The other book I have coming out in September is an e-book, which I will be publishing myself through this site (and selling free through iTunes as well).
It’s a collection of twelve sonnets, each one inspired by a different character from Street Fighter 2. Each sonnet is being illustrated by a different artist, including work from Vogue illustrator Erin Petson, Canadian vector-artist Shingo Shimizu, Manga artist Sonia Leong, poet and graphic artist Inua Ellams, and my long-time animation collaborator A Line and a Dot.
The book is called HYAKURETSU KYAKU after Chun-Li’s ass-whuppin’ special.
Here’s a rather gruesome extract- this sonnet focuses on nimble jazz-ninja Vega, the second of the four boss- characters. Here’s what the SNES manual has to say:
“Of noble blood, Vega has successfully blended the Japanese art of Ninjitsu with the skills he learned as a matador. Vain and egotistical, Vega lives by the philosophy that beauty is strength. Despising anything ugly, Vega views himself as “perfect” and uses a mask to prevent his face from becoming scarred in battle. Used by M. Bison primarily as an assassin, Vega often dispatches his opponents using his claw.”
A reflection can cut a man in two:
A guillotine straight through one’s anima.
It reveals to the bullfighter, the bull.
The victim, the killer. The Spaniard
looks at these eyes and sees only beauty.
The blood-soaked towel still in his hands. The brute
pinned to the wall like a calendar. Truly
these eyes could never pierce a breast. And truth
is beauty; beauty, truth. The porcelain
man plucks an eyebrow like a master craftsman.
Finished, the priceless artwork is re-caged.
The claw retrieved, the metal mask refastened.
The murderer rejoins the noonday shift.
Each passing gaze, hollowed to the tip.
The amazing illustration is by James McGregor. For more of his work, look here.