This Thursday, 30th October, SelfMadeHero brings together three of the UK’s top comics artists for a conversation about their craft. Oscar Zarate, Karrie Fransman and ILYA will discuss the burgeoning British graphic novel scene, the inspiration behind their work, and how they see a project through from concept to completion. The conversation will be chaired by Steve Walsh, bookseller at Gosh! Comics and founder of the Process and South London Hardcore podcasts.

The event, brought to you in partnership with the wonderful Collage Arts, takes place Karamel, 4 Coburg Road, London, N22 6UJ. Nearest Tube: Wood Green. It starts at 7pm and admission is absolutely free.

Oscar Zarate collaborated with Alan Moore on A Small Killing and edited the anthology It’s Dark In London, a graphic collection off short stories featuring work by Neil Gaiman, Iain Sinclair, Stewart Home, Dave McKean and many more. He also collaborated with Alexei Sayle on Geoffrey the Tube Train and the Fat Comedian and with Carlos Sampayo on La Faille and Fly Blues. SelfMadeHero published The Park, the first graphic novel to be both written and illustrated by Oscar Zarate, in October 2013.

Karrie Fransman has created comics for The Guardian, The Times, The New Statesman, Time Out and many other publications. Her acclaimed graphic novel, The House That Groaned, is published by Random House’s Square Peg imprint. Her latest graphic novel, Death of the Artist, will be published in March 2015 by Jonathan Cape. She led the London Print Studio’s excellent graphic novel course in 2011 and 2012. Web: www.karriefransman.com. Twitter: @KarrieFransman.

ILYA is a comic book writer and artist whose work has been published by Marvel, DC and Dark Horse in the USA, Kodansha in Japan, and numerous independent companies worldwide. His books include the award-winning The End of the Century Club, the kitchen-sink drama Skidmarks, and an adaptation of King Lear for SelfMadeHero’s Manga Shakespeare series. His debut prose novel, The Clay Dreaming, is published by Myriad Editions. His graphic novel, Room For Love, is published by SelfMadeHero. Most recently, he edited The Mammoth Book of Cult Comics, published by Robinson in October 2014.

Steve Walsh is the founder and co-presenter of the South London Hardcore podcast. He is also a prolific blogger and bookseller at London’s finest comic book shop, Gosh! Comics in Soho. Twitter: @ventswhales.

Following on from his appearance at The Lakes Comic Art Festival at the weekend, Nick Abadzis will be signing at Gosh! Comics in London this Friday, 24th October, from 6-7pm.

SelfMadeHero published The Cigar that Fell in Love with a Pipe, written by French author David Camus and drawn by Nick Abadzis, earlier this year. It is a tale of love, heartbreak and tobacco starring Rita Hayworth and Orson Welles. Here’s the blurb:

On the eve of the release of his latest movie, The Lady From Shanghai, Orson Welles receives a gift: an admirer has sent him a box of cigars. Rich and full bodied, they are the finest he’s ever tasted. But then, these are no ordinary cigars: they’ve been assembled by the most famous cigar roller in Cuba, Conchita Marquez. It is an exquisite gift, though one not appreciated by Welles’ wife, Rita Hayworth. As he smokes these most coveted of cigars, he daydreams about the plump genius Conchita Marquez, whose story of triumph, despair, and love unfolds within the pages of this stunning and imaginative graphic novel.

And some praise:

“Like a fine cigar, rich, heady and ultimately irresistable” The New Statesman

“Will engulf you in a hazy Hollywood dream” Metro

“A charming graphic novel” Publishers Weekly

Nick Abadzis, who is currently working on Doctor Who for Titan Comics, will also be signing copies of his bestselling graphic novel Laika at the event, which takes place at Gosh! Comics, 1 Berwick Street, London W1F 0DR.

Coming? Spread the love by joining the event on Facebook here.

That’s right, folks: the eponymous hero of Ricky Rouse Has A Gun, Jörg Tittel and John Agg’s acclaimed graphic novel, will be at the Lakes International Comic Art Festival this weekend, 18th-19th October. What’s more, the authors will be in conversation with Dr Andrew Miles at the Brewery Arts Centre on Saturday (15.45-16.45). For more info – and to book tickets – click here.

Described by some (or one) as “Die Hard in an amusement park”, Ricky Rouse Has A Gun follows the story of Rick Rouse, a US Army deserter who gets a job at Fengxian theme park, a family destination heavily inspired by Western culture, featuring Rambi (the deer with the red headband), Ratman (the caped crusader with a rat’s tail), Bumbo (small ears, big behind), and other original characters. When terrorists take the park hostage, only Rick Rouse – now employed as the cute and loveable Ricky Rouse – can save the day. In a furry costume.

Ricky Rouse Has A Gun is at once an action comedy, a satire of US-China relations and a comment on intellectual property. Introduced by Professor Christopher Sprigman of New York University, it’s been attracting a lot of attention. Here’s what Alejandro Jodorowsky had to say: “I loved Ricky Rouse Has A Gun, a comic filled with deaths and yet full of life.”

On Saturday, Jörg Tittel and John Agg will discuss this unique project, which has been supported by the existence of a life-size ripoff rodent crafted by the creators behind outfits for Captain America and Guardians of the Galaxy. Real-life Ricky, who’ll be strolling the streets of Kendal this weekend, features in this music video soundtracked by James Lavelle (UNKLE).

