ALISON JONES (AMALIIA)
Alison Jones reads too much, watches too much television, and writes stories when she should really be cleaning out the cupboard under the stairs. She works in marketing and lives with her husband in Wales.
alison@cymru1.net / alisonjuliet@hotmail.com
ANNE-MARIE MARQUESS
Anne-Marie Marquess enjoys writing poems of a Supernatural nature, on subjects like Vampires, Werewolves and Unicorns! Her favourite festival is Halloween, a truly Mystical time of year! Her poems are inspired by Dreams, Films, Books and her Vivid Imagination! And also by the search for Magic in our lives. She is currently living in Ireland, where she was born, but she also loves Scotland, especially, Edinburgh, one of her most favourite places, a city which has also been called one of the most Haunted in Europe! She has major Wanderlust and enjoys Travelling when she can. Her All Time Favourite Poem is “The Highwayman” by Alfred Noyes, (…A Truly Haunting Masterpiece…). Other favourites are “The Lady of Shalott” by Alfred Tennyson, “The Listeners” by Walter De La Mare, “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe and “Still I Rise” and “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou. One of her most favourite quotes is: “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world”. (Albert Einstein).
Anne-Marie was born in the early 70’s in June, around the Midsummer Solstice, is a little bit Hippie at heart, loves the Ocean, Beaches and Forests, is into Music, plays Piano and Keyboard (…currently trying to master the “Moonlight Sonata”…beautiful, classical masterpiece by Beethoven…) and likes Roller-blading! Anne-Marie has a Degree in Tourism and Business Management, and has recently completed a Postgrad in Careers Guidance. Although, her real, true, Ambition in Life is to Travel the World and the Seven Seas!!!
Email: the_marquessa72@hotmail.com
BELINA DEWAR
Being in my 30's I remember Misty comic with affection. I have always loved Ghost and Horror stories, and as this is my favourite time of year I based my picture story on Halloween. My all time favourite Misty story is 'The school of the lost...' Its the ultimate nightmare senario with a chilling ending. I look forward to reading this new special and hope to see more of the same in the future!
BOLT-01
BRIONY COOTE
Briony Coote has a Masters in Public History. Briony works as a researcher, historian and her hobbies include comic-book historian and fanfiction writer. Briony Coote has a long-standing passion with girls’ comics. Briony’s first love was “Tammy” which began as the odd buy and turned into regular collecting in late 1979. The Misty Special has inspired Briony to further her skills as a fiction writer and artist.
CARL LEVIN
Carl Lavin is old enough to know better and has spent most of his life working for local and central government. In an effort to change this, he's currently working away on his own comic "Cruel Romance" which he suspects will be either too bitter to find an audience or will attract an audience that he himself finds too bitter to contemplate. If anyone has anything nice to say about his efforts, he can be contacted at carl.lavin@blueyonder.co.uk. Which, curiously enough, is the same address for anyone with nasty things to say about his work.
CATH TOMLINSON
Cath Tomlinson has been reading comic books and watching cartoons for longer then is probably healthy in a woman approaching thirty. Tries to fit drawing all manner things between the pesky day job and is currently based in Milton Keynes, land of roundabouts, concrete animals and a potentially lethal number of shops. Her most prized possession is a 1980 Misty Annual that she intends to make her niece read as soon as she’s old enough.
CHARLES ELLIS
Charles Ellis is a Politics graduate and editor (and sometimes writer) for a Sonic the Hedgehog fancomic (http://www.stconline.co.uk); he contributed two strips to the 2006 Misty Special. If you thought Part 1 of Cult was scary, wait until the next two...
COLIN NOBLE
Colin Noble is a 30 something comic fan, happily married to Karen, who is an even bigger comic fan (for big read devoted!) and when they get a break from their 8 kids, 2 cats and scatty dog, spend most evenings reading or online. Word-junkies, the pair of them!
