I AM NOT THE SOUP DAD.

I am a strong proponent of soup, generally speaking. But no, Soup Dad is my comic book imprint for self-published books. It’s also a little more than that. SOUP DAD COMICS is about making cool shit with my friends, no matter who publishes it. It's my way of reminding myself why I make comics, what success means to me, and that the work always comes first, no matter what. It is my personal beacon by which I navigate the creative sea.

The important part is you’re here and that’s awesome. Some of you may subscribe to Something Good to Die For, my non-work newsletter featuring personal essays about the stuff that helps me Through It. If you do, that’s awesome and thank you. If you don’t, I mean… I get it.

But the Soup Dad Comics newsletter will be strictly about my work in comics, sent monthly. It will have updates about what I’ve got coming out, but also, cool shit from friends, other things I’m working on, how I’m doing it, and how my approach to comics and the industry has evolved over time.

It is my intention to be honest and realistic about the nitty-gritty of getting comics made when it’s the endeavor that simultaneously brings you the most joy and the most anxiety. The process of doing it all despite ~*everything*~ because comics are the fuckin’ juice, man.

Thanks for following along.

-Joey
[email protected]
PO Box 1093, Bath, ME 04530
Buy my comics

CRITICAL SHIT

Our Zoop crowdfunding campaign for SHITKICKERS #1 and #2 is hurdling toward its final phase! We’re almost there, just new a few hundred more bucks to hit our goal and be off to the printer. If you’re unfamiliar, Zoop is like Kickstarter but specifically for indie comics. They do a lot of heavy lifting for indie creators that I think is only going to become more important as the challenges in the direct market wear on.

If you like buddy cop movies, insane sci-fi action, and some of the best cartooning on the stands, you won’t wanna miss it. We’ve been making the rounds talking about the book. There’s only 7 days left. I even wrote a theme song for it and we produced a rad trailer.

Also, you can read SHITKICKERS #1 totes free on GlobalComix.

DC VS. VAMPIRES: WORLD WAR V #7 comes out March 12 and contains the second part of the ANIMAL MAN story I wrote and Pasquale Qualano drew. It is, as they say up here in Maine, wicked dahk.

LA STRONG — Sean Von Gorman (of Comics) and I created a new PEDESTRIAN story for Mad Cave’s charity anthology to benefit comic book creators impacted by the wildfires in LA. I’m honored to be a part of it — you can pre-order the book now, and all proceeds will go directly to the folks who need it. On sale March 19!

THE PEDESTRIAN VOL. 1 is on sale now wherever you get your comic books!!! If your local comic shop or book store don’t have it in stock, they can definitely order it for you! Alternatively, it is widely available online, including in my web store!

COOL SHIT

WE’RE TAKING EVERYONE DOWN WITH US by Matthew Rosenberg and Stefano Landini

Not only is Rosenberg a gem of a human, but his approach to creator-owned work and collaboration has always been an inspiration and everything he writes has so much thought and flavor. I got an early peek at this one, and it’s another A+ outing. Pre-order here, on sale March 26!

S.I.R. by Fell Hound

Fell’s an incredibly talented cartoonist whose Boom! Studios series S.I.R. is getting collected into one volume soon. It’s a sapphic romance comic centered around MOTORCYCLE JOUSTING. Come on! It’s lovely to see this kind of book from a direct market publisher. Issues #1 to 5 are available now, but you can pre-order the trade paperback here. On sale May 28!

CAPTAIN PLANET by David Pepose and Eman Casallos

It was at least ten years ago that David first told me his dream character was CAPTAIN PLANET and he knew exactly how he would do it, so when I saw Dynamite got the license I texted him something like, “DUDE!” and he said, “I KNOW!” Dreams do come true! Pre-order here, on sale April 23!

VAMPIRES ON MARS by George O’Connor and Fernando Pinto

George is a fellow New Englander I met while on the PEDESTRIAN circuit last year and he’s got a real groovy Kickstarter rhythm going that, I think, is something to emulate! His latest campaign is running now and I think the title says it all. Check it out on Kickstarter!

OTHER SHIT I’M WORKING ON

SHITKICKERS #6 — Script is wrapped — aside from some dialogue tweaks I’ll do later —and Andrea is toiling away at his desk. This one’s gonna be BONKERS.

MADAM — This is a horror graphic novel that me and my pal Pandamusk have been working on in bits and pieces for… 10 years? It was written years ago so it’s a challenge to not want to change a bunch of stuff. This one got close at Image/Shadowline around 2016 when we first pitched it. It ultimately didn’t go but I did get this excellent email from Jim Valentino: “I have to admit that I am sick and tired of ‘horror’ comics (what is it with you guys?), but I might make an exception here.” He didn’t, yet the horrors persist and MADAM will be unleashed soon under Soup Dad. Colored pages are coming back, lettering is placed. Can’t wait for everyone to meet this scary lady.

THE PEDESTRIAN  — The second arc is coming together in broad terms as we wait to hear whether or not the publisher would like to publish Volume 2. Is this what it feels like to be “on the bubble?” Also, Sean and I have been having some fun multimedia related meetings, which is admittedly harder for me to enjoy than working on the comics, but I know it’s important.

PROJECT PUKE — This is a creator-owned series (not actual title) I’m developing with artist Tony Gregori, who did a fantastic variant cover on THE PEDESTRIAN #3 for us, and I am very excited to work with. Tony’s deep in designs and such while I put the finishing spokes on the wheel that is our pitch doc. I also commissioned a cover from one of the all-time greatest cover artists for this puppy, I’m very excited. Still early days though.

PROJECT SALT — Another creator-owned series (not actual title) I’ve been working on with Felipe Cunha. Felipe and I first worked together in 2011 or 2012 for a horror anthology. This is our second series pitch together, though I’d eventually like to revisit our first project someday. On this one, we’re just waiting on colors for our sample pages and a cover from one of my favorite poster artists.

PROJECT LAUPER — These codenames are annoying, aren’t they? If it’s any help, they have tenuous connections to the things I’m hiding so after the fact, hawk eyed readers will be like, “OH!” Anyway, art is coming in on this one-off work-for-hire project and it is glorious. It may or may not ever come out — it’s what they call an inventory issue, an evergreen placeholder in case the regular schedule slips and they need to slot something in to stay the course while the regular team catches up. Readers often call these a “fill-in" issue. Art’s not mine to show off, but hopefully this hits the stands someday because I really dig it.

Thanks for hanging out. If you have any suggestions or questions, please feel free to drop me a line at [email protected].