Glory Be! A Satirical Signing

Online, April 23, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Writer and artist David C Hill will be attending the renowned Comic Book & Sci-Fi Weekend at the Harvey Centre to sign copies of his esteemed yet off-beat comic, GLORY BE! - and offers fans a priceless competition opportunity.

Where: The Harvey Centre, Harlow, Essex, CM20 1XR
When: Bank Holiday 1st - 3rd May 2010 - 10am to 5.30pm (4pm Sunday)

Press and comic fans alike are invited to visit David at the event where they can chat with him about the inspirations behind the stories, snap some photos and take away their own personally signed copy of the first-rate comic book which is causing a stir (priced £3.50). What's more, along with copies of the magazine, visitors can also grab an exclusive 'Norton Mouse' mini-comic - an unmissable opportunity!

The bank holiday weekend also kick-starts a fantastic new competition, open to every reader who purchases a copy of the comic between 1st May and 1st July 2010 (at the event or via the website)*. By answering the set question correctly, one lucky winner will be immortalised in comic book form and featured as a guest character in the next issue of GLORY BE! - an accolade that money just can't buy.

About GLORY BE!

GLORY BE! is an 84 page full-colour comic book set within the fictional community of Riverdale Church. Not a traditional comic per se it is, for the most part, a series of extraordinarily random "off-the-wall" email exchanges between a charismatic church pastor and his Machiavellian band of troubled sheep. Albeit that there is a clear Christian premise within the story, GLORY BE! cleverly appeals as much to non-believers as to avid church-goers.

http://www.glorybemagazine.com
http://glorybemagazine.tumblr.com
http://www.twitter.com/glorybemagazine
http://www.facebook.com/glorybemagazine

About Norton Mouse:

Taken from the main GLORY BE! comic, Norton Mouse is a particularly popular character with his own fansite and ever-spiralling fan base on Twitter - followers include television legend Jonathan Ross, Peter Serafinowicz and he natters with Christine Hamilton, Murray Gold and Josie D'Arby - to name a few.

http://www.nortonmouse.com
http://www.twitter.com/nortonmouse

About the Comic Book & Sci-Fi Weekend

Hosted by 3 Darths Comics and Collectables, this is the second Comic Book and Sci-fi Weekend in the Harvey Centre, with whole host of special guests and events throughout the weekend.

Visitors can collect a free comic and meet the Stormtroopers from the UK Garrison who will be on hand to meet and greet Star Wars fans and will be collecting for their nominated charity NSPCC.

Guests include**:
* Warwick Davis 'Wicket' the Ewok in Star Wars 'Return of the Jedi'
* 'Professor Flitwick' in 'Harry Potter'
* R2D2' actor Kenny Baker
* Scott Capurro who played 'Beed' in Star Wars Episode One
* Colin Baker who played the 6th Doctor in 'Dr Who'

Plus special guests including Tim Rose, Mike Edmonds & Nick Briggs who has supplied the voice of the Daleks and Cybermen in Dr Who, Torchwood & The Sarah Jane Adventures will be present throughout the weekend.

For more information and guest listings/timings please visit:
www.harveycentre.com/eventitem-the__Force__is_returning_to_the_Harvey_Centre-46.html

-Ends-

Notes to Editors
If you would like a review copy of the comic, or if you would like to arrange an interview or photo opportunity with David, please contact:
Danielle Schofield
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 07595 206 343

***

GLORY BE! Review - The Harlow Star

A JUDGMENTAL gambler, a claustrophobic Doctor Who fan and a snake-wielding prankster. Perhaps not members of your average church congregation, but in the surreal comic-book world of Riverdale they are all perfectly at home in the pews.

The fictional town may not sound as though it has much in common with Harlow, but according to the man who created the community for his debut comic book - local writer David C Hill - the devil is in the detail.

Having invested a good six months of his life in writing, designing and publishing Glory Be!, the 35-year-old regular churchgoer and Simpsons fanatic hopes his offbeat graphic magazine will challenge a few misconceptions of worshippers and their diverse roles in the community.

"I wanted to quash some of the stereotypes people have about churchgoers," he told the Star. "Many people seem to view us almost with suspicion or discount us as dowdy and boring, but hopefully Glory Be! will prove that we can have a sense of humour!

"All of the characters in the comic book were influenced in some way by people I've met at church or in the community. I've just magnified certain characteristics to exploit their comic potential."

Pitched somewhere between the childish mischief of Beano and the distinctly adult humour of Viz, David's 84-page debut features quickfire cartoons, mirthful missives and a series of hilarious e-mail messages sent between the book's colourful characters.

But despite the storyline being rooted in religion, David is quick to point out that readers need not be believers themselves to enjoy the humour.

"The fact that most of the action is set in a church shouldn't stop someone who never prays or doesn't consider themselves a Christian from enjoying the book," he explained. "It's more to do with the reader's sense of humour.

"It's not littered with profanities like certain other adult comics, but I would still consider the humour to be more on an adult's wavelength, similar to something like The Simpsons or The Far Side."

Glory Be! is currently on sale in 3 Darths Comics & Collectables in the Harvey Centre, priced £3.99. For more information on the comic, log on to the website at www.glorybemagazine.com.

GLORY BE! Review - www.sequentialtart.com

Glory Be! Is an odd duck of a thing. It's labelled as a comic book in the front, but it is also like a magazine, graphic novel and book.

Set within the fictional British town of Riverdale, Peter Loftus is called by God to take over the church of Riverdale, which has suffered under the incapable hands of prior pastors. Peter in turn, suffers the trials and tribulations of managing the church and his unusual congregation. Most of the book is composed of emails between Peter and various members and non-members of his church.

If the above sounds a bit dry, it is the opposite. The cover promises a plethora of mirth and gaiety and indeed it does. The comic is just packed with funny stories, emails, comic strips and comic panels. There are funny biographies of Peter and the various folks Peter has to deal with regularly. There are also mini-stories involving the characters and Post-It notes from Peter to the community on the bulletin board.

One of my favorite parts was the strips featuring The Prayer Warrior, one for each day of God's Creation. Each day The Prayer Warrior complains about his work and friends and petitions God to do something about it. The other thing I was really interested in is the beginning rivalry between Peter Loftus and Christopher Love, one of the prior pastors of the church. Christopher Love brought the church to ruin before bailing to establish a new church nearby. I would love to see more of that. Another thing I enjoyed was that Peter is a Doctor Who fan and I appreciated the little Doctor Who references sprinkled in the emails.

The comic style of the characters in the comic panels and strips strongly resemble The Simpsons, but that didn't distract me and it seemed appropriate to the comic. What distracted me from enjoyment of the comic book/magazine was a separate comic within a comic, about a blue mouse named Norton. While it was funny it it's own right, I felt it could have been a separate comic of it's own.

Some of the Brit-speak may go over the heads of Americans. And as a non-religious person, I may be missing some of the Christian humor of the book. Nevertheless, this was a page-turner from beginning to end and there was never a dull moment or wasted space.
*One entry per person
**Guests may change without notice. Please visit the official page for more information.