CROW
As a child of the Seventies Crow grew up spending his time watching old British films and reading and drawing comics.
He now lives in Aotearoa, working in the film industry and still spends his time watching old British films and reading and drawing comics.
DAN FISH
Dan Fish, artist on 'Silence in the Sand', famously compiled the 'Lost and Found' archive, available on his website, where you can find many mislaid comic gems, plus the occasional oddity and never-reprinted nugget. (You are also invited to buy or barter for your choice of the many fine quality comics listed.)
Relatively new to the UK Comics scene, Dan has previously been
published in 'Just One Page' (Desperate Dan Returns, Ambush Bug & Animal Man) and 'Commercial Suicide' (Rich Johnston's 'Preggers'), samples of which can be seen at the aforementioned website. He also contributed to the 24 Minute comic, and has completed a number of strips for his own amusement, one of which (Fish1000 Comics Promo) was hailed as 'Genius'* (*True!)
Dan has just turned 30, and is currently living the high life,
consuming Champagne and Strawberries by the keg, with a conveyor-belt of beautiful people. Despite this, Dan maintains official residence in deepest darkest Harlow, Essex. His website, Fish1000 Comics, is located on the electronic interweb at http://fish1000.blogspot.com
Dan, a Cancerian, is 6'3, with blue eyes, and has abnormally large
pupils which have baffled science and bemused barmaids. He was born in the Chinese year of the Rabbit. He believes the glass can at once co-exist in a state of both half-fullness and half-emptiness, but doesn't worry, as the bar is still open.
DAVID ROACH
DOCTOR SIMPO
Doctor Simpo (a.k.a Benjamin Francis Simpson) has been writing, drawing and self publishing comics for children for the past two years. He is about to publish the 3rd issue in his line of childrens comic books which are rather appropriately entitled Things and Stuff Comics (for people of all different shapes and sizes) and is about to embark upon a 2 year masters course in Animation at the Royal College of Art in London Town. Copies of Things andStuff Comics are available from the good Doctor himself at: ginjerbread@yahoo.co.uk
DOUGLAS NOBLE
Douglas Noble was born in Scotland and is the writer and artist of the long running small press comic Strip For Me. His work has appeared in publications from AccentUK, Marvel Comics and others, and he is currently working on a number of projects including his pre-apocalyptic thriller COMPLEX.
Website: www.strip-for-me.com
EMMA STEWART
Emma Stewart, 37, runs a graphic design studio in Melbourne, Australia. She read Misty right from the very first issue, and still has the cat ring that came with it. Emma has already introduced Misty stories to her two young daughters, in the hope that one day they will be as inspired to read, write, draw and watch horror movies as she was.
GAREN EWING
Garen works as an illustrator and designer for books, magazines and screen. In 1994 he adapted Shakespeare's The Tempest into comic strip and more recently has been writing and drawing The Rainbow Orchid, a comic strip adventure influenced by the European clear-line style and the lost world romances of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.
J P SEWELL
JAMES BATTERSBY
JENIKA IOFFREDA
"...Once upon a time Jenika. She lives drawing, colouring and inking. After various collaborations as comic artist and illustrator with e-zine, websites, magazines and newspapers in Italy and around the world she fly to London where she still lives now drawing inside a castle surrounded by a dark park and few ghosts."
JILL HILL
Jill Hill now lives in North Devon. A retired health worker and committed Christian who enjoys her voluntary work and is an amateur writer who dabbles in writing stories for amusement.
JOHN ARMSTRONG
JOHN FREEMAN
John Freeman is a comics writer and magazines editor who has been published by Marvel, Marvel UK, Titan, Egmont and others. He writes the SF science fiction adventure Ex Astris (drawn by Mike Nicoll) - more info at www.exastris.co.uk - and runs the British comics news and features web site www.downthetubes.net. He's also working as a freelance editor for Titan Books on some of their British comics collections including Charley's War and Dan Dare.
