One thing that always embarrasses me, is finding a mistake in a book or comic I have published. Worse: someone else finding it, and being honest enough to let me know (which is nice, in a way). Despite four attempts at proofreading John Dixon's Air Hawk (Issue Four), I failed to see that the middle two strips on page 5 were repeated from earlier in the comic. Here, below for the record, are the right strips that should have been printed. As the book has already been printed (and, alas! I have not found the time to place it on the Comicoz Store page yet), I am going to have to let everyone who gets a copy know about the error. Embarrassing!

Better news: The proof copies of Iron Outlaw arrived in the mail yesterday afternoon. Here's a picture of me looking chuffed and holding up one of the three copies. There are a few things that we have to correct, but I'm allowing fellow editor Philip Bentley and designer Ryan McDonald-Smith an opportunity to look at their proof copies first to see if they have further suggestions. There is just over a week to go before the Kickstarter campaign comes to a close. (Click here to check it out ... and pledge if you have not done so already!) I'm also planning on showing the proof copy off publicly for the first time this Sunday at the Brisbane Comic Market, being held at 480 Annerley Road, Annerley from 10 am (to 1 pm).

Sad news: Caricaturist, Cartoonist, and a kind friend I have known since 1983, Ken Dove, suddenly passed away last week. I had planned on speaking at his Memorial Service (held yesterday in Caloundra), but I have been struck down for almost a week with the dreaded 'Man Flu (Queensland variant)' after a recent period of house-cat sitting in Nambour. Ken was the caricaturist of the late John Ryan (on the inside back flap of Panel by Panel). He and I also I worked on a ten-page comic book story back in the day. (A comic planned to be called "The Australian Comics Group #2" [sic] but never - yet? - published.) See below for the first of ten pages we completed. And, to the right, one of the last photographs of Ken, taken with me in his unit less than a month before he passed away. (Photo taken by his wife Barbara Dove.)

Good news: Some publishing news in the wings as I type this. Ryan and I will soon be working on The Collected Cloak once we put Iron Outlaw to bed. And Dillon Naylor and Jeremy Macpherson are working behind the scenes with a new book (Pop Culture and 2 Minute Noodles) that will be soon be published by Comicoz. And there are other projects in the works that I can't talk of just yet, that are just as exciting! In the meantime, what of Air Hawk?

Scoop news: Okay, here's the drum! You read it here first! The next issue of Air Hawk will be a hard-cover book, featuring five complete adventures and limited to only 300 copies. The book is planned to be the first in a total series of sixteen volumes, covering the complete Air Hawk dailies. This is the biggest and most ambitious publishing project I have ever decided to undertake, and most likely to be my final publishing swan-song. The idea will be to publish at least one volume every six months for the next eight years, with the result that the complete dailies of this famous Australian comic strip will have been reprinted in full....and, for the main, reprinted - like the current comic series - from the original artwork. Already, some steps have been undertaken: an Introduction has been written by a well-know Australian writer, the cover has been drawn, the adventures selected. The format will be with much larger strip size, and the volumes very much like the landscape format of the "Library of American Comics" books (Terry and the Pirates, Pogo, Little Orphan Annie, etc). Three strips to a page, one weeks' worth over two open pages of the book; with the only difference being that the original art -- with all the mistakes and white outs, and the like -- being visible for the dedicated comic connoisseur. And, yes, available to the overseas fans too! 

Because you have been patient, here's the proposed logo, just for you, dear reader. What??! You want to see the cover??! Who's drawing it??! Why Volume Six??! Ahh! I want to keep some things a little secret for a while yet! Just to be frank, the remaining framework for the series is presently being carefully planned and will be announced more publicly later in 2025.

In the meantime, Ken Dove has been on my mind for most of the week. I thought I would end up this post sharing (once again, for some people) his caricature he did of me, way back in 1993. It is, without doubt, my favourite caricature (with no offence intended to others I know who work in the field). Sure, I look a little different these day, but I felt he captured the essence of me on the day. He's going to be missed by many people, not least of whom will be his wife, Barbara, and his extended family, and friends, to whom I send my most heart-felt condolences, thoughts and prayers...    ​

Here's the new video sprouting the Iron Outlaw campaign now on Kickstarter. Want to own your own copy? Not yet available on the Comicoz Store, you'll have to head over to Kickstarter by clicking here. At the present time, we are awaiting proof copies to arrive. When they do, you'll find out here first!