Doctor Strange and Spider-Man may have fallen through the multiverse of the Marvel Cinematic Universe a lot recently. However, my first real journey into parallel worlds began with my very first comic.
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It first began by reprinting newspaper comic strips, and then it illustrated adventure stories had previously been in pulp novels and magazines, then the detectives put on masks and a man could leap tall buildings in a single bound. It was the Golden Age of Comic Books, the Golden Age of Super Heroes.
As mentioned previously, though I had read a few other comics, the first series I was committed to reading every issue was All-Star Squadron. A book that took place during that “Golden Age.”
I would discover and read other books at that time, some Justice League of America, Brave & and the Bold which would be replaced by Batman and the Outsiders, and The New Teen Titans.
When I was young, during my Elementary School and Junior High years, I was struggling with reading. It was recommended to my parents that I should take further classes and have special tutors. One such tutor was in an after-school period on campus, while another one was off campus at a place called “The Reading Game.” These tutors helped me, but there was other help that I received that would improve my education.
It was during this period of time I first discovered comic books, as mentioned in my previous post, and I was regularly reading them… and I was reading them not just looking at the artwork (and I’ll tell you about the artwork and artists in a later post).
One day when my parents are having a ‘parent/teacher’ meeting with my special reading tutor to talk about how I was doing. They brought up the fact that I was reading comics, and asked if this was a good thing or should they take the comics away to have me read “real” books.
“Thank you, God, for bringing Mom and Dad home safely,” my mother would always say as we drove past the hospital. Both her parents had been in a patient there a number of times, and we praised God for them returning home safe and healthy.
That hospital has held many joyful and sad memories for us. Hopefully me being born there was one of the joyful ones.
My father also worked in the lab, and my mom would walk me over to have lunch with him from time to time.
So, what does all that have to do with comic books, and super heroes? Quite a lot, actually, at least for me.
The hospital had a small gift shop where visitors could purchase flowers, snacks, or stuffed animals for the patients they were coming to see. They also had a small magazine display rack, and upon it were a few (very few) small comic books.
These were digest size books that were reprints of other already published books. Most of these digests were done by Archie Comics, about Archie, his two girls Betty and Veronica, Jughead, and the rest.
But every so often there were other digest comics. These were mostly from DC Comics (actually, I don’t remember Marvel publishing Digests like these).
Hi All,
May this New Year be enjoyable and successful for all.
I have several goals for this New Year, mostly focusing on my career, but to start off I’ll be writing this blog and posting twice a week. Which will hopefully be a whole lot better than what it has been in the past. This first blog series is about how comic books and super heroes have influenced my career. This is also part of a Toastmasters assignment, “Writing a Compelling Blog,” which when the blog series is complete, I’ll be giving a speech about the whole experience.
This was my first 2024 speech for Toastmasters, I had begun working on it in November with a Christmas theme, but there were no speaker slots in December so reworked it as the first speech of 2024. This is for my Level Three “Engaging your Audience with Humor” speech.
I am a member of Toastmasters 4 Writer.
Have you ever considered the Internal Logic in the Christmas song “Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer”? I have, and it scared me.
MY VOICE ACTING GOALS – 2024
1 – Full Time Job
2 – Make myself known to Casting Directors
3 – More Regular Voice Over Auditions
4 – Book Voice Over Roles
5 – Start a regular Stream
6 – Be part of an Improv Group
7 – Play at least one Dungeons & Dragons game
8 – Be able to afford more VO training
9 – BLOG MORE
Recently, I did my third speech for Toastmasters.
My wife and I are members of Toastmasters 4 Writers in Burbank, California – District 52.
My second and third speech were connected because what I learned from giving the second speech would be applied to the third. The Second speech was about my family, especially my grandfather, James Shaw, who was from Ireland and came to America. There are many great stories I could tell about him and his life. When it came to telling the third speech I chose to focus on him as a Marathon runner, especially winning one in Belfast Ireland.
As part of my Voice Over training, this past semester I took a class at Pasadena City College entitled: ANNOUNCING FOR ELECTRONIC MEDIA. There were many projects we did, including Voice Over, music radio intros, and more, was being able to create my own radio program and do an interview. Of course I called the radio show FOUR NAMES OF PROFESSIONAL CREATIVITY.
So I asked my good friend Craig Miller if I could interview him about the book – STAR WARS MEMORIES: My Time In The Death Star Trenches.
At the start of the year I had great 2020 Vision (go back and read the blog) – that vision had such great plans for the year ahead…
It didn’t go at all as planned (for none of us). Even before Covid struck, on the second day of the year I was told I was being laid off from my job which I had for 10 years.
So I was home, and soon my wife would be working from home as well. I truly believe that to be a blessing.
A family member is in the hospital (praise God not with Covid).
That all said, the year wasn’t all that bad for me. Being home most of the time allowed certain things to happen, or things for me to discover, that I wouldn’t have if the world was still going as it had a year ago.
