Mark Shainblum
Encyclopedia
Mark Shainblum is a Canadian
writer
who lives in Montreal, Quebec
, Canada
. Though he has worked as a journalist
and editor
, Shainblum is best known as a science fiction
and comic book
writer.
In the early 1980s, Shainblum published two issues of a comics and science fiction fanzine called Orion: The Canadian Magazine of Time and Space, and later founded Matrix Graphic Series (later known as Matrix Comics), one of only a handful of independent comic book publishers in Canada at the time.
His published works include:
With John Dupuis, Shainblum also co-edited the 1998 short story collection Arrowdreams: An Anthology of Alternate Canadas, which garnered an Aurora Award
for Canadian science fiction in 1999. Shainblum was also a finalist in the 2001 international Mark Twain Writing Competition and recently published a story in Claude Lalumière's
anthology Island Dreams
: Montreal Writers of the Fantastic from Vehicule Press
. In 2002-03, he served as president of SF Canada
, Canada's national association of science fiction and fantasy authors.
on a super-hero genre webcomic
project entitled Canadiana, and on a mystery serial, The Haunting of MacGrath with artist Jeff Alward. He also works as a communications officer at Montreal's Jewish General Hospital.
Shainblum's great-uncle Yechiel (Eli) Shainblum
was also well-known in Montreal as a painter, sculptor and teacher.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
who lives in Montreal, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Though he has worked as a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
, Shainblum is best known as a science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
and comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
writer.
In the early 1980s, Shainblum published two issues of a comics and science fiction fanzine called Orion: The Canadian Magazine of Time and Space, and later founded Matrix Graphic Series (later known as Matrix Comics), one of only a handful of independent comic book publishers in Canada at the time.
His published works include:
- NorthguardNorthguardNorthguard is a Canadian superhero created in 1984 by Mark Shainblum and Gabriel Morrissette.Developed during the mid-1980s burst of small- and medium-press comics publishing by Canadians, Northguard was one of several serious efforts at developing a made-in-Canada superhero series for modern...
, a post-modern Canadian superheroSuperheroA superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
, created in the 1980s with illustrator Gabriel MorrissetteGabriel MorrissetteGabriel Morrissette is an illustrator, animator and comic book artist from Montreal, Canada. Currently working for Jackfruit Press on their Prime Minister series and Chickadee on Daisy Dreamer, Gabriel co-created Northguard, Fleur de Lys and Angloman with Mark Shainblum.Gabriel has worked for...
. Though Northguard was published as an independent comic book series and didn't achieve the notoriety of better-known Canadian superheroes like Richard Comely's Captain CanuckCaptain CanuckCaptain Canuck is a fictional Canadian comic book superhero. Created by writer Ron Leishman and artist/co-writer Richard Comely, the original Captain Canuck first appeared in Captain Canuck #1 ....
or Marvel ComicsMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
' Alpha FlightAlpha FlightAlpha Flight is a fictional superhero team published by Marvel Comics, noteworthy for being one of the few Canadian superhero teams. Created by John Byrne, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #120 ....
, it was well-received by critics and a core following of fans. The Quebec superheroine Fleur-de-Lys, a supporting character from the series, even made her way to a Canadian postage stamp in 1995. - Angloman, co-created with Gabriel MorrissetteGabriel MorrissetteGabriel Morrissette is an illustrator, animator and comic book artist from Montreal, Canada. Currently working for Jackfruit Press on their Prime Minister series and Chickadee on Daisy Dreamer, Gabriel co-created Northguard, Fleur de Lys and Angloman with Mark Shainblum.Gabriel has worked for...
. A humorous parody of politics in Shainblum's native province of Quebec, Angloman was first published in book form and then made the leap to two Montreal newspapers, the alternative newsweekly Montreal MirrorMontreal MirrorMontreal Mirror is a free English language alternative newsweekly based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada with a circulation of 70,000, and reaches a quarter of a million readers per week. It is published by Communications Gratte-Ciel Ltée....
and the mass-circulation daily Montreal Gazette.
With John Dupuis, Shainblum also co-edited the 1998 short story collection Arrowdreams: An Anthology of Alternate Canadas, which garnered an Aurora Award
Aurora Award
The Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for Canadian science fiction in 1999. Shainblum was also a finalist in the 2001 international Mark Twain Writing Competition and recently published a story in Claude Lalumière's
Claude Lalumière
Claude Lalumière is an author, book reviewer and has edited numerous anthologies. A resident of Montreal, he writes the Montreal Gazette's Fantastic Fiction column. He also owned and operated two independent book stores in Montreal. He and Rupert Bottenberg are co-creators of...
anthology Island Dreams
Island Dreams
Island Dreams is an instrumental album by Roots music band Lost Dogs, released on Fools of the World records in 2005.-Track listing:# "Escape to Paradise" # "Wikki Tikki"...
: Montreal Writers of the Fantastic from Vehicule Press
Véhicule Press
Since 1973, Véhicule Press has published poetry, fiction, translations, and social history by Canadian authors, with a commitment to publishing first-time authors—a third of its list....
. In 2002-03, he served as president of SF Canada
SF Canada
SF Canada was founded as an authors collective circa 1989 under the title Canada’s National Association of Speculative Fiction Professionals. Several Canadian science fiction authors have made public claim to be “founding members” of the organization, notably Phyllis Gotlieb, Candas Jane Dorsey,...
, Canada's national association of science fiction and fantasy authors.
Current projects
Shainblum is collaborating on two webcomics projects: with artist Sandy CarruthersSandy Carruthers
Sandy Carruthers is a Canadian artist and graphic design instructor, known for his work as the first illustrator of the original Men in Black comic book series, and as creator of the webcomic series, Canadiana: the New Spirit of Canada.- Biography :...
on a super-hero genre webcomic
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
project entitled Canadiana, and on a mystery serial, The Haunting of MacGrath with artist Jeff Alward. He also works as a communications officer at Montreal's Jewish General Hospital.
Shainblum's great-uncle Yechiel (Eli) Shainblum
Yechiel (Eli) Shainblum
Yechiel Shainblum was a Montreal painter, sculptor and teacher. Though he was a respected and prolific artist who produced literally hundreds of pieces beginning in the 1920s and on through the early 1980s, Shainblum was much better known in Montreal as an elementary school teacher...
was also well-known in Montreal as a painter, sculptor and teacher.
External links
- Mark Shainblum's website
- Northguard website
- Angloman website
- Guardians of the North: a virtual museum tour through the history of Canadian superheroes, hosted by the Digital Library of Canada.
- Canadiana: the New Spirit of Canada: a serialized super-hero webcomic by Mark Shainblum, Sandy Carruthers and Jeff Alward
- http://www.webcomicsnation.com/webcomics-ca/haunting/series.php The Haunting of McGrath home page.