BIOGRAPHY:

David Lapham (1970- ) was born and raised in New Jersey and began work at 17 as a layout artist for the Ocean County Observer. He began his career in the comic industry at 20 working at Valiant Comics. Then an unknown freelancer he was learning his craft at the feet of Jim Shooter, the controversial ex-editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics, now head of Valiant Comics. David was illustrating and helping to create many original titles, including Shadowman, Harbinger and Rai. In 1993 he left Valiant to work at Defiant Comics where he co-created Warriors Of Plasm with Jim Shooter.

After Defiant Comics went bust, David turned his back on the superhero genre and in 1995 co-founded with his wife, Maria, the independent publishing company, El Capitan Books, under which they began publishing David's comic series Stray Bullets. David has won Eisner Awards in 1996 for Best Writer/Artist and in 1997 for Best Reprint Graphic Album.

Interviews:
Newsarama (2005)
Indy Magazine #17 (1997)
Feature Vol 3 #1 (1997)

Resources:
El Capitan Books

Stray Bullets
El Capitan Books, 1995-ongoing
Initially, Stray Bullets reads like a Tarantino-esque, crime noir series - but very quickly it becomes apparent that it will not be locked into any one style or genre. If it has a common theme it is of characters who are severely and emotionally impacted by events beyond their control. Stray Bullets tells the story of their reactions to those events and the subsequent effects on their lives. Each issue of Stray Bullets is a complete story, often leaving the reader staring dumbfounded at the page, unable to believe the roller coaster of events that have taken place. Each issue takes us backwards and forward in time, seemingly at random, as we learn more about the characters through various episodes in their lives, giving us tiny tantalizing slices of an overall picture. Careful readers are rewarded as each piece of the jigsaw fits into place to reveal a larger picture.

Murder Me Dead
El Capitan Books, 2001
A harrowing tale of love and murder... Hanging from the ceiling fan in their lavish Hollywood home. That's where Steven Russell finds his estranged wife, a tear-stained note in her pocket pouring out years of pain and regret. Is it suicide? The police think so. But his wife's rich and powerful family is convinced otherwise, and they'll do everything in their power to make him pay. As Steven's life is systematically destroyed by a lascivious private detective, a chance meeting with an old friend drives him back towards a simpler time when the world was full of hope - to a down trodden neighborhood he had long left behind and a fateful reunion with a woman who loved him.

There Are No Flowers In The Real World
in The Matrix Comics anthology
Burlyman Entertainment, 2003
Nominated for a 2004 Eisner Award for Best Short Story, this 16 page story let David Lapham loose in The Matrix universe using the concepts created by the Wachowski brothers.

Books:
Stray Bullets Hardcovers:
1: Innocence Of Nihilism (reprints #1-7)
2: Somewhere Out West (reprints #8-14)
3: Other People (reprints 15-22)

Stray Bullets Softcovers:
1: Reprints #1-4
2: Reprints #5-8
3: Reprints #9-12
4: Reprints #13-16
5: Reprints #17-20
6: Reprints #21-24
7: Reprints #25-28
8: Reprints #29-32

Other Books:
Amy Racecar Collection Vol 1 (2003)
Murder Me Dead (2001)

Periodicals:
Murder Me Dead #1-9 (2000-2001)
Amy Racecar Colour Specials #1-2 (1997-1999)
Stray Bullets #1-ongoing (1995- )

Short Stories:
There Are No Flowers... in The Matrix Comics (2003)