I got a beyond-charming phone call the other month from my
fellow illustrating buddy
Katherine Roy asking me if I would like to take part
in a “blog tour”.
I admitted
ignorance and she explained that it was a series of blog posts on different
illustrators’ blogs where they answer questions from each other.
Katherine has finished work on her
SHARK book
right now, believe you me, it's A-MAZE-ING!
I’ve known her for years now, but I really enjoyed reading
her answers to various questions!
I was pumped to take a stab at them as well!
1) What is the working title of your next book?
Here’s the real kicker, Cosmic Crisis is a “flip over book”! That means that you can read the book from two directions,
and it, correspondingly, has two titles.
The other side of the book bears the title Matt Data and the
Cosmic Crisis. It’s still one book, though!
2) Where did the idea come from for the book?
Even though Leo Geo’s name insinuates an affinity for the earth, I had always thought of different places that I
could take him; underwater, jungles, space etc. Space won out for two reasons. First, space was as far removed from terra firma as you could
get. I was enamored by the idea of
taking Leo Geo out of his comfort zone.
Secondly, unlike the first book, which had Leo moving on a constant
y-axis with an orientation based on gravity, space would not be subject to
these rules. Suddenly, movement on
the x,y, and z axis all became viable.
I decided that because of this, the book wouldn’t benefit from the same,
unique 14”x4.5” inch trim size
that Leo Geo had. I opted, instead, for a 7”x10” trim
size.
The idea of making it a flip-over book was directly tied to
my idea of introducing a new character and letting them (Matt and his dog Maff)
have their own adventure.
3) What genre does your book fall under?
Ooooooo, this is a tough one! The story and setting itself are
fictional, but facts are most assuredly, 100% true! It’s an odd combination of science fiction and non-fiction. This combination has really appealed to
me since I was young. I remember
watching the Fantastic Four movie when I
was a kid, and there’s this one part in particular that always stood out to
me. Dr. Doom (clearly the villain)
has put Mr. Fantastic (who has stretchy rubber-like powers) on ice. Dr. Doom twists Mr. Fantastic’s finger,
which clearly causes him great pain.
Dr. Doom says something, like, “see what happens to super-cooled
rubber.” I will always remember that little science tidbit, and I didn’t get it
from a textbook, I got it from the Fantastic Four movie.
This sort of Trojan-horsing of knowledge is what I’m striving for.
4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your
characters in a movie rendition?
Oh man, this is a really well-timed question! I watched Pacific Rim (the new Del Toro giant robot movie. WATCH IT!) this summer, and loved every
second of it. There are these two
scientists in it that are hanging out together the whole movie; one was hip and
such a fan-boy of science that is was cute, and the other was more
methodical. It was too
perfect! Leo Geo is an
immeasurably enthusiastic nerd for science, where Matt Data is definitely more
down to earth. The hip scientist
was Charlie Day, and the methodical one was played by Burn Gorman.
5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Leo Geo and Matt Data rush from opposite ends of the galaxy
to help the other one out, only to encounter pirates, supernovas, aliens, and a
lot of facts about space.
6) Who is publishing your book?
Roaring Brook Press, a division of Macmillan, is publishing
my book.
They did
Leo Geo, and I’m jazzed to be working with them again.
7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of
the manuscript?
Hmmmm. I’m not
entirely sure. I remember working
on it back in October and November 2011.
I’m pretty sure that we started revisiting the script and the sketches
in April of 2012. The entire thing
was drawn during June, July, and August of the same year. It was a whirlwind; so much so that I
don’t really remember the writing process.
8) Who or what inspired you to write this book?
My constant art inspiration continues to be book artist
Julie Chen.
She is an unbelievable
bookmaker that stresses the importance to consider every surface of a book; from
the binding to the page turns.
Making a book where the construction (the flip-over concept) directly
tied into the narrative was a huge goal.
In the same vein, there is a board came called
Rescue from Planet Zero
where you move a marble around a vacuu-formed board exploring different
environments, answering math questions, and recovering pieces of your
ship.
I know that this might sound
silly, but that idea of exploration and non-linear movement is something I
always wanted to recapture.
As far as drawing goes,
Tokusatsu constantly inspires me,
which is the Japanese genre of giant monster, robot, and special effects
movies.
Although on first glance
the whole ordeal can seem silly, I’m so enamored by the combination of passion,
detail, and creativity.
Although
this isn’t a 2D form, I still try to relay these ideals in my worlds.
9) What else about the book might pique the reader’s
interest?
I love to draw monsters, aliens, robots, etc. and I’ve taken
good measure to litter them throughout the book! I want it to be a literal cornucopia of characters and gags
for kids to look through.
Additionally, I’ve tried really hard to make this book reward multiple
reads. Because of the dual nature
of it being a flip-over book, there are storylines and characters that cross
over onto the other half of the book.
Each side has it’s own satisfying narrative conclusion, but it’s also
fun to look and find what just happens to the boot that gets sucked through the
wormhole, or the baseball that is hit onto the other side of the galaxy, etc.
10) Were those questions too easy for you?
