Inkstuds

With a new relaunch of the printed edition of the Comics Journal coming in the new year, I sat down with editors Kristy Valenti and RJ Casey about what to expect in issue 303 of the Comics Journal and some of the long terms plans with the format, differentiating it from the website.

Victoria based cartoonist, Lisa Maas, joined me to talk about her debut graphic novel, Forward . It’s a really effective look at recovering from loss and how to move on and make connections. it’s a very personal work that holds a lot of heart.

Today I interviewed Sloane Leong . Sloane is no stranger to the Inkstuds, helping out with many excellent guest interviews in the past. Sloane’s latest work is Prism Stalker which comes out in the first collection from Image comics next month. Sloane is a really interested and thoughtful creator, making work that challenges and subverts genre tropes.

I had the pleasure of talking with Paul Kirchner about his work. It’s a really great conversation that covers a lot of breadth. His most recent release is collection of a range of his comics work called Awaiting the Collapse. French publisher, Tanibis, released it both in French and English. You can also find editions collecting his great the bus comic strip that was featured in the powerful...

Nate Powell joined me to talk about his new book, Come Again. His first personal/solo work after the extremely powerful March series with John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, Come Again is a really fantastic book that continues his tradition of thoughtful important work.

Fiona Smyth has been making great important comics for the past 30 plus years and most of them can be found in the recent collection from Koyama Press, Somnambulance . It’s an amazing way to get a deep understanding of one of Canada’s important pioneering small press cartoonists. Her work is radical, engaging and vibrant. I am really happy to have had the time to talk to Fiona about he...

Comics writer, Mariko Tamaki joined me to discuss her latest comic works. She has been really active, writing on a number of new works including Supergirl: Being Super, Lumberjanes Book series, She-Hulk and much more. She also was a part of the Luisa book from Humanoids, supporting extensively on the translation work.

Tommi Parrish joined me to talk about their latest book from Fantagraphics, The Lie and How We Told It . It’s a really fantastic book about people, relationships and finding our place. I really loved this book, same with their previous work, Perfect Hair from 2D Cloud .

Image stolen from Spit and a half – http://www.spitandahalf.com/product/the-warlok-story-by-max-clotfelter/ After many years of reading and enjoying his mini-comics, I finally sat down with Max Clotfelte r to talk about his wide ranging of works. Max’s main series of odd shaped minis is Snake Meat Comics. Max has an amazing style of Southern post underground dystopia. The best place to...

Elijah Brubaker joined me to talk about his eisner nominated graphic novel, The Story of Jezebel . A very funny take on the book of Elijah in the bible. He’s a really great cartoonist and when i saw this book was coming out, i was super excited, as i really loved his Wilhelm Reich series for Sparkplug.

Eddie Campbell is one of my favorite guests to talk comics with. For the occasion of his new book, The Goat Getters , we got caught up the comings and going of early 20th century sports cartooning. It’s an amazingly researched story of early comics told with Eddie’s great story telling chops. He’s passionate about comics and that comes through brightly with this book. Eddie also...

Chris Reynolds joined me to talk about his book, The New World, from New York Review Books. It’s an amazing collection of work that he had done from about 1985 – 1992. Edited and designed by Seth, Reynolds work holds a really unique place that fits well on the shelf sitting next to Beto’s more introspective works. I really enjoyed this collection, like pretty much every other com...

Eric Reynolds has spent his entire adult life at Fantagraphics, starting as an intern and returning to work as an ace reporter, news editor, Hate inker, marketing muckamuck, and even, occasionally, cartoonist. These days his jack-of-all-tradesness has seen him clamber to the broad title of Associate Publisher, and he’s currently editing his third major anthology series for the company. Dirty...

Last Fall, I moderated a panel at FanExpo in Vancouver featuring Ken Steacy, Paul Chadwick and Gerhard. The theme was legends of indie comics. I just used that as an excuse to have a fun conversation with some memorable voices in comics. Paul Chadwick is probably most known for his work on creator owned series Concrete and his latest book, Best Wishes, a collaboration with publisher Mike Richardso...

