Tuesday, November 12, 2019

https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/gods-of-aazurn/list?title_no=202820

Today I launched the first of the final chapters of Gods of Aazurn: Witches to Webtoons! Finally, you can follow this creepy, cosmic horror to the end. Catch up here on Webtoons. 

Please, LIKE! Likes and Follows give me the stamina to keep this webtoon going.

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Meanwhile, over on Patreon, I share two new inked pages for Patrons, with finished lettering so they can tell what's going on. Young Will Whateley takes Anna to a picnic and the yippy neighbor dog meets an evil or comedic fate, depending on your outlook. Become a patron for as little as $1 a month here.


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I don't have space or permission to tell you about the illustration work I'm heavy into right now. Let's call it "Project Bud." More on that in coming weeks.

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
http://strangehorror.com/



Thursday, February 14, 2019

GHAA! Only 8 Hours Left


 

There are only 8 hours left to pledge on the three comics and the graphic novel, Witches, at the Gods of Aazurn: Witches Kickstarter!


Get there here:
StrangeHorror.com

It's Gods of Aazurn 1, 2 and 3, the Witches graphic novel, Indie Comics 1, 2, 3 Caliber editions -- every publication Gods of Aazurn stories have appeared in so far!

Thank you, backers! I'm eager to deliver these creepy, cosmic horror stories.

Not a backer? Don't miss out! Go to StrangeHorror.com now.

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
StrangeHorror.com


Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Tomorrow: the Gods of Aazurn Kickstarter Ends



So we've unlocked the Horror Download Bonanza Stretch Goal Bonus over here at the Gods of Aazurn: Witches Kickstarter and you have only 30 hours or so to pledge on the three comics and the graphic novel, Witches.


While you kick back waiting for your 130-plus pages of story, Gods of Aazurn Memes, printed books, Zombie Portrait -- oh, and the stretch goal bonus books -- I leap into production mode.

- I'll have another look at the Memes to see if they can be cleverer, clearer, or more useful.

- I'll check through The Strange Worlds of Gustave Dore, Harry Clarke Illustrates Poe, Compendium of Demonology, and The Demons of Louis Le Breton to be sure they're presented as beautifully as horror can be.

- I'll organize the backer list to send to Caliber to get them rolling on mailing and emailing physical and digital book rewards.

- Gods of Aazurn #1, #2 and #3 are pretty much ready for you now. I'll check those through, too, because I'm a publishing guy and, hey, that's what I do.

This won't take long, it's just mental work. What DOES take long is Kickstarter collecting pledges. That will take a couple of weeks or more.




I will not be gathering moss. I haven't read the Witches script in a while and know I'll find some rewrites there. For the illustrations, I always start with electronic thumbnails, way more detailed than I really need, before digging into drawing, inks, and colors. My Patreon backers will follow along through this process with me.

Plus, my elderly parents have been wondering where I've been. I'll brave the driving Michigan snow, strong winds, and intense cold to visit them. They sleep a lot, so I can pull together the thumbnails there. And their town has a nice brewery just like mine, so I can be comfortable.

Am I ready to dig in? You betcha.

If you aren't one of the backers, you can't wait any longer. Go here:
StrangeHorror.com

Thank you so much!

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
StrangeHorror.com


Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Final Three Days, and Horror Download Bonanza


The Horror Download Bonanza Stretch Goal Bonus has been UNLOCKED, nearly 100 pages free to all backers!

It's the FINAL THREE DAYS for YOU to be the first to see the Gods of Aazurn: Witches graphic novel!


Pledge at Kickstarter NOW:
StrangeHorror.com

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
StrangeHorror.com

Thursday, February 7, 2019

Horror, Netflix, and Myrna Loy


Today, in the next to the last webcomic chapter before my break, Alexis snags a book and something ethereal is in the shadows.

