Graeme Neil Reid tells me he posted up no less than eighteen different ink sketches on his blog through December and January, taking in science fiction characters, comics and sci-fi movies. Now he’s offering a chance to win your choice from the sketches, simply by clicking the follow button on his blog and leaving your choice of sketch in the comments section on the competition post. Details are on Graeme’s blog and you’ve got to the end of February to try your luck. I especially like his Doctor Who sketch of the late, great Jon Pertwee:

FPI: Can you pick three comics/webcomics/graphic novels which you especially enjoyed over the last twelve months and tell us why you singled them out?

Graeme: I’m a big Johnny Cash fan and so an easy pick for me is Johnny Cash: I See a Darkness by Reinhard Kleist; makes me want to draw Johnny Cash pictures all day.

Defoe: 1666 by Pat Mills and Leigh Gallagher. This book collects together the first two series that appeared in the weekly 2000AD and although I already read it I had to buy and read it again. Leigh’s work is amazing and on this series he’s working in a style that very much reminds me of some of the ‘classic’ artists like Bradbury, Ortiz etc. that we used to see  so often in the 1980s, it makes me happy.

Harker by Roger Gibson and Vince Danks. Single issue comics are too expensive nowadays, apart from 2000AD the only single issue comic I buy is ‘Harker’ so that must mean something? It means its good.

FPI: Can you pick three books which you especially enjoyed over the last twelve months and tell us why you singled them out?

Graeme: To my shame I’ve been very busy this year and haven’t read a lot of new books, something I should try to change in 2010. Here’s a book with pictures in it: “Clint Eastwood: Icon”. This is a Titan hardback big “coffee-table” type book with all the poster art from Eastwoods long career, its gorgeous.

FPI: Can you pick three TV shows and/or movies which you especially enjoyed over the last twelve months and tell us why you singled them out?

Graeme: Moon starring Sam Rockwell and directed by Duncan Jones, a sci-fi film from the early 80s made in 2009. The music by Clint Mansell seals the deal for me.

Doctor Who starring David Tennant and various others. What can I say I love Doctor Who, even the bits that I don’t like. Its like when you watched it as a kid back in the 70s and the props wobbled you just ignored it and it’s the same with some of the writing elements of the new series I just ignore the bits I don’t like. I cannot wait to see the new series in 2010.

(Doctor Who, Very Short Trips by Graeme Neil Reid, borrowed from his site)

District 9 directed by Neill Blomkamp, just a whole lot better than I was expecting. Another great sci-fi film.

FPI: How did 2009 go for you as a creator? Are you happy with the way you got your work out this year?

Graeme: 2009 was pretty good for me, I had my first mainstream book work published “The Dangerous Book of Heroes” and my first TV work “The Worlds Strongest Man” adverts for Bravo, plus the start of Scotch Corner, the daily Scottish art blog has kept me all busy. I’ve started posting more to my own blog too with quick ink sketches that I tend to sell at conventions.

FPI: What can we look forward to from you in 2010?

Graeme: More of the same I hope. More blog posts, more Scotch Corner and whatever anyone decides to hire me for. No immediate plans at least (i.e. no immediate work) :)

FPI: Anyone you think is a name we should be watching out for next year?

Graeme: Dave Hitchcock is a name that’s been around for a while (Springheeled Jack, Gothic etc.) but he’s been working on a new graphic novel (with Gary Young)  called “Madame Samuria” which will be released in two books, it looks brilliant.

FPI: And one final, special question – since its not only the end of the year approaching but also the end of the decade, is there any comics work you’d especially pick out as one of the best you’ve read this decade?

Graeme: Leviathan by Ian Edginton and D’Isreali. Cracking story and art to keep you captivated, I love Matt’s work on this and he’s a great example of how as an artist you should develop and experiment, take “Stickleback” as another great example for this.

(pets among the trenches by Stanley L Wood, from ‘the war to end all wars’)

“If in some smothering dreams you too could pace
Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin;
If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud
Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,–
My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
To children ardent for some desperate glory,
The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est
Pro patria mori.” Wilfred Owen

(Remembrance from The Dangerous Book of Heroes by Graeme Neil Reid, borrowed from the Scotch Corner comics collective blog)