Stephen Stern

Kudos to my songwriting partner, Liyah Bey, who began receiving national coverage today for landing her deal with Thump Records, with global distribution of her songs via Virgin Music Group in association with Universal Music Group.

If you haven’t already seen the amazing new performance video of ‘Abused’ by Liyah Bey, check it out now! m.youtube.com/watch?v=KoHkFP…

The most fun book I’ve ever written!

Super-exciting news: There will be a special, limited-edition preview comic of ZEN: Alternate Visions available at 1First Comics booth #2001 at Comic-Con. It features an iconic cover by Jim Fletcher, based on his artwork for the Zen NES game that was also used on one of the covers of the Zen Archie series. Inside are previews of stories including “Alien vs. Demon” with art by pop superstar L’Amour Supreme that originally appeared in Heavy Metal magazine. There’s also “The Savage Stick of Zen” with art by my Zen co-creator Dan Cote, and a preview of one of our wildest stories ever, when Zen crossed over with Playboy Playmates the Barbi Twins in “The Roswell Incident,” with art by Bill Maus. And that’s just a taste of what you’ll find in this collector’s item comic. See you at Comic-Con!

See you there!

Black Hole Bob is currently running riot in the pages of ZEN: Bounty Wars, and if you’ve missed the series on Kickstarter so far, you’ll have the opportunity to get the whole story when we launch the campaign for the fourth and final issue—coming soon. In the meantime, here is a brand-new pic of the baddest badass bounty hunter of them all, courtesy of the talented artist I created him with—WILL CYPSER!

Thanks to the folks at NewsBreak for the great coverage of The Real Superheroes of Beverly Hills as we head to Comic-Con in just a couple of weeks.

Among the books I’ll be signing at the 1First Comics booth at Comic-Con is ALEXANDER HAMILTON: A GRAPHIC HISTORY. The project began after I saw Lin-Manuel Miranda’s groundbreaking musical Hamilton at the Pantages Theatre here in Los Angeles. Inspired, I read Ron Chernow’s epic biography of Hamilton—then launched into a full year of further research before writing the graphic novel. The result is a book I’m very proud of, brought vividly to life by the period-perfect artwork of Stan Timmons (Robin Hood, Battlestar Galactica). Looking forward to signing copies at Comic-Con!

Happy Fourth of July from a rooftop in Beverly Hills!

Can’t thank super-collector Chad Farley enough for the fantastic interview on his highly-respected YouTube channel, Collectors Confessions. youtu.be/j1sOq3_bTVY

It was an honor to help celebrate the birthday of one of the most dynamic people I know in Hollywood—Yaniv Raphael Bar, President of Motion Pictures at Allied Artists International.

I can’t thank the folks at the Film Courage YouTube channel enough for the dozen interviews they did with me. One of them alone has had over 18,000 views, with a total of over 60,000 views in all. This has brought incredible exposure to my company, Storyboard Graphic Novels, which for the past 15 years has been adapting screenplays for people like screenwriters, producers and directors into graphic novels and comics series.

Butch Simmons’ latest Zen Intergalactic Ninja custom figure kicks major butt!

Actor James Pax, best known for his role as the sorcerer Lightning in the cult classic Big Trouble in Little China, has been cast as Master Satva in the Zen Intergalactic Ninja movie currently in development with Ken F. Levin's Nightsky Productions (The Boys). James will be appearing at 1First Comics Booth #2001 during San Diego Comic-Con, with signing dates and times to be announced soon.

It’s been a moment since I’ve posted about one of the most fun graphic novels I’ve ever written—Frickin’ Butt-Kickin’ Zombie Ants. With gut-busting art by the fabulous Fillbach Brothers. Get infected at the 1First Comics booth little more than a month from now!

We're thrilled to be featured in the latest issue of ACCA Journal, which comes out today, as excitement builds for The Real Superheroes of Beverly Hills. What began as an idea to combine the glamour, intrigue, and larger-than-life personalities of Beverly Hills with classic superhero storytelling quickly evolved into an illustrated novel that is now going into its third printing. My thanks to my co-creator, artist Jim Fletcher, publisher and manager Ken F. Levin, actors John Savage and Marcus Della Rosa, and talent agent Pierre Patrick, as well as everyone helping bring this unique world to life. Look for The Real Superheroes of Beverly Hills at San Diego Comic-Con, where we'll be sharing more about the project and its future.

Ross Andru would have been 101 years old today. It was my pleasure to work with him on Zen Intergalactic Ninja. I had been an ardent fan of his work—Metal Men in particular—and I could hardly believe it when the folks at Archie Publications informed me that he wanted to work on my own creation. I remember the day I met with Ross and his longtime collaborator, Mike Esposito, at a diner on Long Island, NY. It was beyond my wildest dreams. As we worked together on Zen, Ross and I became close friends and collaborators, sharing not only our creative efforts, but our personal lives, and often having dinner with our wives at either his home or mine. I believe I was the last person to have spoken with him. We were on the phone, snd Ross suddenly said he didn’t feel well and had to end the call. The next day I learned, to my utter sadness, that he had passed. Rest in peace, my friend.