I will hiatus after Chapter 7, so I can illustrate the graphic novel for Kickstarter backers. If you want me to finish Gods of Aazurn: Witches for you, join us at the Kickstarter now. It's in its final week.


I have an occasional horror column appearing on Pop Culture Podium. "Strange and Weird Horror Lives on Netflix" was posted not long ago, with my recommendations for weird Netflix flix. You may find a movie here you haven't considered watching.


So many movies from the '30s and '40s are badly written or slow moving, I'm happy to find the brilliant ones. For date night with my wife I've been watching the Thin Man series with William Powell and Myrna Loy.

Mystery, comedy, and truly sophisticated conversation put these flicks on my top shelf. Former detective Nick Charles and his wealthy wife Nora investigate murder cases.

Myrna Loy's character is highly unusual for 1934. Nora Charles is certainly played for laughs but, because she is so highly capable, never laughed at. She and her husband are not detective and sidekick, they are a team.

Thumbs way up on these. The Thin Man, the first in the series, airs Sunday, February 10 on Turner Classic Movies.

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Yes, life is weird, but it's an adventure, and who wants boring? Find your center of peace in the turmoil and don't ever believe the world when it puts others above you. Take care of yourself and those you love.

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
StrangeHorror.com


Tuesday, February 5, 2019

The Essence, The Pulps, and Satan, from Gary



Today, over at the Gods of Aazurn webcomic, the coven begins to study Father Thomas' occult books, with some surprising results.  

 

I will break after Chapter 7, so I can illustrate the graphic novel for Kickstarter backers. It's the final nine days of the Gods of Aazurn: Witches Kickstarter! Join us.


Today's chapter is the essence of Gods of Aazurn horror, Lovecraft's theme of forbidden knowledge, that our wants and needs are not in the least considered by gods or nature.

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Artist Ganzeer makes a solid case: famous pulp stories of the '40s were much more than escapist thrills. Insightful reading here.

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Like many viewers of The Punisher season two, I went to YouTube to find out about the song "You say god, I say Satan." It turns out Marilyn Manson has a fairly new album featuring the song, titled Say10.

The song is an earwig that will follow you around for days, a pleasant little ditty. I was hoping the video could also have been clever.

Turns out Tyler Bates, who pulled together the excellent soundtrack to The Punisher, is composer, engineer, mixer and producer of Marilyn's album and was lead guitar for the band in 2015.

This album doesn't turn me into a Marilyn Manson fan (I'll stick with Alice Cooper, thanks), but I am going to be watching for Tyler Bates soundtracks. The Punisher theme and closing theme are worth a listen or three.

Hear Manson's Say10 here.

Hear Bates' Punisher closing theme here.

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Stress? Letting the world beat you into an early grave doesn't help anyone. Shut the world out a little, Facebook will survive without your input. Read. Don't ever feel guilty taking care of yourself. You are needed! 

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
StrangeHorror.com



Thursday, January 31, 2019

Buried, Steampunk Apocalypse, and Vincent Price

BURIED. We're buried in snow today on the west coast of Michigan, and will most likely be buried-plus tomorrow. Looking out from inside warmth, it's easy to see how close humans are to destruction. Mother nature is a bitch, and all we have are systems for warmth and protection few of us fully understand.

Today, over at the Gods of Aazurn webcomic, Ms. Vedma has a visitor. We now know a reason the Vedma Cult exists.

Read and enjoy, but know the end of this storyline is revealed in the Gods of Aazurn: Witches graphic novel, now up on Kickstarter at StrangeHorror.com. You can show your enthusiasm for the work and the free stuff you get all year from these emails at the Kickstarter.


STEAMPUNK APOCALYPSE. If you've been reading these messages for a while you already know about Kevin LaPorte of Inverse Press. His Clown Town stories appeared way back in Indie Comics Magazine #3.

Kevin and company are in the last days of a Kickstarter, Last Ride for Horsemen: It's the Apocalypse in Steampunk.