JOHNNY MCMONAGLE
Johnny McMonagle is a freelance illustrator, comic artist and cartoonist. His comic work has featured in small press comics such as FutureQuake, Dogbreath and Something Wicked. See more of his illustration work at www.pullingpictures.com
LORRAINE DOUGLAS
Lorraine Douglas lives in Glasgow and works with people who have addiction problems, but in her spare time writes features, music reviews and fiction. Her ambition is to have a novel published. Lorraine preferred Misty to any other girls’ comic in the 1970s and would rather read Misty than any women’s magazine today! Contact: lorrainedouglas0706@yahoo.co.uk
LOUISA KERR
Louisa Kerr is 29 years old, and currently lives in Harrogate, North Yorkshire working as a Support Worker. Though she has read comics for most of her life, the two stories she has drawn for the Misty special edition are the first time she's ever seriously drawn a comic. She's quite pleased with them. She has less serious art on her art page at:
http://loolaa.deviantart.com and she con be contacted at loolaa27@yahoo.co.uk
MARTIN JONES
Martin Jones has been writing books, articles, stories and comic strips for nearly two decades. Currently, he is one-quarter of the vagrant musical project The Sinister Insult. His interests include paperback fiction, 60's garage-psyche bands, British horror films and worshipping The Cramps.
MIKE NICOLL
Born 1959, a lifelong comics fan from the days of TV21 and 1960's Marvel Comics. I always wanted to be involved in the industry but because of family commitments and life in general I was content to just write and draw as a hobby, working on a few small press publications here and there and the odd commission for Fleetway (Thunderbirds poster mag) and Negative Burn until John Freeman of "Doctor Who" and "Down The Tubes" fame discovered my work. He liked my ideas and asked if I had anything else - I had about 20 years worth of material in my files so we're currently working away through these, the first results of which are the "Ex Astris" strip (www.exastris.co.uk) which I created in CGI and has appeared in "Spaceship Away" and "Bulletproof" as well as a number of websites and also the forthcoming "Saffyre Blue" graphic novel (hand-drawn) as well as a huuuuuuge project called "Armageddon Knights" which is in the wings. I also do a few "adults only" strips for a US site but we don't want to scare the horses so I won't say much about these.
Forthcoming work includes more Ex Astris and a Dan Dare story for Spaceship Away and the Saffyre Blue graphic Novel - and a Fireball XL5 strip which I'm doing just for fun - I tend to work on several projects at one time which is a bad habit but it seems to work for me.
Think that covers it at the mo - if you want to add in a contact email for readers please use www.morpheusgraphics@hotmail.co.uk.
NOEL BAXTER
Noel Baxter is 41 years old, holds a HND in Graphics and an MA in Art History. He is an artist who has had several shows of art works in the past 10 years and was educated at the University of Ulster and Anglia University.
PAULA J REED
I was an avid Misty fan from the first copy till the last (along with my brother Chris Reed - we used to fight to read it first - particularly the 'Moonchild' instalments !! Chris would love a mention - and will probably contribute to the next issue !) A well travelled ex- military wife. Now an administrator and wannabe author (have started my biography – which is quite dark in places).
SEAN DUFFIELD
Sean is creator, editor & contributor of the acclaimed Uk based international Comics Anthology 'Paper Tiger Comix' and is working on several exciting new international projects including "Tales Of Terror", "Worlds Worst Love Stories" & "War", which is a fundraiser anthology for Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT). Also reviews small press comics on the Paper Tiger Comix website.
Please get in touch! email: seantiger@googlemail.com
website: www.papertigercomix.com
yahoo messageboard: groups.yahoo.com/group/papertigercomix/
SEAN IZAAKSE
I'm currently 28, and have been drawing since I was 3 and collecting comics for just as long. Comic books are my passion and I'm really trying to get into the big companies like DC and Marvel Comics. My idols are the likes of Jim Lee, Adam Hughes, Frank Cho, Alan Davis, among others. I'm currently a Graphic Designer, Layout artist for some community papers in Johannesburg in South Africa. With a few others we're trying to get South African comics up and running.
