brain out loud

The final JoeCon took place over the weekend in Chattanooga, TN. That is, the last "official" JoeCon endorsed by Hasbro. At least I think that's how the annual GI Joe convention is organized. The weekend long convention brings fans together to specifically celebrate GI Joe, in all its incarnations. However with this year being the last official JoeCon, it seems as if Hasbro has finally admitted their apathetic attitude toward what was once their top seller. Actually that's not a recent revelation, no new GI Joe action figures or vehicles have been on the retail shelf for years. Retail sales are typically driven by a strong media presence, be it  a cartoon, live-action-show, or in most cases now a movie. Hasbro executives have acknowledged this, yet have no plans to produce a new animated series or live-action-show. The two GI Joe movies were considered disasters both critically and commercially, and rightfully so. Allegedly their are plans to make additional GI Joe

The moment I discovered GI Joe as a kid, I started creating my own characters. I would crudely draw them all in the same unexciting, static pose; straight-on (two dimensional) with their left arm to their side and the right out, bent 90degrees at the elbow and holding a weapon. What can I say, I was a kid and my artistic skills were still developing. Even though they looked similar my characters had their own unique code names, areas of expertise and backgrounds. Arguably my artistic skills have improved since the 80's but writing has always been the fun part. My newest fan-fiction novel, GI Joe: Sandcastle Detente, is loaded with original characters, but some of my favorites are the three new Dreadnoks - Outlaw, Gearhead, and Menace. GI Joe: Sandcastle Detente is the first time I've included all-new, original characters in one of my fan-fiction novels. That is, original characters that are members of GI Joe, Cobra, or the Dreadnoks. In the past Amazon Kindle Worlds h