"The desolate town of Promise enjoys neither food nor water, precious resources obliterated by the horsemen Famine and Pestilence (in our previous two chapters, BOTH available via this Kickstarter campaign!), both ghosts of dead men wronged by local land baron, Wilbur Fairless. Now comes the horseman War in the guise of another, quite petite, missing acquaintance of the old tycoon. She ignites battle with his current paramour, the sitting Mayor of the place, and all of them – along with gun-for-hire Cager Dobbin – play out their rivalries in ultra-violent fashion while eluding the starving new cannibals of Promise."

You will like this comic. Hell, you will like all three of these comics, all offered in this Kickstarter.


FREE VINCENT PRICE. I'm surprised how many Vincent Price fans don't know that, from 1944 to 1951, he was the voice of Leslie Charteris' character Simon Templar, better known as The Saint.

Velvet-voiced Price was perfect for the character. In an era when radio was filled with hard boiled detectives and police procedurals, The Saint stood out. Self confident, with looks, wealth and wit, Simon Templar was a bit of a dandy, enjoying the finer things in life.

Yes, I enjoy Roger Moore's Saint on television, 1962 to 1969. But I have read many of the pulp stories, which began in 1928, and Vincent Price the actor comes much closer to The Saint character I envisioned in print. 

The radio plays can be listened to or downloaded from the Internet Archive here. Unfortunately, there are misnamed duplicates included. But, hey, it's free.

If you don't know who Vincent Price is, well, I just don't know what to do with you --


Take care, do good things for yourself and others, listen to music, and lift up your head to look around occasionally -- you deserve the big picture.

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
StrangeHorror.com



Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Going to Hell, the GN, and Free Stuff, from Gary



GOING TO HELL. Today, over at the Gods of Aazurn webcomic, Cain has a glimpse of hell in a nightmare. Dream, nightmare, or vision? 

GRAPHIC NOVEL. Backers have been steady at the Gods of Aazurn Kickstarter, and it's revealing to see who of my Fan List readers are interested seeing my career (and this story) advance.

You can go to StrangeHorror.com to back my Gods of Aazurn: Witches graphic novel on Kickstarter.


FREE STUFF. Even though much (most?) of the horror on at TubiTV.com is pretty (very?) bad, there are some gems in their current lineup, especially among their classic horror movies.

Mario Bava's Black Sunday (1960) is wonderfully moody and the only classic Italian horror movie my wife can sit through.

Carnival of Souls (1962) has a low budget B-movie’s "fishbowl" quality I find terrifying. With the gradual isolation of the main character, director Herk Harvey turns the commonplace eerie.

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) is the absolute best silent movie you'll ever watch. The odd sets alone are worth a look, but the plot is also a study in horror storytelling. Trust me on this one.


That's all for now. Take care of yourself and those you love. Make time for the loud and the quiet. Every moment counts.

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
StrangeHorror.com


Thursday, January 24, 2019

Nudes, Plain Speak, and Pain Management, from Gary


I'm just going to flat-out ask. Go to StrangeHorror.com and back my Gods of Aazurn: Witches Kickstarter!

Hey, we're friends, you're interested, I can speak plainly. This 70-plus page GN and three accompanying comics WILL happen. Join us now and join the fun. http://strangehorror.com/

Many thanks to those who were there already! Superbackers are going to receive a little surprise in their mailboxes soon.

The Kickstarter launch Tuesday knocked me out and I slept for 10 hours. Even the excitement of a good, solid launch and reoccuring, repetitive-motion arm pain couldn't keep me from ZZZs.

(Don't worry, stretches help considerably and I've been dealing with this for quite a while. Advice at the risk of sounding like your mother: when at your computer, sit up and don't slouch.)

No entertainment recommendations this time! What, you think I've been watching movies this week?! It's Kickstarter time.

The nudes? Click bait. Sorry --

See you today over at StrangeHorror.com!

