New Home

Over the next few days (by which I probably mean weeks) I'm going to be moving away from this blog to a spiffy new online home. Stop by and say hi, won't you?

October Baseball!

Sox-Astros, Dodgers-Brewers. Any combination of those four teams will make for a terrific World Series. Will it be a rematch of last year's Dodgers-Astros thriller...or a rematch of the 1916 tilt between Babe Ruth's Sox and the Brooklyn Robins (also known as Dodgers)? Or will the Brewers finally lift their first World Series trophy in their first appearance since 1982, when they were in the American League?

In honor of the season, the American Booksellers Association has just released its baseball bestseller list, with The Comic Book Story of Baseball making the final four. Stop by your local bookstore, or order now and you'll have it in plenty of time for the World Series. (Or plenty of time to stop wondering what you'll get that certain someone for Christmas...)

Roundup: Interviews, New Short Stories

I feel like I've done a lot of talking over the past couple of months, mostly about The Comic Book Story of Baseball. If you care to listen to some of those conversations, here are links:

WBUR's "Radio Boston," with Anthony Brooks
"Baseball by the Book," with Justin McGuire
"Beyond the Trope," with Giles Hash (Tomm Coker's on this one too!)

I also talked about life as a tie-in writer with Minister Faust, on MF Galaxy. (Whose novels you should read.)

On the short fiction front, the new issue of Lightspeed Magazine contains a new story of mine, "The Atonement Path." Also, if you missed it back at the end of May, my short story "Black Friday" is up at Tor.com.

And, as always, there's more stuff cooking on the various creative fronts. Stay tuned...

Where I'll Be at SDCC

Here's where I'm signing and paneling at San Diego Comic-Con this year. If you happen to be at the show, stop by and say hi at any of these times!

THURSDAY

1pm Marvel Games Panel, Hall H

Get an inside look at the latest and greatest from Marvel Games. Attendees will see exciting sneak peeks of Marvel's Spider-Man, Marvel Powers United VR, and Marvel Battle Lines, with many unannounced surprises and panel exclusives. Host Greg Miller (loudmouth at KindaFunny.com) will be joined by Mike Jones (vice president & executive producer, Marvel Games), Bill Rosemann (executive creative director, Marvel Games), Bryan Intihar (creative director, Insomniac Games, Marvel's Spider-Man), and others.

6pm Infectiously Expanding the Universe of Tom Clancy's The Division 2, room 6BCF

Tom Clancy's The Division 2 creative director Julian Gerighty and other members of the team take you on a journey through what it takes to bring the post-pandemic world of The Division 2 to life in-game. Learn how the Division narrative is constructed with the vision of expanding through comic books, novels, and other entertainment.


FRIDAY

10am The Power of the Nonfiction Graphic Novel, room 32AB

In recent years, the nonfiction genre has given graphic novels a real home in mainstream pop culture. From Maus to Persepolis, Fun Home to March, nonfiction graphic novels are winning awards, being adapted into a multitude of other genres, and getting into the hands of a whole new generation of readers. But what does the future of the nonfiction graphic novel genre look like? What stories still need to be told, and what are creators excited to be working on and sharing right now? Panelists Thi Bui (The Best We Could Do), Abby Howard (Ocean Renegades!), Alex Irvine (The Comic Book Story of Baseball), Clifford Johnson (The Dialogues), and Peter Tomasi (The Bridge) answer these questions and more with Travis Langley (Daredevil Psychology).

11:30am Post-panel signing, Autograph area AA09 -- This is with the rest of the nonfiction GN panelists, but I'm sure we'll all sign other stuff too!

3pm Signing Halo: Collateral Damage (and whatever else you might bring) at the Dark Horse booth, 2615 -- along with Tyler Jeffers, Jody Houser, Jonathan Wayshak, and maybe some others!


SATURDAY

Fish tacos

Talking Baseball on WBUR

Yesterday I had the good fortune to appear on WBUR's "Radio Boston" with Anthony Brooks, talking about The Comic Book Story of Baseball. If you missed the show, don't fret! It's archived on WBUR's web site.

