In a coastal town where dreams whisper of the deep, a marine biologist and her guide uncover a sentient sea creature, leading to a clash with a jealous lighthouse keeper who will stop at nothing to maintain control over the abyssal being.
"What Dwells Beneath the Heart" is a 10-page full-color comic available digitally and printed inside the very first Comics & Cosmos Ent. Showcase #1. Art by Marlon Felipe Ruiz.
It is the first of four interconnected stories that birth our nightmarish world where Greek mythology and Eldritch monsters merge in Fathomless Fantasies Vol. 1: Omens of Olympus Pt. I coming late 2026.
What Dwells Beneath the Heart is perfect for fans of:
Comics & Cosmos Ent. Showcase #1 is a celebration of every comic title we've released and a look forward to our future. Featuring 36 pages of story, you'll get your first glimpse into our ever-expanding variety of offerings in this unique collection only available during Printopia 2025 on BackerKit and as a convention exclusive while supplies last. Printed on premium 80# text interiors with a sturdy cardstock cover (via Comix Wellspring), this book includes:
• What Dwells Beneath the Heart – 10 pages of mythic horror by J. Michael Miller and Marlon Felipe Ruiz & a first look into the world of Fathomless Fantasies!
•Spectres of Sumer: 3 pages of epic fantasy with art by Marcus Jimenez and letters by Buddy Beaudoin
• The Healer’s Blade #1: PROLOGUE – 8 pages of fantasy & prologue to the upcoming The Healer's Blade #1
• A peek at "The Stolen Branch" – 4-page backup story by David DB Andry, Roberto Viacava, Ezequiel Cataldo & Jerome Gagnon for the upcoming The Healer's Blade #1
• Kid Cretaceous #2 Preview – 6 pages of dino-fueled adventure • A peek at "The Final Curtain" – 4-page backup story by Travis Gibb, Ignacio DiMeglio & Buddy Beaudoin from Kid Cretaceous #2
• "Ode Town Road" – 1-page backup story by J. Michael Miller, Lane Lloyd & Reed Hinckley-Barnes
• ...and you will be given the opportunity to choose which upcoming Lane Lloyd cover you'd like: What Dwells Beneath the Heart, The Healer's Blade (TO BE REVEALED!), or Kid Cretaceous!
Fathomless Fantasies Vol. 1: Omens of Olympus Pt. I Variant Cover by Rio Burton
"Ode Town Road" (One-Pager)
The Healer's Blade #1 Variant Cover by Skylar Patridge
Variant cover art by Skylar Patridge
The Healer's Blade is a fantasy comic book series written by J. Michael Miller and with art by Noel Kelly and letters by Taylor Esposito. We have an amazing lineup of cover artists and other creators that have helped us bring this story to life.
Elisa Romboli contributed the art for the main cover of The Healer's Blade #1 and we will be offering variant art from Skylar Patridge, Noel Kelly, M. Sorcier, and Terri Susca.
Character Design by Noel Kelly
"The Stolen Branch" is a 4-page backup story of The Healer's Blade #1 and has a remarkable creative team. It features a script by David DB Andry, art by Roberto Viacava, colors by Ezequiel Cataldo, and letters by Jerome Gagnon. Take a sneak peak below:
Kid Cretaceous is a five-issue comic book series for all-ages. It's created and written by J. Michael Miller, with art by Gaspar Sabater & Dee Noonan, and letters by LetterSquids.
You can preview the opening pages of Kid Cretaceous #2 below. "The Final Curtain" is a 4-page backup story written by Travis Gibb, with art by Ignacio DiMeglio, and letters by Buddy Beaudoin.
Since we are a Printopia 2025 campaign, we wanted the spirit of collaboration to be at the root of this campaign. As such, we are partnering with a couple of friends to release a series of connecting prints.
Getting all three pieces to complete the print is simple: you get the print of the campaign(s) you back. If you back What Dwells Beneath the Heart at a physical level, you get the What Dwells Beneath the Heart print. If you back Meltdown Press at a physical level, you get their print. If you back Wells Thompson at a physical level, you get his print. If you back all three of us at physical levels, you get ALL three prints!
Want a sneak peek? Here's the finished art print for What Dwells Beneath the Heart by Brian Wolf:
This isn’t just a comic—it’s the first ripple in a mythic tide. By backing this campaign, you’re helping birth a universe where emotional truth, cosmic horror, and ancient myth converge.
Whether you’re here for the abyssal gods, the haunting beauty, or the collaborative spirit of Printopia 2025, we’ve built this showcase to honor your curiosity and reward your support.
This project is participating in the BackerKit event Printopia 2025 📚 A celebration of books, comics, and graphic novels featuring an all-star lineup of creators crowdfunding together from September 9–30, 2025.
🧭 Explore the 4 Printopia Groups — Every project belongs to one of four unique groups helping you discover stories you’ll love and creators to follow:
Dawnrise | Uplifting, imaginative tales for all ages.
Suncrest | Bold, hopeful adventures for middle grade readers.
Duskmelt| Emotionally rich stories for teens & adults.
Nightfall | Complex, mature narratives for older teens & adults.
⚔️ Introducing Crowd Quest — a backer-powered community game running during Printopia! Every project belongs to a group, and when you interact, you earn points that help unlock group-wide rewards. Learn more about it in our freebies section below!
🎁 Printopia Freebies Overview — Check out all the different ways you can get freebies in addition to your pledge rewards!
Cross-Collab Freebies — Back both projects in a Cross-Collab pair and get 1 freebie from each creator (see individual project pages for unlock requirements).
Crowd Quest Digital Zine Freebie — Help each of the 4 groups unlock their achievement to earn their digital zine freebie, filled with art, stories, and bonus content from that group’s participants. Collect up to 4 digital zines — one from each group.
Printopia Bookmark Freebie — Back 10+ projects across any group to get the Limited Edition Printopia 2025 bookmark (fulfilled by BackerKit).
*Only pledges to physical reward tiers or main digital offerings (if no physical items are offered) qualify towards earning the limited Printopia 2025 Bookmark.
I understand how disappointing it can be to find your newly delivered comic is damaged. imperative it is that you receive your comics in as good of a shape as possible. Each backer will get their books bagged and boarded, placed in protective bubbling, and then shipped in a Gemini mailer.
Since this is a BackerKit project, shipping will be collected post-campaign in the BackerKit Pledge Manager."
We are charging for shipping POST campaign so we can prevent any unexpected price hikes in shipping costs on our end and make sure we're charging you fairly on the actual weight of your package rather than guessing on a per item basis.
We ship everywhere, but being based in the United States, you can expect packages to go out sooner and arrive faster if you live in the US. To compensate for the extra time and cost, International Backers will get their comics signed for free!
We estimate most domestic packages will cost between $6-8 to ship, where international packages will be somewhere in the range of $15-23 depending on weight.
Fulfillment is expected to be completed by the end of January 2026.
