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Horror Classics by Georges Bess: DRACULA and FRANKENSTEIN

Created by Magnetic Press LLC

Bram Stoker's DRACULA and Mary Shelley's FRANKENSTEIN are faithfully adapted into spectacularly illustrated premium graphic novels by internationally renowned artist GEORGES BESS. NOTE: Pledge shipping has commenced! New Pre-orders will be processed as soon as initial pledge fulfillment is complete and may not arrive until after the holidays.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Pledge Manager ready -- Smoke Test surveys have been sent!
12 months ago – Wed, May 24, 2023 at 11:55:41 AM

Hello, everyone!

We hope you're having a great week so far. Just a quick note to let you know that the Pledge Manager is now complete and we have initiated the "Smoke Test" -- that is the pre-launch process wherein Backerkit will send surveys to a random 5% of the project Backers so that we can address any questions or issues that need to be fixed before sending out all 1500 surveys (and potentially getting slammed with messages if something isn't wired correctly...)

If you are one of that lucky 5%, PLEASE FILL OUT YOUR SURVEY RIGHT AWAY! That will help us get the system through the evaluation process faster so that the rest of the Backers can join in. Backerkit suggests waiting about 24 hours or until 75% of that smoke test audience responds before sending out the rest, so assuming everything works as expected, the rest of the surveys should be able to go out on Friday. We'll let you know if anything does come up that could cause a delay. 😊

In the meantime, we've been working with the printer on getting the book files and slipcase design ready for manufacturing. The books have passed preflight, and we just provided the "final" slipcase files for their review. We decided to add a new feature (well, new for us) to this slipcase design: printed liner sheets! That refers to the paper lining the inside of the slipcase box. We've produced slipcases with a single color liner sheet in the past, but we wanted to try printing an image on the inside liner this time specifically because of the die-cut hole in the side.  This way, when the books are removed, there's something interesting to see through the coffin-shaped "window" on the opposite inside surface. 🧐  We're always looking to try new and interesting things (thinking "outside the box," sorry/not sorry for the pun...)

Barring any unexpected delays, we're told the books and boxed sets should be finished printing by mid-July, then put on a boat that should hopefully reach our warehouse in the mid-west by the end of August. That should then make shipping orders in September a pretty safe estimation.  Of course, things can (and often do) happen -- both good and bad -- but we'll keep you posted along the way. We'd love to be able to post an update that things are moving faster than expected and shipping will begin even sooner! 😆 

Thanks again for your support, everyone! More news to come!

Pledge Manager under construction... stand by...
almost 1 year ago – Fri, May 19, 2023 at 08:42:56 AM

Happy Friday, everyone!
Just a quick update to say "hi" and to assure you we're still here. 😉 

We have completed the pre-flight check on both books and slipcase with the printer, and physical proofing should begin shortly. We are also still getting the backend Pledge Manager setup so that we can send out the post-campaign order surveys, but we're waiting on a little technical guidance from Backerkit staff. Since their campaign platform is still in Beta development, there is still some wiring that needs to be done to connect their multiple systems so that data is passed properly between the two. We expect it to be ready by the end of next week (which is about the same turnaround time for using Backerkit Pledge Manager with a Kickstarter campaign, so no need to be alarmed).

We'll let you know as soon as that is ready -- in the meantime, have a great weekend!

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!
about 1 year ago – Fri, May 12, 2023 at 05:16:15 PM

Wow, folks… seriously. Wow. This was an amazing maiden voyage on this Backerkit sea…! YOU MADE IT UNBELIEVABLE!

Together, you unlocked ALL of our planned stretch goal bonuses and helped us reach a height we certainly didn’t want to assume going into this. The folks at Backerkit are absolutely awesome, and we think their new platform is going to be exceed a lot of people expectations. We already have more plans in the works here! 😎

Next we’ll get the pledge manager set up so that surveys can go out. The books and everything have been delivered to the printers so things will move quickly for a ship date in late September or early October (just in time for Halloween). To be perfectly honest, I’m writing this from a restaurant right now (getting ready to go see Guardians of the Galaxy), so my access to info is limited, but we’ll post a more detailed update next week.

THANKS AGAIN EVERYONE! You are the best!

The final lap!
about 1 year ago – Thu, May 11, 2023 at 02:53:53 PM

Hey everyone!

This is it... Only 24 hours left! We've come so far -- frankly further than we expected -- and we couldn't be more grateful! In the second half of this campaign, you have unlocked SIX MORE Stretch goals, including two beautiful linen cardstock art prints, two cool and creepy clear stickers, and a sweeeeeet golden challenge coin all included FREE with every physical pre-order! You even unlocked foil gilding on the slipcase book page edges!


