 New Books Ahoy! Hello friends,It’s been an eventful few months! I come bearing good tidings. The Book Logjam has finally burst!Hot on the heels of the September release of My Gorilla Family by Iijma Ichiro, two brand new Living the Line titles are hitting the streets! First up is HARPY by science fiction writer/artist EPHK. Clever, challenging and visually unique, HARPY is a 320 page epic that spans the globe both within the dystopian story and in its many nested influences. Stunning color, a whiplash pace, and a core tale of care and consequence in the most extreme of human conditions. Truly international comics for our difficult times.Out NOW in comic shops everywhere, or direct from LivingtheLine.com  “EPHK is one of my favorite artists. Pick up anything he does.”— Rick Remender (The Seasons, LOW) Be careful who you hunt down-you might find them. 2064, Cape Town. Clouds roll down table mountain into the city bowl, letting the neon signs and burning lights take over for the evening. The Seawall keeps the tides at bay, the ramparts keep the townships out, but nothing keeps the bodies from dropping into the night. One cussing, cursed SAPS Detective, Gung “Gunnie” Yan Fung, is on the case. But this murder’s not like others. It seems to expand everywhere, and even reaches into Gunnie’s own past. Getting to the bottom of this one is going to cost her. And Gunnie has nothing left to offer. From the Cape of Good Hope to the streets of Hong Kong, comes Harpy, a moody, retro futuristic detective mystery. A tale of belonging, of purpose and above all, of consequences.  The Girl Who Raised the Dead is here! On Thursday, preorder copies of Girl Who Raised the Dead started shipping out into the world! This marks the sixth title in our Smudge imprint—and our first return engagement with an artist. Kawashima Norikazu’s 1987 follow-up to Her Frankenstein takes everything we loved about that book and bolts on an entirely different monster: a delirious blend of magical-girl melodrama and slasher-film mayhem. It is, in the best possible way, an absolute bloodbath.If you want to see what people are saying, Anime News Network already has two reviews up.More copies are on the way, so sharpen your pencils, charge your crystals, and prepare yourself for one extremely weird resurrection. Anime News Network!  CRWN Studios… fulfillment and distribution! We’ve been sitting on this one for a while, and it feels great to finally share it. Over the past few months, we’ve been working closely with the crew at CRWN Studios—Cory, Meg, and now Terry Helman, one of the sharpest minds in graphic novel sales and data analysis. If you’ve ever worked in comics publishing, you’ll recognize Terry as the person at DBD who could glance at early orders and instantly divine the correct print run like some kind of benevolent slide rule-wielding wizard. Now he’s at CRWN, which tells you everything you need to know about their ambition and seriousness.CRWN has been ramping up their fulfillment for us over the past few weeks, and they’ve been impeccable, organized, communicative, and genuinely invested in the work. But here’s the real headline:CRWN Studios is now also our distributor. Not just ours—they’re launching a full distribution line. We’ve had a front-row seat as they’ve built out their systems, integrated sales channels, and prepped their much-anticipated distribution portal. They asked smart questions. They listened. They treated our books with care. The long version (and the official announcement) is below, but the short version is simple:CRWN Studios is the new home of Living the Line.LONG LIVE INDEPENDENT COMICS. Retailer friends: you can reach CRWN now at sales@crwnstudios.com FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – NOVEMBER 20, 2025 CRWN Studios Expands Into Distribution Industry veteran Terry Helman joins CRWN Studios as Director of Sales; integrates Firebrand/ONIX and Edelweiss as part of rollout. Portland, OR — CRWN Studios, a logistics and publishing services company based in Portland, Oregon, is expanding its operations to include distribution. After more than a decade supporting independent publishers, artists, and creators with manufacturing, crowdfunding fulfillment, and e-commerce infrastructure, CRWN is now bringing that same capability to publishers seeking wider retail reach. This expansion positions CRWN as a full-service partner for publishers and independent creators who want to enter both the U.S. and U.K. trade markets while retaining control of their