From the Sweaty Palms graphic medicine anthologies to involvement with projects like Be Gay, Do Comics Sage Coffey has already demonstrated their ability to facilitate and collaborate. This month, though, sees their first graphic novel launched with a crowdfunding campaign via publisher Iron Circus. Check out the press release for Wine Ghost Goes to Hell below and back the crowdfunder here.
Iron Circus Presents WINE GHOST GOES TO HELL, The Graphic Novel Debut of Sage Coffey
The Sassy, Sexy, Spooky, and Wine-Soaked Supernatural Romp Is Now on BackerKit
Spike Trotman’s Iron Circus Comics, the trailblazing comics publisher that has raised nearly 3 million dollars over more than 30 crowdfunding campaigns, is crowdfunding WINE GHOST GOES TO HELL, the irreverent, sassy, and sexy graphic novel debut from cartoonist Sage Coffey. Best known for their work in The New Yorker, The Nib, The Washington Post and on the GLAAD 2021 nominated video game BUGSNAX, Sage Coffey is a trans nonbinary cartoonist living in Chicago, IL. Their full color graphic novel debut is a supernatural romp, featuring a slice of glamor and disaster, and the campaign page is now live on BackerKit.
When Wine Ghost was alive, she was an alcohol-soaked train wreck. Now that she’s dead… Well, not all that much has changed. When an old friend from her living days unexpectedly dies, Wine Ghost is faced with a lot more responsibility than she bargained for. She learned the ropes to hell a long time ago but it’s his first rodeo. And, boy, howdy, it’s a wild one.
“Imagine if the magazine Hollywood Insider was a person,” said cartoonist Sage Coffey. “Now imagine that person is a dead alcoholic. That’s Wine Ghost! She is drama. She is fashion. She insists that wine counts as a fruit. And she may be her newly dead friend’s only hope of having a life after death.”
“One of the great joys of publishing comics is introducing cartoonists to a wider audience,” said Iron Circus Publisher, Spike Trotman. “If you haven’t read Sage Coffey’s comics, it’s time to sit up and pay attention. This is Wine Ghosts’s world, we’re just living in it.”
WINE GHOST GOES TO HELL will feature pink dyed page edges, and the BackerKit campaign will feature rewards and stretch goals, including glow-in-the-dark Wine Ghost vinyl figures.
Praise for Sage Coffey’s Work
“WINE GHOST GOES TO HELL is a blisteringly unique, psychedelic epic about running into your shitty ex in Hell, but it’s also about friendship and self-confidence and an unstable real estate market. Sage’s art is joyful in every line and a delicious multi-media collage that reminds me what comics can be.” — Kendra Wells (Real Hero Shit)
“Bugsnax’s queer representation feels effortless, but I could tell that the creative team put plenty of care into their portrayal of queer and non-binary folks.”—Rock Paper Shotgun on Coffey’s game Bugnax
“Coffey paces the comic beautifully.”—Women Write about Comics on Coffey’s If It Were Socially Acceptable
“Coffey’s mix of thin and thick line weights add to the sense of both exaggeration and nuance and goes well with the single-tone red that they use throughout.”—High-Low review of the original Wine Ghost mini
“Sage Coffey’s illustrative hell is honestly heaven. I want to dive into the world of Wine Ghost and stay there forever. It’s vibrant, spooky, yet cozy.. .like house hunting inside of a demon’s mouth. Cheers to Wine Ghost!”—Bianca Xunise (Six Chix, Punk Rock Karaoke)
“WHY IS EVERYONE IN HELL SO HOT?! AND HOW CAN I GET THERE??” —cartoonist KC Green
“WINE GHOST GOES TO HELL is about the different stages of friendship, getting drunk and not knowing any better,” said Sage Coffey. “It’s very much inspired by my experiences and people I’ve known, although we’re all still alive. So far as I know, at least.”
