Hey! I know it’s been awhile since I posted about CryptoZooey, but it’s been a busy few months. I’m back at work on Issue #2 and hope to have it available online really soon. I want it to be the best it can be, and as a result, I get sidetracked quite easily by tiny details when I should just trudge on. My New Year’s reslution should’ve been more deadline-oriented, I suppose!

In the interim, though, we have had several great reviews I’d like to share — including the news that our first issue won Cryptozoological Book of the Year 2008! We also reveived glowing reviews at Comics Worth Reading and recorded a podcast with Parahub Radio!

Just as a reminder in the meantime, there are still plenty of CryptoZooey items available in our store. Enjoy!

It’s been a long time coming, but The Ultimate Melonpool (TUM 1), Melonpool II: The Voyage Home (TUM II), and Melonpool III: A New Hope (TUM III) are available for sale again! This is good news to people that are trying to complete their collections (some of them have been out of print since 2004 or so). Also, the first editions had some problems with the binding coming undone after a decade or so, and Comixpress seems to have a better handle on that.

I’ve reduced the costs of all three books from $19.95 apiece to $14.95 as well. Think of it as my own private stimulus package. There will be at least three more books coming out in early December through Comixpress and possibly even a fourth — we’ll see how fast I can get TUM VI done.

Enjoy them! You can buy all three books here!

For those of you new to CryptoZooey, this blog post may seem like it’s coming out of nowhere — but bear with me. In addition to being a cartoonist, I’m also a puppeteer and puppet builder on the side. Puppetry has been a staple of my cartooning and convention experiences ever since I started drawing professionally in the early ’90s. 

Probably my biggest influence puppetry-wise has been Jim Henson’s Muppets. One of the things that has plagued the Muppet line over the years is that none of their puppets actually look like the characters — this is especially the case with Kermit the Frog. Other than being green, none of them have more than a passing resemblance to Kermit the Frog.

I’ve had several of these puppets over the years — the Fisher Price one from 1978 was probably the best — but it’s made for small children and becomes unusable once your hand grows too big to fit inside his head. The next best — though far from perfect — was the Eden Toys Kermit produced in 1993. There also was one made in 1994 or 95 by Applause which is similar in design.

My goal was to fix my Eden Toys Kermit puppet to more closely resemble the real Kermit puppet — in about four hours of work and using no more that $20 in materials.

Read the rest of this entry »

Cryptozooey was reviewed on the Comics Playground Podcast

The podcast focuses on all ages and kid friendly comics and is hosted by Lion King and Bad Horse, The Thoroughbred of…wait, that’s not right. Hosted by Ryan King and Eric Martin who run the Comics Playground site which is part of the Comic Book Noise  family of podcasts.  You can find the review in Episode 16 - Big, Red & Cheesy.

Keep checking back  for upcoming interviews with Steve on The Gigcast and Parahub Radio. More interviews will be announced once the dates have been locked in. 

More appearances, both at comic-cons and at paranormal related cons and festivals are being considered. We’ll let you know where and when you can find Cryptozooey and Steve. In the meantime, Cryptozooey #2 is well underway!

As well as meeting so many new people at San Diego Comic-Con last month for Cryptozooey’s debut we’ve been hearing from even more since returning home.

We were already excited about sharing Cryptozooey, but have become elated at the overall reaction and reception the book is getting from such a variety of people. Comics people we expected — but the response and interest from the paranormal communities has been of special interest, especially since I have been working the past few years as a physics specialist in the paranormal investigation field. 

Thank you to everyone who has been talking about the book, posting about it on your blogs, the critics who have taken the time to review Cryptozooey and those of you who have been so supportive.

Later this week, a post will be dedicated to the creation of the jackalope puppet. See you then!

– Sarah

So, now that the dust has settled after San Diego Comic-Con, Sarah and I finally had a chance to sift through the pictures. This might be as close to a con report as I’m going to do — enjoy!

[Show as slideshow]

Zooey? Supergirl? A little of both?

The Paparazzi decend on my booth at Comic-Con.

The Monarch and Triana from Adult Swim's "The Venture Bros." stopped by to do a little menacing.

Two of The Monarch's henchmen tried to recruit the Jackalope with little success.

Batgirl and the Jackalope.

The Joker may have met his match.

Felicia Day ("Buffy: The Vampire Slayer" and "Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog") couldn't resist the Jackalope.

Dino Andrade (Skull in "PVP: The Seris" and founder of soulgeek.com) stopped by our booth. Apparently, it was the place to be seen at San Diego Comic-Con this year.

David Willis ("Shortpacked!") signs the back of "Gozer the

Everybody wanted to hang out with the Jackalope.

We’ve just finished a couple of great days at the San Diego Comic-Con, seeing old friends and meeting so many new ones! Although we’ve seen CryptoZooey in the news a lot since its debut, we think this may be the first review of the new book and couldn’t wait to share!

There are a lot of moments that we’d like to highlight from our first two days (and we will do a more in-depth report after the Con is over), but there was one person who visited us to look at the new book who we’re fans of. Check out Felicia Day and the Jackalope!

