Ben Crane

@bencranewrites

He/him. Writer and editor of prose and comics. SCATTERED FUTURES. COSMIC CADETS, A MAN OF LIES, SYSTEMIC. Profile pic by @andyalvesart.bsky.social

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Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 20h

"The Rats of Hamelin Station" ✏️ @mcholly1.bsky.social 🎨 @gambitsink.bsky.social 💬 Dave Lenz Some offers are too good to be true in this sunshine horror reimagining of the classic fairy tale. The maw of greed yawns wide, and the rats are always hungry.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 1d

And lastly, my most recent work: Scattered Futures. Three short comics of optimism and community in a harsh world built to crush both. Nihilism is a tool of the enemy. We choose hope because without it, we can't build something better.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 1d

A Man of Lies is my debut novel, a queer crime thriller about a high-stakes art heist in Omaha, NE and people trying to be more than the pigeonholes society put them in. Read the book deemed too gay for cable TV!* *only partially a joke. Ask me in private if you want to know more.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 1d

Also, Cosmic Cadets 1 & 2. My and @andyalvesart.bsky.social Star Trek-inspired, middle-grade adventure series. Set on a ship exploring the galaxy, these books follow the kids of the crew as they have their own adventures alongside their parents. Each book is a complete story.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 1d

California, Inc is available in a collected TPB, or as 4 individual issues from a variant cover grab-bag!

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 1d

The rest of Studio 12-7's back catalogue is available as well. Westside is their ongoing small-town crime drama set in California's Central Valley. Written by Justin Giampaoli with art from @davelawart.bsky.social. A moody thriller on sun-baked streets.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 1d

First and foremost, is Systemic: Volume 1! Our first collection of sci-fi comics from 7 incredible teams. Each volume stands fully on its own, but if you missed out on this one last year, now's a perfect time to pick it up!

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 3d

"Percipience" ✏️&💬 me 🎨 @andyalvesart.bsky.social For a con artist who relies on their invisibility to survive, there is no greater threat--and no greater allure--than being truly seen.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 3d

"Guests at the Edge of Heaven" ✏️ @danverzone.bsky.social 🎨 @eileenwdj.bsky.social 💬 me In a space station built to defy death, a nurse learns that some departures are acts of grace.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 3d

"The Forgotten" ✏️ @travisrwebb.bsky.social 🎨 Rom Silva 💬 me A cyberpunk fantasy noir exploring the lengths we go to for safety and security.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 3d

"Changeling.AI" ✏️ @jessicamaison.bsky.social & @michael-judd.bsky.social 🎨&💬 Olga Wieszczyk A horrifying reimagining of changeling mythology for a modern era.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 3d

"Battles Lost and Won" ✏️ @tillybridges.bsky.social & @susanlbridges.bsky.social 🎨 @andrearosales.bsky.social 💬 @airy.bsky.social There's great power in the hate society wants us to feel, but there's something far stronger... A beautiful comic of gay witches.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 5d

Sat/Sun 9/5-6, Then it's back to SoCal for Long Beach Comic Con! Andy and I will both be there, so come say hi! (their graphics person is OOO currently, so I did my best to mimic their style) longbeachcomiccon.com

A graphic flyer advertising Ben Crane and Andy Alves's appearance at Long Beach Comic Con.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· 27d

Bertie likes the way Yoda thinks.

A Shepherd-mix dog lies on her back in a pile of ivy, looking up at the camera.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Jun 27

I did! Thank you! And there is Fan Expo Anaheim, where folks can find me at AP-12 all weekend! (You fell straight into my con-table -marketing trap)

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Jun 24

My contribution to #MakeATerribleComicDay! Apologies for my awful handwriting, but I couldn't bother to clean it up. Check the alt-text if you can't read it.

A 6 panel comic, "FACTOIDS with Ben"
1) The "-OID" ending usually means something resembling a thing without being it.
2) Like this die, which is a "cuboid." Its rounded corners and edges mean it isn't a true cube.
3) Or the Earth, which isn't a true sphere, but a "spheroid."
4) And the monsters slowly replacing all my friends and loved ones while I sleep are "humanoids."
5) So "factoid" should mean a thing that resembles a fact, but isn't one.
6) Meaning the very first factoid was our thinking the word meant a small, unimportant fact!

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Jun 19

We'll have all our books. Andy will be doing live commissions. We're testing out some new prints so come by early! We didn't make too many copies of these. Be sure to get yours! I'll also have my mini-zine with instructions on how to fold up a mini-zine as a free giveaway!

5 illustrations in a grid. Characters from Disco Elysium, Homestuck, and Dimension20, along with a xenomorph and a Soviet-style Tiamat propaganda poster.

A picture of an 8-page zine folded from a single piece of paper which contains step-by-step instructions of how to fold a single piece of paper into an 8-page zine.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Jun 19

Very excited to be at QCon TOMORROW with @andyalvesart.bsky.social. It's a FREE, family-friendly, LGBTQIA+ comics convention put on by @prismcomics.bsky.social and West Hollywood. Plummer Park, Fiesta Hall 7337 Santa Monica Blvd 11a-6p Come say hi! We're at table 7.

