Kickstarter Spotlight: Joan Dark
May 30, 2012 by     Comments Off on Kickstarter Spotlight: Joan Dark    Posted In: Kickstarter Spotlight

kickstarter-logoAs a born and raised Kansan, I get enormously excited to discover talent right here in the Heartland. Luckily for me I spotted the Joan Dark Kickstarter project! Two Kansas residents, Jeff Tamblyn and Bob Hurst, are working hard to bring us this tale of a “female Don Quixote” alongside writer Patrick Quinn. Sweetest of all will be the involvement of legendary underground artist Spain Rodriguez! Have a gander at this informative and very humorous promotional video to learn more about the story details behind Joan Dark!


Besides the obvious draw of having a big name like Spain Rodriguez, I’m especially impressed that the collaborators are taking special care to bring relevant social issues in as themes in the book. Tackling the needs of our returning war veterans is something I can relate to in my current line of work. Among many other things veterans struggle to find employment after they return, which is surprising considering the depth of experience that is transferable among many civilian jobs. I work for an agency that helps put people back to work through job placement and training opportunities, and I’m proud to say veterans are given priority. So, major kudos to the Joan Dark team for bringing important issues like this to the forefront!

Also noteworthy is the attention given to challenging stereotypes assigned to people of Middle Eastern decent. One of the main characters, Fareed Al-Hassan, is a journalist and reluctant companion of the confidently misguided Joan Dark. In a recent interview for Kansas City’s infoZine, Bob Hurst describes Fareed as “an Arab character who’s not a terrorist or a doctor or a convenience-store clerk, he’s very human, with many weaknesses and a very good heart.” A far cry from the portrait often painted in our mainstream media and entertainment.

Visit the Joan Dark Kickstarter page and consider supporting this project! There are several pledge awards to choose from with a wide range of pricing! To keep up on the latest updates or news about the project follow them on Twitter @JoanDrkGrphcNov or on their Facebook page.

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