And if that conversation whets your appetite for the book, pick it up from your local bookseller, Amazon, or B&N.

Things I Wish I Could Have Gotten into the Comic Book Story of Baseball, Part 1

Having only 176 pages to work with, I couldn't come close to cramming in every baseball story I wanted to tell. So, to get some of these regrets off my chest, I'll post once in a while about other great baseball-related stuff I ran across while researching The Comic Book Story of Baseball...but couldn't get into the final book.

Here are the first three:

Baseball Comics #1, Will Eisner's sadly ill-fated 1949 attempt to start up an ongoing baseball comic. The story of Rube Rooky and his rough-and-tumble journey from backwoods iceman to the World Series is superb Eisner. (Is there any other kind?)

The story of Jackie Mitchell, who as a 17-year-old girl struck out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in an exhibition while pitching for the AA Chattanooga Lookouts. (Although it may have been a publicity stunt.) Two years later, she would sign up for the House of David barnstorming team.

Lena Blackburne Rubbing Mud, the official mud used to dirty up baseballs before they're used in a game. The exact source of the mud is a secret. It is named after Russell "Lena" Blackburne, a manager and coach for the White Sox and Athletics, who starting applying it to balls in 1938.

Black Friday Art

Check out this cool Kyle Stecker art for my short story "Black Friday," due to appear May 30 at Tor.com:

Play Ball!

The Comic Book Story of Baseball is out today! Thanks to Tomm Coker and C.P. Smith for making it look so good, Jason Yarn for his indefatigable agenting, Patrick Barb and Chloe Rawlins for their sharp editorial and design work -- and you for reading.

What's that, you say? You would like to purchase a copy? Well, here's a way to find the book at your local independent bookseller via IndieBound.

Or here's the Amazon link.

And if you're going to pick it up at a comic shop (it won't be there until tomorrow), here's a handy Comic Shop Locator.

Need some convincing? Here are a few early reviews...

“Marvel comics veterans Coker and Smith deliver powerful graphics, tinted lightly with color for a marvelous vintage effect, while Irvine orchestrates a brief, masterly overview of this morale-boosting sport. Fans of any age will love.” -- Library Journal

". . . a lively and accessible chronicle of America’s pastime, with panels that crack and wallop with image and fact." -- Boston Globe

"Heroes, villains, long odds, and tall-tales: baseball history should always be presented in comic book form. The Comic Book Story of Baseball is probably the most accessible history of the game I've ever held in my hands. I'd recommend this little gem to anyone who wants to learn the history of the game and its colorful characters." -- Dirk Hayhurst, former Major League pitcher and author of The Bullpen Gospel

"Two great American art forms collide in The Comic Book Story of Baseball, and the result is a sprawling, comprehensive, tremendously fun look at the national pastime. It’s all here, from the Babe to Buckner, billy goats to Barry Bonds. Writer Alex Irvine and artists Tomm Coker and C.P. Smith exalt baseball’s triumphs while reckoning with its sins, and the result is a rich, thorough history that you’ll return to again and again, just like the grand old game itself." -- Jay Busbee, lead writer for Yahoo Sports

Baseball Countdown Numbers

If you were following along and perhaps wondering who some of the players were in the countdown to The Comic Book Story of Baseball's launch, here's a complete list:

