5/8: TRICK PONY launch update
C2E2 wrap-up, the Electric Rodeo zine and more!
This weekend a package arrived from FedEx via Dark Horse Comics: the first printed copy of TRICK PONY!!! Printer proofs are one of the best parts of the process… you see all the hard work put together for the first time and it is always just a marvel to behold… (if the work was done right and with complete love and commitment)… like this one!
The printing is so lush, the colors are perfect… book tweaks made by the team at Dark Horse are in complete harmony with the design of Lucas Gattoni on our original digital release. I’ve been on a dopamine high since Saturday and I’m not planning on coming down until release day! Or beyond!!!
The (slightly) bad news is that there has been a delay in the book release (you may have noticed if you pre-ordered!) and we’re going to be in bookstores on June 18th now (and June 19th in comic book shops)! But the shifts in schedule have been no problem and all the lovely people at various bookstores helping me schedule events have been so flexible and kind!
And it gives me more time to promote pre-orders! 😉
Any support is welcome! Likes and shares! Word of mouth! Library requests! It’s all supremely vital to my writing career and deeply appreciated!
If you can pre-order, any comic shop or independent bookseller is the first choice but Barnes & Noble is a great second option that ships anywhere in the U.S.!
On Wednesday, June 12th, I have a very exciting event in Washington, DC with a brilliant writer (and online friend), Philip Dean Walker!
We will be discussing our work in queer historical fiction across our different mediums of prose and comic books! It should be very interesting for us (and by transitive properties: any interested persons who show up!) Join the conversation!
You can RSVP here for a free ticket! Space is limited! And you get to support an independent bookshop and two queer writers!
https://littledistrictbooks.com/products/conversation-with-greg-lockard-and-philip-dean-walker
An exciting recent event was tabling at C2E2 in Artist Alley again this year!!! I sat next to one of my nearest and dearest (a friendship that dates back 20+ years), Monica Gallagher! It is an absolute joy to watch her thrive and do so well at these conventions. Monica is currently doing a cryptid project that includes prints for the cryptid of all 50 states in the U.S. and stickers and guide books and just watching people freak out over them (and Assassin Roommate!) was worth the entire trip. We’ve both hung on to our comic book creations (and each other) for so long… it’s just so special to have a friend like her!
Check out Monica’s webstore here: https://www.eatyourlipstick.com/store
We didn’t take any photos together! But here’s one I took of her!!!
At C2E2, I debuted THE ELECTRIC RODEO ZINE to promote the TRICK PONY graphic novel release! It printed beautifully, too! I’m glad I upgraded the paperstock! And I am so lucky to feature the artists who are included!!!
The zine has 14 illustrations by some of my favorite colleagues and friends: Héctor Barros, Víctor Ibáñez, Noah Dao, V. Gagnon, Álvaro Ortiz, Freddie Tanto, Tim Fish, Isaac Goodhart, Michael J. DiMotta, Giulio Macaione, June Kim, Terry Blas, Fabs Nocera and Myno!
We’ll be debuting the illustrations on social media in the coming weeks! And if you’d like to support, copies are now on my website here (25% off for newsletter subscribers buying more than 1 item with the code RODEO)!
We have very cool t-shirt designs by Myno in our threadless shop here! (10% of the shirt prices go back to us! And all the creators split profits!)
And send me photos of you in the gear!!! Stay mentally and physically healthy in these shirts like Adam below! New designs are coming soon! Here’s the shop link:
Looking ahead!
There are two more book events in June beyond the Little District in DC date and I will be returning to SDCC for my new position… there’s a lot to be excited for this summer!!!
We’re “off the map again” and I’m thrilled. New job, new creative goals, new projects. One of the nice (and immediate) benefits of this new gig has been a refreshed focus on my personal writing and the time needed to create. And the job itself is something I am building with the rest of the company so it will also be a great creative and professional challenge that I can’t wait to dig into deeper in the coming months.
We’ll see where the future takes it all and I’ll write in four weeks for the start of TRICK PONY Launch Month (and Pride)! 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️
Thanks for reading!
-Greg
You captured my inner being! I miss you already and HELL YEAH gorgeous book, go and conquer!!
I am so glad to be able to re-read the book in print soon, Greg, as I said before I really adored it.