By Andrew Smith

Scripps Howard News Service

An extraordinary comic book is doing an extraordinary thing this month.

"Amelia Rules!" is that uncommon commodity in today's market, a comic book that is genuinely for kids (and adults, as well). Written and drawn by Jimmy Gownley, and published by Renaissance Press, "Rules" is about Amelia McBride, a 10-year-old who moves to a new town from Manhattan, and must adjust to a new life, a new school and new friends. Friends, I say with appreciation, who genuinely act and talk like 10-year-olds. And Gownley's expressive art, just this side of cartoony, delivers his tales with charm, humor and a dash of childish snottiness.

While "Amelia Rules!" is entirely kid-friendly, it's never shied from serious subjects (from a child's point of view). And this month, with issue No. 18, it takes on a big one: the Iraq War. Specifically, what it's like to be a kid left behind when a parent suits up and goes to war.

"People think they know how long a year is, but they don't," says Amelia's sometime-friend, Ninja Joan, whose father is going to Baghdad. "I do, though. I've done the math." And she has. And you will to.

Poignant without being maudlin, "The Things We Cannot Change" is guest-edited by Army Maj. Stephen M. Murphy, recently returned from his own tour of duty. The book is designed for education as well as entertainment, with a brief lesson plan in the back to help parents and teachers explain what this "deployment" business is all about.

"I wanted to be a voice for kids who don't have one," Gownley said. "Every time I would see a news story about soldiers being deployed, I would think about the children left behind, and what they must be experiencing. I thought it was time to tell their story."

Plus, Amelia goes on her first "date."

Three collections of this award-winning series are currently available at comic shops, bookstores and through Scholastic. And the issue in question is available to download for free from www.ameliarules.com.

Other comics headlines:

* Archie Comics has announced the first Grand Prize winner in their Weekly Story Contest, in which readers can submit their own Archie fanfic for consideration. Each week one winner is selected for various prizes, with the story posted on the Archie Web site. And a Grand Prize winner is selected each quarter, with his or her story featured in an Archie digest comic book.

The first Grand Prize winner is Maha, from Athens, Greece. Her "Driving With Ethel" was illustrated by Fernando Ruiz, and appeared in "Archie's Pals 'n' Gals Double Digest" No. 116, which shipped Nov. 5.

* Speaking of competition, DC has launched Zuda Comics (www.zudacomics.com), an online comics site where readers can submit strips for discussion, criticism and votes by participating professionals and other readers. At the end of the month, one creator is offered an online publishing deal.

And we already have a winner. The first chapter of Jeremy Love's "Bayou," set in 1933 Mississippi, is already online. It's too early to say what it's about, exactly, but the art is gorgeous.

You know, when I was a kid, there weren't so many cool things to do!

Original art from a variety of creators is up for auction at eBay to benefit Disabled American Veterans.

The "Amelia Rules" Charity Art Auction includes work by Dave Sim (Cerebus), Greg Evans (Luann), Terry Moore (Strangers In Paradise), Batton Lash (Supernatural Law), Jeffrey Brown (Clumsy), John Bintz (A Moment of Clarity), Michael Cohen (Strange Attractors) and Jimmy Gownley (Amelia Rules!)

Visit the auction's eBay page for more details.

There are parts of Alaska where the sun doesn't come up for a month in winter. Imagine how convenient that would be if you were a vampire.

Horror writer Steve Niles imagined just that in his 2002 comics series for IDW, "30 Days of Night," in which bloodsuckers terrorize Barrow, Alaska, for a month. It's now a movie by Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures, premiering Oct. 19. And a prequel of sorts has already debuted: "30 Days of Night: Blood Trails" is a series of high-quality shorts, three-to-five minutes each, appearing on FEARnet.com and Comcast's FEARnet Video On Demand digital cable service, which began Sept. 13.

So how does a horror comic become a movie? The Captain asked Niles that very question.

Captain Comics: Did "30 Days" begin as a screenplay?

Niles: It began as a pitch, just a one-page pitch, that I unsuccessfully pitched in Hollywood ... for about 12-15 years. I tried to pitch it to movies; I tried to pitch it as a comic, to Vertigo and a few other companies, and you know: rejected.

CC: Then IDW picked it up, and it ran as a mini-series.

