THREE Joe Shuster Award Nominations

Woke up this morning to a pleasant surprise: I've been nominated three times in the 7th Annual Joe Shuster Awards, which celebrate the achievements of Canadian comics creators, publishers, and retailers. One nomination is for Outstanding Canadian Cartoonist (alongside big names like Darwyn Cooke and current Canada Reads darling Jeff Lemire) while the other two are in the Comics for Kids category, where Tower of Treasure and Two Generals are competing against each other. Tower of Treasure publisher Kids Can Press was also nominated for Best Publisher, which was nice to see.

I was surprised but pleased by the nomination for Two Generals for the Comics for Kids award. While it wasn't written specifically for children, myself and the folks at McClelland & Stewart always thought of it as having "crossover potential" and being something that should be read by young people. That the book seems to be being received that way is gratifying.

The full list of nominees does a terrific job of illustrating the quality of work being done by Canadian creators, both English and French, as well as the enormous diversity of today's comics scene. Go take a look, and maybe you'll discover something great you hadn't yet heard of. And congratulations to the other nominees!