Great North Comics and POP Culture Canada are teaming up to bring you the first edition of Auric’s Tall Tails. This three-page mini-comic will introduce the character of Auric to a younger audience. Since Auric’s Tall Tails is for KIDS we get to see a softer, gentler version of Auric. Recently I sat down with Auric artist, Andrew Thomas to chat about the upcoming comic book.
Martin Boruta: So, Andrew, this is obviously an all-ages / children’s comic book. Cute versions of your characters and all. Why a kid’s book?
Andrew Thomas: It really seems a lot of the things I do today is inspired by my kids. My oldest is discovering comics and even creating his own. It got me thinking, while yes, there are kids comics out there, it still seems like such a gap in the market. Why not promote literacy and market our brand to a wider audience at the same time?
Martin: I can’t help but notice your regular writing partner, Davis Dewsbury is missing from the creator credits.
Andrew: Yes. We brought on Josh Rose, our new writer to help develop some short stories while Davis focused on the regular series and with Sharon Gauthier on colors, it’s a winning combo in my books.
Martin: This first mini-comic is a partnership with POP Culture Canada, a comic convention company. How did that collaboration come about?
Andrew: I’ve attended several of POP Culture Canada’s shows in the past so I’ve developed a bit of a relationship with the organizers. They’re very humble and generous people, not to mention they use their shows for great causes like food banks and the like. Since we were already debuting an exclusive Captain Canuck variant cover, I brought up the idea of Tall Tails and they happily agreed to sponsor the production.
Martin: Beyond the first mini-issue what is the plan for future Auric Tall Tail stories?
Andrew: The plans for Tall Tails is to release a new mini comic at each convention I do. They will be made for kids and best of all they will be FREE.
Martin: So really, the entire project is to give the kids a treat at each show?
Andrew: Not often are conventions catered for children and rarely can they take something from it, so we are looking to change that one show at a time with Auric.
Martin: What other characters are we going to be seeing in the pages of upcoming Auric Tall Tails?
Andrew: This initiative goes beyond Auric, as we are actively creating new content. I have mentioned in the past, but I’m developing a property with my son, so stay tuned for that.
Martin: It was mentioned that the first Auric Tall Tails mini-comic will be given away for free at the Tillsonburg Fair Comic Con & Video Game Expo in July. How can we get our hands on the book if Tillsonburg, Ontario, Canada is not exactly a quick trip down the highway?
Andrew: The physical comic will only have 200 copies made and will be exclusively available at the Tillsonburg Fair. But we will also be making the mini comics available as a free digital download from our website after they debut.
Martin: Well Sir, many thanks for letting us in on some of the details on this fun project of yours.
Andrew: My pleasure and I hope to see everyone at all the conventions.
Series: Auric’s Tall Tails | Publisher: Great North Comics
Writer: Jose Rose | Artists: Andrew Thomas & Sharon Gauthier
Price: FREE
About Author
