Ya know how you hear a word you never heard before and then suddenly you hear it everywhere? That’s Mark Spears. I first heard about the horror artist in a conversation with an industry colleague, and then suddenly I was hearing about the blind bagged editions of MARK SPEARS MONSTERS: THE MONSTER & THE WOLF #1 Trick Or Treat Blind Bag everywhere.
And now publishers Keenspot has just sent a press release touting 350,000 copies in pre orders. While undoubtedly boosted by the 90 different variant covers – all independently created and letetred by Spears – that’s still an impressive number. The book debuts on October 8 with a $5.99 price tag.
According to Keenspot, this makes MSM the largest selling independent comics ever by a single creator. While, it would take John Jackson Miller to come out of retirement to verify that, for now we’ll say it’s quite an achievement.
Spears rise as a fan favorite has been swift – from entering the ring to #1 book in just two and a half years. His comics career began only two years ago when he did four Spawn covers. Mark Spears Monsters the comic is based on a trading card set he made; he Kickstarted the comics series and a current campaign for the sequel series has already raised more than $288,000 – meaning he’s getting a pretty good double dip between crowdfunding and comics shops. The Keenspot edition of MARK SPEARS MONSTERS launched in September 2024 and it’s now a Top 50 title, they say.
Of course, Spears didn’t just show up from nowhere: he’s been doing cover art for 20 years, with work at Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Upper Deck Sports Cards, Image Comics, Warner Bros, Paramount, Rittenhouse trading cards, and more. He’s also a three time nominee for the Rondo Hatton Horror Award.
Still, the grassroots popularity of this comic spotlight a weird trend in these variant-obssessed: while interior comic book artists struggle to get the kind of superstardom at Marvel and DC hey did in the Pre-Image comics era, COVER artists are all the rage, as witnessed by the frenzy over covers by Peach Momoko and Stanley “Art Germ” Lau. Add Mark Spears to the list.
The blind-bagged comic itself is the first issue in a 3-part mini-series chronicling the origins of werewolf Clint Abbott, a prequel to the ongoing MARK SPEARS MONSTERS series.
The PR goes on to take a victory lap:
What makes this 350,000-copy pre-order milestone even more remarkable is how it happened. Unlike other comic launches, Keenspot’s MARK SPEARS MONSTERS: THE MONSTER & THE WOLF had no media hype machine like the ones that drive sales of comics from larger publishers like Marvel, DC, and Image. Its record-breaking success was driven primarily by a grassroots fan movement—collectors, retailers, and fans spreading the word, championing the book, and turning it into a phenomenon.
“This wasn’t driven by big budgets or the backing of a giant publisher,” Spears said. “This happened because of the fans. They built the excitement, they carried the momentum, and they proved what real passion for comics can achieve. I’m deeply grateful.”
While the 90 variants in the blind bags are enough to keep folks busy, rarity hunters will be searching for “Unholy Grails”—golden ticket redemptions for unique 1-of-1 comics hidden randomly in the comics.
“We couldn’t be prouder about the success of this title, or more honored that genius creator Mark Spears offered to team up with Keenspot to bring the greatness of his MONSTERS saga to comic shops worldwide,” said Chris Crosby, CEO and Editor-In-Chief of Keenspot i a statemeny. “Driven almost entirely by fan support, this classic American success story stands as proof of the power of fans, grassroots excitement, and a creator’s uncompromising vision.”
And while Halloween seems an auspicious time for a book about monsters, Spears and Keenspot aren’t sitting still after that: Christmas will see another blind bag special: the DIRTY KRAMPUS BLIND BAG.
Keenspot titles like MARK SPEARS MONSTERS are distributed to comic shops by Lunar Distribution, Universal Distribution, and Diamond UK, and to the book trade by Simon & Schuster.
