Saturday, September 27, 2008

SI BOOK TOUR 2009

September 29, 2008 – SECRET IDENTITIES: The Asian American Superhero Anthology to be published by The New Press in April 2009 -- has begun seeking opportunities at universities/colleges to host a book event during Asian American Heritage Month from April to May 2009.

Possible programming includes:

- Showcasing a traveling gallery of original artwork from celebrity contributors (James Kyson Lee, Sung Kang, Kelly Hu, Aaron Yoo, Beau Sia, Yul Kwon) that will be auctioned off for Cartoonists Across America - a literacy program.

- A 30 min documentary, highlighting a sampling of the stories as animated films.

- Discussion on the stories inspired by actual events/people (internment camps, Atomic bombs, Vincent Chin, Wen Ho Lee, Transcontinental Railroad, Vietnam Airlifts).

- An interactive workshop where participants "audition" for roles portrayed by AA’s on film/tv to demonstrate the need for projects, like SI -- to create strong, 3-dimensional heroes and role-models.

- Q&A panel with editors/local contributors and book signing.

Interested parties may fill out a request form under the “THE TOUR” at http://www.secretidentities.org/ or inquire at info@secretidentities.org. An interactive tourmap is also available there for organizations to view existing events to minimize travel expenses.

About SECRET IDENTITIES:

SECRET IDENTITIES uses the conventions of the superhero comic book to expose the real face of the Asian American experience, usually hidden behind the mask of misperception and stereotype.

This groundbreaking anthology brings together top Asian American creators in the comics industry—including Gene Yang (American Born Chinese), Bernard Chang (Wonder Woman), Greg Pak (The Hulk), Sonny Liew (Liquid City), Greg LaRocque (The Flash), Christine Norrie (Black Canary Wedding Special), and Francis Tsai (Heroes for Hire)—as well as new and established creators from film (Mike Kang), television (Keiko Agena) and literature (Jamie Ford), to craft original graphical short stories set in a compelling "shadow history" of our country: from the building of the railroads, to the Japanese American internment, atomic bombings, the Vietnam airlift, the murder of Vincent Chin and the groundless incarceration of Dr. Wen Ho Lee.

For more info: http://secretidentities.org/preview.pdf or http://secretidentitiesbook.blogspot.com/

"SECRET IDENTITIES" CURRENT TOURMAP
CommunityWalk Map - SECRET IDENTITIES BOOK TOUR

Friday, September 26, 2008

Who We Are

For those of you who might be interested in who we are, you can learn more about the book and us editors here.

If you're too lazy to click on the link, peep the mini-bios below:

Jeff Yang
Editor-in-Chief

Age First Began Reading Comics: 9 (“Yo Joe!”)
Maximum Size of Collection: 800 (and counting)
If I Had a Power It Would Be…: Instant adaptation (ability to rapidly evolve into the ideal form for any environment or occasion, from a boring lecture to the center of the sun)
Complete Bio

Keith Chow
Editor-at-Large;
Outreach & Education Director

Age First Began Reading Comics: “infancy” (“Captain Carrot”)
Maximum Size of Collection: never counted (nine longboxes)
If I Had a Power It Would Be…: flight or time travel
Complete Bio

Parry Shen
Managing Editor

Age First Began Reading Comics: 7 (“Richie Rich: Poor Little Rich Boy”)
Maximum Size of Collection: 800 (and counting)
If I Had a Power It Would Be…: Molecular moisture projection and conversion (e.g., Iceman’s powers)
Complete Bio


Jerry Ma
Art Director

Age First Began Reading Comics: 6 (“Dial H for Hero”)
Maximum Size of Collection: unsure (but has all of “Power Man and Iron Fist”)
If I Had a Power It Would Be…: Mind control
Complete Bio

Jef Castro
Senior Artist

Age First Began Reading Comics: 6 (“Disney’s Unca Scrooge”)
Maximum Size of Collection: 350(lame compared to brother, who has 2000)
If I Had a Power It Would Be…: Probability twisting, a la Longshot
Complete Bio

Welcome to the SI Blog!

Hard to believe, but it's been over a year since we first announced Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology to the world. In that time, release dates have changed (on shelves April 2009!), babies have been born (shout out to Skylar), and much awesome has been created. This blog is a chance for those of us behind the scenes to let you all in on some of our secrets. We'll keep you up to date on the progress of the book, let you hear from some of the folks writing and drawing some really incredible stories, and offer a sneak peek or two at some of the stories and art you'll find gracing the pages of the anthology (like that gem of a panel from the story "Peril" by the illustrious Jef Castro below). We're looking forward to hearing your feedback, so feel free to leave comments and let us know how we're doing!



Excelsior... or something... (Can we even use that as a sign-off?)



-- posted by Keith