Fanzines & Reviews
Before Lenovations Press, there were fan publications, reviews, serialized fiction, and the first steps toward original comics.
History Map
Jump to an eraThe Short Version
The important stuffSection 12 Begins
Section 12 was created, published by Dilemma Productions, and later relaunched as its own title through Mythic Comics.
Track Suit Man
A real-life airport annoyance became the unlikely spark that launched Lenovations Press as a publishing company.
Many Worlds
Section 12, Edge of Adventure, FanBoys, Buffalo Bill, Avenger, Red Mask, Tales of the Unknown, YouTube, Patreon, and more.
The Full Story
The Whole Truth
Early 1990s
Rejection Letters and the First Real Advice
Like many aspiring comic writers, Len Mihalovich began by sending submissions to Marvel, DC, Image, Malibu, Dark Horse, and other publishers. Most responses were rejection letters, including the kind every new creator learns to recognize after a while.
One response, however, changed the direction of everything that followed. An editor at Dark Horse took the time to offer practical advice: stop trying to break directly into the biggest companies, build experience, create original characters, and work with smaller publishers first.
The rejection letters came first. The fanzines, reviews, odd jobs, and original series came after, because one editor took the time to point Len toward a better path.
Early 1990s
Fanzines, Reviews, and the First Writing Credits
Len followed that advice by getting his name into print wherever he could. He contributed to fan-based publications, wrote themed comic reviews for The Comic Effect, serialized fiction in The Age of Superheroes, and fan fiction connected to properties like The Green Hornet Casebook and Quantum Leap Lost Adventures.
Those projects were not side quests. They were training. They helped build the habits that would later define Lenovations Press: writing regularly, working within genre traditions, paying attention to continuity, and finding the fun hiding inside even the strangest creative assignments.
Early 1990s
The Birth of Section 12
After roughly a year of building experience through fanzines, reviews, working with editors, and small writing assignments, Len began developing his own superhero team. That project became Section 12, a Bronze Age-inspired superhero universe built around a top secret government project with reluctant heroes, and failed experiments hidden from the public.
With an original series finally ready to pitch, Len submitted Section 12 to independent publishers, exactly the route the Dark Horse editor had suggested. That decision led directly to Dilemma Productions and the first published Section 12 stories.
1993-1994
Dilemma Productions and the First Published Section 12 Stories
Section 12 found its first publisher when Dilemma Productions accepted the series as a lead feature in the anthology Dilemma Presents. The first issue was completed in 1993 and reached comic shops in 1994.
Dilemma Presents ran for four issues, and Section 12 became one of the company's strongest features. The book developed a small but enthusiastic following during the 1990s independent comics scene, when readers might have heard of a title even if actually finding it in a store was its own side quest.
During this period, the Dilemma crew also received an unexpected invitation from View Askew Productions. Len and Michael Kelleher visited Red Bank, New Jersey and appeared as extras during the filming of Kevin Smith's Chasing Amy, creating one of those surreal moments where small press comics and pop culture briefly crossed paths.
1997
Mythic Comics, Phil Miller, and a Standalone Section 12
After Dilemma Productions slowed down, Len continued looking for a new home for Section 12. Working with artist Phil Miller, he restarted the project with Mythic Comics out of Canada. In 1997, Mythic published Section 12 #1 with new artwork, finally giving the series its own title rather than an anthology slot.
The issue was well received and a second issue was approved, but the comic distributor collapse of the late 1990s hit small publishers hard. Mythic Comics became one of the casualties. Section 12 #2 was nearly ready, but the company closed before it could be printed. One of Mythic's final acts was returning the original artwork to Len.
Late 1990s / 2000s
The Independent Universe Collector Cards
Len later teamed up with Dilemma again to help produce the Independent Universe Collector Card Set, a collaborative trading card project designed to bring together small independent publishers who could not afford to create card sets on their own.
The first series sold out, leading to a second series. Long before social media made creator networking easier, the card set gave independent comic creators a way to cross-promote characters, build relationships, and help readers discover books outside the mainstream.
The Hiatus Years
Stepping Away Without Letting Go
After the collapse of early publishing opportunities, life moved in other directions. Len started a family, built a career outside of comics, and stepped away from publishing new Section 12 issues.
The creative work never fully stopped. He continued writing, reviewing independent comics, developing websites, and learning digital production skills. He also worked with artists Phil Miller and Michael Kelleher on private commissions and eventually taught himself how to digitally color and restore comic art.
During this period, Len also created RescuedComics.com and continued supporting independent comics through reviews, promotion, and educational sessions about comic books at schools and colleges.