A flyer for QCon. Free tickets and info at qconprism.org

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Apr 14

It's #portfolioday again? Hi! I'm a writer and editor of prose and comics. I write stories about choosing hope and empathy, even when we have no reason to. I do original stories and WFH in my writing. My editorial work focuses on making your story the best version of itself it can be.

The cover of SCATTERED FUTURES. Two astronauts float above a planet, their hands nearly touching.

The cover of COSMIC CADETS: CONTACT! Five kids explore the jungle of a strange world.

The cover of COSMIC CADETS: ACCUSED! Five kids hide behind a pillar as an alien shouts angrily from a balcony behind them.

The cover of A MAN OF LIES. A muscular man walks across a bridge. The image is inverted.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Apr 8

Her sister is on a walk without her. She has not moved in 15 minutes.

A dog sits by a closed door, starting at it.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Apr 4

Illustrated by @sierrabravoart.bsky.social @jnyfmg.bsky.social and @m3rtyn.bsky.social, this is a book about choosing hope within systems that build hopelessness and building meaning through human connection. If your world could use a dose of hope, I hope you'll check it out!

The cover of Scattered Futures, showing 2 astronauts floating over a planet, their hands nearly touching.

A comic page from "Cycles" in Scattered Futures, illustrated by M3rtyn.

A comic page from "Delivery" in Scattered Futures, illustrated by Jenny Fleming.

A comic page from "Legitimate Salvage" in Scattered Futures, illustrated by Sierra Barnes.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Apr 3

There are only 2 days left in the Scattered Futures #Kickstarter! Get your copy of this #scifi #comic of hope and community, illustrated by @jnyfmg.bsky.social @sierrabravoart.bsky.social and @m3rtyn.bsky.social www.kickstarter.com/projects/ben...

A comic book panel of a woman and two men in a space station. The dialogue has been edited so that one of the men is saying "Hi Canna. How are you?" and she responds with "I'm fine. I'm going to back Scattered Futures on Kickstarter."

A comic book panel of a man on a space station. His dialogue has been edited to say "Well you'd better HURRY UP then. The campaign ends in only 48 HOURS!"

A comic book panel of a woman and two men on a space station. Her dialogue has been edited to say "Wait. That's only 2 days!"

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Apr 2

Just found some good luck in my mailbox! Thank you so much @sierrabravoart.bsky.social They are absolutely gorgeous and SO CHONKY

Two enamel pins of good luck icons, a lemon pig and a cluster of gluckspilz.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Apr 1

Who will be backer #150 for Scattered Futures? The campaign for this #scifi #comic of hope and community ends this Saturday! Illustrated by @m3rtyn.bsky.social @sierrabravoart.bsky.social and @jnyfmg.bsky.social www.kickstarter.com/projects/ben...

A panel from a comic book. A woman sits in sci-fi wagon talking with a scarred man. She looks excited. He does not. The dialogue has been changed to say "There're only 3 days left in the Scattered Futures campaign. Have you backed it yet? I hear the book's full of hope."

The cover for Scattered Futures, showing 2 astronauts floating above a planet, their hands nearly touching.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Mar 30

Early readers agree, the world needs more books like Scattered Futures, and you can be a part of making that happen! We have digital, physical, and deluxe reward tiers, with all my previous books available as add-ons! Please check it out at the link at the top of this thread!

A graphic with a pull quote for Scattered Futures

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Mar 25

You can also get any or all of my previous books as add-ons in the campaign. Cosmic Cadets, my all-ages OGN about kids exploring the galaxy. Systemic Vol 1, the sci-fi anthology I edited over the summer. And A Man of Lies, my queer noir heist thriller novel.

A picture of the Cosmic Cadets graphic novels with an enamel pin of an alien.

A picture of the comics anthology Systemic

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Mar 25

With stories illustrated by @sierrabravoart.bsky.social @jnyfmg.bsky.social and @m3rtyn.bsky.social, Scattered Futures is about the power of human connection and community in the face of an uncaring world built to grind us down.

The cover of the comic Scattered Futures

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Mar 22

Scattered Futures also features the art of @sierrabravoart.bsky.social and @jnyfmg.bsky.social and a cover by @carlydraws.bsky.social These are stories of finding optimism in a world designed to crush it. If your world could use a bit more hope, I hope you'll check out the Kickstarter!

A comic book cover showing two astronauts floating in space above a planet. Their hands are nearly touching.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Mar 22

"Cycles" follows an independent farmer on a corporate agriculture colony as he goes about his day. Small interactions build to an examination of the legacy he is leaving for his daughter and the patterns that have trapped him.

A close up on a propaganda sign. It reads "Feed the worlds, Feed your soul. AgrioCO"

A close up on the farmer as an excited townsperson talks to him.

A close up on two weird chicken aliens with too many eyes grazing in the badlands outside of town. A space elevator rises in the distant background.

The farmer's wagon parks outside his isolated farmhouse at night.

Ben Crane@bencranewrites· Mar 22

"Cycles", ilustrated by @m3rtyn.bsky.social is the 3rd story in SCATTERED FUTURES, sci-fi comics of hope and human connection in a harsh and uncaring world. The book is on KS now and fully funded with awesome stretch goals in sight! #comics #scifi #indiecomics www.kickstarter.com/projects/ben...