Announced at ECCC this weekend, former Vertigo editor and vice president Shelly Bond will helm a new creator-owned imprint at IDW Publishing called Black Crown. Bond described the imprint as “comics about how we live now. The stories are weird and frenetic. They live on the cross roads of chaos and cool.” Her title at IDW will be Senior Editor, Special Projects.
Bond was at DC/Vertigo for 23-years, hired within the first month of the project by founder Karen Berger (who is also getting her own creator-owned imprint at Dark Horse soon). In her time at Vertigo she edited many acclaimed series including “The Sandman,” “The Invisibles,” and “Fables.” When Berger left Vertigo she succeeded her as executive editor. She also was one of the original editors behind Gerard Way’s Young Animal imprint. Bond left DC/Vertigo in April 2016 in the midst of the restructuring of the imprint.
Black Crown will include seasoned creators, many of whom Bond worked with at Vertigo and a slew of new talent. The imprint will be exclusively previewed at SDCC before shooting for an October 2017.
In a riff on the usual creator-owned line, all the characters in Black Crown will occupy a shared environment, anchored by a mysterious street where the Black Crown Pub exists. The creators will occupy a “storefront” on the street and their creations are free to interact as much or as little as they desire.
Check out the full press release below and come back later today for our full ECCC and Cost-to-Coast Comic Con Rundown from the weekend.
San Diego, CA (March 3, 2017) – IDW Publishing is thrilled to announce the arrival of Shelly Bond to its editorial ranks. One of the most respected and admired editors among her peers, Bond previously served as VP-Executive Editor of DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint. With over two decades of comic-industry experience to draw from, Bond’s considerable skills and keen eye for talent will pave the way for exciting new projects and original voices.
Bond’s passion and enthusiasm for the art form make her a welcome addition to the team. Her previous successes speak for themselves. Fables, The Invisibles, Sandman: Overture, Lucifer, iZombie, and DC’s Young Animal line are just a handful of acclaimed projects which formed under her all-seeing eye.
“I’ve long admired from afar Shelly’s track record and have been a huge fan of the direction, vision, and creative teams she’s assembled on her books over the years,” said Chris Ryall, IDW’s Chief Creative Officer. “I’m ecstatic about the idea of getting to work directly with her in building Black Crown into ‘the Ruling Class’ of creator-owned comics.”
The title “Black Crown” represents not only the name of the creator-owned imprint, but also a pub that anchors a mysterious street that connects each creator-owned title. Top creators will tell stories of a singular vision and point of view but will also have the opportunity to intersect with the tapestry of this unprecedented shared environment by way of owning storefront real estate that correlates to their particular creations.
“If you know anything about my reputation, you know that I’m selective about story, art, and design,” said Bond. “The same applies to a publisher. I can’t think of a better fit for BLACK CROWN than with IDW. They appreciate, share, and champion my vision for creating concepts that are first and foremost incredible, unconventional, and riveting comic books. I can’t wait to announce the impressive coterie of creators, both familiar and next wave, who are working as we speak to bring back the bravado to creator-owned comics.”
Stories from the Black Crown Pub will be extensively previewed at July’s Comic-Con International and launch in October 2017.
