Posted in: Comics | Tagged: grace bornhoft, greg tumbarello, jeremy atkins, Lion Forge, madeline roy

Lion Forge Continues Industry Takeover, Hires Jeremy Atkins, Greg Tumbarello, Grace Bornhoft, Madeline Roy, Maybe More

Published Tue, 12 Dec 2017 09:00:49 -0600

Comic book publisher Lion Forge is on a quest to swallow the entire comic book industry, one employee at a time. Just a few months ago in October, Lion Forge added 4 new editors to its staff. They followed that up later that month by acquiring the entire comic book website The Beat. And now, the company has announced multiple new hires — we're not even sure how many — in a new press release focusing on the addition of Greg Tumbarello and Jeremy Atkins (who sent out the press release about his own hiring himself), but not limited to those two.

Here's how the event was described:

Lion Forge announces four new hires in its editorial and marketing departments today, including industry veterans Greg Tumbarello and Jeremy Atkins. These two join the rapidly growing publisher alongside multiple hires in each department's junior staff. Grace Bornhoft joins as assistant editor and Madeline Roy as marketing associate.

From the wording, it seems like there might have even been additional hires in the junior staff of editorial and marketing besides Grace Bornhoft and Madeline Roy. Who knows, though? It's getting pretty hard to keep track. Does Lion Forge even know who works for them at this point? If you're looking for a job in the industry, it probably couldn't hurt to just show up at Lion Forge with your laptop one day, find an empty desk, and start acting like you've been there for months. Nobody is going to go searching through all the recent new hire records to find out if it's really true — there's just too many of them. Boom. You've just broken into comics.

Showing off their deep and impressive Roster, Lion Forge had a record six people give quotes in the press release.

"Greg's extensive industry experience, comics acumen, and talent connections will help position us to meet the future of Lion Forge—and the comics industry as a whole—head on," said Andrea Colvin, executive editor. "And adding Grace to our editorial support staff brings a level of publishing know-how and trade experience that will further help set us apart."

"I'm incredibly excited to join the team at Lion Forge, a company without creative boundaries whose mission is to bring forward-thinking comics to fans and retailers everywhere," said Tumbarello. "I look forward to my new home where I can continue to create thrilling new comics that tell deeply compelling and diverse stories while working with some of the most talented individuals in the industry today."

"I've had my eye on Lion Forge comics for a long time, and I'm excited to finally play a part in their work making comics for everyone," said Bornhoft.

"I have admired the work Jeremy has done in his comics career and am excited that he is on board with Lion Forge," says Rich Johnson, VP of sales, marketing, and business development. "Greg and I worked together and I know that he will make a huge contribution to Lion Forge and the comics industry."

Wait a minute?! They hired Rich Johnston too?! Woohoo, he's finally go– Oh, damn, it says Johnson, not Johnston. Well, a boy can dream.

"Lion Forge boasts not only one of the most diverse and exciting publishing lines in comics today, but one of the hardest working teams of experienced and dedicated professionals in the business," said Atkins. "I have been lucky in my career to work with true visionaries and innovators, and I am thrilled to continue this tradition at Lion Forge; an organization which is truly evolving the medium of comic book storytelling Wednesday after Wednesday."

"I am so eager to start my journey with Lion Forge and the people who work there," said Roy. "It's an excellent team that I'm very excited to be a part of."

The press release also contains a list of accomplishments for the four named hires, so check that out below. Congratulations to all on their new jobs, and to Lion Forge for the impressive amount of expansion they've been doing.

Greg Tumbarello has over fifteen years professional experience in the comics and entertainment industry, having previously worked as an editor, writer and producer for MTV Networks, Image Comics, The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, and Tokyopop.

For the past seven years he has been an editor at Legendary Entertainment after cofounding and structuring their successful comic book division with acclaimed editor Bob Schreck. During his tenure, he's worked on New York Times best-selling graphic novels such as Godzilla: Awakening and Pacific Rim: Tales from Year Zero. He was an integral part of the team that brought to life Grant Morrison and Frazer Irving's Annihilator, which garnered an Eisner Award nomination for Best Writer and Frank Miller's Holy Terror, which launched the division as a top ten comics publisher.

Grace Bornhoft has had a passion for books her whole life. Growing up with eight siblings, reading and writing was integral to her family's upbringing. She knew she wanted to work with books from a young age. She received her bachelor's in English from Rockhurst University in 2014 but didn't stop there. She immediately went on to get her master's in English from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where her passion for publishing began to grow. During her time in graduate school, Grace also worked as an intern at Andrews McMeel Publishing where she was soon promoted to production editor, working on comics including Big Nate, Dilbert, Peanuts, Zits, and Doonesbury. Now Lion Forge's newest editorial assistant, Grace is eager to bring her passion and love of books to the new and growing comics world at Lion Forge.

Jeremy Atkins has nearly two decades of experience at the forefront of tastemaker pop culture publicity. His work earned him profiles in the Wall Street Journal and Ready Made. He began his career in PR as head of promotions for iconic indie label K Records (home to early releases by Beck and Modest Mouse), then entered the world of publishing as lead publicist for Dark Horse Comics. During his ten-year tenure, Atkins oversaw publicity for every title associated with the storied brand, including Hellboy and Sin City, as well as licensed properties like Star Wars and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He worked as director of marketing for craft beer giant Rogue Ales and in recent years, founded Seen All Over Media, a boutique firm representing special projects and titles for Lion Forge, Heavy Metal, Dynamite Entertainment, Insight Editions, MAD Events, Vault Comics, and more.

Madeline Roy grew up in the suburbs of St. Louis and graduated from Southeast Missouri State University with a bachelor in public relations and a minor in theater. She got her start at a small software company where she learned the tools of the trade in marketing and coordinating trade shows. She comes to Lion Forge with five years of trade show experience and a love for cats, video games, and overall pop culture. A fun fact about her is that she's into voice acting in her free time.