David Hopkins (writer)
Encyclopedia
David Hopkins is an American comic book writer and essayist. His works include Karma Incorporated
and Emily Edison from publisher Viper Comics
, Astronaut Dad, and a comic book adaptation of Antigone
with frequent collaborator artist Tom Kurzanski
. He writes a regular comic feature for D Magazine
called Souvenir of Dallas with artist Paul Milligan. David is a contributor to the Smart Pop Series from BenBella Books
. He is the co-host and co-producer of Fanboy Radio
's Indie Show, that showcases independent and small press comics. David lives in Arlington, Texas with his daughter Kennedy.
. The only performance of "Space to Occupy" was on September 14, 2002. Immediately afterwards, Hopkins began writing comics.
The first year, Hopkins wrote a five issue series The Insight. Set in Dallas, Hopkins used extensive photo references from actual locations in the city. (He would later do this for Karma Incorporated
, which also takes place in Dallas.) Over the course of two years, there were two different artists attached to the project, which never came together and remains unpublished.
In June 2003, Hopkins wrote a 144 page graphic novel Astronaut Dad -- a fictional story about three astronaut families living in Houston, set in 1963. Hopkins cites this work as his "most personally satisfying". It is set to be published by Silent Devil Productions.
Later that year, encouraged by the Isotope Awards, Hopkins self-published a mini-comic "Some Other Day"http://antiherocomics.com/sod_1.htm with artist Brian Kelly
.
In 2004, Hopkins' first published work was a short story in Viper Comics
Dead@17: Rough Cuthttp://vipercomics.com/features_rc.asp. Creator Josh Howard
invited him to contribute to this anthology. Afterwards, he also wrote short stories for Western Tales of Terrorhttp://hoarseandbuggy.com/shop/book.html/cat/1, Silent Forest Television Parody Specialhttp://silentdevil.com/silent-forest-television-parody-special.php, and Dead@17: Rough Cut Volume 2.
At Comic Con International in 2005, Viper Comics
released Hopkins first series Karma Incorporated
, illustrated by Tom Kurzanski
and colored by Marlena Hall. In addition to the standard blue cover of issue one, a red exclusive variant cover
was printed as part of the Diamond Distributors exclusives for that year. A second series was approved, but never completed.
Hopkins wrote Emily Edison, which was published by Viper Comics
in 2006, and illustrated by Brock Rizy. It was released as a trade paperback. That summer, Rizy and Hopkins went on a month long book tour to promote the release through California, Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
David Hopkins is also an English III and Creative Writing teacher at Martin High School
in Arlington, Texas
.
Karma Incorporated
Karma Incorporated is a three issue comic book limited series about a team of misfits who are paid to cause trouble with the enemies of their employers. The series is written by David Hopkins, illustrated by Tom Kurzanski, colored by Marlena Hall, and published by Viper Comics...
and Emily Edison from publisher Viper Comics
Viper Comics
Viper Comics, based in Dallas, Texas, has been an independent publisher of comic books and graphic novel trade paperbacks since 2003. Viper comic books are distributed by Diamond Comic Distributors and their graphic novels are distributed through Diamond, Ingram Books, Baker & Taylor, Inc., and...
, Astronaut Dad, and a comic book adaptation of Antigone
Antigone
In Greek mythology, Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Oedipus' mother. The name may be taken to mean "unbending", coming from "anti-" and "-gon / -gony" , but has also been suggested to mean "opposed to motherhood", "in place of a mother", or "anti-generative", based from the root...
with frequent collaborator artist Tom Kurzanski
Tom Kurzanski
Tom Kurzanski is a comic book artist in Denver, Colorado. His artistic body of work includes Karma Incorporated published by Viper Comics, a retelling of Antigone from Silent Devil Productions, and short stories including Heart Mountain, WY: 1942 from Josh Howard Presents: Sasquatch and the League...
. He writes a regular comic feature for D Magazine
D Magazine
This article is about the magazine about Dallas. For the Italian magazine, see La Repubblica.D Magazine is a monthly magazine covering Dallas-Fort Worth. It covers a range of topics including politics, business, food, fashion and lifestyle in the city of Dallas. The first issue was published in...
called Souvenir of Dallas with artist Paul Milligan. David is a contributor to the Smart Pop Series from BenBella Books
BenBella Books
BenBella Books is an independent publishing house based in Dallas, Texas. Founded by Glenn Yeffeth in 2001, BenBella specializes in non-fiction books on popular culture, health, and nutrition, along with books on science, politics, psychology, and other topics....
. He is the co-host and co-producer of Fanboy Radio
Fanboy Radio
Fanboy Radio is a comic book related radio show and podcast. Hosted by Scott Hinze and Oliver Tull, Fanboy Radio has been broadcasting live comic book creator interviews, commentary with an attempt at humor and live listener callers....
's Indie Show, that showcases independent and small press comics. David lives in Arlington, Texas with his daughter Kennedy.
Career
David Hopkins first professional writing was after college in 2002. Aja Jones asked him to write a stage play for her theatre troupe to be performed at the University of Texas at ArlingtonUniversity of Texas at Arlington
The University of Texas at Arlington is a public research university located in Arlington, Texas, United States. The campus is situated southwest of downtown Arlington, and is located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. The university was founded in 1895 and served primarily a military...
