If you havent read RASL yet, Philip Shropshire over at Comics Forge has reviewed it thus far. Some possible spoilers, so new readers be warned!

You can read the full review here!

Here’s a fan drawing of the spooky girl from his site!

Hi everybody, Tom here!

The Harvey Awards ballots are due tomorrow, August, 6th.

Jeff, as well as some of our close friends, Terry Moore (ECHO), Raina Telgemeier (SMILE), and Kazu Kibuishi (AMULET) are nominated this year.

Please take a moment to vote for your favorites. Voting is open to anyone professionally involved in a creative capacity within the comics field. You can get your ballot by going here and then emailing to harveyballots@hotmail.com

The Harvey Awards are one of the comic book industry’s oldest and most respected awards. The Harvey’s recognize outstanding achievements in over 20 categories, ranging from Best Artist to the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame. They are the only industry awards both nominated by and selected by the full body of comic book professionals.

Hope to see you in Baltimore in two weeks! For more information visit their website here!

Comic Book Resources posted an article on Jeff’s spotlight panel at last weeks Comic Con International.

You can read it here!

As soon as we can gather all of our pics and stories, Jeff will do a SDCC wrap up blog later. Stay tuned!

Here’s a pic of Steve, Kathleen and I hamming it up in the photo booth that was at the BONE 20th Anniversary party that Scholastic threw for us. THANKS AGAIN SCHOLASTIC!!!

The kick-off to the 20th ANNIVERSARY BONE TOUR will be in San Diego at the Comic-Con International. I’m a guest this year and I think it’s going to be a fun year. Here are the goodies we are debuting at the Cartoon Books booth:

The BONE boys! The Fone Bone plush was a big hit a couple of years ago, and this summer his two cousins are with him. Premiering at this year’s Comic-Con is plush Phoney Bone and Smiley Bone.

The 20th Anniversary Box Set that contains a hardcover One Volume Edition of BONE in full color…

…plus a lot sweet goodies, like a miniature reproduction of BONE #1, a DVD, and a Phoney Bone gold coin. I like this set a lot. Can you tell?

I’m flipping through the 20th Anniversary Timeline/Cover Gallery Book. That’s the DVD documentary peeking out of the back there.  On the couch is the mini reproduction of BONE #1

The other big premiere will be RASL Book 3: Romance at the Speed of Light. Wait’ll you see the RASL side of our booth this year. It’s Tesla-riffic!

I will be signing at the Cartoon Books booth (#2109) every day and participating in various panels. Here is my Comic-Con schedule:

Preview Night July 20th:

•  7 pm-9 pm: Jeff Smith signing at the Cartoon Books Booth #2109

Thursday, July 21st:

• 1:30pm-3:30pm Jeff Smith signing at the Cartoon Books Booth #2109

• 5:00pm-6:00pm Panel: Epic Literary Adventure, Room 9 with Jeff Smith, Anders Nilsen, and Brian Ralph

Friday, July 22nd:

• 10:00am-12:00pm Jeff Smith signing at the Cartoon Books Booth #2109

• 12:30pm-1:30pm Jeff and Vijaya Panel: Spotlight on Jeff Smith, Room 5AB,

• 4:00pm-6:00pm Cartoon Books Booth Signing SPECIAL “Quest for the Spark” signing with Jeff Smith, Tom Sniegoski and Steve Hamaker

Saturday, July 23rd:

• 11:00am-12:00pm Panel: Will Eisner–Visionary, Room 9, Moderated by Charles Brownstein, Panel Participants: Jeff Smith, Paul Levitz, Denis Kitchen, Diana Shutz, and ScottMcCloud

• 12:30pm-2:30pm Jeff Smith signing at the Cartoon Books Booth #2109

• 1:30pm-2:30pm Vijaya Panel: Is the Comic Book Doomed? Room 24ABC with Doug Wolk

• 4:00pm-6:00pm Jeff Smith signing at the Cartoon Books Booth #2109

Sunday, July 24th:

• 10:00am-11:00am Panel: Cover Story-The Art of the Cover, Room 25ABC 2:00pm-3:00pm Moderated by Mark Evanier, Panel Participants Jeff Smith, Ernie Chan, Jo Chen, Alan Davis, Dave Gibbons and Ashley Wood

• 4:00pm-5:00pm Jeff Smith signing at the Cartoon Books Booth #2109

Consult your program guide for panel room #s.

