Special Preview: THE RAPTOR: FPS

Here it is, the debut of my creator-owned comic book, THE RAPTOR: FPS.

Unfortunately, due to a bunch of mishaps, I can't intro this the way I wanted - on Kickstarter, where I hope to raise the funds.

So what I'm doing here is to give you a sneak peek at the book before the project goes up on Kickstarter. That way, y'all can get a jump on telling your friends. ;)

So here we go. Click on the video below for a rundown of the project (this video will eventually be on the Kickstarter page);


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THE RAPTOR: FPS is a 49-page, full-color, one-shot comic, written, drawn, colored, and lettered by comic book artist Blair D. Shedd.

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A missing video camera, the Russian Mob, and the masked vigilante known as The Raptor come into play in THE RAPTOR: FPS.

Journalism student Kathy Walsh and her boyfriend Paul Clemens have been found dead, their video camera missing.  Finding they have a personal connection to the victims, detectives Jason Hawking and Willow Barnes of the NYPD Special Crimes Squad take the case.

As the detectives scramble to solve the murder, they discover that not only might their suspects be part of the Russian Mob, but that The Raptor may have a private stake in the case as well.

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What is Kickstarter?

Kickstarter (to borrow from Wikipedia);

"...is an online threshold pledge system for funding creative projects… [they have] funded a diverse array of endeavors ranging from indie film and music, to journalism, solar energy technology, and food-related projects."

And, in my case, comics books.

(I'll let you hit their website --> [CLICKY] <-- for the specifics.)

Let me break it down on a personal level, as it relates to my project.

I'm going to launch a Kickstarter campaign to fund the production of my comic, THE RAPTOR:FPS;

"Some of the funds raised will pay [me] a small page rate as artist, in order to keep [my] family in mac and cheese during the [completion] of the book. [I'm] taking no page rate as writer, colorist, or letterer.  The rest of the funds will be used to pay the fees related to the Kickstarter campaign, print the first limited-run of copies [of the comic], go towards promotion of the comic (flyers, prints, cards, trade show banners, possible travel expenses to conventions, etc), and produce and ship incentives to the backers.

When complete, the comic will be shopped around to various publishers, in hopes of further adventures told to an even wider audience."

Get that part? That's what I need the money for.

But this isn't just me with a hat out - no, backers get something for their money.

Based on how much you donate, you can get one of a bunch of different incentives/rewards. While I'll wait until launch to reveal all the specifics, minimum pledge is $1, and for that you get access to "Backers Only" updates (which could be anything from work in progress, to a finished page to peek at), but it gets good starting at a $5 pledge (you'll get a thank you and mention on The Raptor website when it launches).

Between there and the top pledge are digital versions of the comic, signed print comics, prints, sketch cover editions, special commissions, possible cameo appearances in the comic itself (that's right: YOU CAN BE IN THE COMIC), on up to the big pledge, $3000, which gets you everything, and your name on the credits page as PUBLISHER.

Starting to dig now?

Kickstarter is a really amazing platform and idea, and while I've had problems getting set up, that's mostly because of things that Kickstarter doesn't have control over.

But I digress.

Above is the basics you need to know - the specifics will happen when I officially launch (which, I will of course mention here).

I hope you can help spread the word when it's time (you don't have to spread the word about this blog entry - I can't accept pledges until the Kickstarter is live), but I really hope you'll consider pledging.

There's some great stuff to get your hands on, many things I'll offer no where else,

And you seriously, honestly, will be helping me make one of my dreams come true. The Raptor has been with me for a while, and this is a story I've really longed to tell properly.

With your support, I'll be able to do it.

I hope you enjoy the previews.

Thank you.