60 Dallas Keuchel

59 Todd Jones

58 Jonathan Papelbon

57 Johan Santana

56 Mark Buerhle

55 Orel Hershiser

54 Goose Gossage

53 Don Drysdale

52 CC Sabathia

51 Ichiro Suzuki

50 Sid Fernandez

49 Ron Guidry

48 Torii Hunter

47 Jack Morris

46 Lee Smith

45 Bob Gibson

44 Hank Aaron

43 Dennis Eckersley

42 Jackie Robinson

41 Tom Seaver

40 Oscar Charleston

39 Roy Campanella

38 Curt Schilling

37 Casey Stengel

36 Gaylord Perry

35 Rickey Henderson

34 Kirby Puckett

33 Eddie Murray

32 Sandy Koufax

31 Dave Winfield

30 Nolan Ryan

29 Toni Stone

28 Bert Blyleven

27 Juan Marichal

26 Billy Williams

25 Satchel Paige

24 Willie Mays

23 Kirk Gibson

22 Jim Palmer

21 Roberto Clemente

20 Frank Robinson

19 Bob Feller

18 Darryl Strawberry

17 Dizzy Dean

16 Whitey Ford

15 Dick Allen

14 Ernie Banks

13 Dave Concepcion

12 Roberto Alomar

11 Sparky Anderson

10 Rusty Staub

9 Ted Williams

8 Martin Dihigo

7 Mickey Mantle

6 Stan Musial

5 Albert Pujols

4 Lou Gehrig

3 Babe Ruth

2 Buck Leonard

1 Sadaharu Oh

Walt Whitman and Baseball

This is one of my favorite panels from The Comic Book Story of Baseball. (Whitman did say this, and reflected on baseball at other moments as well.)

There are some more sample spreads at the book's Amazon page. (But if you can order local, please do.)

Forthcoming Work: Baseball, Halo, Stories

Here's a quick rundown of new stuff I've got coming out in the next few months:

May 8: The Comic Book Story of Baseball
May 30: "Black Friday," a story on Tor.com
June 6: Halo: Collateral Damage #1
July: Halo: Collateral Damage #2
August: Halo: Collateral Damage #3
Sometime in 2018: "The Atonement Path," a story in Lightspeed

New Lineup for Yesterday

Inspired by the legendary Ogden Nash doggerel "Lineup for Yesterday," and by Opening Day, and by all the research sloshing around in my head from writing The Comic Book Story of Baseball:

NEW LINEUP FOR YESTERDAY

after Ogden Nash

A is for Alan, who turned two with Lou

As well as any pair ever could do.

B is for Brett, who once hit .390

But became better known for the pain in his heinie.

C is for Cabrera, Miguel of renown

The slowest man ever to win a Triple Crown.

D is for Dewey, whose cannon in right

Made runners in Fenway hold up out of fright.

E is for Edgar, DH without peer

At least until David Ortiz’s career.

F is for Fernando, the Dodgers’ El Toro

A legend from Chavez Ravine to Queretaro.

G is for Gibby, in Detroit and LA

A World Series hero revered to this day.

H is for Henderson, one of a kind

As Rickey would tell you, sure, Rickey won’t mind.

I is for Ichiro, needing only one name

And hit after hit to add to his fame.

J is for Jeter, despite his numb glove

The Yankee that haters of Yankees could love.

K is for Kid, not Williams but Griffey

Whose hitting was epic and fielding was spiffy.

L is for Larkin, the Cincy shortstop

A true model sportsman, the cream of the crop.

M is for Maddux, and Murray and Manny

It’s poetic injustice! The M’s are so many!

N is for Nolan, the Ryan Express

Seven no-hitters stand out from the rest.

O is for Ozzie, the Wizard so-called

Whose backflips and dives had spectators enthralled.

P is for Pedro, the littlest ace

The best pound-for-pound, a terror to face.

Q is for Quisenberry, KC’s submariner

Who piled up saves and kept basepaths cleaner.

R is for Ripken, the new Iron Horse

2632’s what he’s known for, of course.

S is for Steroid, the reason is clear

Why A-Rod and Barry and Big Mac aren’t here.

T is for Thome, whose bat always thundered

His number of home runs is north of 600.

U is for Uecker, not much of a catcher

But a broadcaster and pitchman of much greater stature.

V is for Verlander, Tiger fireballer

In Detroit or Houston, a sure-fire Hall’er.

W is for Wade, who found chicken delicious

No other great player was so superstitious.

X is for Expos, who found Montreal

A place where no one would watch them play ball.

Y is for Yount, the Rockin’est Robin

Milwaukee just isn’t the same without him.

And Z is for Zim, a forgettable player

But a memorable coach and dugout soothsayer.

Out Today