If you can’t make it to a show on the 2011 BONE 20th Anniversary Tour, don’t worry, because just like last year, we will have a store sale that includes Jeff’s signature on every book that you purchase. More on that later this week!

FULL PRESS RELEASE from ComiXology:

Critically Acclaimed Series BONE and RASL Debut on comiXology with Their Own Dedicated iOS Apps.

Fans of All Ages Everywhere Can Now Enjoy One of the Greatest Comics of All Time in an Ultra-Intuitive Digital Format

New York NY, July 14th 2011 –Named “one of the ten greatest graphics novels of all time” by TIME Magazine, BONE is now available for fans of all ages everywhere to read and enjoy in an ultra-intuitive digital format through comiXology, the leading digital comics platform provider for the iOS, Android and Web.  In collaboration with creator Jeff Smith, comiXology has created a dedicated digital comic app of the series for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.

Created by Smith, a multiple award-winning cartoonist, the critically acclaimed BONE series centers around the humor-laced misadventures of the BONE cousins. Booklist writes: “As many comics fans know, the series chronicles the adventures of the Bone cousins–plucky Fone Bone, scheming Phony Bone, and easygoing Smiley Bone– who leave their home of Boneville and are swept up in a Tolkienesque epic of royalty, dragons, and unspeakable evil forces out to conquer humankind.”  The series will also soon to be made into a major motion picture.

“BONE is a modern day classic,” said David Steinberger, CEO of comiXology.  “We are proud to bring this multiple award-winning comic book into the digital environment for the enjoyment of fans of all ages.”

Published by the #1 children’s book publisher in the world, Scholastic, BONE is one of two books written by Smith that will be released on comiXology. The second, RASL, is a stark, black and white comic book focusing on the hard-boiled adventures of an art thief who hops through dimensional barriers, hiding out on various parallel worlds. In a starred review, Publisher’s Weekly decribed it as “ a stunning narrative that impresses with its originality, sophistication, and complexity.”  RASL will also get its own dedicated app.  And to celebrate their release, BONE #1 and RASL #1 will be free with the other books on sale for $.99 from July 14th-19th.

This year, Jeff Smith is celebrating twenty years in the comic book business. In 1991, he launched a company called Cartoon Books to publish his comics work, and against all odds, the small company flourished, building a reputation for quality stories and artwork.  In 2005, Scholastic Graphix began publishing Bone as a series of full-color graphic novels.  With well over 6 million books sold in the U.S. and Canada, BONE has become one of the top selling U.S. graphic novels of all time.
“comiXology is on the pulse of what readers want in the digital world,” said Jeff Smith, creator of BONE. “Based on popular demand, we couldn’t be more delighted to bring BONE to its community of loyal fans and now for the first time ever, on the iPad.”

Creator Jeff Smith will also be hosting an exclusive live Q&A on Reddit, Thursday July 14th, from 4pm-6pm to answer any questions and thoughts that you have. Please go to www.comixology.com/reddit during that time to chat directly with him.

Any BONE and RASL comics purchased in the dedicated apps will sync and also be available to read in the Comics apps.

About comiXology
Since 2007 comiXology has been developing the technological infrastructure to bring comics into the digital mainstream and expose new audiences to the rich history and culture of the industry. Through partnerships with top comic book publishers including Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Archaia Entertainment, BOOM! Studios, Dynamite Entertainment and Image Comics as well as their own mobile and web apps which hosts over 10,000 digital titles, comiXology has become a leader in digital comic book proliferation. Also focused on creating strong ties with retail stores through its technology solutions, comiXology continues to transform the previously fragmented comic ecosystem into a vibrant and cohesive marketplace.