TINY UPDATE 10/3: Getting Scared In New York City

“Tiny Update” is a monthly free newsletter that keeps you up to date on the latest news, comic book projects and merchandise offerings from James Tynion IV and Tiny Onion Studios

Hello Friends.

Welcome to the Spooky Month. October is upon us. It’s getting a little cooler in the evenings, which I am extraordinarily grateful for. I wish Fall in New York City could last for six months a year. I like the other seasons, but this is the best. I feel like this is the exact time of year that reminds me why I want to live here more than anywhere else in the world.

Finally got around to getting the first round of artwork hung up around the apartment. I have a few things that I need to shuttle off to my storage locker (hopefully this week). But the whole place is coming together. My office/library is going to be the most impressive to all of you once I put the final pieces in order. I was hoping to have it all wrapped right BEFORE NYCC, but it’ll probably be right AFTER the show that it all comes together.

I have made the executive decision to push this month’s Onion Drop back one week. That’s going to align it a bit better with the launch of a project I don’t think anybody sees coming, that I’m deeply excited to unveil to all of you. The next two months are going to see a series of announcements that will set the stage for 2023. That’s aligning perfectly with a series of meetings I’m having that will set the stage for the next few years. It’s all very exciting, I have to say. I had a great conversation over the weekend with one of my friends about how it feels like I’m getting each of the systems of my life in order, and how that’s setting the stage for a few really wonderful years of work and life. I have a great apartment. A great studio. Great friends. Some great travel on the books. And projects in the pipeline that I find really deeply exciting. I’ve also made some big steps in the direction of my health that I probably won’t be getting into that much publicly, but if things keep moving in the direction they’ve started, this could be a real game changer for me. The biggest thing I need to do is not work myself to death, so I can enjoy all of those things a bit better.

Later this month will see more Wild Fictions, a new chapter of Blue Book, and a new chapter of True Weird here on Substack. Onion Club members should keep their eyes peeled next Monday for their monthly email, with some updates on the process of getting Onion Club 2023 online (I have seen some messages about people concerned that their membership status has changed, and I will address all of that in the next email). There will be more news on what shape the Onion Club will take next year in November after we unveil the last 2022 Gold Foil cover by Nick Robles.

Stay Tuned, True Believers.

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October 12th

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN VOL. 5

W: James Tynion IV / A + Cover: Werther Dell'Edera / C: Miquel Muerto / L: AndWorld Design / E: Ramiro Portnoy & Eric Harburn

After a year since we last saw her in Archer’s Peak, Erica Slaughter resurfaces to take on the case of a girl who’s seen a new kind of monster, one with terrifying implications. But Erica’s broken ties with the House of Slaughter and that can have deadly consequences. The Order of St. George does not forget nor do they forgive. Even as Erica goes on the hunt, she must keep an eye out for the mysterious figure on her trail in order to survive the coming storm. Erica Slaughter returns after the Archer’s Peak Saga in this volume collecting Something is Killing the Children #21-25.

October 19th

WYND: THE THRONE IN THE SKY #3

W: James Tynion IV / A + Main Cover: Michael Dialynas / L: AndWorld Design / E: Eric Harburn & Ramiro Portnoy / P: Boom! Studios

A moment of rest was a moment ill spent, as General Eks arrives in full force, with murderous intent. Even as the children and the fathers break free and flee, things seem dire, before an unexpected figure brings help...

Don't miss the next thrilling story in the Wynd saga, from the GLAAD Award-winning creative team behind The Woods!

October 25th

DC VS. VAMPIRES #10

Writers: James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg / Art: Otto Schmidt / Cover: Guillem March / E: Ben Abernathy & Dave Wielgosz / P: DC Comics

The war for Earth takes a decisive turn as the heroes prepare to strike back! Can Supergirl and her team in Australia escape to space? Will the Birds of Prey’s infiltration of Gotham City go unnoticed by the Vampire King? Can Green Arrow save the human cattle from the Blood Farm? The shocking answers await!

October 26th

HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #10

W: Sam Johns / A: Letizia Cadonici / C: Francesco Segala / L: AndWorld Design / Main Cover: Rafael Albuquerque / E: Eric Harburn & Ramiro Portnoy / P: Boom! Studios / Series Developed by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera

Edwin finally comes face-to-jaws with the legendary monster he's been hunting - After journeying through a watery hell, Edwin finally returns home to the House of Slaughter, but his problems might be just beginning...

New horrors loom in the next chapter of the epic adventure from the world of Something is Killing the Children!

Okay, folks! We’re entering the final marathon of the year, as I wrap up my slate of US shows, and hit the road on what’s turned into a bit of an international tour! Since last month, they announced me as a guest at Thought Bubble in the UK, and Angouleme (which I’ve been dying to get to for years). I’m beyond thrilled to get a chance to meet my readers from all around the world.

