Writer/artist Jeff Smith recently wrapped up a successful Kickstarter campaign for a print edition of his series Tuki, but for many of his fans, he'll forever be known for his classic series Bone. And for those of us who miss Fone Bone, Phoney Bone, and Smiley Bone, there's good news: they're coming back.
"Through Scholastic, we are doing a new Bone: Tall Tales book, Bone: Tall Tales 2, which stars the Bones as they take their little Bone scouts camping," Smith tells Newsarama's Hayden Mears. "And they tell stories."
When readers last saw the Bone cousins (in 2016's Bone Coda), the trio was beginning to head back to their hometown after their Hobbit-esque journey in the original Bone series. While they were on their way back home, the story ended before showing them actually returning.
"We have a few stories in the can," Smith continues. "And I'm doing this with Tom Sniegoski again. We had a lot of fun doing that. We laughed a lot. But that will take a couple of years. I'm working on it, but not immediately."
2021 is the 30th anniversary of the debut of Smith's Bone back in 1991, and its impact on the creator himself, the comics medium, and fans aren't something anyone could have expected - especially Smith himself.
"So much of it was completely unexpected," Smith says. "But the biggest thing has to be the jump to YA graphic novels. Having Bone be in those little Scholastic catalogs you used to get when you were in school...That had to be the biggest, most amazing thing."
The comics industry has changed tremendously since 1991, especially outside the traditional 'Big Two' of Marvel and DC with the growth of the booktrade market. With so many new ways to share comics, not to mention making comics, Smith tells Newsarama he almost can't even recognize it anymore.
"It changed so radically that I almost can't even recognize it," says Smith. "Everything about it. Graphic novels existed, but they were really not generally thought of the way we think of them today. Where you actually keep them in stock like you would a regular book. Back then, they were more like a magazine."
Bone is available now in print and on most digital platforms. Check out our list of the best digital comics readers for Android and iOS devices.
