About the Comic
Born the son of a deserter, Sam is one of the Fettered: the lowest social caste in the Empire of Korveil. He is forbidden from marrying his beloved until he proves himself in the war against the monsters who poison their crops with magical curseweed. But when Sam captures one of these creatures, a jack named Wick, he develops a friendship more dear than any he’s had before. As Sam begins to see how monstrous his own people can be, he is torn between his affection for Wick and his loyalty to his people.
Jack Beloved is a fantasy story set in the arid deserts and starry mountains of Korveil, with a slow-burn queer romance. The setting is inspired by Big Bend National Park, which is nestled in the Chihuahuan desert in West Texas.
The Art and Concept are by Maxwell Thomas Kinne.
Maxwell was cursed by a witch at birth to become an artist. He studied Fine Art in college but defected to illustration after being forced to attend one too many schmoozing gallery events. He dreamt up Jack Beloved as a narrative justification to draw dudes kissing and it got way out of hand. The fantasy adventure was essential to contextualize the kissing.
Max is inspired by nature and animation. He loves travel and hiking and sweeping vistas that showcase the beauty and power of nature. Although he is aware that the 1995 Universal Pictures film Balto is deeply flawed, he cannot help but feel defensive of it. Max is vibrant and excited and he’s going to get big muscles and you can’t stop him.
The story and words are by David Michael Kinne.
David is a writer specializing in goofy and heartfelt fantasy. He wants most to make stories that will make you laugh and cry. His favorite authors include Michael Chabon, Kurt Vonnegut, Douglas Adams, Neil Gaiman, and Terry Prachett. David likes video games a lot and spends a great amount of time secluded to contemplate the profundity of Bomberman 64. You may listen to him talk too much about video games on Twitter. He thinks Final Fantasy IX was the best one.
When David was a small child a lion peed on his head when he visited the zoo. David is quiet and gloomy but would enjoy seeing you smile. He is married to Maxwell.
Song lyrics featured in the story are commissioned work by Ari Borhanian (Metajoker).
You can check out other music by him at his youtube channel and follow him on twitter. Ari also writes for the web comic Mothorial.
This website is made using WordPress in conjunction with the Comic Easel plugin and Compress theme by Frumph. The comic is drawn digitally using procreate on an iPad and modified with adobe illustrator on desktop. Special fonts used include Badaboom, Might Makes Right, Vampirevich, and LD Count Fontula. Some favorite Procreate custom brushes used include those in the MEGAPACK by Georg von Westphalen, the MaxPack series of brushes by Max Ulichney, and the Galaxy Brushes by Petra Burger.
Special thanks to Elvis Kunesh, Ric Carnahan, SungWon Cho, and Wooster for their support.
Additional thanks to past and present patrons:
Donna Davis
SungWon Cho
Lint
Magmethius
Dennis Yelkin
Linda Kinne
Crystal Cookinham
Maya K
Jack Bailey
Becky L
Maud Moon
Stoker Bramwell
Erika Ölund
InkFairy
Larissa
Yarrow
Sytu-chan
Melissa Hull
Mary Allison
Anne Marie
Katt Fischer
Steven Fischer
Shelby Lawson
Anna
Kayleigh D
LunoJ
Michael Branch
Gevrr
Phayd2Dark
Dany
Linguine
Josefine
beeps
Allen Meyer
Katrina VanBuskirk
Maddie
Spade
Pro Henjin
Shorty Chick
Bug the Bard
GeckoQween
Linda Trofimovica
Tina Terranova
Danny Phantom
LucianiKarma88
JacquieRA
Philip Steudel
Amber Cigelske
Layla Maxamed
Souha Al-Samkari
Macavity the Mystery Cat
Hey Max,
Mark, your British-Canadian table neighbour at SPX, here. Can you send me your e-mail address so I can arrange with you to purchase a signed physical copy with shipping, please?