Zach Hazard Vaupen joined me to talk about his new book from Retrofit, Combed Clap of Thunder. Zach’s other work includes Pearlescent Gray posted on Study Group. I really enjoyed Zach’s book. He’s come into his own with these 2 most recent works. He’s got a great style at evoking horror and near future existentialism. If you like this podcast and want to hear more, please c...

Chris Ware joined me to chat about his new book from Rizzoli, Monograph. I have been a huge fan of Chris’s for a number of years. When I get a new book by him, I inhale it right away. In preparation for this interview, I reread the majority of his work, and got new perspectives and insights. Monograph is a really fantastic document in understanding Chris Ware and how his work is created. I&#...

This week I was joined by the creative team behind Shade the Changing Girl from Young Animal/DC Comics. Cecil Castellucci , the writer behind the book, has been very active on a number if different fronts with new works like Soupy Leaves Home (with Jose Pimienta), The Plain Janes (with Jim Rugg), Year of the Beasts (with Nate Powell) and the novel, Don’t Cosplay with My Heart. Marley Zarcone...

Australian cartoonist, Campbell Whyte joined me to talk about his new book from Top Shelf Comics, Home Time . It’s a really delightful read and I was really blown away by the artwork. Campbell gots some really good chops for his first graphic novel. If you like this podcast and want to hear more, please consider supporting Inkstuds on Patreon .

Sophia Foster-Dimino has slowly been releasing these amazing Sex Fantasy mini comics. I have been able to get a couple of them, but always got jealous from friends that were able to get copies. They are amazing personal nuggets of work. Sophia creates comics in a really amazing space, developing satisfying exploratory work. I am really excited that Koyama Press just released a giant collection of...

This is my second interview with Jerry Moriarty. We first talked back in 2010 for the rerelease of his might Jack Survives collection. Jerry first got notice in the comics community being printed in Raw magazine. His work stood out for his bold line work capturing a simpler time. Raw (aka Art Spiegelman and Francois Mouly) published a collection of Jack Survives back in the 80s. Alvin Buenaventura...

Newly ignatz nominated creator Ben Passmore joined me to talk about his book Your Black Friend , his political comics and other stuff like Daygloayhole. Ben’s work is vibrant and filled with life. Your Black Friend has been getting a lot of well deserved praise and attention. It’s a fantastic comic. Ben’s other work is equally enjoyable to read on a number of different levels. Hi...

Chicago cartoonist, Keiler Roberts joined me to chat about her latest book, Sunburning. Published by Koyama Press , Sunburning continues Keiler’s memoir work, much along the lines of her previous work in her Powdered Milk mini comics and collections. This latest book is a great personal look into a personal level of life, focused on the small things and moments. I really enjoyed reading Keil...

In recognition of the release of the complete Neil the Horse Collection from Conundrum Press, my good friend Brandon Graham sat down with Neil’s creator, Katherine Collins for a live conversation about her work. Brandon and I both think the world of Katherine’s work. Not just through her comics with Neil the Horse, but also her work interviewing pioneering strip cartoonists in the 70s...

I got the chance to sit down with cartoonist Marcelino Truong while he was in Vancouver at VanCAF to promote his latest book, Such a Lovely Little War . It’s a memoir of his childhood living in Vietnam during the escalation of activities in the early stages of the American intervention into the conflict there in. He brings a unique perspective with his experiences. It’s a part of an in...

YOU FOUND IT: The greatest thing you’ve put in your ears since the plugs you used to block the devil’s lies is FREE and LIVE! Artist, critic and international bon vivant Katie Skelly is readying our world for the August 8 release of My Pretty Vampire (color, Fantagraphics), and we’ve got her for a prudently sub-hourlong chat on work, color, tenacity, economics, and HARDCORE SCAMM...