A handful of you may remember my novel CULTURAL PRACTICES OF THE HEARTLAND – a political satire I wrote about a giant monster, representing the insanity of recent politics in the US. The visuals of it stuck with me so much that I felt like I had to see what it would really look like… so I hired a comic book artist (a fantastic talent from Chile named Seb Valencia) and commissioned a cover page and a few pages of art. It blew me away – so much so that I’m compelled to finish adapting the story to comic/graphic novel form. Of course, artists don’t work for free, so I’m launching a Kickstarter to try and raise money.
Very brief summary: The last 8 years of American politics, distilled into a revolting, orange haired, tiny-fingered thousand-foot monster, tromping through the American heartland.
Longer summary: Deep within the suburban jungle of Cincinnati, a monster has emerged, bursting out of the Rumpke Sanitary Landfill. Taking its name from its birthplace, Rumpke is a thousand feet tall, has revolting personal habits, and might be vaguely familiar to readers, considering his orange-tinged hair and proportionally tiny hands. What do Americans do when such a creature appears, lumbers around at random, and occasionally defiles a local landmark? For millions, the choice is obvious – worship it.
New York journalist Fred Millard is assigned to report on the exploits of the monster, his bizarre fandom, and the ludicrous internet conspiracy theories that have caught fire since his appearance. Fred quickly learns that the absurdity of Rumpke’s fandom leads to more serious consequences than mere internet hysteria – when serious illness starts to spread in those closest to the monster, its biggest fans refuse to follow the government’s guidance of masking and social distancing, worsening the outbreak. And most appalling of all, one conspiracy theory inspires a violent mob to assemble in Washington, DC and assault a federal building, with deadly results.
A funhouse-mirror reflection of modern American politics, AMERICAN GREATNESS is a raunchy and hilarious political satire comic series. With art by Seb Valencia, it was written for all of us who are exhausted, baffled, and even terrified by the insanity of American politics in recent times.
If any of this sounds interesting, I hope you’ll take a look at the link in the Marketplace thread below! Thanks so much!
Here’s the Marketplace thread, with the Kickstarter link (which has some of the artwork that’s already completed):
