“Working hard to bring something different”: a Josh Howard interview

Leggi l'intervista in italiano

Hi Josh. Your work here in Italy is somewhat unknown. In fact, Dead @ 17 (upcoming for Edizioni BD) is your debut in our country. Could you please introduce yourself to our Italian readers?

I´m 30 years old, married with two kids, a boy and a girl. My wife also happens to be half Italian. My career in comics began in 2003 with the publication of the first Dead @ 17 series here in the U.S. By independent standards, it was a huge success and Viper Comics (the publisher) asked for a sequel. Dead @ 17: Blood of Saints followed a few months later and then Dead @ 17: Revolution. After that I went on to produce the series Black Harvest for publisher Devil´s Due. My current projects include a new Dead @ 17 series, The Lost Books of Eve (also for Viper) and Clubbing for DC Comics, which is due out this summer.

Could you introduce the readers to the world of Dead @ 17?

Dead @ 17 is a world that always seems to be on the verge of an apocalypse. Whether it be zombies or demons or evil men, there´s a constant effort by the bad guys to bring about the end of the world. Standing in their way is a teenage girl who has been raised from the dead and given heavenly powers.

Dead @ 17´s first miniseries is 4 years old. The very first issue went out in October 2003, if I remember well. The public and critic´s claim was immediate, and your comic book became a hit and a cult in no time. After the 3 minis, now Dead @ 17 is a new ongoing series. How´s the book changed in this 4 years?

Well, I had no idea it would catch on like it did. I really wasn´t prepared for it. I thought I would just put out the first one and move on to something different. So the success forced me to reevaluate my plans. I went ahead and put out the two sequels and I kind of thought that would be the end of it. But fans wanted more, and honestly, I had grown to really love the world I created, and I found I couldn´t really let it go. Even though the story I had originally conceived was ended in Dead @ 17: Revolution, I began to think about other directions I could take it if I kept it going. I took about a year to really think about it and to decide that it was really something I wanted to do. The ongoing series launched an all new chapter with new characters and a new direction, but eventually it will begin to tie back in with the original books and it will feel like one big story.

How do you expect your book will be received here in Italy?

I have no idea! Well, I hope!

And how is your approach on writing and drawing changed in this years?

My approach is pretty much the same, but I think I just improved a lot. Even though I had been writing and drawing for years trying to break into the comic business, the first Dead @ 17 was a huge learning experience for me. I was still trying to find footing and discover my style and my voice, so I´m sure you´ll notice a lot of changes over the series. If I could go back, there´s a lot I would change, but it is what it is now.

What are the major influences in your art? I could recognize Bruce Timm; is there something more that we can´t spot immediately?

Yeah, Bruce Timm definitely. But also Shane Glines, Art Adams, Mike Allred, Genndy Tartakovsky, and a bit of Mike Mignola. Early on I was heavily influenced by Frank Miller. It´s not really obvious, but his stuff is always in the back of my mind.

You are both a comic book and a pin-up artist. What do you like to do more?

I don´t know. They both have their advantages and disadvantages. It mostly depends on my mood, I guess. Sometimes I just want to be an artist and not think about words or ideas and just draw. Other times I can get lost in an idea or story concept and just write and brainstorm for hours. I think there is both a writer and an artist in me, and comic books is like the meeting ground between the two.

You always pay a great attention on the design of your books. I mean, some of the covers of Dead @ 17: Revolution, not to mention the trade paperback´s covers, are superb. How much is the cover design important for you?

Thank you for noticing. Yes, covers and packaging are very important to me. In such a competitive field, you have to fight to get the buyer´s attention. I hate typical comic book covers of just a bunch of guys fighting or heroes posed with clenched teeth. There´s no design involved and it just looks like clutter on the shelves. I work hard with Viper´s art director Jim Resnowski to bring something different to every series I do.

And what about your influences in writing?

My writing influences are all over the place. I love what Chris Carter did with the X-Files and Millennium. I´m also a big fan of the works of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. The Zorachus books by Mark Rogers also had a huge impact on me. They´re hard to come by, but well worth it.

Could you please tell us something about your new work, The lost books of Eve?

The Lost Books of Eve is meant to be a fun, fantasy adventure, kind of a ”what if?”. Even if you think the story of the Garden of Eden to be nothing more than make-believe, I don´t think anyone denies its timelessness or its powerful message. It seemed like an area ripe for exploration...I just couldn´t resist.

Religion seems to play a very important part in your books. First things first Dead @ 17, with the angels vs. demons mythology, now Eve and the quest for Adam on the Garden of Eden, just to make hard things simple. It seems to me that you´re trying to express your personal view of religion in a sort of fantasy way.

My beliefs and worldview do have an influence on the things I write, there´s no denying that. But I think that´s true for almost everyone, religious or not. In fact, it´s not even something I consciously do, it´s just part of who I am.

Many independent comic creators are recently collaborating with major companies such as Marvel or DC Comics - like your Clubbing, the book that you co-create with Andi Watson for the newly born Minx Imprint by DC Comics. What is your view on this current trend?

It´s good and bad at the same time. It´s good for creators like me because we´re able to earn some real money and gain mainstream exposure. However, a lot of creators abandon their original works and just devote themselves to working with corporate characters, which I don´t think is a good thing. We need more talented creators in the independent field. I wish more mainstream creators would leave Marvel and DC behind and create their own stories. But at the same time I completely understand the need and desire for steady income. There´s no easy answers.

You usually both draw and write your comics. How was it only drawing for Andi Watson?

Well, I´ve been a fan of Andi´s for years, and there´s no denying his talent. However, this project presented more than its fair share of challenges and frustrations for me, and it only served to reinforce my desire to only draw my own work.

And would you be interest in only writing for other people?

Possibly. I´ve thought a lot about it, and there are a lot of artists I´d love to work with. There´s a better chance of it happening than me drawing for someone else.

You work mainly with Viper Comics, a very independent comic book Publisher. What is in your opinion the meaning of being an independent comic creator today? And what about your upcoming projects?

I think the definition of an independent creator is someone who creates and owns their own work. Would I one day like to maybe take a shot at a mainstream character like Supergirl or Batgirl? Sure. But that´s not my driving ambition. My desire is to tell my own stories my way. If I die never having drawn a mainstream book, that´s fine by me.
As for upcoming projects....
Lost Books of Eve will be wrapping up with issue #4 this August. Dead @ 17 ongoing will be finished this fall with issue 7 or 8, I haven´t decided yet. I´m still in the process of figuring out what I want to do next. I have a superhero story I want to do really bad, but I´ve also got a sci fi story and another one about a modern day witch hunt. I´ve also begun my first novel, so that´s something I´d like to devote some more time to next year.

Do you still read comics? If so, what kinds of comics do you prefer to read?

The only comics I read on a consistent basis are Hellboy, Transformers, All Star Superman, and anything by Doug TenNapel.

What do you know about European comic makers?

I really love Dylan Dog, which was released over here by Dark Horse a few years ago. I´m also a big fan of Alessandro Barbucci and Barbara Canepa´s Sky Doll.

Finally, our trademark question: name three comics that comic fans must have on their shelves.

Hellboy: The Right Hand of Doom, Earthboy Jacobus, and The Dark Knight Returns.