| Digger | |
|---|---|
 Cover art for the omnibus edition | |
| Author(s) | Ursula Vernon |
| Website | www |
| Current status/schedule | completed |
| Launch date | March 18, 2003 [1] |
| End date | March 17, 2011 |
| Genre(s) | Fantasy |
Digger is a webcomic drawn and written by Ursula Vernon, and published in print form by Sofawolf Press. It has drawn comparisons to Bone , Cerebus , and Discworld . Digger won the Hugo and Mythopoeic Fantasy Awards, and was nominated for an Eisner Award.
In the opening pages, Digger is tunneling alone through the ground, lost and dazed after being intoxicated by a pocket of bad air. Digging to the surface, she emerges in a temple, where she meets the Statue of Ganesh. Here she finds that something or someone has "magicked up" her tunnel, cutting off her route home. The comic describes her experiences and encounters in the temple, nearby village and surrounding area as she seeks information on the whereabouts of her warren, how she came from there to her present location, and how she might get back.
Other characters encountered include the hyenas of Grim Eyes' tribe, human villagers and farmers, human bandits, the acolytes of Ganesh's temple (some of whom hide a disturbing secret beneath their hoods), metaphorical pigeons, skin lizards, a dead god and its servants, and vampiric squash. Dwarves exist in Digger's world, noted for their reliance on magic, but none have appeared in the comic as yet.
Digger has won the Web Cartoonists' Choice Award for "Outstanding Black and White Art" in 2005 and 2006, [2] [3] [4] and for "Outstanding Anthropomorphic Comic" in 2006. [5] [4] In 2006, Digger was nominated for an Eisner Award in the category "Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition". [6] The collected Digger won the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story [7] and the 2013 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature. [8] [9] [6]
Tor.com has described Digger as "fantastic-in-all-senses-of-the-word", praising Vernon's pacing and "tone-perfect mythology", [10] while SF Signal declared that Digger "deserves to be appreciated" [11] and Black Gate lauded Vernon for her portrayal of cultural relativity. [12] Lauren Davis of io9 and ComicsAlliance called Digger an "oddball epic" [13] and praised the titular heroine as an unusual fantasy protagonist and "a delight to watch", citing her pragmatic but softhearted nature, her frankness, and her strong moral center and sense of etiquette. [14] [15]
The series has drawn comparisons to Bone , [16] [17] Cerebus , and Discworld . [16]
The series has been published in six volumes by Sofawolf Press between 2005 and 2011. In 2013, a Kickstarter was successfully held to have the entire series printed in omnibus form. [17] In 2022, a Kickstarter was successfully held for a 10th anniversary collection from Underthing Press, an imprint of Grim Oak Press. Underthing Press's founder, Patrick Rothfuss, stated that he'd always daydreamed of starting his own imprint and he decided to create Underthing Press when he realized he couldn't buy a new copy of the Digger omnibus after giving his copy to a friend. [18]
| Volume | Year | ISBN | Chapters |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2005 | 0-9769212-2-7 | 1–2 |
| 2 | 2006 | 0-9769212-6-X | 3–4 |
| 3 | 2007 | 0-9791496-3-0 | 5–6 |
| 4 | 2009 | 978-0-9819883-3-7 | 7–8 |
| 5 | 2010 | 978-0-9819883-9-9 | 9–10 |
| 6 | 2011 | 978-1-936689-06-4 | 11–12 |
| Omnibus | 2013 | 978-1-936689-32-3 (softcover) 978-1-936689-33-0 (hardcover) | 1–12 |
| Omnibus (Unearthed) | 2022 | 978-1-956000-25-2 (softcover) 978-1-956000-26-9 (hardcover) | 1–12 |
Charles Vess is an American fantasy artist and comics artist who has specialized in the illustration of myths and fairy tales. His influences include British "Golden Age" book illustrator Arthur Rackham, Czech Art Nouveau painter Alphonse Mucha, and comic-strip artist Hal Foster, among others. Vess has won several awards for his illustrations. Vess' studio, Green Man Press, is located in Abingdon, VA.
Ursula Vernon is an American freelance writer, artist and illustrator. She has won numerous awards for her work in various mediums, including Hugo Awards for her graphic novel Digger and fantasy novel Nettle & Bone, the Nebula Award for her short story "Jackalope Wives", and Mythopoeic Awards for adult and children's literature. Vernon's books for children include Hamster Princess and Dragonbreath. Under the name T. Kingfisher, she is also the author of books for older audiences. She writes short fiction under both names.
Patrick James Rothfuss is an American author. He is best known for his highly acclaimed series The Kingkiller Chronicle, beginning with Rothfuss' debut novel, The Name of the Wind (2007), which won several awards, and continuing in the sequel, The Wise Man's Fear (2011), which topped The New York Times Best Seller list.
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Notable events of 2003 in webcomics.
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Notable events of 2013 in webcomics.
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