I'VE BEEN SOLICITED!

The Marvel Solicitations for March '11 ore out so i can finally harp on about what i'm doing next.

First, as i've already mentioned is...

CAPTAIN AMERICA AND CROSSBONES #1

Written by WILLIAM HARMS

Penciled by DECLAN SHALVEY

Cover by GREG TOCCHINI

Cap's assassin stars in his own horrific comic! When a monstrous virus overtakes an isolated island, the skull-faced psychopath is unleashed to rescue the one person who may deliver resistance to the terrifying outbreak. But can the man who shot Captain America be trusted to do the right thing? Writer William Harms (Impaler) and artist Declan Shalvey (Thunderbolts) deliver the twisted answer in this extra-sized shocker!

40 PGS./One-Shot/Rated T+ ...$3.99

You can read about the other one shots, featuring work by Ramon Perez, Rob Williams, Kieron Gillen and more on the Marvel website here.

I'm very happy to report there's more Thunderbolts in the pipeline, starting with #154...

THUNDERBOLTS #154

Written by JEFF PARKER

Penciled by DECLAN SHALVEY

Cover by ARTHUR ADAMS

Before he was pressed into service for the Thunderbolts, the mysterious swamp monster of the team knew another life: as guardian for a force of nature called The Nexus of Realities. An old friend of the creature does remember this–and breaks the silent one out of The Raft to return to duty at the borders of our world. What danger awaits the Man-Thing–and what will The Thunderbolts say to losing their favorite plant?

32 PGS. Rated T+ …$2.99 (each)

VOTE FOR A T-BOLT











From the Marvel website....

Ever wanted to play the role of Luke Cage and pick which super villain has what it takes to earn a spot on the Thunderbolts? Here’s your chance!

THUNDERBOLTS writer Jeff Parker has begun preliminary evaluations on who should join the T-Bolts and he wants your help.

"Somehow we've gotten the idea that you readers have opinions on who would make a good Thunderbolt,” he says. “Remember a villain you want back in the spotlight? Then hit me! We're planning out next year and 2011 could have a lot more of your favorite heavy in it."

So i urge you all to cast a vote as it *may* affect me. Lets just say if you want to see me draw a certain Marvel villain, then here's your chance to suggest him.

Personally; I'm voting for Black Tom Cassidy. Yes; cuz he's Irish.

Vote here!

Dec.

CAPTAIN AMERICA and CROSSBONES

Well, cat's outta the bag. Yesterday on CBR's T&A column, uber-editor Tom Brevoort announced a series of Captain America related one-shots. One of which is CROSSBONES, written by William Harms and drawn by myself (See here for more on the other one shots).

Added bonus to the project was getting to work with colourist Matt Wilson. I've known Matt a while and have been dying to work with him. Check his blog to see the GREAT work he's done on this book, taking my halftone, colourizing it, and adding some of his own. Feels like i'm actually collaborating with a colourist for once.

This book won't be out until March, so that's the only news i'll have for a while. My next Marvel book is supposed to be out in March too, so that might be announced soon, we'll see.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!


























As per the tradition, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Of course, I also wish a Good Merlinpeen to all my fellow Verdukians. Thanks to all who have been following my exploits this year.

And what a year it has been for the auld Decster. See yeh in the next one folks.

Dec.

(PS; thanks to Stephen Mooney for the Man-Tree-Thing idea)

ECLECTIC MICKS SKETCHBOOK (Vol.2) IRISH LAUNCH


























Though we already launched Vol.2 at this year's New York Comic Con, this coming Friday sees the Irish launch of Vol.2 of the Eclectic Micks sketchbook in Forbidden Planet; Dublin. It's a great collection; I suggest you stop by and pick up a copy if you're in the Dublin area. You'll get a free sketch by either myself, Will Sliney or Stephen Mooney, who will be at hand on the day. If ye have any copies of Thunderbolts or the new 28 Days Later trade, i'll sign the crap outta 'em.

