THE PULSE’s Jennifer Contino talks to a roundtable of ChemSet creators about the upcoming NO FORMULA anthology. (Hint, hint: it’s in the June PREVIEWS, Diamond Order Code JUN083849).

http://www.comicon.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php/ubb/get_topic/f/36/t/007248.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 29, 2008

WEBCOMICS COLLECTIVE ‘THE CHEMISTRY SET’ JUMPS TO BOOKSHELVES IN AUGUST WITH DESPERADO’S ‘NO FORMULA’

August 2008 marks the print debut of the webcomics collective The Chemistry Set in an anthology collection from Desperado Publishing entitled ‘NO FORMULA: STORIES FROM THE CHEMISTRY SET, VOL.1′ (Diamond Order Code JUN083849), just in time for the Set’s two-year anniversary. “There’s no better way to celebrate our Terrible Twos than with a big release like this,” said Jim Dougan, an original ChemSetter approached by Desperado publisher Joe Pruett to edit the anthology. “The only problem was choosing from among the literally hundreds of pages of great comics we’ve got on the site. Joe wanted only self-contained stories, though, so while that unfortunately left out a lot of great stuff, it helped me narrow it down. Are these the best 120 pages of comics ever to appear at the ChemSet? No. Are they the 120 pages that fit together best as a book? I think so.”

NO FORMULA will feature 12 stories from the two-year history of the ChemSet, in both black-and-white and color, all under a gorgeous color cover by Hyeondo Park. The story contents, most of which can be previewed online at www.chemsetcomics.com, are:

“The System” by Tony Goins and Tom Williams

“Night’s Plutonian Shore” by Neil Kleid and jamesmith3

“Rest Stop” by Jim Dougan, Dean Haspiel and Michel Fiffe

“Red” by Elizabeth Genco and Kevin Colden

“Snowblind” by Chris Arrant and Jessica Hickman

“The Legend of Caraboy” by Andrew Drilon

“Yes, Mother” by Elizabeth Genco and Sami Makkonen

“I’m Madly in Love” by Vito Delsante and Michel Fiffe

“Grinwit” by Andrew Drilon

“Dinner Date #9″ by Steven Goldman and Rami Efal

“Come the Dawn” by Jim Dougan and Hyeondo Park

“Rosa” by Steven Goldman and Rami Efal

“Joe Pruett has been an extraordinary supporter of the ChemSet virtually since its inception, and NO FORMULA is just an outgrowth of that,” said Dougan. “At least half a dozen issues of NEGATIVE BURN have featured ChemSetters, and in July we’ve got the graphic novel BLUE (Diamond order code MAY083778) coming from Elizabeth [Genco] and Sami [Makkonen], who also have a short story together in NO FORMULA. The relationship with Desperado is something we’re thankful for, and hope will continue to grow (thus the perhaps-optimistic ‘Vol.1′ in the title). For that to happen, folks need to go out and buy the books, though – so please pre-order your copies!”

NO FORMULA is found on page 256 of the June PREVIEWS (for comics shipping in August) - conveniently right next to the short order form.

Official Solicitation Text:

Haunting. Humorous. Harrowing. Those are just some of the words to describe the short stories compiled in this inaugural collection from the international comics collective the Chemistry Set. Founded in 2006, the Chemistry Set has served as the breeding ground for tomorrow’s comic all-stars and includes three Xeric Award winners. Combining talents from America, Australia, Europe and Asia, their chemistry together is seen in stories that range from the heartfelt to the horrifying, from the mythological to the macabre.

NO FORMULA: STORIES FROM THE CHEMISTRY SET, VOL.1
Color / B&W, 120 pp. 6in x. 9in.
Price: $16.99
Diamond Order Code: JUN083849
ISBN-10: 1935002090
ISBN-13: 978-1935002093

–
For further information, please contact Jim Dougan at chatterbox.comix@gmail.com

www.chemsetcomics.com
www.desperadopublishing.com

THE CHEMISTRY SET is a diverse group, with people living at all corners of the world. A couple of ours are in the news this week, so I thought I’d tell you about it.

Neil Kleid, writer of Todt Hill, has been announced as adapting a story for Devil’s Due Publishing’s latest anthology title, worlds of Dungeons and Dragons. He’s doing a two-part story called “The Legacy” that will appear in issues #1 and #2.