Intrigued? You can read 33 pages of Ricky Rouse Has A Gun by downloading this BitTorrent Bundle.

Ahead of this weekend’s Lakes Comic International Art Festival, we’re blogging about some of the books and creators we’ll be bringing with us to Kendal. First up, one of 2014’s most anticipated graphic novels: The Motherless Oven by Rob Davis.

This brilliantly dark and imaginative book launches at the festival – and Rob Davis will be speaking about the book with Dr Mel Gibson on Saturday (“Teen Spirit”, 15.30-16.30, Kendal Town Hall).

You may know Rob Davis from his Eisner-nominated adaptation of Don Quixote, for his work on Judge Dredd and Doctor Who, or perhaps for his reinvention of Roy of the Rovers. Here, he turns his talent to a moody and surreal tale of teenage life that confirms him as one of the most distinctive and inventive voices working in comics today.

In Scarper Lee’s world, parents don’t make children – children make parents. Scarper’s father is his pride and joy, a wind-powered brass construction with a billowing sail. His mother is a Bakelite hairdryer. In this world, it rains knives and household appliances have souls. There are also no birthdays – only deathdays. Scarper knows he has just three weeks to live. As his deathday approaches, he is forced from his routine and strikes out into the unknown – where friendships are tested and authority challenged.

This unsettling and fiercely original coming-of-age story traces a journey through a bizarre, distorted teenage landscape: a world not so different from our own.

Sound good? Here’s what the reviewers have been saying:

“Brimming with invention, Davis subverts and deepens the school adventure yarn and asks if anyone can escape their fate.” The Independent

“You’re drawn in by its strange world and you come to care about its characters, and both are so vivid that the result is an outstanding piece of work.” SFX Magazine

“A graphic novel of incredible resonance and absolute, inscrutable beauty, at once a coming-of-age and coming-to-terms tale…” The Library Journal

“Whether you choose to read it as an allegorical tale about questioning authority and defining yourself through art, as an autobiographical tale of the creator’s teenage years, or as something else completely, The Motherless Oven is a brilliant graphic novel that you will never forget.” Starburst (9/10)

It seems like yesterday that we were hopping on the train to Kendal for the inaugural Lakes International Comic Art Festival. With a long list of incredible guests and an impressive programme of events, it promised to be good. But the scale of its success and the smoothness of its organisation surprised and delighted everyone. The people of Kendal embraced the comics community’s three-day occupation of their town: comics filled shop window displays, galleries and theatres; the Town Hall was renamed the “Comics Clock Tower” and taken over by the UK’s finest comic book creators and publishers. It was brilliant.

Now, just twelve months on, the Festival has already established itself as a fledgling Angoulême for Great Britain – and this year promises to be even better! It’s happening next weekend, 17th-19th October, so get those train tickets booked, drop everything, and go.

SelfMadeHero will be setting up shop in the Clock Tower (ground floor, tables 35-36) on Saturday and Sunday. Coming with us are an army of amazing creators, including Rob Davis (The Motherless Oven), I. N. J. Culbard (Celeste), Jörg Tittel and John Aggs (Ricky Rouse Has A Gun), Barbara Stok (Vincent) and Nick Abadzis (The Cigar That Fell In Love With A Pipe). Aside from signing on SelfMadeHero’s Clock Tower tables throughout the weekend, they’ll be taking part in a number of events and workshops. Here’s a roundup of what’s happening:

Saturday 18th October

10am-6pm: Creator signings on SelfMadeHero’s stand in the Comics Clock Tower (ground floor, tables 35-36). Venue: Kendal Town Hall. Entry: FREE.

10.30am-12pm: Workshop: Writing For Comics, with Jörg Tittel. Venue: Brewery Arts Centre, Screen 1. Entry: £7.

12.30-2pm: I. N. J. Culbard signing at Waterstones, Kendal

2-3pm: Talk: Vincent Van Gogh: A Different Impression, with Barbara Stok. Hosted by Paul Gravett. Venue: Abbott Hall Gallery. Entry: FREE.

3.30-4.30pm: Talk: Teen Spirit, with Rob Davis. Hosted by Dr Mel Gibson. Venue: Comics Clock Tower, Kendal Town Hall. Entry: £7.

3.45-­4.45pm: Talk: Ricky Rouse Has A Gun, with Jörg Tittel and John Aggs. Hosted by Dr Andrew Miles. Venue: Brewery Arts Centre Screen 1. Entry: £7.

Sunday 19th October

10.30am-5pm: Creator signings on SelfMadeHero’s stand in the Comics Clock Tower (ground floor, tables 35-36). Venue: Kendal Town Hall. Entry: FREE.

12.30-1.30pm: Love And Comics, with Nick Abadzis. Hosted by Joelle Bernard. Venue: Brewery Arts Centre Screen 2. Entry: £7. 

3-4pm: Barbara Stok signs copies of Vincent at Waterstones, Kendal

In addition, original artwork from Glyn Dillon’s Angoulême-winning graphic novel, The Nao of Brown, will be on display as part of the Festival’s Drawing on Japan exhibition in the Brewery Arts Centre.

The Lakes International Comic Art Festival runs from 17th-19th October in Kendal Cumbria. For a full programme of events, click here.