2013-2014
The Airport Villain Who Started a Publishing Company
In 2013, Len was traveling for work every week. On those early morning flights, he repeatedly encountered the same passenger: a man in a track suit who seemed to carry too many bags, claim too much overhead space, and somehow find new ways to board ahead of everyone else.
Len began posting about the situation on social media, and friends started following the weekly airport drama. Eventually, a his good friend Michael Kelleher asked the obvious question: Why had this not become a comic book?
A year later, The Adventures of Track Suit Man #1 was released. Lenovations Press was born as Len hired artists, handled the digital production and prepress work himself, and proved he could publish his own comics on his own terms.
Lenovations Press began with a ridiculous airport annoyance and became proof that a small, strange idea could open the door to a much larger publishing universe.
2017 and beyond
Section 12 Returns in Three Directions
After Track Suit Man showed Len that self-publishing was possible, the conversation quickly turned back to Section 12. The question was not whether to bring it back, but how.
Rather than modernize the original 1990s stories and lose their charm, Len created Section 12 (Flashback) to present those adventures in their original era, now in color and with Phil Miller drawing them as they were meant to be told.
To expand the world without rewriting the past, Len also created Section 12 (Declassified), a modern-day storyline set 22 years later, after Section 12 has vanished and people are searching for the truth, the missing science, and the secrets left behind. Section 12 (Lost Adventures) became the place for untold stories, gaps, team-ups, and unfinished ideas from the original era.
2020
Free Comics and Reader Support
During the COVID-19 period, Lenovations Press made free titles available online through the Section 12 website, giving readers something to enjoy during a difficult time. That free-reading approach continued as part of the company's outreach to new readers.
Over time, Lenovations Press also expanded through Patreon, digital downloads, online sales, convention appearances, and direct relationships with readers who wanted to follow the books more closely.
Edge of Adventure
The Universe Expands Beyond Section 12
A question at a convention Is Section 12 all you guys do? Gave Len Mihalovich and Phil Miller pause for a moment. Phil replied I'd like to draw a western comic.
With that, Lenovations Press eventually grew beyond Section 12. The company began developing original projects and reviving Golden Age characters under what became the Edge of Adventure line.
This wider catalog includes Fantastic FanBoys Adventures, The Wild West Adventures of Buffalo Bill, RedMask Rides Again, Uneven Ground, Avenger (New Blood), Tales of the Unknown, and other projects that explore westerns, humor, historical fiction, public-domain heroes, monsters, mysteries, and creator-driven experiments.
The goal was not to replace Section 12, but to give Lenovations Press a wider map. If Section 12 is the classified file, Edge of Adventure is the crate of strange comics found in the back room.
Awards, Crossovers and Collaborations
Tomorrow Girl, Megaton Man, Awards, and Bigger Connections
As the catalog expanded, Lenovations Press also began crossing into larger indie-comics conversations. Section 12 appeared in a crossover published by Antarctic Press through Tomorrow Girl, bringing the characters into a new audience's line of sight.
Lenovations Press was honored when two of their creators were named as finalists in the National Cartoonist Society's (NCS) national award for best comic (Avenger New Blood #1) in 2024. Although they didn't win the nomination brought Lenovations Press lots of media coverage and national attention.
FanBoys and Section 12 also crossed into Don Simpson's Megaton Man: Multimensions project, continuing the company's tradition of surprising connections, hidden references, and collaborations with creators from across the indie scene.
Patreon / YouTube / Community
Behind the Scenes Becomes Part of the Story
Lenovations Press has always been creator-driven, but the modern version of the company also makes the process part of the fun. Patreon gives readers a way to follow projects, support the work, and see behind-the-scenes updates.
The YouTube channel, Indie Comics Deep Dive with Mona and Sam, adds another layer by spotlighting the comics, creators, Easter eggs, hidden references, production history, and wider indie-comics community.
Today
One Publisher. Many Worlds.
Today, Lenovations Press is the umbrella under which Section 12, Edge of Adventure, Fantastic FanBoys, Buffalo Bill, Red Mask, Avenger, Tales of the Unknown, and other creator-driven projects reside.
The company remains small boutique publisher by design, focused on distinctive comics, limited print runs, personal connections with readers, and projects built with care rather than volume. The mission is simple: make comics worth collecting, sharing, celebrating, and reading for fun.
Where to go next
The story keeps going.
The history explains how Lenovations Press got here. The series page shows what the company is publishing now, and the creators page introduces the people helping bring those stories to life.
From rejection letters to comic-book worlds!