The wait is over! The new series by Steve Troop is available NOW! Check out the adventures of a little girl who searched for her missing monster hunter parents — with a little help from real monsters! If you’re still on the fence, feel free to read the new character bios as well ast the first five pages of issue one!

And if you like what you see, we have shirts and books available in the store! See you at Comic-Con (booth #1330)!

For the FIRST TIME EVER, Melonpool originals are up for sale!!!

Just think of what you could have for your very own!

Comic Parodies
Processed Cheese Slices
Zinosoft Saga
No-Da
The GRAISE Saga
Quantum Leap
The Cat
The Melonpool half of the Melonpool/It’s Walky Crossover
And more!

Prior to this, the last time I sold original art was two years ago, to help out a fellow cartoonist. The piece went for well over $400! (Thanks!)

All original art will be available for perusal and purchase at Comic Con, (Booth #1330). If you cannot make it to the Con and know what you want, simply email me ASAP, referencing the date code of the strip, and I will put it aside for you. The very last day I can do this will be Monday, July 21st.

If you need it, deposit options are available. Balances must be paid in full, 30 days from the day of the HOLD deposit. Artwork will not be shipped until after the balance due is paid.

We’re working on a FIRST COME FIRST SERVED basis. If multiple individuals are coveting the same strip, the first email sent asking for it and paying a deposit will take it out of the pool for Comic-Con. If the request falls through, the next person gets their chance and so on.

FAQ:

*What IS available?
Every daily strip and Sunday that was on the web. Also, some great miscellaneous pieces found only in The Ultimate Melonpool I-V.

*What Is NOT?
Some Sundays from Book III will not be at Comic-Con due to the fact that they have not been rescanned. They are still available through the site, though (I’ll just rescan them before shipping them out). No comic book or graphic novel pages are available at this time. No guest strips are available.

*How much?! How much?!
DAILIES: $30 - $100 (price based upon the complexity of the art)
SUNDAYS - $150
COMPLETE WEEK (this consists of six dailies and one Sunday) - $600 (You may pick and chose strips to make up your “week.”)

*Interested in obtaining a favorite storyline?
Let me know your interest and we’ll get down and dirty like a Christie’s Auction. Or like a swap meet anyway…

*SHIPPING:
TBD depending upon your order. All shipments will be insured. As we are busy getting ready for Comic Con next week, no orders will be shipped out prior to July 31st. FYI: Multiple orders will save significantly on your cost of shipping.

*PAYMENT:
Paypal to mayberry@melonpool.com. Do not send money until we make sure the original is till available! If needs be we can also accept payments via Money Orders or personal checks (but we will wait until the check clears before sending out the art). You will be sent an address upon request.

COMIC-CON EXCLUSIVES!!!!!

*All Miscellaneous artwork will be available here - “Topless” Jalea, Old Ralphie’s Time Travel For Dummies and more.

*There are a few copies left for sale of TUM III, TUM IV and the 2006 Edition of the 24-hour Comic book collection featuring Melonpool.

*Anyone purchasing originals will get a present! Your choice of ONE of the following:
*a Melonpool Tee Shirt
* Melonpool Chronicles #1
*”Wrath of the Con” book
*Surprises! Shhh…don’t tell. ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

CONTESTS AND SPECIAL OFFERS!

In addition to offering the freebies as a gesture of heartfelt thanks to everyone for their support of Melonpool, I wanted to offer something in the spirit of Steve. If you know him at all, you’ll know Steve is possibly the most kind, generous and thoughtful person that ever there was (guaranteed!). He has always advocated the practice of “Paying It Forward.” In result, I’m starting up the Melonpool Pay It Forward Program.

For every twenty people who purchase a Troop original, those purchasers will be placed into a random drawing. When number twenty comes along we’ll pull a name and some oh so lucky person will WIN A DAILY STRIP of our choice! (winner pays shipping).

ALL INQUIRIES, ORDERS, HOLDS, PAYMENTS ETC are to be sent to me, Sarah Troop at cryptozooey@gmail.com.

Thanks for stopping by! Whether you’re an old hat to cryptozoology (the study of unknown animals) or have found us because of CryptoZooey (the new comic by Steve Troop), we welcome you!

As you can see, we have not one — but two — books available at San Diego Comic-Con (July 23-27)! First, there’s CryptoZooey #1, a 24-page, full-color adventure only available in print (though the first five pages can be found here). The second book, Finding CryptoZooey, is the “story behind the story” about the creation of the new comic series, including conceptual sketches, thumbnail sketches and more! Both books — as well as a few surprises — will be available there at the Blank Label Comics booth (number 1330) along with a few convention-only items! Don’t miss out!

CryptoZooey is the story of a little girl who finds out that her missing parents are actually the world’s most celebrated monster hunters … and that monsters are real! As an added bonus, each issue will feature the real legends and actual science behind cryptozoology.

Check this site often! Although the next issue of the comic book is a couple months away, there will be plenty of new content here. To make sure you don’t miss an update, be sure to click the Subscribe button in the menu bar.

I hope you enjoy CryptoZooey. If things had gone a little differently, you might be reading a comic called Zero Worship right now. Look for another update on that strip on April 1, 2009. Mark your calendars!