Thanks to your support (and your love of all things shirty-ninja...y... the figurine order has been finalized. They're being produced, and will be on their way here shortly. I'll keep you posted as to their arrival date.

However, it's possible that you may NEVER get them, because the world is clearly going to end soon. The reason? The unthinkable has happened - preorders for Book 2 have officially begun.

If, for some reason, the skies do not in fact fall upon us and the oceans manage to avoid being boiled away, you will find that Book 2 is in fact very, very real. And not only is it better than Book 1 by leaps and bounds, we're even doing a special run of 500 limited-edition hardcover copies which are signed, numbered, and stamped with our official Real Life Seal of Awesometicity. Those hardcover editions aren't simply case-bound, either... they've got a DUST JACKET. That's just fancy-pantsy right there.

The paperback edition ain't no slouch, though... the cover is a satin finish, a definitive upgrade over the easily-scuffed glossy cover of book one, and both editions of the book are printed in glorious, vibrant full-color on semigloss paper. It's just a beautiful book, and I'm excited that it's finally becoming a reality.

I'm still finishing up some of the commentary, and Hawk (Yes, THAT Hawk) is working on the cover for me right now, but I'm aiming for shipping these in time for Christmas, and in order to do that, I've got an ordering deadline of October 20th. So, frankly, the sooner the better. This is gonna be a srs bsns type of order, so it's gonna take a bit, but we can get there. And this is gonna kick of a renewed dedication to books - I'm going to be aiming to release 2 per year - that should continue for many years to come. Get your copy of Book 2 preordered today - after all, the world may end tomorrow.

Okay, before I get anything else out... WOO-HOO! 2000 freaking comics!! Who da man? I da man!

Ahem. Okay, so now that that's out of the way.... yeah, wow. Today is the OFFICIAL two-thousandth Real Life comic. I went through earlier in the year and did a new count, removing any and all non-comic "images" that happen to fill the archives, and have been meticulous in my counting since then, so I've seen this coming like a freight train for the past few weeks. Now it's here. And it wasn't until last night that Liz and I actually decided that we'd DO something on this particular milestone. So, being that it's a particularly awesome milestone for me, I'm going to pass along the good fortune to you by holding TWO contests - the first contests I've ever done.

The prize for each of them is a Shirt Ninja Figurine - signed by yours truly, of course. They each have completely different rules and qualifications, and each of them will end at EXACTLY midnight (Central time) next wednesday - May 28th. (And to clarify things, yes - that means you have all of wednesday to participate.) And without further ado... here they are.

Our first contest is one of artistic merit, and is bourne partially out of necessity. I've been meaning to get the fanart section up for a while now, but a lot of my old fanart has been lost to the ages (and the various server moves I've undergone) and because the section has been down so long, fan art has... well, it hasn't even been trickling in. It's been ages since I've seen any. Now's your chance to change that - and get a figurine in the process!

RULES: Frankly, this one's easy. Create a piece of fanart for Real Life Comics. It can be anything you want, pretty much. The winner will be chosen by a panel of judges, (Me, Liz, and my mom, who besides being a devout reader, is visiting next week) and will be judged on the criteria of style, quality, subject matter, and, if applicable, humor. (It's not necessary for the fanart to be funny at all - but I'll be honest, if it makes me laugh my ass off, it's going to be rated a lot higher in my estimation.) Remember - I want to see things done in YOUR style. Don't try to copy my style... franky, it's not that good of a style to begin with.

All entries MUST be sent to 2000thComicContest@gmail.com by the May 28th deadline in order to be eligible for the contest. (If you want to send it in after that, feel free - it just won't be judged.) The winners will be announced Thursday, May 29th. Did I say winners? I guess I did. For THIS contest, in addition to the first prize of a figurine, I will also be giving a second place prize of a $25 gift certificate on the store, and a third place prize of a $10 gift certificate on the store. Not bad, eh?

ALL entries (the ones that are worksafe, anyhow) will go in the Fan Art section, which will be revived from the dead following this contest, and we'll be trying our damndest to find all the old fanart to go there as well. So warm up your drawing hand - it could win you a figurine!

This contest is a liiitle more difficult. Well, okay - not so much more DIFFICULT, but it will require a bit more thought, and a bit of luck, in order to win. In fact, to even start the contest and find the rules, you're going to have to know the answer to this riddle:

This word, while fun to exclaim, should never be yelled in a crowded spanish theater.

That should whet your appetite a little for this little adventure through the Real Life archives. In order to start playing, you'll need to fill in the "XXXXX" part of the following web address with your answer: (all lowercase, no punctuation) www.reallifecomics.com/XXXXX.html .

You'll find the rest of the rules there, along with everything you need to continue. Have fun!

I'm going to eschew all the flowery sales text here and just come out and say it - I am ECSTATIC to be able to offer the very first Real Life Figurine - The Shirt Ninja. I've been working with the fantastically talented Gensen Figures to bring the Shirt Ninja to life. (By the way, I recommend browsing their gallery to get a sense of the quality these guys put out... I'm still in awe of their talent.)

Now, I should note - the figurine you see above is obviously not complete. It is the initial prototype, carved out of sculpting wax. Gensen is currently in the process of casting, sanding, and finishing a painted prototype that will be exactly like the finished product, and I should be receiving the pictures of that in the next few days. I'm only offering this up for pre-order now because in order to get these in a timely fashion, I need to be able to place the order as soon as possible. That's why I'm not simply waiting for the colored photos to be available. Once they arrive (Again, in the next few days) I will post them here for all to see. I do assure you, however, that if you were to pre-order the figurine, and do not like the way it looks when painted (for whatever reason), I will offer a full refund.

I suppose it's time to talk about the nuts and bolts of this bad boy:

• The figurine stands 4" tall and 5" long.


• It will be permanently attached to an oval base - it's kind of off-balance otherwise, so it's impossible to make it free-standing.


• Each figurine will come packaged in form-fitting plastic in a custom-designed box - for those collectors who like to keep things in their original packaging. And... you know. To keep it safe during shipping.

Remember, pre-ordering is the only way to be SURE you're going to get one of these, because once I make the order, the quantity available will be fixed. No more will be ordered after that point, so pre-order yours today to be guaranteed one of these fantastic collectibles!

You know how I said I've been busy recently? This is part of what I've been working on that's kept me so busy.

I present to you the Greg's Notes Edition of Real Life Comics. This book is a new reader guide, synopsis, and fan-favorites collection all in one. It is, for all intents and purposes, the Cliff's Notes to Real Life. Only, you know - we can't CALL it that. :)

It's 193 pages, Black & White, and available PERMANENTLY on Lulu.com - that's right - it's available now, and it will remain available forever. Never out of stock, ever. Well, unless Lulu goes out of business, but... well, you can't plan for everything. I waited to make the announcement 'till I got my copy, (I ordered it Wednesday, it came Saturday. Considering it didn't EXIST in any form until Wednesday evening, I'd say that's pretty damned good.) and I could not be happier with it - this thing looks phenomenal. So head on over to Lulu.com and pick up your copy today!