A year has passed since the harrowing events that took place at the Colorado Festival of Horror (COFOH) with the enigmatic slasher, Killr™. A new mysterious figure emerges on the scene of this year’s cosplay convention adopting the grisly murderer’s persona. No one knows if it’s just another obsessive fan of the franchise taking fandom to the extreme — or a new horrifying threat. Armed with 14-inch shears and a grotesque goggled-mask, whoever it is only leaves behind a blood-soaked trail of victims, which never seems to end. Bestselling novelist Stephen Graham Jones, acclaimed writer Joshua Viola, and artist Ben Matsuya are doing it again with the 3-part cosplay slasher comic series, TRUE BELIEVERS. With a smash hit launch of Issue 1 at last year’s COFOH featuring cameos by Scream Queen Jamie Lee Curtis, Goosebumps’ legend R.L. Stine, Final Destination’s creator Jeffrey Reddick, and the cast of the cult horror classic, Deathgasm, the crew is outdoing themselves with the Kickstarter release of Issue 2: MURDERVERSARY. Masked metal band GWAR, grammy-nominated band Trivium’s Matthew Kiichi Heafy, and renowned horror actor Devon Sawa (Idle Hands, Chucky), haunt the new issue inside and out with playful appearances and collectible covers created by a slew of artistic talent. Fans can now also score brand new limited Issue 1 variant covers of Curtis, Stine, Reddick and Deathgasm by artist Matthew Therrien. And it doesn’t stop there. Supporters have a chance to get their hands on one-of-a-kind prizes like Oktober Studios latex masks and bloody prop shears, a saw-blade vinyl score by Heafy, signed GWAR skatedeck and No. 124 drumsticks, original artwork and so much more. We had a chance to catch up with the writers and creators, Stephen Graham Jones and Joshua Viola, to talk about Issue 2's star-studded roster, their creation process and what Kickstarter backers can anticipate supporting this independent artist comic series. swept us into fandom. But now, we’re true believers. Issue 1 CONGRATS ON YOUR WILDLY SUCCESSFUL LAUNCH OF TRUE BELIEVERS LAST SEPTEMBER! WHAT WAS A HIGHLIGHT OF RELEASING ISSUE 1? AND ANYTHING YOU LEARNED FROM THIS EXPERIENCE THAT HELPED IN THE CREATION OF ISSUE 2? STEPHEN GRAHAM JONES: Highlight for me was holding the comic in my hands — all these variants covers, all this wonderful art and lettering and colors and more. Comic books are always a team effort, and we had a killer Killr™ team. JOSHUA VIOLA: The most fulfilling aspect has been witnessing this project take shape and seeing it connect with others. It’s incredibly rewarding to witness its impact and resonance with people. I think we’ve nailed a formula for our world and storytelling, and then learned how to sorta turn it on its head for the next issue. TELL US ABOUT YOUR WRITING PROCESS TOGETHER OVER THESE PAST FEW MONTHS FOR THE STORYLINE OF THIS SECOND INSTALL. DID YOU ALREADY HAVE THE PLOT SQUARED AWAY OR WAS IT SOMETHING AN INTERVIEW WITH CREATORS AND WRITERS STEPHEN GRAHAM JONES & JOSHUA VIOLA BY KRYSTI JOMÉI
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