About this project
UPDATE #2: You can now back this project for $15 and receive A SIGNED paperback copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1 and two stickers!
UPDATE: All backers who pledge $5 or more will now receive TWO stickers in addition to the rest of the rewards! Check the updates to see what they look like!
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Tyranny of the Muse by writer Eddie Wright and artist Jesse Balmer is a comic book series about a sad-sack, inspiration-addict, who is obsessed with the idea of nothingness.
When a mysterious, chain-smoking muse named Bonnie offers her unique assistance to Frank Fisher (our sad-sack hero), by injecting literal seeds of inspiration directly into his brain, the couple find themselves on a twisted, frantic, chaotic, fast-paced and surreal path littered with addiction, self-loathing, vindictive mailmen, infected wounds and angry hamsters. Through it all, they rely only on each other as they work through Frank's strangely familiar screenplay in their search for the ever-elusive somethingness while avoiding the terrifying curse of nothingness. Tyranny of the Muse combines the storytelling of Philip K. Dick, David Lynch, William S. Burroughs and David Cronenberg with the alternative art style of Charles Burns, R. Crumb and Paul Pope. Tyranny of the Muse is based on Wright's critically-acclaimed cult novella Broken Bulbs. This Kickstarter will fund the first volume in a multi-volume series.
Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1 will come in at 40-plus pages of story and will feature fun bonus goodies like character sketches, script pages, insane notes and more! It will be available in paperback, as a digital comic and in a special, limited and numbered hardcover edition.
The $4500 will be used to complete Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, which includes paying artist Jesse Balmer for his brilliant and incredibly detailed artwork, as well as cover production expenses including our fabulous, EXCLUSIVE rewards.
This will be a very special comic book made all the more special by your inspiring kindness!
Praise for Eddie Wright's Broken Bulbs:
“Broken Bulbs is a brilliant and stunningly original work, by far the best novel I read in 2008.”
“It’s gritty, it’s ugly, it’s brazenly experimental in both form and style, it’s allegorical, it’s satirical, it’s as darkly engrossing as staring at someone’s disfiguring wounds, and yet it also manages to be profoundly cathartic.”
- Moxie Mezcal, author of Concrete Underground
“One of THE best books I read all year, including the mainstream stuff. An existentialist’s dream, the author has dug in deep and laid bare the raw emotion so candidly that we can actually feel the futility, the desperation, and the humour.”
…as authentic as they come, experimental without trying to be intentionally obscure, dark without making you doubt humanity, smart and energetic. In short, it’s great writing.”
“it’s about obsession, self-negation, love, even God, making Broken Bulbs an entirely unique take on a subject. It’s a science fictional, hard-boiled, poetic vision of drug addiction and hamsters (read it!) A great addition to a genre that has never existed before.”
- Henry Baum, author of "The American Book of the Dead"
“It could be a portrayal of addiction. It could be commentary on our doped-up society, that pops a pill to fix something that isn't even broken. A love story gone wrong - or right. It could be a plea to have compassion for all living things, and to cherish our natural world. It could be one big lecture, chastising bad parents. And really? It could all just be a bunch of shit, a big joke of nothing. I don't know, man. I can't tell you. The only thing I know for sure? I can't forget it. ”
“Eddie Wright is an artist with a vivid imagination, a weird, Pythonesque sense of humor and a daring attitude.”
- Gint Aras, Author of, Finding the Moon in Sugar
“…disturbing and humorous, horrific and eccentric… a fine specimen of what insanely inventive gems would be overlooked were it not for the fine world of independent publishing.”
“…this slim volume is the bastard child of Memento and William S Burroughs, absolutely not for the faint of heart nor for anyone seeking a nice, simple beach read.”
- Chicago Center for Literature and Photography
“…the absolute perfect spot-on portrait of the mind of an addict.” “The first chapter alone is a nauseating churn of short choppy staccato sentences, random thoughts and actions, that read like beat poetry at a slam.” “The whole thing is filled with crazy quips and one liners worthy of a high lighter so you can memorize and use them later.”
