Interview with Robert Venditti!

Ashleigh: Thank you SO much for taking the time to answer my silly questions. I'm sure you've heard 'em all before! My first questions is: What do you do to get ideas moving around in your head? Is there any go-to form of inspiration?

Robert: I wish! Ideas just appear where they weren't before. Reading, going on a walk, a conversation . . . Anything can spark an idea.


Ashleigh: When you write...how do you tackle it? Is it a continuous process start to beginning or do you split it up over long periods of time?


Robert: I usually write in order, starting with the first page. A graphic novel takes me about 6 months to finish, including rewrites.


Ashleigh: What are your personal favorite comics? What comics did you grow up with, if any?


Robert: I read my first comic (Astro City Vol. 2 #4) in 2000. I didn't read them as a kid. Favorites: Astro City, Gotham Central, Starman, Blacksad, From Hell, Skyscrapers of the Midwest, and my all-time favorite, the Alec books by Eddie Campbell.


Ashleigh: Are there any projects that you're working on right now that I can know about? Are there any that I can't know about? :D


Robert: Already announced: The Homeland Directive (May 2011), The Sea of Monsters (unscheduled), The Titan's Curse (unscheduled). 


Ashleigh: Wow! You're busy!! Do you ever get overwhelmed? Is the industry, in general, demanding?

Robert: There's a long lead-time in publishing, so 3 of those 5 projects are already done (Homeland was done in 2007!). I'm lining up now what will be out in 2012 and beyond. The demanding thing is having to juggle now and two-years-from-now.


Ashleigh: What advice do you have for someone, like myself, that is considering a career as a comic writer?


Robert: Where do I start! Always hit your deadlines. Respect your editors. Try to have at least 2 projects going at once. Be humble.


Ashleigh: Once you're done writing, you no doubt want your hard work represented by good art. How do you pick an artist? Or does your publisher pick? If you pick your own, do you have a checklist of sorts that you run through? What is on that list?


Robert: For all of the Marvel stories I've written, they've picked the artists. With creator-owned work, I have more control. The important thing is to match art with content. Weldele has a cyberpunk style, so he was right for The Surrogates . Futaki is very detailed, so he fits the urban fantasy in Percy Jackson. Scheduling and budget can get in the way, though.


Ashleigh: Do you often attend comic book conventions? If so, what do you think are the pros and cons of these gatherings?

Photo from Ugo.com

Robert: I go to 5-10 each year. The only real con is the expense of travel, but the pros are plenty: Sharing your work with fans, Building a community of likeminded artists and writers, talking with publishers, and discovering the work of others. I met the editor of the Percy GNs at NYCC, and I met Futaki at CCI. I went to 2 cons and came away with 2 years of work.


Ashleigh: Wow! That's awesome! On Krypto Dies, I review webcomics. Are they any webcomics that you personally follow?


Robert: I wouldn't know where to start. I'm a bit of a late adopter . . . What are some of your favorites, and why?


Ashleigh: Oh jeez! I'd have to say "Sakana No Sadness", "Lackadaisy Cats", "Digger" and "The Abominable Charles Christopher". With "Sakana, it's because the idea of a creation rebelling has been done, but never in this way. The way it's presented is HILARIOUS. "Lackadaisy Cats" is amazing just because of the era. I'm a sucker for ANYTHING 1920s. And it's really creative. More than anything, I'm a sucker for the art in "Digger". I'm a printmaker, so the black-and-white look gets me. I love contrast!  "The Abominable Charles Christopher" is just beautiful. It pulls at my heart in places and I like that comics as an art-form can do that.


Robert: I just read the entire run of "Abominable," and am feeling like a dunce for never having heard of it. Really good stuff.


Ashleigh: Hooray! I'm glad you enjoyed it! So I've gotta know....Marvel or DC? ;)


Robert: I don't have much of a history with reading either, but overall I think DC's characters are more interesting.

Ashleigh: How does it feel to see one of your books reach the silver screen?


Robert: Regardless of how the film turned out, I take it as a huge compliment. People invested a lot of time and energy into it.

To be continued....