About this project
Who is Aurturio Benerzini?
A mysterious rogue whose fame, and ever-increasing reputation, plagues the Evil Kalif. Three Impossible Tasks have raised Aurturio Benerzini to a near legendary status amongst his people. Now, with the Kalif's most prized treasure gone missing, this rogue seems to be their only hope.
What are the Three Impossible Tasks?
Aurturio Benerzini and the Three Impossible Tasks is a 120 to 130 page B&W and half tone illustrated graphic novel. It is the adaptation of a short novel that I wrote a number of years ago. The story itself is a faerie tale type story, much in the tradition of Sinbad and Aladdin. It takes place in ancient Arabia and is written in a style similar to the Arabian Nights, but with more startling and surprising twists.
The Three Impossible tasks are perilous feats of legend, horrifying terrors that have been known to cause war-hardened armies to flee. Who has not heard the blood chilling tales of the Wicked Witch of the Woods, the Monstrous Minotaur of the Marshes, and the Terrible Troll of Toll.
Vanquish one? A hero's song.
Vanquish two? A king's ransom for you.
Vanquish all three? ... Well, you meet a lot of liars on the road to Arabia. What man could possibly face all Three Impossible Tasks and live?
Who could dispatch the Wicked Witch of the Woods?
Who could defeat the Terrible Troll of Toll?
Who could destroy the Monstrous Minotaur of the Marshes?
Though the story has many chapters, the graphic novel is broken into 5 sections with a full page cover starting each. These covers, depicting various thrilling scenes from the story, are already completed and fit together to make one large poster. There is already a pen & ink and coloured comic book cover that is available as a print in one of the pledge tiers and in the bundled items that follow. The actual cover that will appear on the graphic novel will be a fully rendered oil painting, much in the tradition of the great illustrator Boris.
While I was writing Aurturio Benerzini and the Three Impossible Tasks, I kept imagining the story unfolding, playing out in my mind as in a graphic novel. I am so excited to finally realize that vision and to see those characters acting out these iconic scenes in a high quality graphic novel.
And the best part is that we get to be a part of this creative endeavour together.
Why Kickstarter?
I have had several close friends -- and more than a few fans -- ask me why I chose to release this work through a Kickstarter campaign. After working with Marvel, Valiant, and several other large publishing companies, why would I even consider funding this project with a Kickstarter?
The truth is that I have been intrigued by the undeniable sense of community that Kickstarter projects foster. Not only does Kickstarter provide an alternate path to funding projects, but it creates an environment that makes it easy for artists to share the creative process with those who pledge their support.
With the larger companies, you can get a wide distribution, but often lack the type of intimacy that you can achieve through a campaign such as this. A fan might be able to buy an issue of pencils from the book. The publisher might offer fans a sneak peek of the upcoming work in another comic or on their website. And if you wanted to meet the artist, you could always travel to Comic Con. You might even be able to buy a piece of the original artwork.
And thanks to Kickstarter, we will be offering all of those opportunities and more! Our pledge tiers have been arranged to offer fans behind the scenes access, to be part of the actual creation process, and at affordable price points.
Want to be in the graphic novel? There's a tier for that.
Want to own the original artwork? There's a tier for that.
Want to be part of an exclusive Q&A with the artist? There's a tier for that.
Pencils, prints, original artwork, exclusive video of me creating the artwork right before your eyes -- even a day pass to meet and hang out with me at our table at Comic Con -- all of these can be obtained through the pledges and with the bundled items offered through our Kickstarter campaign.
If you couldn't tell, I am extremely thrilled to be running this Kickstarter. Can you imagine what my next year looks like? You won't have to imagine. You will have an exclusive view through the rewards that we are offering as part of this campaign. I am looking forward to interacting with my fans on an incredibly personal level as we re-create the world of Ancient Arabia and tell the most wondrous tale of the legend known as Aurturio Benerzini and the Three Impossible Tasks.
Pledge now to join me on this incredible adventure.
Bundled Items
You can bundle the following items with your rewards by adding the amounts below to your pledge. After the campaign, we will contact you to find out which items you wanted to add.
Stretch Goals
I am incredibly competitive. I've always been. It has never been enough for me to meet a goal without setting some higher, loftier goals, just in case we smash through the ceiling. Here are additional gifts that we can look forward to as we reach these goals.
Risks and challenges
Various troubles and pitfalls have been known to meet creators who set out to tackle the highly challenging world of graphic novels. Among the most common and easily identifiable are the editorial changes that come down from the powers that be that run the various companies that publish such projects, creative differences among the writers and artists, and the failure of these creators to adhere to the many deadlines contained therein.
All of these challenges, though daunting as they may be, have been looked at and prove not to be of any consequence in the Aurturio Benerzini Project. With the autonomy provided by the freedom Kickstarter offers, I am free to pursue the unobstructed vision that I set forth for this book, without the comings and goings of this editor and that editor seeking to adjust or change the project as it progresses. Since there is only me doing the writing and art chores, I have little to worry about creative differences and various visions for the project.
Being that this is an adaptation of a novel that is already finished, this cuts the time wasted on rewrites and changes, all that remains is for the artwork to be completed. Through the years, I have proven, not only able to execute at a very high level, but I have always been able to finish my projects with speed that is not often seen in this industry, generally finishing way ahead of my deadlines. All of the afore mentioned pitfalls are real and do exist but I am pleased to say, that they do not present themselves here.
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Funding period
- (30 days)