No, that wasn’t too bad. The inspiration question was tough because I had to make a
distinction between where I get inspiration for the structure, and inspiration
for the drawing. Once I separated
those two things, it was easy : )
Keep ‘em coming!
11) Is there a link to video games in your work?
Undoubtedly!
The first book is extremely influenced by the linear movement that you
find in early video games. Leo Geo
(the character) is drawn very simply for two reasons. First, it was easier for him to stand out against the
background, and second, he was supposed to look like character from an early
video game where it was hard to distinguish detail due to the simplicity of
pixel art.
Whereas Leo Geo is homage to Mario and Zelda 2-type side-scrollers, Cosmic
Crisis is my take on starship shooting games
like R-Type, and Gradius. In these
games you are constantly moving through a seamless environment. The difference, though, is that if you
look at the margin of the screen that you are able to movie around on in a
Mario game, even with the jumping, it’s pretty limited. Space shooting games give you a lot
more access to the entire screen.
I wanted to emulate that feeling.
12) At what age did you start drawing pictures &
telling stories?
I have always been drawing as early as I could remember, but
the writing came a bit later. It
wasn’t until high school that I started to combine the two. The one exception is that in first
grade I wrote a couple books about the “Ninja Lizards”. They rode around in a monster truck and
were totally rad. Obviously this
was a thinly veiled rendition of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but hey,
write what you know, RIGHT!?
13) When did you start making “drawing pictures and
telling stories” your job? Was there a “game changing moment” which made that
possible?
It was undoubtedly when I got an email out of the blue form
my now-editor Deirdre Langeland from Roaring Brook. She had gotten Leo Geo
passed to her from someone who got from someone I gave it to. She explained who she was and what sort
of things Roaring Brook published.
She admitted that Leo Geo “wasn’t 100% there, but was so, so
close.” This willing-ness to reach
out, communicate, and ultimately take a chance on a book with an unconventional
structure has meant the world to me, and really paved the way for the work I do
now.
14) If you could hug one illustrated book, picture book,
and/or graphic novel and ask it to be your bride… which book would it be?
Ha ha ha!
Man
oh man, don’t let my girlfriend Tess find out, but right now I would probably
choose to marry
Jeff Zwierk’s Burning Building Comix. Jeff
self-published it himself, and it’s been getting some well-deserved traction
lately! The form is absolutely
perfect for the narrative, and so beautifully drawn. Check it out!
15) If you didn’t make books with pictures, what other
artistic medium would you be drawn to? Sculpture? Animation? Electric Cello?
If I was a cheater, I’d say, “book arts”, but that’s too
close to what I do now.
I’d really
want to get into printmaking and papermaking.
I got the chance to visit a paper maker in Lebanon, NH, and
it was a really eye-opening experience.
Before I started working at
The Center for CartoonStudies, I printed t-shirts.
I
loved it, and would welcome the chance to do it again.
16) Imagine a kid just read your next/newest book. What’s
the biggest compliment they could give it?
Oh man, get out your tissues dear readers. This is my favorite reaction ever: Last May I was at a show with the
galley for Cosmic Crisis. A kid came up and was really into Leo Geo. I asked him if he wanted to read the
new one. He eagerly agreed and
read the book through in one go, silently, standing right there in front of the
table. It was his silence that was
the biggest compliment, his complete immersion into the story and the world.
17) What’s the biggest challenge in being an
author/illustrator?
For me, right now, it’s the time. With my teaching and staffing obligations at The Center for
Cartoon Studies, I don’t have nearly enough time to tackle the projects I’d
like to. Delegating my time and
working late hours is an unfortunate reality for me right now.
18) What’s the best part about being an author/illustrator?
This is easy, it’s the variety of jobs that come down the
pipeline, and the chances I’ve had to work for publishers and companies that I
really admire.
I’ve worked for
Stern Pinball (I LOVE PINBALL), Adventure Time, Regular Show, and even the
FBI.
If I was working on one
solitary project, I’d get twitchy.
Also, and this might seem like a stock answer, but the chance to
transport someone, even for one second to a world of my creation is a truly
special interaction that I’d never give up.
19) What advice, if any, would you give to the thousands
of humans with drawings & stories trapped inside their heads who want your
cool job too?
I’m going to reissue a piece of advice that was given to me
years ago that has held true ever since: If you love something, work hard, and
contribute positively to it, you can be a part of it. Do you love books?
Stories? Start writing! All it takes is a few hours, some
paper, pencils, and a photocopier, and you can make you own books! That’s how I started! The first copies of Leo Geo were self-published and assembled on my dinner
table. I used to use a sock drawer
as my “darkroom” for burning screens for screen printing, and the shower to
wash them off. Also, take the time
to reach out to people or artists that have really inspired you and (sanely)
thank them. The dialogue that will
develop will really empower you!
20) Is Katherine Roy your favorite person?
This isn’t fair, Katherine! This is bear-bating!
Katherine’s creativity is nearly boundless, and her work ethic is
something we can all look up to.
She’s a real inspiration to me!
Katherine Roy is the reel deal, folks (you guys catch that!)
and she’s totally rad!
THANKS
KATHERINE : )
Next up is
Xeric-award winner
Laura Terry and the b-e-a-utiful things flowing out of her
studio!
