Kickstarting Athena Voltaire: A Call for Help

As you know, the process of creating a comic is very long and requires a lot of hard work and, in many cases, a major financial commitment on the part of the creators. For Steve Bryant, the creator of the awarding winning comic Athena Voltaire, the pressures of regular paying work has made it nearly impossible to work on his own creator-owned magnum opus. In order to make the dream of more Athena Voltaire comics a reality, Bryant needs the help of the readers through his Athena Voltaire Kickstarter program. Hit the jump to find out more about this project and what you can do to help.

At Wizard World Chicago 2006, out of sheer curiosity, I dropped by the Ape Entertainment booth. I knew very little of the company, except that I liked their name and they had a pretty cool logo. While flipping through their wares, I came across a comic called Athena Voltaire. I was immediately taken by the great cover art depicting an intriguing heroine—what looked to be a female Indiana Jones.

I purchased the issue and spent a few minutes chatting with co-creator Steve Bryant. He was one of the friendliest creators I had met that weekend and seemed genuinely excited about me purchasing his comic. At the close of our brief chat, he told me to shoot him an email to let him know what I thought.

A few weeks after the convention, I finally cracked open the first issue of Athena Voltaire and the Flight of the Falcon. I was immediately hooked. The issue followed a no-nonsense aviatrix as she battle Nazis and kept mystical artifacts out of their hands. The character was a refreshing take on the modern heroine. It wasn’t long before I sent Steve an email proclaiming my love for the comic.

In the years since, I’ve had the pleasure of chatting with Steve at a number of conventions and we still occasionally exchange emails. Every time I talk with him, I’m always impressed by his dedication to Athena Voltaire, despite the fact that she hasn’t been seen on the stands in several years. This is truly a passion project for Steve and I’ve been anxiously awaiting the time when his wonderful character will be taking on further 4-color adventures.

Now is that time, but it is going to take some help—our help. The fate of the next Athena Voltaire comic can now be decided by the readers as Steve embarks on the Athena Voltaire Kickstarter project. Through donations from the fans, Steve hopes to raise enough money that he can focus on Athena Voltaire and Athena Voltaire alone, hire a colorist, and get the character back in print. Steve has also developed an incentive program for donors. Exclusive sketchbooks, early access to the latest developments, and even original art will be offered to those who donate.

I’ve been a huge fan of the series for years now and plan to do my part by not only donating to this project, but also by reviewing past Athena Voltaire projects here on Weekly Crisis in the coming weeks to raise awareness for this amazing comic. I’m also asking that you do your part by sparing some extra cash to help fund this awesome comic.

You can find out more about this award winning comic and the Athena Voltaire Kickstarter project at the official site  or by following Steve on Twitter @SteveBryantArt and @AthenaVoltaire.

This is an exciting time for Steve and for fans of Athena Voltaire, both new and old. Steve has not only been an awesome creator to chat with, but he is also been a great help in getting my own comic projects off the ground with his awesome advice. If you don’t do it for him, do it as a personal favor to me (y’all want to make me happy, don’t ya?).

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