Crowdfunding Roundup - October 2024

Or, Where the Hell Have You Been, Charlie...??

Charlie 查理 McElvy

Oct 15, 2024

🚨🔥 CAMPAIGNS ENDING SOON!!!! 🔥🚨

Check these ones out FIRST, before they’re GONE!!

The Knight: A "Batman meets The Wire" Crime-Thriller - ends 10/16!!
Kaiju Blues Issues #1 and #2 - ends 10/17!!
PRIVATE DANCE #1-4: spicy comic where fantasy & reality meet - ends 10/18!!

Before I Get Into the Actual Post…

…I gotta explain why I’ve been so quiet of late. To whit, I’ve been traveling all over!!

The longer version is over in another post.

I’m Back, and So Is My Crowdfunding Corner!

For those who haven’t read one of these before, I give you my current list of curated campaigns that I’m either backing or following. The list above the graphic is a set of campaigns I’m backing or following that end in 14 days or less from the day I write these.

These aren’t all of the campaigns I’m supporting in one fashion or another, but those that I selected based on what I think you’d be most interested in, but mostly because I get to write what I want. LOL

Without further ado…

Pots & Panels: A Comic Book Anthology and Cookbook

A 440 Page food-themed graphic novel anthology featuring stories and recipes from over 80 of your favorite comic creators!

I am SO excited about this one!! It’s HUUUUUUUGE and it’s loaded with a roster of talent that just blows my mind. Here’s a short list of a few of those creators:

Tim Seeley (Local Man, Hack/Slash, Nightwing)
Steven Grant (Punisher, Batman, Daredevil)
Phil Hester (Green Arrow, Gotham: Year One, Firebreather)
Andy Kuhn (Firebreather, Secret Avengers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)
Steve Niles (Thirty Days Of Night, Batman) Ron Marz (Green Lantern, Silver Surfer),
Hilary Barta (Uncanny X-Men, Plastic Man),
Ellie Egleton (Lower Your Sights),
Jason Michalski (Northern Blood, Skullmasher),
Chuck Satterlee (Of Bitter Souls, King Kong),
Nicole D'Andria (Road Trip to Hell),
Travis Gibb (Granite State Punk, Cthulhu Invades),
Trey Baldwin (Upperdeck, Monsterwax),
Neil Kleid (Brownsville, Savor),
Luis Morocho (Marvel Voices),
Richard Fairgray (Four-Color Heroes, Octopus),
Daimon Hampton (DC Comics Milestone Initiative),
Brendan Deneen (Guardians of the Galaxy, Aliens),
Austin Janowsky (Iron Man, Stanley The Snowman),
Antonio Rojo (Northern Blood, Serpent Wars),
Eric Palicki (Black's Myth, Atlantis Wasn't Built for Tourists),
Mario Candelaria (Killchella),
Austin Allen Hamblin (Big Guns Stupid Rednecks, Holiday Spirits 3),
Markisan Naso (By The Horns)
Carmelo Chimera (Magnificent, Cellar Door) and many more!

Oh, and well, there’s also little ole me. 😎

That’s right! I wrote a 4-page short featuring Spider-Squirrel & Trash Panda!! So, for those of you who’ve been itching for a new SS & TP adventure, look no further than this campaign!

BACK IT HERE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/monstersandmidways/pots-and-panels

Thanks for reading Reaching The Peak! This post is public so feel free to share it.

Frankenstein the Unconquered #1-5 - Series Finale

The 40 Page conclusion of the Action/Horror Epic. A brutal tale of monsters and revenge all leads up to this!

Wells and I met at Baltimore Comic-con and he’s such a great dude for real. We’ve interacted on social media aplenty, and we’ve backed each other’s works for years, so it was nice to get to chat with him f2f.

Frankenstein the Unconquered is a really fun series. It’s a classic horror monster revenge romp that puts Frank(enstein) in a sort of Conan the Barbarian role.

It’s. A. Blast.

This is the series finale, but like all good crowdfunders Wells makes all of the previous issues available in case this is your first time checking it out. So, go do so!

BACK IT HERE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wellsthompson/frankenstein-the-unconquered-1-5-series-finale

Mary Shelley's School for Monsters Horror Graphic Novel 1-2

Begin or continue your fantasy adventure with Shel's monster-rescuing crew plus new Japanese yōkai in these gorgeous hardcover books.

Jessica Maison Judd is one of those creators you should be watching. They put out some of the best, most enjoyable books, and always with incredible quality - rivaling the biggest publishers out there in many ways!

My teen daughters love the Mary Shelley’s School for Monsters series, and frankly so do I.