New York Comic Con - New York, NY - October 6-9
Lucca Comics & Games - Lucca, ITALY - October 28 - 30
Madrid Comic Pop Up - Madrid, SPAIN - November 4-6
Thought Bubble Festival - Harrogate, UK - November 12-13
Singapore Comic Con - SINGAPORE - December 10-11
Angouleme International Comics Festival - Angouleme, FRANCE - January 26-29

This week is NYCC, which is my last scheduled US appearance of the year. I am going to be doing signings every day at my table in artist alley. You’ll be able to find me at Table C-21. I’m not doing any panels at the show this year, so if you’ve got any questions for me, hit me up during the show!

THURSDAY
2:30-4:30 PM - Artist Alley Signing - Table C-21

FRIDAY
12:00-1:30 PM - Artist Alley Signing - Table C-21
4:00-5:30 PM - Artist Alley Signing - Table C-21

SATURDAY
12:00-1:30 PM - Artist Alley Signing - Table C-21
4:00-5:30 PM - Artist Alley Signing - Table C-21

SUNDAY
1:00-3:00 PM - Artist Alley Signing - Table C-21

I’ll be doing three free signatures per signing, as well as free signatures on any comics or merchandise you purchase at the table. Additional ungraded signatures are $10, and graded signatures are $25. If you are a member of The Onion Club (and can show me with your Membership Card or by pulling up your Substack Membership Page), you will get double the number of free signatures per signing block, and I will waive my signature fee on one graded book per signing.

• I am in love with CHAINSAW MAN. I’ve burned through the first six volumes in the last week and a half, and I am struggling to pace myself through the rest of them and not just finish the whole thing in one sitting. It’s comics as pure messy id, and it’s glorious to read. I keep laughing in delight, scaring my dog in the middle of the night.

• In the last couple of weeks, I’ve been out to the movies to see PEARL and BARBARIAN, and I had an absolute blast at both. Feels like the cultural tide might be pulling away from brainier A24-style Indy Horror and moving back in the direction of crowd-pleasing bombast, and it’s doing it without losing the weird edge of the last few years of horror comics.

• FOLLOW ME DOWN is the next Reckless book by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips, and it is in stores October 12th, and it is probably my favorite volume of the series to date. I bang the drum about these books a lot, but it’s because I think they show a complete mastery of the sort of comics I most enjoy reading. It is a gift how many of these books we’ve gotten in so short a time, and we should be grateful for it.

• DUCKS by Kate Beaton is simply phenomenal. It’s incredible to read it, having started following Hark, A Vagrant! on LiveJournal when she was living through the events of the series. I love seeing the webcomic creators whose work I fell in love with back when I was in High School and College make the jump to the prestige alternative comic publishers. This one is going to clean up at all the comic awards next year, and deservedly so.

• INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE’s pilot is perfect. So much better than I expected it to be. I have loved Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles with my full heart since I first read them in High School. The Neil Jordan movie is very good, but dialed down some of the homoeroticism that make the books what they are. This turns the dial in the other direction, without softening any of the rough edges of the series to make the characters more palatable. I fucking loved it. Lestat is the perfectly seductive and disastrous Brat Prince he needs to be. I desperately hope it has a large enough audience to get through the events of Queen of the Damned. I can’t wait for Armand, and Marius, and the Talamasca. This, aside from the next DUNE movie, is officially the project I have the most nerd feelings about right now.

• My pals and Tiny Onion stalwarts, Tate Brombal and Nick Robles have a new series out from BOOM! Studios in November called BEHOLD, BEHEMOTH. It’s a really wonderful first issue, packed with mystery, phenomenal characters and beautiful artwork. The first issue FOCs on Monday, October 10th, so let your local comic shop know that you want to add it to your pull lists today!

• I’m in the market for some new lights for my home office since I’ve blocked half of the windows in it with bookcases like the deranged lunatic I am. Ideally, I’m looking for a short light I can buy like five of, and perch on the top of my bookcases without needing to mount them, lighting the full room, and hooked up to some smart plugs. I’ll probably need to make some compromises, but I figured I’d see if anybody has the perfect solution.

Okay, I have a truly stupid amount of work to get done before New York Comic Con gets started.

It’s always a bit of a pain in the butt to do a show in your hometown. There isn’t any transitional time into the show that traveling usually provides. I’ll be working on scripts up until the moment I have to head into my first obligation of the week, and probably working on them after.

ANYWAYS. I have ZODIAC playing in the background as I finish some panel descriptions and this newsletter. I wish I had another couple days before this week really kicked off in earnest.

James Tynion IV
Brooklyn, NY
10.3.22