Hard to believe that Undertown has been running in the Sunday comics section of major newspapers for over 6 months now, and we appear to be just starting! This past Sunday we welcomed another paper to the fold -- the Concord Monitor from Concord, NH.

To celebrate, the paper ran an article on manga, for which I was interviewed. You can check it out here.

Labels: interview, newspaper strip, syndication, Undertown

A review like this makes all the struggle of being a writer worthwhile. From Tokyopop.com comes this fan review:

Undertown is an amazing book. And I didn't even know about it until recently! I was reading the comics in the newspaper because I particularly enjoyed the tokyopop manga section. Then, as usual, the manga changed, and it happened to be Undertown. Now, it didn't catch my attention quite at first, but by the second or third time it appeared I was interested. So as I was heading to Borders, I thought I'd check it out, even though I planned on buying another novel. It wasn't there, and I didn't have much money for anything else, so I left, but the next time I went, I bought Undertown. Up until this point, I was interested by undertown, but not extremely excited...Well that changed. When I finished reading Undertown, I was thrilled by it and I'm proud to say that it is one of my favorite manga now.

What makes Undertown so great is not only the artwork and appealing cover, but also the story. I think it is a very exciting plot line, and no part is too slow. The characters are also very well developed and you don't figure everything out in the first book, that is some things are still left unsolved, and that makes me even more excited for the second book! My favorite character is Sama, because he is not your average hero. He is an ordianry boy thrown into difficult situations and has room to develop further in the future books of Undertown. Overall, if it weren't for that newspaper, I'd be missing out on something truly special.

-- by Sassysapphire20

Thanks, Sassy. Book 2 is for you and all the other fans like you!

Labels: reviews, Undertown

Given my interest in discussing the process of writing (see my Writers Tips posts on this site), I thought it would be interesting to share the complete script for my recent manga book, UNDERTOWN. So I'm serializing it on Tokyopop.com -- a new page every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, along with "creator commentary" that either explains some of my crazy ways or offers some kind of behind-the-scenes insight.

Today is the end of week one, so there are already three pages up. Because I have over 1400 members of my online fan club, The Undertown Explorers, and because many of them are aspiring manga writers, I'm hoping that we can start a discussion not just about Undertown the story, but about the nuts and bolts of writing comics.

Also of interest is the fact that this is the "shooting script," which is to say that it's the version that Jake Myler used to draw the book. After the whole thing was written and the book was drawn in pencil, I went back and polished all of the dialog. So adventurous writers-in-training can compare this version with what was published and try to figure out why I made the changes I did.

The script serialization located here. I hope you get something out of this peek behind the curtain.

Labels: comics, manga, script, Tokyopop, Undertown, writers' tips

Rock on, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette!

Today the above-mentioned Pittsburgh newspaper published an article on me and my book UNDERTOWN. And when I saw the title in print, I was humbled and awed:

"Comics Writer a Manga Master."

To be fair, as proud as I am with the success of Undertown, I feel like I'm still a ways off from joining the true manga masters like Otomo, Toriyama, and the mighty Tezuka.

But nice articles like this make me feel that I'm at least on the right path...

Labels: interview, manga, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Tokyopop, Undertown

The Undertown PR machine marches on! Check out the rather in-depth interview over at Comic Book Resources.

Labels: comic book resources, interview, Jake Myler, manga, Tokyopop, Undertown

A lot of folks wrote up the news about Undertown getting syndicated in the Sunday comics, but Katherine Dacey's article on PopCultureShock is the most thoroughly researched and well written.

There's a lot of insight about the newspaper deal from Tokyopop's Jeremy Ross, and some interesting bits from my beloved editor Paul "all the girls love me" Morrissey.

Labels: manga, newspaper strip, Paul Morrissey, Tokyopop, Undertown

This is some big news ... it deserves press release formatting! (though I've found that a "Jim Pascoe release" is really a super-cool wrestling move)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JIM PASCOE'S UNDERTOWN GETS SYNDICATED
Breakout Manga Fills TOKYOPOP Slot in Over 50 Newspapers

LOS ANGELES -- January 3, 2008 -- If the first name that comes to mind when you think of Sunday comic strips is Peanuts, you haven't been tuned into the manga revolution that has been drawing kids back to the funny pages.

