!

Saturday and Sunday October 4 and 5, 12 pm to 5 pm: Little Ghosts Festival. Vendors, readings, panels, short horror films! Tranzac Club 292 Brunswick Ave, Toronto. visit www.littleghostsbooks.com for more info

With Halloween season upon us, I've been reading some exciting horror lately that I wanted to shout out:

Gretchen Felker-Martin's Cuckoo: what if It took place at a conversion camp?? Not a comic, but a tense, exciting read with amazing character voices.
Paige Hender's The Confessional: a sexy, bloody vampire tale set in Prohibition New Orleans.
Kyle Smith & Katie Sawatsky's Blackmouth: The Witch's Mark: a gorgeously-drawn, atmospheric gothic fantasy.

And finally, check out this Filipino horror anthology on Kickstarter, there's some stunning art in the previews already! I love indie anthologies for the introduction to new creators!!

That's all for now; I wish you all a cozy fall season!