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
StrangeHorror.com



Tuesday, January 22, 2019

GHAA! The Witches are HERE, from Gary


The Gods of Aazurn: Witches Kickstarter has now begun at StrangeHorror.com. Discover there how you can comfortably devour this cosmic story.


• It's Gods of Aazurn: Witches, the 70-plus page graphic novel.

• It's Gods of Aazurn Complete, with every publication Gods of Aazurn stories have appeared in so far.

• For reading purists, it's physical, paper books. For overseas readers who would rather not shoulder the burden of postage, it's digital downloads.

• And, according to comments at the webcomic, it's a damn good read.

"Amazing!!!" -- talofa.tyler

See you today over at StrangeHorror.com!

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
http://strangehorror.com/

Monday, January 21, 2019

Witches Times Two Tuesday, and a Preview


I have a lot to do for you tomorrow A.M. -- launching a Kickstarter, beginning twice-a-week posts on Webtoons, changing all my websites around, posting to YouTube and Facebook -- I suppose I should grab a nap. Can't. I'm too excited!


For you, for the first time anywhere, below, is a preview of the beginning of the new Gods of Aazurn: Witches story. I miss Death in a Tuxedo every time I leave him out of a short story prologue, so here he is, introducing the 70-plus page graphic novel.

Shakespeare knew how to chill and audience. Death’s talk here is inspired by the Prologue to Henry VIII, informing the audience “I come no more to make you laugh.” Death is putting you in the mood for Witches! 

Horror, mystery and adventure tomorrow, in both digital and paper books! It's Witches Times Two Tuesday at StrangeHorror.com.

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
http://strangehorror.com/



Friday, January 18, 2019

I Sit on a God's Knee


Writing and illustrating Gods of Aazurn means I'm privileged to get close and personal with the gods themselves. Check out the new art below, drawn from a photograph taken by my wife.


I'm using the piece to let my Webtoons readers know about the Gods of Aazurn Kickstarter beginning Tuesday at StrangeHorror.com.

People say we should never meet our heroes, but, believe me, the King of the Dark Sky (may his tentacles ever spread) was just as darkly duplicitous as we have been lead to believe. Singularly malevolent. He did not disappoint.

Take care of yourself and those you love. Make time for the loud and the quiet. Every moment counts.

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
http://strangehorror.com/


Thursday, January 17, 2019


Here I am, so anxious to dig into Gods of Aazurn: Witches, liking so much how the written chapters sound, so eager to jump into major illustration mode -- and so woefully unprepared to Kickstart Tuesday.


The reading material is there, I just haven't had time to fret over everything like I usually do. This can't be Kickstarter time, I'm too calm.

So, briefly, please mark your calendar for Tuesday, to drop in to StrangeHorror.com and back my Kickstarter.

That's all for now. I should recheck the math on the Kickstarter. The 70-plus page graphic novel, Gods of Aazurn: Witches, hits Kickstarter January 22 at StrangeHorror.com.

Find some peace this weekend and make time to read, you know you want to. Don't let winter force you out of the woods. This snow thing is no match for heavily insulated outerwear, wool socks, and quality long underwear.

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty
http://strangehorror.com/

Monday, January 14, 2019

The Witches are Coming



I'm warning you now, a week from tomorrow, on Tuesday, January 22, the witches are coming. Be prepared!


- Be sure your survival bag is stocked with bandages, weapons, food tins and cheap lighters. Don't forget the ammo.

- Dig out your silver stash. The invaders won't care about your denomination of worthless money, but silver is universally prized.

- Rope. Lots and lots of rope. Particularly useful if you lose all hope and want to tie a noose.


Gods of Aazurn: Witches (part one only), hits Webtoons TWICE A WEEK starting January 22.

Gods of Aazurn: Witches (the entire 70-plus page graphic novel), hits Kickstarter January 22 at StrangeHorror.com.

You've been warned!

In glorious service to our Aazurn overlords,
Gary Scott Beatty