audience, catalog, and financial terms.As part of this move, CRWN Studios is pleased to welcome Terry Helman (formerly of Diamond Book Distributors), who joins as Director of Sales. Helman will oversee sales strategy and publisher relations, drawing on decades of experience with graphic novels, comics, and tabletop/RPG categories. “Given the results we’ve generated for our direct-to-consumer clients, I’m confident this new channel will be just as successful,” said Cory Casoni, CRWN co-founder with Meg Maiden, who quietly built CRWN Studios to be the industry’s aide-de-camp. Meg Maiden commented, “Working with someone of Terry’s experience and reputation is a huge step forward for what we’ve spent years building here.” Several former Diamond Book Distributors clients including Living the Line, Goodman Games, Pegamoose Press, and Lionwing Publishing have already signed on with CRWN for distribution, alongside publishers who previously partnered with CRWN for direct fulfillment, such as Dragons & Beasties, Archmage Studios, Roll for Combat, and independent creators Marie Enger, Simon Roy, Don Austin, Tavis Maiden, and many more to soon be announced. Sean Michael Robinson, Publisher at Living the Line, said: “It’s hard to miss the message of the past year: publishers and creators need partners who actually believe in their books. While the corpse of our old distributor busied itself sucking the blood out of every publisher still standing, CRWN was quietly mastering every corner of logistics, design, and fulfillment until they’d created something extraordinary behind the scenes. That’s the energy our medium needs: people who believe in the work, roll up their sleeves, and figure it out. If Old Comics Distro left us a corpse, CRWN is the scavenger that turns bones into tools, a reminder that indie comics are built to endure. We’re thrilled to be part of this new venture, helping to build a system that champions daring, challenging, and important work rather than treating it as disposable product.” Independent Creator, Marie Enger, commented: “So much of making comics is mysterious logistics, secrets kept away from the public and creators that are crucial to building the financial stability that will allow us to make bigger, better, more ambitious work. CRWN doesn’t keep secrets – the door is open, the ladder remains firmly in place below it, waiting for creators to come up – with support!” Joe Goodman, Publisher and Owner of Goodman Games reflected on his time with CRWN:“Goodman Games is really happy to be working with CRWN for distribution. We have had so many positive experiences with CRWN for crowdfunding fulfillment and various special projects. They were savvy and brave enough to pull off joint fulfillment with our Purple Planet collaborative crowdfunding, which as far as I know remains the first and only time 7 different publishers have saved backers money by fulfilling their crowdfundings together. CRWN has the creativity and logistics expertise to excel in distribution the way they have excelled in many other fields.” CRWN Studios has already begun servicing retail and wholesale accounts across the U.S. and U.K., with support for all major book retailers and a new direct-order portal for comic shops, bookstores, hobby retailers, and specialty stores. Warehousing, catalog management, fulfillment, and trade logistics are all operated from CRWN’s Portland facility.As part of onboarding, new distribution clients are integrated into Firebrand Technologies for title management and ONIX data feeds, with review copies available via Edelweiss, and print and digital catalogs launching in 2026. About CRWN StudiosFounded in 2012, CRWN Studios has spent more than a decade helping independent creators bring ambitious projects into the world. From design and production to crowdfunding, fulfillment, and now distribution, CRWN works closely and personally with every creator and team it partners with. Past and ongoing collaborators include UDON Entertainment, The Nib, Rocketship Entertainment, Scott Kurtz, Glitterfox, Uncivilized Books, Ginny Di, Legendary Comics, TwoGether Studios, Organized Havoc and many others on CRWNStudios.com. CRWN believes in the work, believes in the people making it, and builds the systems needed to support them. Retailers and Publishers interested in working with CRWN Studios can get started at: sales@crwnstudios.comLiving the Line, 1477 Ashland Ave, St Paul, Minnesota 55104, United States, 6193986473Unsubscribe Manage preferencesSend free email today |