In other news, I've just finished my next project; a one-shot for Marvel. I believe the details will be announced in the next week or so. Next up; I'm FINALLY going to finish my long-delayed Sweeney Todd graphic novel for Classical Comics, and then back to Marvel for some really cool stuff that's in the works.

As a great man once said; "Moon ...Pie...? What a time to be alive..."

Dec.

ELEKTRA


























Here's another sketch I did at the Albany Comic Con a month back.

Dec.

'GOAT-MAN' INKS

























Every now and then I like to ink someone else's work; it stops me from getting too complacent when inking myself. Frequent readers of this blog may know that I predominantly ink with a Pental brush-pen, along with other tools of course. But still, I use the brush-pen a LOT. Recently Jordie Bellaire challenged me to ink with a proper old-school brush. I light-boxed one of her pencil drawings to try it out.

Her brushes were pretty small and rough, which resulted in an interesting line, but some awkward drawing. I lost all the precise lines i get with a brush-pen, but I got some unexpected, rough lines because of it. She also had a rough, busted-up pen, so I was able to get some nice, gritty lines with that. Afterwards, I thought I should bump it up with some greywash, but in retospect i think I should have just left it alone; it worked better without it. See below for Jordie's pencil drawing, and more of her work here.






























I'd like to have another try at the drawing with the tools i'm more comfortable with, but the experiment was worth it to open me up more to using a proper brush more.

Dec.

28 DAYS LATER Vol. 2 OUT TODAY...
READ 28 DAYS LATER #1 FOR FREE ONLINE



























Volume 2 of 28 Days Later hits shelves today, and to whet your appetite, Newsarama have the full first issue of the series online for you all to check out. So check it out here, and if you like it, check out both collections!

Dec.

LADY BULLSEYE


























I was at the Albany con a couple of weeks ago. Did a few comissions, including the above Lady Bullseye. Thanks a million to Andrew Hanna for sending me a scan of the sketch!

Dec.

THUNDERBOLTS #149 OUT NOW


























Yep, my second issue of Thunderbolts is out now in the UK and Ireland. Came out yesterday in the States. I still haven't seen a copy; haven't had time to get to a comic shop, so do let me know what ye thought. The action reeeaaaalllly ramps up in this issue; it was a hell of a lot of work (i DARE you to count all the ninja!) but was worth it in the end.

With this being the last part of my Shadowland story for T-Bolts, that means this is also the last of my published work for a while. I can't say what i'm doing next for Marvel, but it looks like i'll have a lot of stuff out in March of next year if all goes according to plan.

Dec.

THUNDERBOLTS #149 PREVIEW


















































A lettered preview of my second Thunderbolts issue is now online at Newarama. See it here.

Dec.

PUNISHER vs DAREDEVIL

























Over on Comic Twart this week, we're doing a 'What If Marvel' theme week, where we do mock illustrations of dream projects we would do at Marvel, given the chance. It's no secret I'd love to do Punisher or Daredevil, so I thought a Punisher vs Daredevil Mini would be a cool project. Fellow Twart Nathan Fairbain offered to colour it, so I thought I'd post the black-and-white version here. See the coloured version here.

Dec.

NYCC SKETCHES

Here's all the remaining sketches I managed to finish before New York Comic Con, starting tomorrow! I've 2 more on my list to be inked at the show, so have time to do more sketches over the weekend; just inquire at the ECLECTIC MICKS table (R-12). Hope to see ye there.

NYCC THIS WEEKEND!












This Friday-Sunday is New York Comic Con and I can't wait.

If you're going, at booth R-12 you will see the ECLECTIC MICKS banner; the place to find (at different times) Len O'Grady, Will Sliney, Stephen Mooney and myself signing and sketching copies of Eclectic Micks Vol. 2, the new edition of sketches from out group blog. It looks great. Kudos to Will for putting the whole thing together.

As for me specifically, I'll be at the following tables at the following times...