SHANE CHEBSEY
Shane , or “Chebbo” as he is known to small pressers worldwide, has been drawing comics since he could hold a pencil.
After completing an HND in illustration and graphic design in 1994 he began self publishing his own anthology called Comic Artists Of the Future, which showcased the work of young artists in the UK. This anthology ran for 10 years.
In 2000 Shane started up Smallzone, a distribution and printing service for other self publishers. He now supports small pressers world wide with his website at www.smallzone.co.uk and his magazine Incoming!
“Run” is Shane’s first published comic strip since 1999, and now he’s eager to get back into drawing and writing after a long break.
SMS
Every Saturday morning, I, my girlfriend and her Spirit Guide would read Misty in bed. along with 2000AD, Star Lord and about a dozen other (British!) comics.
The late ‘70’s choice of girls comics, from Twinkle, to Jinty to Jackie, was wide, but my girlfriend and I (Yes, and her spirit guide) would fight over Misty - more even, than Star Lord. The artwork and scripting was that good and I fancied Misty rather more than Ardeni, the psychic weapon. (Though I never told the Spirit Guide).
In the next two decades, with radical feminism, Posy Symmonds and the much publicised ’Comics growing up’, girls comics should have gotten better. But, no. Whilst girls didn’t spend their comic money on video games, they still had their comics axed by C21.
Today’s comic shelves insult girls with a rash of pink ‘Makeover’ comics from ‘Disney Princess’. to ‘Barbie’ to ‘Brats’ to provide them with the dreams and aspirations to go onto ‘Teen Vogue’, ‘CosmoGirl’ or ‘Seventeen’ when they reach12.
Only the ‘weird’ girls find Manga.
Girls need a comic like Misty now more than ever before.
I’ve been an illustrator and comic strip artist since 1987 and it’s been a delight to finally do a ‘Misty’ Strip. I just hope some girls read it. It is for them, after all.
Oh yeah, and the Spirit Guide.
STU.ART
Cardiff based artist and illustrator Stu.Art has ambled his way through life painting and drawing and playing the drums and percussion in bands, most notably the Cardiff space rock band The Phasers. Currently working on his main co-created comics title 'Monkeys with Machineguns', a horror anthology, Stu.Art is also involved with several other projects for other publishers due for release early 2006.
For more information visit www.stu-artonline.com or www.monkeyswithmachineguns.com
TERRY WILEY
Published and drew the semi-popular series "Sleaze Castle" and "Petra Etcetera" in the 90s, plus has contributed covers and cartoons for "Developer's Review" magazine and a regular colour strip "Miffy" in the e-zine "Borderline in the early 2000s.
See www.idcm.net for details!
VALLELY
VICKY STONEBRIDGE
Vicky Stonebridge is an Artist and Crafts worker based in North West Scotland. She is also a retained fire fighter and support worker for Young people. She teaches art and runs workshops across the highlands in everything from eco-arts to Comic art. She previously ran a pottery shop and studio but is now focusing more on the visual arts. She produces comic strip art for various UK independent comics as well as illustrations, digital colouring and comic cover work.
Her paintings are exhibited across the highlands. She is also one of the organisers of Hi Ex, the annual Highlands International Comic Expo in Inverness.
It’s already been said many times already, but a HUGE thank-you to all who contributed. Without you all the Special would not have been possible.
Already we have received many contributions for forthcoming Specials (thank-you all of you who have already sent in submissions), most of which are either stories or articles, but we desperately need artists to bring these stories to life. If you would like to contribute and be part of the Misty experience please email misty@mistycomic.co.uk for details.
All I did was pull everything together. These are the people that matter who brought all the ideas to life. Some are established contributors in the industry; others are those with a passion which we all share.
Check out their biographies below: