GUEST POST: Comic-Book Writer Adam Gallardo Shamelessly Plugs His Wares

(Joe says: 'Sup. 

I turn my thesis into my adviser in five days.

In the meanwhile, some of my friends are sending me things to post. Adam Gallardo would like to tell you about his comic books...)

http://www.gearschool.net/?page_id=43

First, I want to thank Joe for this opportunity to shamelessly self-promote myself and my books here at his blog. I am usually only able to do this at my own blog , on my facebook page , and on my twitter feed . Joe has graciously invited me to expose you to my wares.

And what wares would those be? I have been writing comic books for going on eight years. Some are more successful than others, commercially, but I am proud of them all. Please let me tell you about them:

Star Wars: Infinities -- Return of the Jedi  Art by Ryan Benjamin
My very first published work. Also the most awkwardly titled. It's an alternate-universe take on the third of the Star Wars films (or the sixth if you are a heretic and consider the new trilogy worthy of the canon). This book is perfect for the sci-fi-loving geek in your household. Consider this a What If? Version of the classic film.

100 Girls  Art by Todd Demong
My first creator-owned titled. Originally published by Arcana Comics, it was later collected by big-time publisher, Simon & Schuster. This one is near and dear to my heart. It's the story of thirteen-year-old Sylvia Mark. She's the product of a government-funded experiment and she can totally kick your butt. Honestly, my favorite thing about this book is Todd Demong  's art, which evolved over the course of our doing the book together (as a bonus, if you follow the link to Todd's blog, he posts the occasional sketch of characters from 100 Girls). It (Todd's art) starts out great and moves on to face-meltingly great. This is recommended for teens as there is a fair bit of violence.

Tales of Hot-Rod Horror  Art by Justin Nitz
An anthology of indie horror comics featuring some very cool cats (Rick Geary is at the top of that heap!) and published by my good friend Devon Devereaux. Buy this book and see my riff on classic EC horror tales of old. There's a lot of fun stuff here for those who like their horror mixed with black comedy. This is definitely suggested for adults.

Gear School  Art by Nuria Peris, Sergio Sandoval and Studio Fenix
Another creator-owned title, this one published by Dark Horse Comics. It features a young girl in a world where giant mecha are the principle war machines. Children are taught to drive these machines at an early age. I've always thought of this series as Digrassi High meets Mobile Suit Gundum. It's high melodrama in a futuristic high school and features the occasional alien menace. Yes. And it also features gorgeous art by a team of Spanish artists. Suitable for younger teens or anyone who was once a young teen.

MySpace Dark Horse Presents volumes 1 & 5
I have one short story in each of these volumes. Volume one  features a Gear School short story with art by Nuria and Sergio. Volume five  features a new character, Dalton, with art by Todd Demong. Both are fun little romps surrounded by an eclectic collection of very cool comics. DHP has always had a reputation for publishing some of the finest comics in the business, and the on-line incarnation was no exception (my own contributions notwithstanding). Get these for anyone who is looking to be exposed to a lot of new titles. Probably rated PG-13.

Gear School volume 2  Art by Nuria Peris, Sergio Sandoval and Studio Fenix
A follow-up to the original Gear School, this book features more of everything you (well, maybe not you) loved in the first volume -- romance, rivalry, giant robots beating the snot out of each other. Buy this for anyone who loved book one or buy both for a great little set. Again, suitable for young teens and up.

Arcana Team-Up  Art by Todd Demong and mumble-mumble...
This is an odd little number, but of potential interest to some folks out there. This book collects some team-up stories featuring characters that Arcana has published over the years. One of these is a 100 Girls story which is  published here for the first time ever. It was written and drawn years ago and fell into a pit of legal darkness when the character with which Sylvia teamed up had her company go bankrupt. Some deft maneuvering on the part of Arcana makes this story's publication possible. It's a 48-page story told in two parts. Part one features art by Todd Demong, part two by a fine young man whose name I've forgotten and can't find record of. C'mon, it was like four or five years ago. Buy the book and you can look it up yourself. Recommended for older teens.

And that's it, so far. Not a ton of output over eight years, but, as I like to joke, it's more books than Harper Lee ever wrote. And sometimes quantity over quality id the name of the name of the game...