Friday:
Boom Studios booth 1-2pm
Eclectic Micks table 2 -5pm

Saturday:
Eclectic Micks table 10am - 1pm
Boom Studios booth 1-2pm
Eclectic Micks table 3-4pm

Sunday:
Eclectic Micks table 10 -12am
Marvel booth from 12.30 to 1.30 pm
Eclectic Micks table 3 -5pm

I'll have my pre-order sketches for those who ordered them, and will take a list for sketches ($50) on Friday and see how it goes after that.

Also; sketches from the Micks and Comic Twart blogs along with original artwork from 28 DAYS LATER and my first issue of THUNDERBOLTS will be on sale at the Cadence Comic Art table, Small Press booth #253

Hope to see yeh there!

Dec.

28 DAYS LATER #15 COVER
























My final cover for 28 Days Later went online today. Was happy with how minimal i was able to make it. See the version-with-logo along with a preview of the issue here. I didn't intend on the logo being so big, but i still think it works; very bold and striking. Hope it stands out on the shelves.

Dec.

ULTRA-BOY

























Here's one of the first pre-order sketches i've done for NYCC; ULTRA-BOY from The Legion Of Superheroes. Can honestly say i've never drawn him before. Quite interestingly, most of the pre-orders are characters i've never drawn before.

Dec.

NYCC Pre-order Sketches.

Okay; i'm gonna try this out.

Never one to be original, i'm gonna copy Tom Folwer, and take a list of NYCC pre-order sketches.

I'lll definitely take 5, *maybe* more, we'll see. Not sure how much i'll be sketching at NYCC, so this is one way you can definitely get a decent piece from me. 11 x8" black and white with greywash for $50.

Just gimme an e-mail (address in sidebar) and i'll add you to the list.

Dec.

REVIEWS!













Thunderbolts #148 seems to have gone down well. There's one on IGN, CBR and Newsarama, if you wanna check them out.

Dec.

NEWSARAMA 'ARTIST ALLEY' INTERVIEW



















I recently did an interview with David Pepose at Newsarama for his 'Artist Alley' series. It just went up on Newsarama to coincide with my first T-Bolts issue. He asked some pretty interesting and challenging questions. I hope my answers were half as good as the questions. You can read it here.

Dec.

THUNDERBOLTS #148 OUT TODAY!

























Yep, Thunderbolts #148, my Marvel Comics debut (it is so weird to actually say that) is out today in Ireland and the UK. I'll be signing copies at Forbidden Planet, Dublin from 12-2pm. Do come along.

Dec.

NEW THUNDERBOLTS PREVIEW


















































A lettered preview of THUNDERBOLTS #148 went online yesterday with some previously unseen pages.

Plus; my name is on it. On a Marvel comic. Who'd have thunk it?

Dec.

CROSSBONES

























Another Crossbones sketch that is being given away (i'm sick of giving these away!) for the release of Thunderbolts #148, this one for Asylum Books and Games in Aberdeen, Scotland. Check with the shop to see how you can win it.

Dec.

THUNDERBOLTS SIGNING


























I'll be doing a signing in Forbidden Planet Dublin for THUNDERBOLTS #148 on Sept 16th. More info on the Eclectic Micks blog.

THUNDERBOLTS COLOUR PREVIEW








































































Colour pages from THUNDERBOLTS #148 went online today. Here's updated colours of the first three pages by Frank Martin without the glorious Marvel watermarks. See the rest here.

Dec.

CROSSBONES SKETCH
























I'm doing some sketches for selected comic shops to promote THUNDERBOLTS #148 coming out in a few weeks. This one is for Sub City in Dublin. Ask in the shop how you can win this piece.

Dec.

THUNDERBOLTS PREVIEW

Preview pages for my first THUNDERBOLTS issue went up on Comic Book Resources yesterday evening. Here are some of them; showing just why this blog has been so quiet of late. I've been working my ass off trying to do the best job i can on these pages. Hopefully it shows.

Colourist Frank Martin has done covers for both my issues, which both join up to make one image, which is pretty neat. Go to CBR to check it out.

