The artist behind Oblivion Song and Void Rivals is stepping out as a writer.

Lorenzo de Felici’s Red Roots is getting collected into a trade paperback this fall from Image Comics. The five-issue series marks de Felici’s debut as both writer and artist, a big shift for someone who made his name drawing Robert Kirkman’s genre-bending hits.

Red Roots follows a professional killer and a high school teacher whose lives collide through some kind of terrifying, mysterious force. Think The Mist meets The Cabin in the Woods, with dark fantasy lore and puzzle-box storytelling that twists as it goes.

De Felici proved he could draw the hell out of a comic. Oblivion Song put him on the map. Void Rivals, his tentpole Energon Universe book with Kirkman, became one of 2024’s biggest launches and is on its 12th reprint. Now he’s flying solo, and the early buzz suggests he can write too.

Kirkman himself called it “the comic series you’ve been waiting your whole life for.” AIPT praised its “bold, exciting, and visually striking” approach, noting how de Felici trusts readers to sit with tension as two unrelated stories slowly converge.

Red Roots, Vol. 1 hits comic shops October 21 and bookstores November 17. For indie creators trying to break out, this is proof that doing the work, building your reputation, and taking the leap can pay off.