- Mam Tor Publishing
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Mam Tor Publishing 
Type Independent Publisher Industry Publishing Founded 2004 Founder(s) Liam Sharp (publisher)
Christina McCormackHeadquarters Derby Key people Liam Sharp (Editor-in-chief)
Christina McCormack-Sharp
John Bamber
Tom MullerProducts Comics, Graphic Novels, Novels Mam Tor Publishing is an English independent comic book publisher founded by Liam Sharp and his wife Christina McCormack. The company's headquarters are in Derby, East Midlands.
The name "Mam Tor" comes from the landmark high peak near Castleton in the High Peak of Derbyshire, England.
Contents
History
During 2004, Mam Tor Publishing was established by Liam & Christina McCormack-Sharp to publish Sharpenings, The Art of Liam Sharp.[1] It, a personal artbook featuring previously unreleased art samples of Sharp, was initially a portfolio showcase he could send publishers.
The book gained success, and during Sharp's many convention visits he started to meet a lot of like-minded, and more important, unpublished artists and writers who couldn't seem to break into the industry because their work was considered too far removed of the mainstream market. Sharp, who always has walked the fine line between commercial success and artistic freedom saw potential and an opportunity to use his publishing imprint as a way to offer the talent a stepping stone in the industry, while offering well known creators a playground where they could let their creativity run free without the usual editorial restrictions.
Together with designer Tom Muller and friend John Bamber he set out to expand the company to start publishing more work. This saw the launch of the critically acclaimed and award-winning anthology, Mam Tor: Event Horizon.
Mam Tor is dedicated to producing creator driven works that might not ordinarily find a home on the bookshelf - their being too niche, radical or unquantifiable - despite the evident quality and commitment they display. Mam Tor has not been created as a commercial venture, but as a forum for subcultural, underground, science fiction, horror or fantasy artists. There are no fees for the work produced, nor are there the usual editorial restrictions.
Mam Tor has published the award-winning anthology Mam Tor: Event Horizon.[1] Dubbed "21st Century Pulp Fiction", it showcases the finest in underground, fantasy, and science fiction in a unique mix of comics and illustrated text stories by some of the finest names in the industry and the stars of tomorrow.
Currently Mam Tor is releasing stand-alone graphic novels, like Matt Coyle's Worry Doll[2] and Sharp's Lap Of The Gods, as well as developing other properties for comics, books, and film.
They have just started publishing a quarterly free comic given away in Time Out. Four Feet From a Rat[3] is a 16 page comic comprising 4 stories, all written by the advertising company Mother, Stories in the first issue are "The Crane Gods" Liam Sharp, "The Little Guy" by Chris Weston, "Routemaster" by Dave Kendall and "Don Pigeone" by Kev Crossley.[4][5][6] The third issue got press attention thanks to the story illustrated by Roger Langridge "Young Boris," which featured the adventures of London mayor Boris Johnson.[7]
Mam Tor: Event Horizon
Event Horizon is Mam Tor's flagship title. Its tagline "21st Century Pulp Fiction" describes it best. Event Horizon is a quarterly anthology publication showcasing the best in fantasy, horror, and sci-fi, both in comic form and short (illustrated) prose stories. Each book follows a thematic and chronological structure: "Fantastic" (the fantasy part), "Gothic" (modern day fantasy and horror), and "Future Science" (science fiction). This gives the book a well defined structure wherein creators' stories can be presented contained within each sub-genre. Each issue features stand-alone stories in comic and written form side to side with serialized stories which will run across several books ("F***ing Savages", "The Wormcast", "Necromachia", "Machivarious Point", etc...), and art galleries.
The books mascot Viking Zombie Elvis, who opens and closes each book has made the leap from the printed page to (undead) life in the shlock mock rock doc "Paul Hammond's Rumours of Ragnorok? a Historiography"[8]
Mam Tor are now in production with various other media projects, including the above mentioned Zombie Elvis feature.
Publications
- Sharpenings: The Art of Liam Sharp
- Mam Tor: Event Horizon:
- #1 (140 pages, May 2005, ISBN 0954999800)
- #2 (208 pages, November 2005, ISBN 0954999819)
- Life Is Humiliation #1, #2
- Worry Doll — (graphic novel by Matt Coyle, January 2007, ISBN 0954999835)
- Lap of the Gods — (collection of personal works by Liam Sharp)
- St. Cyborg's — (by Nick Wray, 168 pages, January 2008, ISBN 0954999851)
- The Enemy's Son — Erth Chronicles Book I (by James Johnson, May 2008, ISBN 0954999843)
- Four Feet From A Rat — (Quarterly comic supplement in Time Out London magazine, March 2008 - )
- God Killers – Machivarius Point & Other Stories - (Novel and short stories by Liam Sharp, May 2009, ISBN 9780954999865)
In development
- Viking Zombie Elvis - Rock-Slock-Mockumentary
Awards
- 2006:
- Won Best Graphic Novel, Sci-Fi London, for Mam Tor: Event Horizon[9]
- 2007:
- Won Best Comic Book Artist, Rue Morgue Award, for Matt Coyle's Worry Doll
- Nominated Best British Colour Comic, Eagle Awards, for Mam Tor: Event Horizon[10]
Creators
- Liam Sharp
- Steve Niles
- Ashley Wood
- Chris Weston
- Dan Wickline
- Kody Chamberlain
- Tom Muller
- Shane McCarthy
- Emma Simcock-Tooth
- Kev Crossley
- Gary Erskine
- Glenn Fabry
- Simon Bisley
- Emily Hare
- Dave Kendall
- Matt Dixon
- Greg Staples
- John Bamber
- Matt Boyce
- Alan Grant
- Brem
- Douglas Rushkoff
- Ali Powers
- Matt Coyle
- Nick Wray
Notes
- ^ a b Liam Sharp Launches Mam Tor & Event Horison, Newsarama, December 14, 2004
- ^ Nightmare world at the tip of his pen , The Daily Telegraph, August 1, 2007
- ^ Four Feet From a Rat
- ^ Mother Spreads Its Weirdness, Creativity Online (includes free PDF download of first issue)
- ^ Mam Tor & Mother Take Time Out With 'Four Feet From a Rat', Newsarama, March 24, 2008
- ^ Mother's comic turn, The Guardian, March 17, 2008
- ^ Boris Johnson battles Ken Livingstone in Time Out comic, The Guardian, October 30, 2008
- ^ Zombie Elvis
- ^ Sci-Fi London Award for Best Graphic Novel
- ^ Eagle Awards
References
- Mam Tor Publishing at the Comic Book DB
External links
- Official website of Mam Tor Publishing
- Machivarius Points/Liam Sharp online community
- Official Erth Chronicles site
- Profile at About.com
Reviews
Categories:- Comic book publishing companies of the United Kingdom
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