From the Editor's Desk: Mark Doyle--Creating a Cover, American Vampire #3

Creating a Cover, AMERICAN VAMPIRE #3

Coming up with a cool cover is hard. Rafael Albuquerque made things a little easier with AMERICAN VAMPIRE because he had the simple but brilliant idea of cutting the layout in half with the logo—two stories, two scenes, united by the logo. But it still takes a little work to make things perfect.

Rafael’s first sketch was a detail of a shop floor, covered in candy and blood, and a portrait of a sophisticated European vampire family on the bottom.

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We really loved the floor detail, the juxtaposition of candy and blood is just sickly weird. And the Eruo fam was cool, but we liked that sexy couple in the back, Bernard and Lucia, and since they figure prominently in this issue we wanted to bring them to the front.

So Rafael did another sketch.

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He brought our Euro-vamp lovers to the front (sort of echoes a certain, popular, tween vamp movie, no?) and included another idea for the top part. That’s Skinner relieving himself on the Mayor’s doorstep, shadows of two cops surrounding him. We thought that was a little much. Even for a Vertigo cover. Back to the candy and the blood and the floor. But we were still missing a final detail…

Rafael went back to the candy and blood, kept Bernard and Lucia front and center, then just added that last, final detail—the cigarette holder—the quintessential accessory for all those Jazz Age girls—even vampires.

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Now we have blood, candy, and a sexy vampire couple clearly set in the ‘20’s. Perfect. All you have to do now is read the issue and find out what it all means!

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AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 Back to Press!

If you didn’t read out it last Monday, AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 is sold out and we’re going back to press. The second printing will be wrapped in this cover:

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And in case you missed it, The Smart List in THE LOS ANGELES TIMES includes AMERICAN VAMPIRE #2 and the syndicated SCRIPPS HOWARD NEWS SERVICE ran a very positive review saying, “Snyder, King and Albuquerque have definitely come up with a fresh angle on undead high jinks -- one that feels as comfortable as a pair of old boots, but is as creepy as ghost stories around the campfire. This is truly an American vampire tale, one that disdains Europe's rules for the genre and is as rowdy as the Old West.”

From the Editor’s Desk: Mark Doyle on AV #2

“Time is the only constant for the living. It never stops…for the dead it doesn’t matter…and for the undead…”

American Vampire 2 hits the stands today and although the first issue was amazing and people loved it (“…fresh and original” EW, “…eerie and haunting” Huffington Post “…engaging and enthralling” Fangoria) issue 2 is bigger, badder and bloodier.

Way bloodier.

But as the writer (and narrator of this here tale) Will Bunting says, “it’s all about time…” Issue two spans decades. And as much as this series is about vampires and America and evolution—it’s really about time.

Skinner Sweet understands that. Wait until you see what kind of devilish things he does with his time. And the scary part? Scarier than vampires or gunfights or evil movie producers? Skinner has all the time in the world…

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(The above images were revealed at USATODAY.com)

AMERICAN VAMPIRE Exclusive Reveal of variant cover #2 by Bernie Wrightson

So, you thought the variant to #1 by Jim Lee was amazing? Now to reveal the variant cover image of issue #2 by the one and only Bernie Wrightson, horror artist extraordinaire:

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Now you want to know what other artists are on the list for variant covers on upcoming issues of AMERICAN VAMPIRE? Well, I’ll tell you, but just a couple. Adam Kubert is on issue #3 and JH Williams is on #4. How’s that for a Tuesday?

And if you haven’t been there yet, check out today’s Q&A with Scott Snyder and full vampire reveal of Skinner and Pearl at USATODAY.com!

Win a signed copy of AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 today on Twitter!

Win a copy of AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 signed by co-author Scott Snyder today on Twitter.

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Go to Vertigo_Comics on Twitter.

Answer this question on the Vertigo Twitter page: What vampire movie is at the top of Scott Snyder’s list of favorites?

(Hint: check out Graphic Content’s 3/16 post.)

The first 15 eligible entrants with the correct answer will win.

Check out the Official Rules below.

Good Luck!

AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 Signed Copy Twitter Contest Official Rules

1. ENTRY: No purchase necessary to enter or win. To enter the contest, you must be among the first 15 people to tweet to @VERTIGO_COMICS the correct answer to the question posted via the VERTIGO COMICS Twitter feed to @VERTIGO_COMICS that day. DC COMICS will release a question at 12:30pm EST on 3/26. You may participate in the daily question and respond as often as you like.

2. ELIGIBILITY: Employees and contractors (and their families) of DC COMICS or any of its affiliates are not eligible. Must be 18 year of age or older and a resident of the United States or Canada. Void in Quebec and where prohibited by law.

3. PRIZE: 15 prizes (one per winner) will be given out. Prizes will consist of a copy of AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 signed by creator and co-author Scott Snyder. Prize selection is at the discretion of the DC COMICS team.