. The only performance of "Space to Occupy" was on September 14, 2002. Immediately afterwards, Hopkins began writing comics.
The first year, Hopkins wrote a five issue series The Insight. Set in Dallas, Hopkins used extensive photo references from actual locations in the city. (He would later do this for Karma Incorporated
Karma Incorporated
Karma Incorporated is a three issue comic book limited series about a team of misfits who are paid to cause trouble with the enemies of their employers. The series is written by David Hopkins, illustrated by Tom Kurzanski, colored by Marlena Hall, and published by Viper Comics...
, which also takes place in Dallas.) Over the course of two years, there were two different artists attached to the project, which never came together and remains unpublished.
In June 2003, Hopkins wrote a 144 page graphic novel Astronaut Dad -- a fictional story about three astronaut families living in Houston, set in 1963. Hopkins cites this work as his "most personally satisfying". It is set to be published by Silent Devil Productions.
Later that year, encouraged by the Isotope Awards, Hopkins self-published a mini-comic "Some Other Day"http://antiherocomics.com/sod_1.htm with artist Brian Kelly
Brian Kelly (artist)
Brian Kelly is the artist for Baghdad Express, Francis and the Vegas Tramps, and the mini-comic Some Other Day. He is also a painter and a tattooer....
.
In 2004, Hopkins' first published work was a short story in Viper Comics
Viper Comics
Viper Comics, based in Dallas, Texas, has been an independent publisher of comic books and graphic novel trade paperbacks since 2003. Viper comic books are distributed by Diamond Comic Distributors and their graphic novels are distributed through Diamond, Ingram Books, Baker & Taylor, Inc., and...
Dead@17: Rough Cuthttp://vipercomics.com/features_rc.asp. Creator Josh Howard
Josh Howard (artist)
Josh Howard is the writer/artist of the American comic book series Dead@17 published by Image Comics , Black Harvest published by Devil's Due, and the Lost Books of Eve published by Viper Comics. Howard is also a regular columnist for the Wizard website.-External links:*-Interviews:* * * * * *...
invited him to contribute to this anthology. Afterwards, he also wrote short stories for Western Tales of Terrorhttp://hoarseandbuggy.com/shop/book.html/cat/1, Silent Forest Television Parody Specialhttp://silentdevil.com/silent-forest-television-parody-special.php, and Dead@17: Rough Cut Volume 2.
At Comic Con International in 2005, Viper Comics
Viper Comics
Viper Comics, based in Dallas, Texas, has been an independent publisher of comic books and graphic novel trade paperbacks since 2003. Viper comic books are distributed by Diamond Comic Distributors and their graphic novels are distributed through Diamond, Ingram Books, Baker & Taylor, Inc., and...
released Hopkins first series Karma Incorporated
Karma Incorporated
Karma Incorporated is a three issue comic book limited series about a team of misfits who are paid to cause trouble with the enemies of their employers. The series is written by David Hopkins, illustrated by Tom Kurzanski, colored by Marlena Hall, and published by Viper Comics...
, illustrated by Tom Kurzanski
Tom Kurzanski
Tom Kurzanski is a comic book artist in Denver, Colorado. His artistic body of work includes Karma Incorporated published by Viper Comics, a retelling of Antigone from Silent Devil Productions, and short stories including Heart Mountain, WY: 1942 from Josh Howard Presents: Sasquatch and the League...
and colored by Marlena Hall. In addition to the standard blue cover of issue one, a red exclusive variant cover
Variant cover
In comic books, a variant cover refers to an issue of a comic book printed with multiple covers with each unique cover art...
was printed as part of the Diamond Distributors exclusives for that year. A second series was approved, but never completed.
Hopkins wrote Emily Edison, which was published by Viper Comics
Viper Comics
Viper Comics, based in Dallas, Texas, has been an independent publisher of comic books and graphic novel trade paperbacks since 2003. Viper comic books are distributed by Diamond Comic Distributors and their graphic novels are distributed through Diamond, Ingram Books, Baker & Taylor, Inc., and...
in 2006, and illustrated by Brock Rizy. It was released as a trade paperback. That summer, Rizy and Hopkins went on a month long book tour to promote the release through California, Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
David Hopkins is also an English III and Creative Writing teacher at Martin High School
Martin High School (Arlington, Texas)
James Martin High School is a secondary school serving grades 9-12 located in Arlington, Texas and is part of the Arlington Independent School District. The mascot of the school is the Warrior, and the school colors are black, red, and silver.-History:...
in Arlington, Texas
Arlington, Texas
Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas within the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. According to the 2010 census results, the city had a population of 365,438, making it the third largest municipality in the Metroplex...
.
Interviews
- David and Brent Schoonover on It Came Out on Wednesday presented by ComiXology.com, talking about Astronaut Dad
- Hopkins & His Astronaut Dad
- David Hopkins talks Emily Edison with CBR
- 10 Questions with David Hopkins
- Comic Foundry Interview with David Hopkins and Tom Kurzanski
- Comic Foundry Interview with David Hopkins and Brock Rizy
Awards
- Dallas Observer Best Of 2006 "Best Local Comic Book Writer"
- American Library Association's Great Graphic Novels for Teens List 2007"