Niles: It didn't even sell that well, and then boom! Despite bad sales, it caught the attention of Hollywood folks, and wound up turning into a giant bidding war. A big war, between three studios. ... But it was when I heard Sam Raimi's name brought into it, I said "I don't care what they're offering, I don't care what studio it is, go with whoever Sam Raimi's with. I know he'll watch over the project the best."

CC: How did "Blood Trails" come about?

Niles: The FEARnet thing came about through Sam Raimi's Ghost House. Basically what they came to me with was that they wanted to do free content that would not only tell a story, but also serve as a lead-in into the movie. We really lucked out with "30 Days," because there was an entire plotline that takes place in New Orleans in the original graphic novel that got removed from the movie. For very good reasons. Raimi and (director David) Slade both agreed that the movie should take place just in Barrow, so you get that sense of isolation.

The idea is that there are people in New Orleans that might know something about vampires and what they're doing. Not necessarily where they're going, specifically; they're getting the sense that something big is about to happen, but they don't know what. They think it's going to be an attack on New Orleans, but learn something very different, unfortunately the night before Oct. 19, when "30 Days of Night" opens in theaters.

CC: How involved were you in the movie?

Niles: I wrote the first draft of the screenplay, which involved about three months -- I got to work with Sam Raimi, in the same room, and that was a dream come true. ... They kept me in the loop every second.

CC: As a consultant, how involved were you on "Blood Trails"?

Niles: As much as I could be. ... Between (writer Ben Ketai and director Victor Garcia), honestly, there wasn't much for me to do. They really, really knew what they were doing.

CC: If I met a fan who saw "30 Days of Night" and got excited about Steve Niles, which of all of your comics would you have me recommend to him?

Niles: He'd be really bummed, because the first thing I'd recommend are the Cal MacDonald novels: "Savage Membrane" and "Guns, Drugs and Monsters." That's my favorite stuff, "Criminal Macabre" -- that's the title, the character is Cal MacDonald. I've worked on him in comics, and in novels, and now I'm working on trying to get him into a film.

CC: Have you seen "30 Days of Night" yet?

Niles: I saw it last week, for the first time. Omigod. Honestly, if somebody could erase the portion of my brain that lets me know that this is something I created, or had a hand in creating, I would be so excited. It reminds me of when I first saw commercials for "Jaws" and "The Exorcist," and just that "Omigod, I've got to see this" (reaction). I owe everything to David Slade and Sam Raimi on this, because they took my immense graphic novel and just ... put it on the screen.

(Contact Andrew Smith of the Memphis Commercial Appeal at capncomics@aol.com )

Jane Irwin artist/writer of Vogelein



Jane made cupcakes for the party!



Jane joins in the comic jam.



Jane sneaks away for some quiet time with the new Finder HC.


Dan Merritt
Green Brain Comics 
Detroit area's Best Comic Book Selection
13210 Michigan Ave
Dearborn, MI 48126
313-582-9444
www.myspace.com/greenbraincomics

Hey Kids!!!

We are less than 24 hours away from our hugely enormous Graphic Novel Release Party celebrating the new Vogelein book from Kalamazoo's own Jane Irwin!

You can be one of the first to get a copy of "Vogelein: Old Ghosts" this Saturday September 29th. Jane is bringing copies of the new book with her, and it might be your only chance to get a hold of a very limited hardcover edition of the new book.

Jane is also making some cupcakes *mmm cupcakes* and we'll have light refreshments to make the evening the kind of huge event that we like to throw at Green Brain Comics.

While you're here, join in a special comic jam. The collaborative improv strips are sure to be unpredictable and might even be as fun to make as they are to read.

So remember to leave your after dinner plans open tomorrow Saturday, September 29th from 6pm to 9pm and join us to celebrate the release of "Vogelein: Old Ghosts"




Dan Merritt
Green Brain Comics 
Detroit area's Best Comic Book Selection
13210 Michigan Ave
Dearborn, MI 48126
313-582-9444
www.myspace.com/greenbraincomics< br>

@ Green Brain Comics

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Dan Merritt
Green Brain Comics
Detroit area's Best Comic Book Selection
13210 Michigan Ave
Dearborn, MI 48126
313-582-9444
www.myspace.com/greenbraincomics