This is the title page of Femme Noir: The Dark City Diaries issue 4, which after some unanticipated delays (on the creative end, unfortunately), is now completed and going off to the publisher today.

Issue 3, which I thought would be out in August/early September, also suffered some unanticipated delays (not on the creative end) and is on the way. I know it's been printed and shipped to the distributor (my comp copies went out at the same time and I got them over a week ago), so I can only hope that it will be processed and in stores next Wednesday, the 22nd.

For those of you following the book, I apologize for the messed up scheduling. I really hoped that we wouldn't fall victim to the too-common indie comics problem of late books, but, well, things didn't work out exactly as planned.

Please try and pick it up anyway, 3 may be the strongest issue of the bunch.

The page above is from the final issue of this initial Femme Noir miniseries, and features a new character: Okona of Meteor Island. She's our homage to all the great jungle heroes – and heroines, obviously – of comic books and pulp fiction, complete with a backstory involving an island inhabited by giant, mutated monsters. Issue 4 also features the return of inker Mark Stegbauer (Issue 2), the debut of a new colorist, Michael Watkins, and an awesome variant cover pencilled by the late Mike Wieringo and inked by series artist Joe Staton.

I really think it will be worth the wait.