Citywide Bytes—Charting a new course with ‘Kloud 9: The Star Soldier’

About this episode

The episode features a discussion with AJ O. Mason and Dominic Bustamante about their new graphic novel 'Kloud 9: The Star Soldier'.

In this episode, I’m joined by author AJ O. Mason and illustrator Dominic Bustamante to talk about new sci-fi YA queer graphic novel, “Kloud 9: The Star Soldier,” which drops on July 7 through IDW. Kloud 9 follows Kal, an Earthling without much purpose in life. Cosmot’urr Col Al’neyr, Cosmo for short, is an alien struggling to find his place in the galaxy. Sparks fly when the two meet—but when Cosmo’s past catches up with him, Kal is forced to make a choice: remain on Earth or follow his crush into the great unknown. Now they just have to navigate the dangers of outer space, a megalomaniac pseudoparent, and their growing feelings for each other. AJ and Dominic share how they began collaborating on this project, and how the process went for two people who never worked together before. We dive into the Dominic’s art style and the new world of sci-fi that he got to draw. AJ talks about how he grew as a writer and the lessons learned. We also talk a little business, such as how to launch an idea from the initial concept and ways to find a publishing company. You can learn more about this talented duo at https://ajomason.com and https://linktr.ee/Dommnics.

People in this episode

Host: citywideblackout

Guests: AJ O. Mason, Dominic Bustamante

Topics covered

• sci-fi
• graphic novel
• queer literature
• collaboration
• publishing

Keywords

• sci-fi
• graphic novel
• queer
• AJ O. Mason
• Dominic Bustamante

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: IDW

Books & works: Kloud 9: The Star Soldier

Places: Earth, galaxy

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