Posted in: Comics | Tagged: artist alley, Comics, lbcc, Long Beach Comic & Horror Con

Jared Sams At Long Beach Comic Con

Published Sun, 11 Nov 2012 07:00:14 -0600

Last updated Sun, 11 Nov 2012 11:47:47 -0600

Chris Waterman writes for Bleeding Cool

I had the opportunity this last weekend to walk the Long Beach Comic & Horror Con. The past 3 years I have attended as a budding young (well old) artist and enjoyed my time in the Artist Alley. From the veteran creators of the comic industry to the new faces looking to tell their own stories, there is an overall drive of creativity, energy and passion for the comic medium. The diversity of styles, content, ages and viewpoints just show how much people love comics. I took this time walking the isle of the Artist Alley to interview a wide range of creators, all of whom are very driven, thoughtful and extremely passionate.

I'm pretty new to all of this. I'm a life-long fan of comics , and only about 8 months into my first year of being a comic book creator. I love zombies and superheroes and stone-jawed bad-asses, but I also think there's a lot of room for other kinds of narratives in this medium, and I hope to make stories that speak to that.

What is your favorite and least favorite thing about being a comic book creator?

What's there to hate, man! Comics, yo! I had a violent altercation with a hobo in a San Francisco public bathroom at 4 in the morning while printing my book at a 24-hour Kinkos, and even that singular moment of sheer terror puts a dumb smile on my face. The highs, the lows…I love it all! Now, ask me this question in a year and I'm pretty sure I'll just yell out a bunch of expletives and run off crying.

My first project was a mini-comic called "Jingles Are For Losers". It was 12 pages long, and it felt like it took a million years to make. It was actually closer to 6 months, but still. Thinking back on it now, I still don't know why it took so damn long to get the thing done and printed, but I imagine it had something to do with being terrified that it would suck donkey balls. Fear of Suckage is my Magneto.

Success in comics is being able to make comics. One of the things that has surprised me about creating comics is how little time is spent actually creating comics. You make 'em, then you gotta sell 'em, but before that, you got to market them, and then after you market them, you gotta market them some more…it's exhausting! Screw fame and fortune, if I never had to worry about the logistical and economic limitations of paying artists and printing books and flying to shows to meet potential new readers, then that's a win.

What should people expect from your work?

Great comics. What else do you want?

SPACEMANDEAD.COM.

Chris Waterman lives in Southern California. He is a life long comicbook fan and artist. You can check out some of his work at: http://radixrising.deviantart.com/

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