Jim Pascoe announced today that his original English-language manga UNDERTOWN will be the new property running in TOKYOPOP's syndicated slot starting this Sunday, January 6, 2008. Since 2005, TOKYOPOP has provided a rotating selection of manga to Universal Press Syndicate, which distributes comics and columns globally to newspapers.

Over 50 papers plan to carry Undertown, including the Los Angeles Time, Denver Post, Vancouver Sun and Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Created and written by Jim Pascoe, Undertown is the story of Sama, a boy on the verge of 'tweenhood, who knows that the answer to saving his father lies in a strange world under his bed. Pascoe paired with Jake Myler, whose unusually grand, audacious style complimented Pascoe's dark mindscapes. The two collaborated for 14 months on the coming-of-age fiction fantasy.

"I wanted to create family fare ... but with an edge," Pascoe said. "My long-standing experience in noir fiction combined with my passion for creating content for 'tweens led me to a magical place."

Scholastic Books agreed. Late last year the publisher of Harry Potter bought the rights to produce their own edition of Undertown, set at a lower price point specifically for their book club.

"Undertown is unique from our past newspaper offerings in that we plan to run the story from volume one, unedited," said Jeremy Ross, Director of New Product Development for TOKYOPOP. "We are looking to this property to take our newspaper presence to the next level.

The timing of this launch has a lot of meaning for Pascoe. Two years ago his father -- like the father in Undertown -- was put on the list to get a heart transplant.

"Last week was the two-year anniversary of my father's successful transplant surgery," Pascoe said, "and the syndicated strip appears in papers the day before his 61th birthday. I believe in magic and miracles, and I hope that readers can experience some of this wonder in Undertown every Sunday."

Labels: comics tokyopop, newspaper strip, syndication, Undertown

I'll be making a special appearance at this weekend's Anime Los Angeles convention. No, I will not be animated. Oh wait, who am I kidding -- I WILL BE TOTALLY 100% ANIMATED. In fact, I will be traveling with my own speed lines. I'll be on a panel Saturday at 3:00. Check out more details here. Hope to see you there!

Labels: anime los angeles, public appearances, Undertown

At least that's what the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review thinks of Undertown! Not content with their standard review of the book, which hit the stands last August, the Trib extends the love to a feature article called, "Carnegie native makes Japanese-style graphic novels." Michael Machosky pens a powerful piece of press on my book, and I couldn't be happier. Check out the full write-up here.

This is all that much sweeter considering that it was two years ago yesterday that my dad had his heart transplant. He's doing very well, and I can't help but think this article will make him smile.

Labels: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Undertown

A reminder for those who may want to enter the UNDERTOWN contest and get the chance to win an mp3 phone and some beautiful original art by Jake Myler: the contest entries are due this Sunday at midnight (check Tokyopop.com for exact time). We have over 700 members in the Undertown Explorers fan club/clan ... and I'm really happy that so many people are responding to my book! A special shout out to Explorer Jesse "BANJOTOWN" Murphy who has this to say about Undertown:

"One of the best manga's i've EVER read... almost better than naruto! When the 2nd one comes out, i'm buying it the first day!! =D"

Almost better than Naruto is a high compliment indeed! Thanks!

Labels: contests, Jake Myler, Naruto, Tokyopop, Undertown

I mentioned that Tokyopop was running a cool contest called the Undertown Scavenger Hunt, in which you can win cool prizes by finding hidden things in my manga UNDERTOWN. One of the prizes is an mp3 phone, but the other prize is a piece of original art by Undertown artist Jake Myler.

What's it look like? That's a good question. Check it out.



Remember, you have to join my fan club UNDERTOWN EXPLORERS on Tokyopop.com to be eligible to win. Good luck!

Labels: contests, Jake Myler, Tokyopop, Undertown

The good and kind folks at TOKYOPOP have put together a pretty killer contest to promote my new book UNDERTOWN. Here's the details:

"Secret items hidden in the pages of Undertown, Vol 1 await your discovery! Begin your hunt right away ... for one submission containing the correct answers will be randomly chosen to win a brand new MP3 phone, filled with TOKYOPOP manga-tones and ringtones! On top of that, the winner will also receive original art from Undertown artist Jake Myler!" Read the rest here .

