A couple of years ago, I entered Shades in the Favourite Web-Based Comic category of the UK's prestigious Eagle Awards. Not surprisingly, we didn't win. (The award, if I remember rightly, went to some decades-old gag-strip)! Anyway, this year, I thought it was about time we tried again!



To help us, please click on that image there to reach the Nomination Form. You don't have to complete the whole form. Just complete your name and email address at the top and you'll find the Best Web-Based Comic category right at the bottom. Nominate Shades and, if we make it into the final five, we'll do something special to celebrate!

Thanks for your help, guys. It's a long-shot, I know. But it's about time the world realised the web has story comics too, isn't it? ;-)

So - Saturday, 2 May 2009, is Free Comic Book Day ... Does this happen in the UK? I don't know. It seems to be a big thing in the US, though, so at Broken Voice Comics we felt we ought to participate somehow. Unfortunately, we don't have any of our titles in print, and so - as Ryan so neatly puts it below - we decided to make Volume 1 of our graphic novel Shades available as a free PDF instead!



So, if you're one of those techy types who likes that sort of thing, for the next few days only, you'll be able to download all of Shades Volume 1 (that's the Prologue, plus Chapters 1 - 8 ) for free. Just click on that link there or the picture above!

Oh, one more thing - you'd better be quick! We're using the YouSendIt service which, apparently, only allows 100 downloads so make sure you're at the front of the queue!

Wow - have I really not posted anything here since August? Yup - it seems so! Oh, well ... here's a snippet just to keep you all updated on where we are!

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Chapters 9 and 10 of my graphic novel Shades are the latest to become available to read online at the Broken Voice Comics website. The new chapters are the first to be illustrated by the new art team of E.C. Nickel and Muamal Khairi.

Illustrated in full colour, Shades is both an examination of the characteristics and traits that have come to define the British national character and, for those who just want to be entertained, a fun-filled action/adventure comic featuring demonic monsters, giant machines and a group of particularly British super heroes!



The first half of Shades (Chapters 1 – 8) has been illustrated by Harsho Mohan Chattoraj and is available to read in its entirety online. It tells the story of retired tailor Stanley Miller as he attempts to reunite a group of faded British heroes – a group which includes a prehistoric shaman, a World War 2 fighter pilot and the First Century warrior queen Boudicca!

The new art team for the remainder of the novel, starting with Chapters 9 and 10, will be Brazilian artist E.C. Nickel (pencils and inks) and Indonesian colourist Muamal Khairi. Anyone familiar with their work will know they each have a distinctive style of their own but that they both share Harsho’s love of detail and character.

The new chapters take Shades into new territory, giving readers a greater insight into the minds of the villains of the piece and ramping up the action levels as the story begins to move towards its conclusion!

Just in case there's anyone reading who doesn't know, Drunk Duck is a webcomic hosting site and, towards the end of last year, we began serialising Shades there, as well as at our own BVC website.

Well, those nice people at DD have decided to give out lovely awards again this year, so - if you've been enjoying Shades at either site, please do support us by giving us your nomination!

If you are already registered at DD, just click on the banner below and nominate Shades, in as many categories as you think it deserves ... Best super hero comic, Best traditonal art comic, Best dialogue etc are probably the most relevant but there are also some wonderfully unusual categories like Best protagonist (Boo? Stan?) and Best backgrounds, so feel free to nominate us in as many categories as you think appropriate!



If you're not already registered at Drunk Duck you can register now (it's all free!) at the DD homepage.

Thanks, guys!

We've seen a lot of creepy things in E.C. Nickel's and Alexandre Lobao's SciFi comic Thy Will Be Done but none, perhaps, quite so creepy as the mysterious "Doctor".

Well, in the latest instalment he's back. You can go visit him if you're brave enough, but I warn you - he's looking just as creepy as ever!

Can you remember when we first met the Shaman in Shades? One of the first things we learned was that he'd been in the spirit world for a very long time and was, therefore, far too weak to try another visit. So, what did he do?

That's right ... last week he decided to go back in! Hey - let's go visit the latest instalment and see how that's working out for him!

The last time we looked in on The Spires we saw a bunch of politicians bickering. Will we find anything more interesting to look in on, this time?

Well, that depends. If you're the sort of person who enjoys watching a clueless detective, a seductive assassin and a surly huntress hanging from a three hundred storey building ... yeah, the latest instalment should be right up your alley!

In true fantasy tradition, Jeste has been taking her companions' minds off their journey in The Spires, by recounting a tale of the woman who wants her dead. Sadly, she came to the end of her story yesterday.

But, looking at the next part of the journey, it's probably just as well. From here on in they'll really need to concentrate! Go join them in the latest instalment. A few words of advice, though - don't look down!

Shades - a death in the family ...
Dark times over in Shades at the moment. Ryan is obviously having difficulty dealing with the loss of his sister Becky.

But what of the other characters? How are they dealing with Ryan dealing with the loss of Becky? Well - there's only one place to find out ... Best go see the latest instalment now!


The Spires - turning nasty!
Meanwhile, The Spires updated on Monday, too. And you know what ... for a fantasy comic something's been missing recently. Sure, there's the small band of odd characters, and there's a quest (well, of sorts!) but a fantasy story needs more than that, right? Absolutely. It needs monsters!

Well, as it happens, that's just this week's instalment has - and not just another carrian, either. This one's big and ugly and ... oh, go and have a look. (If you think you're hard enough!)