What’s really cool is Jessica gives us a chance to preview the book right here! Read Preview of The Killing Stone.

Looking forward to this one as it features Japanese yōkai (妖怪)! Those of you who know me know my love for manga, anime, and all things Japanese (if you follow me on IG or FB you can see my latest tattoo). Plus, It’s JMM’s MSSfM series! 🙃

BACK IT HERE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wickedtreepress/mary-shelleys-school-for-monsters-the-killing-stone

ATOMIC ROBO AND THE AGENTS OF C.H.A.N.G.E.

Atomic Robo's worst villains strike while he's out of town on another mission, so it's up to Dr. Dinosaur to save the day (big mistake)

I don’t even know what to say that I haven’t already said — this post seems to be a post about a series of series that I’ve backed over and over again.

There is not one, single Atomic Robo campaign I haven’t backed. Period.

True story: I was flipping through a Previews catalog one day, many years ago (2007) and I stumbled into the Red5 Comics section. I saw this:

Albeit, the pic was much smaller but the whole thing just captured me — the composition of the cover, the title, the logo, the concept that Nikola Tesla created this atomic-powered, sentient robotic hero and there’s a whole team of adventure scientists supporting his escapades across the world, time, and dimensions.

It’s some of the BEST comics out there. I absolutely love it. This latest hardcover will be consumed and added to my Atomic Robo library immediately.

Oh, and I still own that first issue. ⚛️🤖🩵

BACK IT HERE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tesladyne/atomic-robo-and-the-agents-of-change

Demon City vol 1: Hell on Earth

Death has been murdered. Now no one can die! A horror / crime story for mature readers who like Hellboy, Lethal Weapon, & Lovecraft!

When I saw Trevor post this on Twitter, I had to check it out.

Yeah, I read the premise and details and was hooked. I’m in. BACKED!

From the campaign:

The apocalypse has happened. For thirty minutes, demons spewed forth from the ground and it seemed like the world was coming to an end. And then suddenly, without warning...it just stopped.

It's a premature apocalypse, I'm told it happens to everybody.

Three years later: Sheila Garcia is a Chicago detective who has a streak of being reckless. Like she has some kind of death wish. No one wants to partner with her. So she's assigned Horace Nightengale as her new partner - the first demon detective.

Just as they're starting to get along, they catch their first case. Which is the last homicide that will ever happen.

Why would someone kill Death? And what kind of hell breaks loose now that he's dead?

Nuff Said, right?? Sounds like a shitload of fun. Can’t wait.

PS — Trevor is also a dope dude.

BACK IT HERE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/trevoramueller/demon-city-vol-1-hell-on-earth

White Ash 1-8

The long running hit fantasy series about Elves and Dwarves in Pennsylvania returns with an ALL-NEW 44 page issue.

OMG a NEW White Ash!!! I think this is the first brand-new issue in almost two years — YES!!!

Of course I’m excited. You should be, too. Just go check out the campaign. Charlie (not me, the OG Charlie) and Conor have one of the best comics series running. One part fantasy, one part adventure, one part love story, all parts fantastic. The writing is exceptional, with strong characterization, an inventive backstory and history, and compelling plot movement. The art is baller. Fucking BALLER. I really need to get on Conor’s schedule and work with him one day…

Anyway, go check it out and give it a back.

BACK IT HERE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thegamecomic/white-ash-1-8

Highlighted Pre-Launch Campaign!

Ray is BACK, baby!!! I just happened to read his Midnight Tiger hardcover over the weekend when I saw this prelaunch campaign pop up in my face! WOOO!!!!

Follow it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/studioskyetiger/midnight-tiger-evo-1

There’s Just One More Thing…

I can’t leave a crowdfunding post without mentioning one of my own campaigns! Please consider following my latest:

American Yakuza - NSFW Murder Mystery in Japan (Acts 1-3)

Join us on a violent, sexy trip to Japan to solve a murder. It's Succession meets John Wick, Tokyo Vice, and MAX's Warrior!

This mature audiences series has been well-received so far, and we’re in the middle of delivering on the second issue’s campaign now! This third issue picks up the heat even more, and we get more information on the murder that led Xavier to Japan in the first place.

American Yakuza will span five issues, plus we’re working on a prequel manga (to be released digitally on Webtoon, Tapas, and GlobalComix) as well as a prequel light novel (~30-40k words). We have also produced a three track EP from the creative minds of Omega Sparx, Swats, and Mikey (AEW) Rukus!

BACK IT HERE: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/xionstudios/american-yakuza-nsfw-murder-mystery-in-japan-acts-1-3