4. WINNER SELECTION: The first 15 people to answer the question posted on the VERTIGO COMICS Twitter feed and tweet the answer to @VERTIGO_COMICS will win one of that day's 15 signed copies of AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 signed by creator and co-author Scott Snyder.

5. WINNER NOTIFICATION: Each day’s winners will be notified directly via direct message on Twitter. The winners are required to contact DC Comics via email (the address will be sent via direct message) to provide contact information (full name, email address and mailing address). Each winner has until midnight EST the following business day to claim his/her prize; if the prize goes unclaimed, an alternate winner will be selected.

6. GENERAL CONDITIONS: The winners may be required to execute and return a Certificate of Eligibility, Consent and General Release form within 14 days of notification. Non-compliance within this time period may result in disqualification and selection of an alternate winner. By acceptance of the prize, the winners consent to the use of his or her name and/or likeness for purposes of advertising or trade without further compensation, unless prohibited by law.

7. USE OF CONTEST INFORMATION: All entries become the property of DC COMICS. DC COMICS reserves the right to use any and all information related to the contest, including submissions provided by the contestants, for editorial, marketing and any other purpose, unless prohibited by law.

8. CONDUCT: All contest participants agree to be bound by these Official Rules. DC COMICS in its sole discretion, reserves the right to disqualify any person it finds to be in violation of these rules.

9. LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY: DC COMICS is not responsible for late, lost or misdirected email or for any computer, online, telephone or technical malfunctions that may occur. If for any reason, the contest is not capable of running as planned, including infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention or technical failures of any sort, DC COMICS may cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the contest. Entrants further agree to release DC COMICS from any liability resulting from, or related to participation in the contest.

GRAPHIC CONNECTION: AMERICAN VAMPIRE with cover #4 reveal

This week has been very exciting with the launch of AMERICAN VAMPIRE. Issue #1 hit the streets with coverage by mainstream press outlets as diverse and influential as the DAILY BEAST, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY/Shelf Life, USA WEEKEND, TIME/Techland, iO9, OKLAHOMA GAZETTE, AM NEW YORK as well as horror sites including; FANGORIA and DREAD CENTRAL and comic trade press including, COMICS ALLIANCE, IGN, CBR, IGN, and iFANBOY.

I hope you all enjoy issue #1. Now check out the cover of #4:

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Read AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 with Jim Lee and others

That’s right, you read the headline correctly. Today’s your chance to talk comics with Jim Lee and some of the biggest names in the industry: Where? Twitter. When? Tonight at 9pm EST/6pm PST.

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So, pick up a copy of AMERICAN VAMPIRE #1 and devour it, if you haven’t already, so you can join in on the discussion. Then start following Jim (@jimlee00), and Vertigo_Comics. If you don’t have a Twitter account, signing up is easy. The rest is even easier: have fun, talk comics, vampires, the wild West, the roaring 20s, Skinner, Pearl, Jim’s variant cover to issue #1, and most of all enjoy!

Be there: Tonight at 9pm EST/6pm PST.

And if you can’t make it right on time, click on the hashtag “#DCreader” to catch up on the discussion!

From The Editor’s Desk: Mark Doyle on the launch of AMERICAN VAMPIRE

“This is a song Charles Manson stole from the Beatles, and we’re stealing it back.”

That’s what Bono says on the first track of “Rattle and Hum” before The Edge rips into “Helter Skelter.” That’s kind of how we feel about vampires these days. They are sexless teenagers. They go to school. They sparkle.

Vampires have been stolen from us, the horror fans of the world, and we’re stealing them back with American Vampire. Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of heart in this story and a budding romance to rival the great ones. But it’s the monstrous, ravenous, insatiable part of vampires that we miss.

This was Scott’s plan from the beginning, back when he pitched this idea to me over a year ago. He said, “one exciting thing about the story (if not the most exciting) is the chance it affords to create a brand new kind of vampire. An American Vampire. Something that’s powered by the sun…born of the West, with rattlesnake fangs that inject a paralyzing venom into you when you’re bitten…the exciting prospect is to get to reinvent a classic movie monster and a classic genre…”

I had been looking for a way to make vampires cool again and Scott nailed it. This was it. He even buried the coolest title ever in there—he just didn’t know it yet.

Then he told me his friend Stephen King (yeah that Stephen King) wanted to make vampires cool again too. He wanted to write a couple issues.

Then we asked Rafael Albuquerque if he wanted to make vampires cool again too. He answered by sending us the coolest character designs you’ve ever seen.

Then we went to work…

Cut to today. Issue one of “American Vampire” is on the stands now! Scott, Steve and Rafael have been bleeding on to the page for all of you readers who miss real vampires. Scary vampires. Dangerous vampires. Sexy vampires.

American Vampires.

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