Aaah, it's nearly Christmas. A time of crisp frost and everything looking pretty under a cover of white, sparkling snow ... Or, for most of us in the UK, a time of bitterly cold temperatures and ominous grey, overcast skies!

Fortunately, there's still time to escape into E.C. Nickel's and Alexandre Lobao's new comic Thy Will Be Done where everything is rather more ... idyllic! Anyone fancy a romantic interlude on a sun-kissed beach? Of course you do! So, go read the latest instalment at Broken Voice Comics now. Go on - it's a lot warmer over there!

Do you remember when Thy Will Be Done, the new SciFi comic from E.C. Nickel and Alexandre Lobao, was launched just a few weeks ago? You were promised there'd be twists and turns ahead, right?

Well, if you check out the latest instalment at Broken Voice Comics, the first of those twists is happening right now. Go see - you're going to want to stay on top of this one!

It's Christmas time - a time for peace and goodwill to all men. And, of course, for all women to go shopping for a new party dress!

Well, it's no different at Broken Voice Comics and their characters. In fact, even its pagan characters have got caught up in the festive spirit and, if you pop over to the Workshop area, you can catch a glimpse of Boo trying on her new outfit for the BVC Christmas party. You see - it really is the season to be jolly!

Then, if you want to see where a pagan like Boo might be celebrating at this time of year, you'd best look in on the graphic novel Shades. There's no party going on just yet but the venue's booked, so you can see it in the latest instalment!

So, what does happen to children when they're torn away from their parents? Well, in the fantasy comic The Spires they're locked in a cell where other shady types offer them ... well, let's just call them "substances".

Fortunately that'd never happen in the real world, would it? Would it? Oh, well, forget that and escape into the fantasy of the latest instalment at Broken Voice Comics. But do remember - if you are offered anything while you're there, just say ... well, you know!

Or, to be more accurate, one particular woman. If you've been following the fantasy webcomic The Spires you could be forgiven for thinking the Lady Jeste is just a disagreeable little socialite, indulged solely because of her elfin good looks and her insatiable sex drive. Oh, and her ability to kill people without the slightest hint of remorse, obviously.

But that's only the tip of this particular iceberg. Look in on today's instalment at Broken Voice Comics and you'll find she's about to start revealing just what made her the woman she is today. I'm not saying it'll help you like her. But, well ... at least you'll begin to understand her!

Yes, it's up and running! The first few pages of the great new SciFi title, Thy Will Be Done, have been posted this morning at Broken Voice Comics and are just waiting for you to go and enjoy them!

Thy Will Be Done is written by Alexandre Lobao and boasts gorgeous artwork by E.C. Nickel (the talented artist behind Immortality and The Long Vigil).

Without giving away any major plot spoilers, I can tell you that it's a SciFi story with more than enough twists and turns to keep even the most cynical conspiracy theorist guessing until the end. Part Matrix, part 1984 and with just a dash of Starship Troopers, it has a flavour all its own.

The cover and four full-colour pages have been posted this morning, so there's enough to give you a real taste of both the wonderful artwork and the beginnings of the intriguing story line. In future this title will be updated every Friday at Broken Voice Comics, so make a note in your diaries to check back often!

Until then, however, over in BVC's Previews area you can still catch a glimpse of where this story is going to be taking you in the future. Just jump straight to the preview page. Oh, and after you've seen it ... don't forget to give thanks to Orth!

Thy Will Be Done is a new comic written by Alexandre Lobao, with gorgeous artwork by E.C.Nickel (the guy behind Immortality and The Long Vigil).

The good news is, we'll be starting to serialise Thy Will Be Done at Broken Voice Comics very shortly, with the first instalment expected to go "live" next Friday (23 November 2007), so keep your eyes open for further news soon! If, like me, you can't wait until then, sneak a quick peek at this excellent preview page and consider your appetite well and truly whetted!

The last time we visited The Spires, we looked in on Jeste's old adversary, Jamyl, leaving our heroes in the snug warmth of a tavern. Or at least a tavern type place. With a decidedly odd new companion.

But over at Broken Voice Comics we don't like our heroes to get too comfortable so, in the latest instalment Jeste and and her companions are on the move again. Nothing wrong with that, of course. Well, not unless you happen to be scared of heights!

Poor old Stan. You'd think he'd been through enough in BVC's online graphic novel Shades, what with his abduction, the chase through London, the attack by paramilitaries and the severe beating by a gang of thugs. But no - there's even worse in store!

In today's instalment at Broken Voice Comics, he has to face his scariest challenge yet. Yes, he finally has to explain to his daughter what's been going on! He's going to need some help on this one, so go and give him some moral support!

Regular readers of the online graphic novel Shades will know that the main characters are all way too old to go out trick-or-treating. They do occasionally get dressed up in silly costumes, though, so - if you didn't see it at the weekend - you might want to check out the warrior queen Boudicca in her Wonder Woman outfit!

Those of you who just want to get on with the story, however, can ignore all this dress-up nonsense and go straight to the latest instalment at Broken Voice Comics. Boo, of course, is in costume there too but ... well, just not as Wonder Woman!

Last time we looked in on BVC's fantasy title The Spires, we met a new character. Well, it's all change this week. Look in on the latest instalment at Broken Voice Comics and you'll be able to catch up with an old character we haven't seen since ... oooh, way back in Issue 1!