Since time is running short, we went ahead and revealed the LAST TWO stretch goals for this campaign:


To be perfectly honest, even though we were revealing goals as we went along, these really were the last two items in the plan, so we're hoping that wIth only 24 hours to go, we can unlock both to complete each set! $7k may be a lot to hope for in the last day, but Backerkit has proven to be a platform full of surprises so far, so anything could be possible!

You can help out by either upgrading your pledge, adding to your order, or simply help spreading the word to everyone you know who might also love the beautiful books! This really is a community-driven project, so we rely on our fans to light a grassfire of excitement!


Thank you all so much for being with us this far! We can't wait to put these books in your hands! 

Halftime report!
about 1 year ago – Wed, May 03, 2023 at 10:41:47 AM

Hi everyone!
We are officially at the halfway mark of the campaign and things are looking rosy. (I was trying to think of an appropriate, blood-themed alternative to "rosy", but "ruddy" and "bloodshot" just don't seem as optimistic... 😉) We -- or rather YOU -- have unlocked three more Stretch Goals since the last update, and we are gradually inching toward the next...

It's hard for us to gauge progress on this new platform, so who knows if we'll reach this goal today, tomorrow, Friday, or later... We're fairly confident we'll hit it before the campaign ends in 9 days, but we still have several more Stretch Goals in the wings waiting to be revealed, so hopefully it will be soon! These Stretch Goals are meant to keep things interesting and active during the slower middle-weeks of a campaign, so we'll be sure that the next goals are placed within reach moving forward...

This will be a pretty fun week regardless of when achievements are unlocked. Between Star Wars Day tomorrow (May the 4th), Cinco de Mayo on Friday (we are already anticipating some weekend margaritas), and Free Comic Book Day on Saturday, there's no shortage of things to celebrate. 😎

In the meantime, author/illustrator Georges Bess was gracious enough to take some time to answer some interview questions for us this past week, and we recently posted that article on our website. Here's a brief snippet:



Creator Interview with Georges Bess

Georges Bess established himself as a premiere visionary and stylistic chameleon at the height of the European comics renaissance during the ‘70s and ‘80s. While his illustrative talent and fluidity couldn’t be denied, the direction he would take on a project was often unpredictable, an improvisational instinct that set him apart from his peers. Today, Georges has brought that immense talent to two classic horror stories, adapting Bram Stoker’s DRACULA and Mary Shelley’s FRANKENSTEIN into two bold and powerful graphic novels that retell these seminal tales through lush and unparalleled illustration. Earlier this week, we had the chance to sit down and ask creator Georges Bess a few questions about his experience as an artist and adapting these two horror classics!

Magnetic Press: How did you get interested in drawing? What made you realize this could be a full-time career?

Georges: It goes back to my early childhood. As far as I can remember I always drew, but I never thought it could be a job! To be honest, I was even far from imagining that one could earn a living by drawing! When I found myself in Sweden at 23, not speaking the language, I wondered what to do… I knew how to draw and drawing is a universal language. So I went to introduce myself to editors and I was taken on, first for a few assignments, a few replacements.

Magnetic Press: You’ve been described as a “stylistic chameleon.” How did you learn this versatility?

Georges: As other designers had to be replaced, I had to blend in with their style, which is what trained me in this versatility that you recognize in me. I studied them meticulously. I had a taste for them. Then, when I was entrusted with stories of The Phantom by Lee Falk to illustrate, (I drew almost 50 stories of The Phantom), for fun and to “challenge” myself, I made a story in the style of one draftsman after another in a different style, thus refining my apprenticeship.



Magnetic: How do you find the style you think best fits a story?

Georges: For me, the choice of a style for a story is done in an intuitive way. Style is like a language, and one would not imagine writing a joke book with an academic language; in the same way, some styles are obviously more suited to comedic stories, while others are less so.

Magnetic: Why did you choose to adapt these classic horror books? Do you have a connection with the material in some way?

Georges: As far as Dracula is concerned, it’s because my publisher had attended some exhibitions of my large-scale drawings (from 1 square meter to 8 square meters) that I had made for art galleries (nothing at all like comics) to be exhibited in galleries, fairs, and art centers. He had the idea of suggesting that I do Dracula, because these drawings concealed the aspects of what we call “Gothic,” with skulls, bones, flowers, etc.  And then the black and white too, which contributes to the atmosphere.

These large drawings were also presented in the United States, at the Philippe Labaune gallery in New York.

When my editor asked me to do this adaptation, it turns out that I couldn’t find my way around with a “traditional screenwriter.” I wanted a really good story, and this was the opportunity. Naturally, once Dracula was adapted, Frankenstein was a no-brainer. Especially since I have a special connection with these two works — I literally devoured them one after the other when I was 13 years old. These are almost my first books as a young reader, and they left me with remarkable, extraordinary memories. I remember really intense hours while reading them.

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We'll post the rest of the interview in the next update (or you can hop over to the website to read it now...)

Thanks for your support, everyone! Please keep spreading the word! NINE DAYS LEFT!