Is it May? Already? Well, I guess three months in between posts isn’t that bad. Sheesh. Huge apologies to everyone here on the lack of updates. It’s just been production mode non-stop and promotion mode kind of took a backseat while that was taken care of. It won’t be full promotion mode until sometime in June, but I thought some of you might like to take a look at what the cover for Parable is going to look like.

The idea for the cover came from Matt Yokom and is based on Matthew 5 :14-16 :

“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

There might still be some tweaks done to it before it sees print, but this is pretty much it. For those that would like a larger version of it you can download a 1200px version here. While I was at it, I decided to also make one desktop size that you can download here.

There’re a few artists that have come on board in the last few months that I never got a chance to mention here. Michelle Gorski, Paul Conrad, Bryan Ballinger and Jeremy Vanhoozer are the newest contributors to craft stories for this anthology. This book is going to be amazing. I just can’t wait for everyone to read the spectacular work that everyone’s done.

Parable is on the very tail end of production, but there’s still a lot to do. Keep your eyes peeled on this site for publishing info, preview pages, and even a new look coming soon.

With only two more months (!) till the completion of our stories, I wanted to update everyone with two new additions and a new website to check out.

Scott Christian Sava, best known for his wonderful webcomic, The Dreamland Chronicles, is going to be lending his incredible 3D rendering skills to a story for Parable. Founder of Blue Dream Studios, Scott has become quite the industry professional in both the fields of comics and animation. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with.

Sarah Mensinga is also the latest addition to this anthology. A great friend of mine and and even greater artist, I’m thrilled to have her on board with us here. If her sketch blog has anything to say about it, I just know she’ll create something fantastic.

And I’ve mentioned Stephen McCranie before, a new face in the comic scene. Well, now he has a website. Go check it out!

Things are moving pretty quickly right now. Keep an eye on this site as we’ll be able to start posting more Parable related content and preview art very soon!

Lunchbox Funnies is a new webcomic alliance that casts the spotlight on some of the best all-ages webcomics on this magical place we call the internet. The site went live only three days ago and already it is getting some good press. I mention it here, not only because my very own Cow & Buffalo is part of it as well as Dean Trippe’s awesome Butterfly strip, but because all-ages comics are a rare find these days. And all-ages comics are generally my favorite ones.

There’s a certain comparison that can be made between Christian literature and all-ages literature. Not that they are both wholesome or there happens to be a lack of curse words or gore. No, all-ages simply means that it can be enjoyed by everyone- people of well, all ages. If you were to strip the Bible to it’s core, and make the language understandable to both kids and adults (and this has been done!), what you’d end up with are stories that can be understood by everyone. The essence of those stories have been told in a variety of different mediums and by a variety of different people, but they all originate from the word of God- whether they realize it or not. Take one of the most popular concepts in the past few decades, Star Wars. An all ages space-odyssey that when examined closely is simply your classic story about good vs evil. With heroes, prophecies and sacrifice being themes that help snare in your excitement. These are themes that have been written in the Bible for thousands of years. It’s one of the reasons it is my favorite book. And also one of the reasons I’m overjoyed to be bringing the themes and stories it holds to life in my most favoritest of mediums- comics!

This all-ages approach to the Bible is no accident. God knew that his word would need to be understood by a variety of people, ages, and cultures. The fact that a book written across hundreds of years carries a singular voice and message that delivers these themes in stories and parables that anyone can enjoy just shows what an amazing author God is. The best, I dare say, all-ages author out there.

Since everyone’s been hard at work writing and drawing their stories (including myself), there hasn’t been too much to update on this site lately. But I thought I’d mention a few recent additions to the parable family in order to assure everyone that this project is still running strong.

Many of you know who Joel Carroll is. Fellow Floridian and one heck of an artist. He says he’s got a sci-fi story he’s itching to do for this collection and who am I to deny him! It’s great to have Joel with us on this and i can’t wait to see what he comes up with.

Stephen McCranie is someone you probably haven’t heard of, but you will! He’s been hanging around the parable forums since it’s inception and finally got around to sending me his story pitch and some art. Needless to say, I was blown away and couldn’t be happier to introduce people to this talented young artist though this anthology.

And Monika Brozda, known by some as simply “yolk”, has already started coloring Rob Corley’s and Tom Bancroft’s tale. Monika is a fantastic colorist (and a great artist herself) and is going to help assure that this book will look amazing.

I never mentioned it officially here before, but the deadline for completed story submissions has been extended to April 1st, 2007. If you’ve been lurking around here, wondering if you were going to try to submit or not, don’t hesitate! I’ll continue to look at stories up until the deadline, but the book is starting to get pretty packed.

A few creator bios are up in the creator bios section. There, you’ll be able to read some info on some of the writers and artists that will have stories in this anthology. More bios will be posted as new creators come aboard and current ones find the time to write about themselves in the third person.

I’m pleased to announce that despite a hectic production schedule, Tom Bancroft (who actually has two websites, here and here) has joined the already talented list of contributors for Parable. Tom has had a large amount of success in both the fields of animation and comics over the years and his involvement helps solidify this project as one of the best Christian comic endeavors ever. It’s great to have him on board!

Parable is now open to discussion. Feel free to ask questions, show artwork or simply introduce yourself. A big thank you goes to Joe Fenton who did a terrific job setting it up.

News, updates, and art coming soon!