I Hate When They Run part 3 and a look to the future

Here we are, on the last day of 2014, at the half way point of our story. I hope you have been enjoying it so far.  Before I share page 3 with you I would like to give you a little peek inside some of the plans and goals for 2015.  I don't know if I will reach all of these goals, but I'm going to work very hard to get as many cool things to you as I possibly can.  Here are the things I would like to do:

1.  Publish at least 3 issues of The Chronicles of the Tal Nor in both print and online
2.   Have a table at S.P.A.C.E. and SPX
3.   Launch Tal-Nor.com
4. Have The Chronicles of the Tal Nor available in at least 25 comic book shops across the country
5. Work out a fair subscription plan for The Chronicles of the Tal Nor, so it will be delivered to you each time we publish.

That is just a taste of what I hope 2015 will bring.  I'll be writing a more detail year in review this weekend.  To see the our story from the beginning click HERE

Until then, enjoy this week's installment and keep making things.

T.

I hate when they run part 2

Merry Christmas eve, today I have the second installment of our tale of Kat Zang, Ryteir of the Tal Nor.  If you haven read part one or would like to see it all together please click HERE.

I hope you have a wonderful holiday and I’ll see you back her on new year’s ever for part three.

Till next time, keep making things.

T.

I Hate When They Run

Now that the printed copies have arrived, I'll be serializing my newest comic book story I Hate When They Run.

This first installment includes the cover, credits page and the first page.  Each Wednesday I'll be posting the next page of the story.  The pages will be collected HERE on the blog.

This story takes place in the same world as Dangers of the road, which can be found HERE.

I hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing.  I also have to hand it to my collaborators Kelsea Jewell and Rose Petrecz, they made my simple little story ten times better than what I originally wrote.  Rose helped me tighten and clarify my script, so that when we pasted it off to Kelsea she didn't have too many questions as to what I was trying to say.  Rose also was instrumental in the artist search that led us to hiring on Kelsea.

Kelsea's brilliance is self-evident just by looking at the art.  Besides being an amazing artist she was also a fantastic collaborator, giving us a ton of options and options on the charters and story.  Both her and rose gave me invaluable feedback on the lettered pages making this not only the best thing I have written (so far) but also took my lettering to a new level.

Without any farther comment, here is I Hate When They Run.

T. 

Pan Seared Thai Chicken over Jasmine Rice with Raw Carrots

First off, I heard back from the printer and according to UPS the comics will be here on Thursday!!!  I'm super excited.  In honor of that I'll start posting up the serialized digital version of the comic her on the blog Wednesday, because it's new comic book day after all.  Who know maybe UPS will get it to me early!

In the meantime, this blog is about making things and that includes cooking.  That's how I started this after all.  The other night I was going through the latest issue of Cooking Light and found a recipe for Thai Street Chicken.  It tasty for the most part, but had a few things in it I'm not the biggest fan of and a few things that upset Rose's stomach.  Plus, when have you know me to see a recipe and not start playing around with it.

Using the Thai Street Chicken as a starting point I created my Pan Seared Thai Chicken.

What you need:

• Skillet (I used Cast iron)
• Freezer bag (or zipping storage bag, I like to use Freezer bags because they tend not to lead as easy)
• 6 pieces of Skinless, boneless Chicken Thigh
• A rolling pin

Marinade stuff:

• 3 cilantro roots
• 1 and a half tablespoons of Brown Sugar
• 2 teaspoons of White Pepper
• 1 tablespoon of ginger (I use the tubed ginger, click here for more about that)
• 3 tablespoons Brags soy Amino
• 1 lime worth of zest
• Half a lime worth of juice (optional)

The Steps: 

1. Place the cilantro roots in to the bag.  Use the rolling pin to bruise the cilantro roots.  I had trouble finding cilantro root, I end up buying one of those herb plant packages of cilantro, the kind that you're meant to put in a dish of water and set out in the sun.  My kitchen doesn't get any sun, so I just up rooted the thing and washed off the dirt. Then I chopped off the roots.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients to make the marinade.  Zip the bag and shake it to mix up the marinade
3. Place the chicken in the bag and once more zip and shake.  Also rub the marinade around to make sure it really gets all over the chicken.
4. Let the chicken sit in the marinade for at least a half hour.  I let it sit overnight.
5. Heat the skillet of high heat. (depending on your stove top)
6. Sear the chicken for 2 to 3 min on both sides, making sure it cooks all the way through.

It was nice to have this already to go when we go to my house.  I threw on the rice and when that was done cooking I cooked the chicken.  The rice added a nice balance to the spice of the chicken, as did the crunchy carrots.  It was the first time I made something in a while, but with publishing the comic and the upcoming Christmas shopping, funds are a little tighter, I think there will be a lot less eating out for Rose and I.

We paired the dish with a little RuPaul's Drag Race season 6.  If you have not seen Drag Race, do yourself a favor and check it out.  The first 6 seasons are streaming on Amazon Prime.  It really is quite an engaging show with none of the meanness you too often see in these types of competition shows.  It really comes across how much Ru wants each of these girls to succeed and wants this to be a positive experience for everyone.

If you make my Pan Seared Thai Chicken please let me know how it turns out.

Till next time, keep making things.

T.

In other news: A Comic Book Question

Today was filled with all sorts of bad news.  My hope is that all protests are peaceful, productive and move us closer to a more just world.  A world where all people are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.  I have more feeling on current events but they are mostly half formed and still need thoughtful consideration.

Let us take a respite from the problems of the world and rejoice in good word.  And that word it, my comic book, I Hate When They Run, ships from the printer tomorrow.  I'm super excited.  They are doing QC on it today and should have a tracking number for me tomorrow!  I know it's just a five page story, but I'm really proud of it.  Also the art is amazing.

The plan is, once I have copies in hand I will serialize the story on this blog.  This is where my question comes in to play, on what day of the week would you most like to see new pages?  Please leave an answer in the comment section or shoot me a message via your favorite social media service. 

Physical copies of the comic are limited, but if you would like one please let me know and I'll try my best to get you one.

Let me leave you with this though, try to be kind to everyone you meet today, for your kindness might be the only kindness they receive today.

Till next time, keep making stuff

T.