“…every single word and phrase was methodically placed to perfection to share Frank’s bizarre and desperate world. It’s a bit poetic, sometimes disturbing and challenging as each carefully placed phrase fits into the puzzle of Broken Bulbs. On a bookshelf, I’d sandwich it between Sartre and Denis Johnson.”
- Holly Christine, author of The Nine Lives of Clemenza and Retail Ready
“It is dark, twisted, gory, cringe-worthy, but most of all, fascinating. It is, I think, a story that speaks to anyone struggling to make something of themselves.”
"...a weird, trippy, a fever dream of fiction, and its author is one to watch.”
- Todd Keisling, author of A Life Transparent
ART!
For more art and script samples please visit: http://tyrannyofthemuse.com
We thank you for your consideration, support, and all-around amazing awesomeness!!
You. Are. Not. Nothing.
FAQ
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Funding Successful
This project successfully raised its funding goal on October 18.
Pledge $1 or more Pledge $1 or more
A Tyranny of the Muse sticker and our eternal gratitude.
Pledge $5 or more Pledge $5 or more
A digital copy of the completed Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1 comic and a sticker.
Pledge $10 or more Pledge $10 or more
A digital copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a Broken Bulbs eBook, a postcard print of Tyranny of the Muse art by Jesse Balmer and a sticker.
Pledge $15 or more Pledge $15 or more
A SIGNED paperback copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1 and two stickers.
Pledge $20 or more Pledge $20 or more
A SIGNED paperback copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a small original sketch by Jesse Balmer, a 100-word digital story by Eddie Wright and a sticker.
Pledge $25 or more Pledge $25 or more
A SIGNED paperback copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a small original sketch by Jesse Balmer, a 100-word digital story by Eddie Wright, your name listed in the "THANK YOU's" section of the book and a sticker.
Pledge $30 or more Pledge $30 or more
A SIGNED paperback copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a SIGNED paperback copy of Broken Bulbs, a small original sketch by Jesse Balmer, a 100 word digital story by Eddie Wright, your name listed in the "THANK YOU's" section of the book and a sticker.
Pledge $50 or more Pledge $50 or more
A SIGNED, limited HARDCOVER copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a SIGNED copy of Broken Bulbs, an original character sketch by Jesse Balmer, a 250 word digital story by Eddie Wright, your name listed in the "THANK YOU's" section of the book and a sticker
Pledge $100 or more Pledge $100 or more
A SIGNED, limited HARDCOVER copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a SIGNED copy of Broken Bulbs, an original 9x12 black-and-white piece by Jesse Balmer, a 500 word digital story by Eddie Wright, your name listed in the "THANK YOU's" section of the book and a sticker.
Pledge $250 or more Pledge $250 or more
A SIGNED, limited HARDCOVER copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a SIGNED copy of Broken Bulbs, an original 9x12 FULL COLOR piece by Jesse Balmer, an original page from Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a 500 word digital story by Eddie Wright, your name listed in the "THANK YOU's" section of the book and a sticker.
Pledge $500 or more Pledge $500 or more
A SIGNED, limited HARDCOVER copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a SIGNED paperback copy of Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1, a SIGNED copy of Broken Bulbs, electronic copies of both Tyranny of the Muse Vol. 1 and Broken Bulbs, original 18x24, FULL-COLOR art by Jesse Balmer, a special HANDWRITTEN story by Eddie Wright limited to one for each backer (you will have the only copy!), your name listed in the "THANK YOU's" section of the book and a sticker.
Project By
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Eddie Wright is a writer from New Jersey. He is the author of the cult novella Broken Bulbs and the upcoming comic, Tyranny of the Muse. He enjoys rock n roll, horror and tortilla chips.
Jesse Balmer was born in San Juan Capistrano, California in 1987. He has been drawing since before he can remember, which was really only much-less-than-the-blink-of-an-eye ago on the geologic time scale. He now resides in San Francisco, California where his dignity remains intact for now.