You have to join my official fan club -- The Undertown Explorers -- which is a "clan" group on tokyopop.com's social network style site. If you are interested in manga and comics, it's WAY better than myspace!

Hope to see you over there. I post all Undertown news first there before I get around to blabbing about it on this site.

Labels: contests, Tokyopop, Undertown

One of the moments from the West Hollywood Book Festival last Sunday that has stuck with me is this comment from a woman who came up to the Tokyopop booth and, having looked through my book UNDERTOWN, said to me:

"For your next book consider putting in some minority characters. Kids like to read about characters that look like them."

I think I just smiled and nodded at the time -- I've calmed down a lot from my trouble-making days, and I go to book festivals to meet fans and sell books, not get into fist fights.

But, man, I should have punched this stupid, ignorant woman right in the face.

How dare you judge me or my work without knowing me or the work that I've done? Have you read the thirteen books I've written? Have you read ANY OF THE BOOKS I've written?

Okay, here's the UGLY truth about Undertown. All of the human characters are white. That's right. The main boy Sama, his sick father, and sad mother are white. The whole family. White.

Everyone else? THEY'RE ANIMALS.

A woman came up to me to argue that there aren't any minorities represented in a BOOK FULL OF TALKING ANIMALS.

WOMAN, ARE YOU HIGH? Are you so self-righteous that you can't recognize that by having a book filled with animals is exactly designed to appeal to a wide pool of ethnicities specifically BECAUSE there is no alienating predominant race throughout the book?

This affirmative action in fiction is bullshit. I don't want to read a black book with white characters thrown in so I can relate to it better.

Part of an author's job is balance. If there's too much of something -- action, dialog, characters of one gender, characters of one race -- there's a point to which this can harm a story, unless it is specifically FUELING the story, trying to create a discomfort in the reader. But no story will ever be better by playing Snow White and marching seven little minorities to work, whistling all the way.

Labels: minorities, Undertown, West Hollywood Book Festival

That's right, nothing can stop the Pasconian marketing machine! This weekend, I'll be at two different book festivals, just to prove that when I'm not writing, I'm promoting my new book UNDERTOWN.

Saturday, I'll be in lovely Santa Barbara with my own booth selling and signing Undertown all day.

Then on Sunday, it's West Hollywood. This L.A. fest packs all the charm of the UCLA Festival of Books (plus some) into a much smaller event. It's gets better every year, and I'm thrilled to be promoting both L.A. Noir with a panel discussion at 11am (signing afterwords) and Undertown at the manga 101 panel at 3:15pm.

Hope to see you there!

Labels: Los Angeles Noir, public appearances, Undertown

I hope to see everyone in Westwood tomorrow when I sign at the Mystery Bookstore in Westwood at 1:00 p.m. UNDERTOWN doesn't officially street (that means "come out") until this Tuesday, so if you missed Comic-Con, this is your other chance to get the book early before it takes over bookstores across America.

Tokyopop has put up a wonderful banner and article on the home page of their site. Go team TP! Thanks also to the cool folks at the L.A. Noir blog for talking up the event. Bullet for you!

An exclusive Undertown poster will be available at the signing. Check it out below! Print it on your ink jet and hang it in your locker. Then point out Eddie, the cute Teddy Bear with attitude, to the cheerleaders ... and you might get kissed.

This is the power of Undertown!

Labels: Mystery Bookstore, public appearances, Tokyopop, Undertown

It begins...

Mark your calendars for this coming Saturday, August 11 at 1:00 pm. I'll be appearing at The Mystery Bookstore in Westwood for a fantastic Undertown signing. I'll also be "discussing" Undertown, which if you've ever been to one of my signings could very well mean I'll

a) run around the store looking for other people's books to read aloud,

b) go on and on about how great an artist Jake Myler is and how lucky I am to work with him.

c) use this as an opportunity to drink profusely ... okay, maybe not at a kids book signing; then again, who am I kidding.

d) lecture about the mechanics of how comics are made, all the while explaining my ever-growing believe in magic and the power of bells.

How can you miss it? Please don't do it.

Labels: Mystery Bookstore, public appearances, Undertown

The definite highlight of my fantastic time at Comic-Con International - signing UNDERTOWN at the home of Bone, The Golden Compass, and Harry Potter.