I had already planned to take Voice Acting Classes, by the end of that first class I was determined to make Voice Over as part of my career. I soon found other classes and workshops I could do online that I wouldn’t have been able to do previously. Joined Toastmasters, got back into college courses, and became an Improv actor.
With 2021 about to start, I am confident that there many blessings that came to me through 2020 even as stressful as it was.
What is to come next, I am not entirely certain but am Determined to grab hold of each and every blessing that is to follow.
God Bless you all. See you in the new year.
For the last few years I have been working as an interior illustrator for Airship 27, a publisher that focuses on what is called “New Pulp.” Fast pasted adventure tails in the styles of the pulp novels of the 1930s.
Today I get to tell you that they have released the latest book that has my artwork inside.
Volume 3 of THE BAY PHANTOM novels by author Chuck Miller entitled “Midnight in Hell’s Cathedral”.
Here’s the Press Release and Cover Art by artist Chris Rawding followed by one of my interior illustration.
Check it out and pick up a copy you’ll be in for a thrill ride.
THE BAY PHANTOM – Vol 3
Midnight in Hell’s Cathedral
Airship 27 Productions is thrilled to announce the release of the third action packed Bay Phantom adventure by stellar New Pulp writer, Chuck Miller.
Once again Mobile, Alabama’s mysterious crime-fighter, the Bay Phantom, finds himself battling another criminal mastermind. This one is know only as the Kraken and has the power to turn people into mindless puppets and have them do his bidding; leaving chaos and destruction in their path. As if that wasn’t enough for the Phantom to deal with, his friend, Tom Dart, is about to be executed in state prison for crimes he did not commit. Can Maribelle Darcy devise a plan to rescue Dart before the fatal hour arrives?
And then a certain Federal Agent named Elliot Ness arrives in town with the goal of capturing the Bay Phantom.
“Nobody writes like Chuck, Miller,” insist Airship 27 Production’s Managing Editor Ron Fortier. “Chuck has a truly unique style that blends both black comedy with off-the-wall pulp action. You can say what you will about this series, but it is never boring.”
Returning to the series to handle interior illustrations is artist Kevin Paul Shaw Broden and Chris Rawding provides the cover all under the helm of Art Director Rob Davis.
Once again pulp scribe Chuck Miller weaves a zany, madcap pulp thriller like no one else can. This is action-adventure with a Southern Twist not to be missed.
Available in paperback at Amazon and soon on Kindle.
I have a new VISION for 2020 and that is my VOICE.
As you know I am a professional animation scriptwriter, a comic book artist, novelist, and have worked in animation production.
I n this new year of 2020 VISION, I am looking toward a new horizon by taking ACTING CLASSES focusing on VOICE OVER for animation.
I’m no fool who thinks this will be easy. It will be hard work and may take a long time, but I am willing to give it my all.
Growing up, taking art and writing courses, I never once thought about acting. Now, looking back, I see how it would have been beneficial to both my artwork and script writing. Over the last few years, I have become more and more interested in VOICE ACTING and all the great actors who work on series I follow. I’ve begun to want to know more about that side of the industry I am already a part of.
As I begin this 2020 VISION QUEST of my future by making my voice heard I hope to chat, network, and learn from many of my Voice Over friends online and in person.
While taking classes in acting, trying my hand at, reading books and watching my fellow actors perform and get to know them, I will be documenting some of my experiences here (though some I won’t be allowed to write about.)
So, I would love to have you follow me on my journey, whether to laugh as I fall on my face, applaud when I succeed, or provided some much need guidance and support along the way.
This is going to be scary, challenging, exiting, and fun. I’m looking forward to every moment of it.
2020 beings today, and I have a lot to be looking out for.
…yeah, right!
The rain was fierce today. It was so bad this morning that I chose not to drive the freeways to my part-time job.
After I took my wife to her job I headed straight home. Figured I could get some writing done.
That was not meant to be.
I lucked out and got a parking space right out front the apartment. However, my lucked failed when I discovered that someone had broken their key off in the gate’s lock.
With the rain pouring down on me I attempted to get the piece of the key out, but to no avail. So I headed back to the car where I waited in vain for someone to come out the gate but no one arrived.
After talking with my wife on the phone, and attempting to reach the apartment manager, I planned to go spend the day at a local shopping mall before someone could get the door repaired. But before doing so I wanted to check one more time to see if anyone was around that might let me. But by then the rain was coming down so hard that the street was a flood and when I opened the car door I stepped out into ankle deep cold water soaking my shoes and socks.
So for the next few hours I spent in the mall with ice cold soaking wet feet until the manager finally got back to me with the code that would let me in without a key.
So don’t anyone ever tell me it doesn’t rain in California.
At least I didn’t come down with a cold.
Kevin Paul Shaw Broden
Four Names of Professional Creativity
I have done some reworking on the novel, and on the cover as well.
I digitally painted it in Painter and Photoshop.
Additionally I tweeked the subtitle: A Paranormal Romance Mystery
You can buy a copy of the novel at any ebook distributor.