Dec.

Solicits are now up for the second issue of my Thunderbolts issue, above cover by the colourist of the book Frank Martin Jr. If you want to get either issues, get onto your local comic shop straight away, cuz if they don't know people want it, then they won't order enough copies.

THUNDERBOLTS #149
Written by JEFF PARKER
Penciled by DECLAN SHALVEY
Cover by FRANK MARTIN
A SHADOWLAND TIE-IN! Luke Cage’s squad of fierce felons face the nature of true evil when they uncover secrets of the ancient order known as The Hand beneath Hell's Kitchen! Will a group of people rarely known for doing the right thing choose a higher path—or will they add to the power of the ninja cult? Meanwhile, as Cage fights to help his friend Daredevil up on the streets, he realizes that he picked a bad time to trust his skeleton crew of criminal operatives on an unsupervised mission! So come on, all you DD fans, pick up this issue and find out why Aint It Cool News raves: “very fun...I love this cast...this one is definitely going back on my pull list."
32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$2.99

Dec.

SOLICITATIONS FOR THUNDERBOLTS #148

























The solicitations for my first issue of THUNDERBOLTS are out. Please do check with your local comic shop to make sure they get a copy in. Since it's likely I'll only ever get to do these 2 issues of a Marvel comic, they'll obviously become collectors items!


THUNDERBOLTS #148
Written by JEFF PARKER
Penciled by DECLAN SHALVEY
Cover by MARKO DJURDJEVIC
The Thunderbolts crossover with Shadowland begins here! Luke Cage heads into Hell’s Kitchen to pull his old friend back from the brink of madness. And if swarming ninjas aren’t enough, he's become aware of other forces that will make his task even harder. Going against the Warden and the government itself, Cage sends the T-Bolts in to level the playing field. But without his direct guidance, will this squad of killers and criminals make the situation even worse? Find out in the book IGN.com calls "Impressive...not to be missed."
32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$2.99

[Note: I high-lighed my name there cuz the actual solicitation still lists Kev Walker as the artist]

Dec.

SUMMER EDITION 2010

























Next Saturday I'll have a table at Summer Edition 2010.

I went to the first event last year, and it was a great auld day. Since I'm back in Ireland I thought I should make the most of it and get a table this year. I'll be doing sketches, selling various comics/books I've done, and sure I might show a sneak peek of the Thunderbolts pages I'm currently working on.

There's LOTS of interesting artists participating; check the list of exhibitors here.

So make sure you come by Filmbase, Temple Bar in Dublin town on the 24th of July between 11 and 5pm. It's FREE-in for godsake!

Dec.

COMIC RELATED INTERVIEW (ISSUE 12)

























My final '28 Words Later' interview with David O' Leary has recently gone online. I've really enjoyed these interviews; every month I was able to get some feedback on the book and was able to see what an unbiased reader was or wasn't picking up on. So, thank Dave! And thanks to everyone who was reading each month.

You can read it here.

Actually; i just realised I totally forgot to post about last month's interview for issue 11. D'Oh!
Here is.

Dec.

JUSTICE... LIKE LIGHTNING!

























The internet has been awash with Shalveyness for the last few days. As announced on Newsarama this week, i'm drawing a 2 issue story arc on THUNDERBOLTS for Marvel Comics.

...........sorry, I just had to read that sentence again to be sure.

Did some interviews for Newsarama, Marvel.com and iFanboy. Click to check them out and see all of the preliminary sketches i've done.

The 2 issues in question are part of a crossover with the 'Shadowland' story in DAREDEVIL. Anyone who regularly reads this blog knows that i'm a huge Daredevil fan, so getting to draw something that's part of DD's world is amazing to me. That, and I actually have the first few issue of Thunderbolts at home. Once i get back i'm gonna dig them out. It's crazy to thing that i have #1 of a book and yet will have drawn #148 and #149. Mad.

Well, here goes nothin'......

Dec.

That is all.

Dec.