And artist Tom Williams (Stuck, Styx Taxi: Federico) recently had his minicomic S.P.B.: Rise reviewed by none other than Dave Sim. The Cerebus creator calls Tom’s work “gorgeous”, so check it out at Dave Sim’s blog, under December 4th, 2007.

Heads up to all Chemset fans, as two of our own have stories in the just-released anthology Slave Labor Stories: Too Stupid To Quit, To Mean to Die. Organized to celebrate SLG Publish’s 20th Anniversary, Todt Hill’s Neil Kleid and 1 Way Ticket’s Daniel Warner each contribute stories. Neil’s is called “Haunted Office”, and Dan’s is titled “The Pitches”.

Best of all? You can get it today - as a $1.99 download from Eyemelt.com or a print copy from from Lulu.com. Congratulations to SLG, Dan Vado, Jennifer de Guzman and our own Kleid and Warner for making the book.

THE CHEMISTRY SET is a collective of writers and artists, including several Xeric Award winners, pooling their talent to provide readers with free weekly comics. With stories told in a variety of genres such as fantasy, thriller, Western, and straight-up adventure, the collaborators aim to provide something for everybody.

The idea for THE CHEMISTRY SET was born with Vito Delsante (BATMAN ADVENTURES, FALLOUT). “The Chemistry Set came from two separate conversations; one with Neil Kleid (BROWNSVILLE, NINETY CANDLES) and one with Chris Arrant,” says Delsante. “We all seemed to want that grassroots kind of ‘back to our roots’ movement that Dean Haspiel and the ACT-I-VATE crew have, but the three of us are all writers. So we decided to focus on the collaboration…the chemistry, so to speak, between an artist and a writer.” Before long, Delsante had recruited the rest of the ‘Set.

The current lineup includes:

MONDAY: STUCK (Vito Delsante and Tom Williams): A story of tragedy and the human condition, set on one car of New York City’s N Train. Each chapter focuses on an individual passenger and his or her respective “Last Night.” Told in a similar fashion to TV’s Lost, STUCK is a story that has resonance and relevance in today’s post 9/11 world.

TUESDAY: VULTURE GULCH and OTHER STORIES (Jim Dougan and others): New Mexico – 1875. Dr. Clem Cooper has the busy job of undertaker in Vulture Gulch, a raucous Wild West town, and with a personality that’s part Lt. Columbo and part John Constantine, he’s a burr in the saddle of the bad guys who come looking for trouble. Throw in sexy outlaw Molly Hill and her gang, and you’ve got a recipe for excitement!

WEDNESDAY: 1 WAY TICKET (Chris Arrant and Dan Warner): If you have ever carved a band logo into a desk, If you decided what instrument to play based on what was needed to make a band with your friends, if you know who would be in the ‘Special Thanks’ liner notes of your debut album, if you have ever closed your eyes and imagined yourself surrounded by thousands of screaming fans — this one’s for you.

THURSDAY: SCHEHERAZADE (Elizabeth Genco and Adam Boorman): A modern urban tapestry woven from old magic and old stories, SCHEHERAZADE is a sheltered young woman in a house without windows, peeling back the blinders and throwing open the shutters. SCHEHERAZADE is the tale of a dying man and his last victim, whose stories just might help him find the redemption he craves.

THURSDAY: STYX TAXI (Steven Goldman and others (including Jeremy Arambulo, Dan Goldman, and Rami Efal)): An metaphysical fantasy from the streets of New York City, STYX TAXI follows the afterlives and accomplishments of the drivers of the city’s only taxi service for the recently-deceased. People die, their souls leave their body, and sometimes, just sometimes, a cab pulls in between them and the Bright Light, offering them a last ride (one stop, two hours max) to anywhere they want to go… one last chance at redemption, closure, or contentment on their way out of this life.

FRIDAY: TODT HILL (Neil Kleid and Kevin Colden): A tale of ancient treasure, insular societies, immortal greed and the infinite possibilities of youth. Yesterday, Mike and Gil Tompkins, newly arrived on the isolated island of Todt Hill, found a secret map and alongside a zombie mechanic, a Mafia princess and the smallest pirate in the world. They are out to find a treasure that will heal their community and reunite them with the rest of America.