I've only slept about 3 hours since the show ended. I'll try to post more shots, if I ever get a bit of rest. Yeah, I know. Unlikely.

Labels: Comic-Con, comics, Scholastic, Tokyopop, Undertown

Are you brave enough to go to San Diego? If so, you MUST stop by and say hello.

Thursday, July 26, 11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Breaking Into Manga panel discussion
Location: TOKYOPOP booth 3529

Thursday, July 26, 1:00-2:00 p.m.
Friday, July 27, 5:00-6:00 p.m.
Jim Pascoe signing ZOMBIE TALES
Location: BOOM! Studios Booth 2543

Thursday, July 26, 5:00-6:00 p.m.
Group Signing
Location: TOKYOPOP booth 3529

Friday, July 27, 2:00-3:00 p.m.
Jim Pascoe signing UNDERTOWN
Location: Scholastic Press booth 2806

Friday, July 27, 5:00-6:00 p.m.
Jim Pascoe signing ZOMBIE TALES
Location: BOOM! Studios Booth 2543

Saturday, July 28, 11:00-12:00 p.m.
Writing for Manga
Location: TOKYOPOP booth 3529

Saturday, July 28, 3:00-4:00 p.m.
Jim Pascoe signing ZOMBIE TALES
Location: BOOM! Studios Booth 2543

Sunday, July 29, 10:30-11:30 AM
TOKYOPOP Creator Panel
Location: room 2

see you there...

Labels: Boom Studios, Comic-Con, Scholastic, Tokyopop, Undertown, Zombie Tales

From Fiction Reviews: Week of 7/23/2007:

Undertown
Jim Pascoe and Jake Myler. Tokyopop, $9.99 paper (192p)
ISBN 978-1-42780-103-6

This fantasy manga presents the right mix of familiar tropes along with new ideas that should capture the imaginations of more than a few readers. Pascoe's story stars young Sama, a boy whose father is in the hospital following a heart attack. Sama wants to mend his father's health, but feels powerless in the face of the situation. A strange old man tells him of Undertown, a magical place that holds, among other things, the Sugar Stone, a magical object that could help Sama's father. After transporting to Undertown, Sama is thrown right into the middle of a land at war. Insects and "Furmen," such as the anthropomorphic rabbit and hedgehog Sama befriends, vie for control of the Sugar Stone. Undertown's real strength lies in how all these concepts are introduced with a breakneck pace and with grand strokes. Myler's art makes sure that this is a book with plenty of action and characters in dramatic poses. The situations sometimes overwhelm the art but most of the time all the figures and their adventures are rendered in a very readable style.

Labels: reviews, Tokyopop, Undertown

That's right, after years of work, this evening at the preview night of Comic-Con International, my new original series UNDERTOWN will make its debut to the public. Right now, it's a Comic-Con exclusive - the book is only available at the big San Diego show this weekend before it officially drops on August 7.



UNDERTOWN is the most personal work I've done to date. And I couldn't be more thrilled how it turned out. The art by superstar Jake Myler is jaw-dropping gorgeous. He has brought so much to this project it's almost hard to calculate. The publisher TOKYOPOP is the most supportive publisher I've worked with - my editor Paul Morrissey is a cool cat, and the marketing/publicity folks are top notch.

The big news surrounding this book is that Scholastic - yes, the same publisher of HARRY POTTER - has bought the rights to reprint their own edition. So UNDERTOWN will be available in TWO editions:

- The Scholastic edition is the affordable edition, priced at $7.99. It contains the full story, and is really what the book was always planned to be.

- The TOKYOPOP edition will now be a deluxe edition, while still being priced at the standard T-pop $9.99. What's so lux about it? This edition features 8 full-color pages, a special behind-the-scenes section, and an exclusive preview of Jim Henson's Legends of the Dark Crystal manga!

Labels: Comic-Con, Scholastic, The Dark Crystal, Tokyopop, Undertown

Yeah, it's last minute, but I just found out myself. If you're in the Hollywood area, please stop by the Meltdown. It will be fun, I'm sure.

It's called Tokyopop Tsnami, and it's the first official publicity event for my book Undertown, due out this summer.

Labels: Tokyopop, Undertown