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White Ash — AKA When It's Time To Bet On Yourself

Published Sat, 08 Apr 2017 09:00:34 -0500

Charlie Stickney writes,

I haven't always been a risk taker. I drive a Volvo. I like vanilla ice cream. I was on Team Summers over Team Logan. So why am I investing so much of my time and money creating a comic book to launch on Kickstarter? Two reasons, the book was worth it. And it was time to take a risk on me.

I grew up in a small town in Maine. And I think for a lot of us who come from rural beginnings, the question we often find ourselves asking right about the time we hit high school is — Is this really all there is? Followed by —No, c'mon, really, there's gotta be more, right?

That question eventually brought me to Los Angeles (where, to be honest, I'm still looking for the answer). But it's also the core of what White Ash is about — what else is out there? And if you find out, is it going to make you happier? Or in this case, is it going to get you killed?

Killed? Yep. White Ash isn't as quiet as it looks. As we say around these parts, The smaller the town, the bigger the secrets.

The comic is a gene mash of fantasy, horror and forbidden romance set in a small mining town in Western Pennsylvania. Think one part Supernatural, one part Twin Peaks with a healthy dose of Lord of the Rings.

If you notice, all the reference points are from film and TV. Which is important because that's where the tale behind the story really begins…

See for the last fifteen years plus I've been working in film and television. I've been fortunate enough to have some modest success. I've helped bring a couple of animated shows to television. I've had some films optioned and subsequently put into the Hollywood development blender. But about five years ago, the landscape changed. Call it The Avengers Syndrome. After the film came out, every studio in town wanted to replicate Marvel's success. So that meant they had to have their own universe of I.P. (intellectual property) to develop into franchises. The industry had been trending this way for a while, but the Avengers codified it.

You see it now, over half the new films and television shows being green-lit are based on existing comics, novels or 80's action movies (see the inexplicable Lethal Weapon reboot). Which as a man, who in the early nineties wore an Xavier's Institute for Higher Learning watch to school…

05x-men-watch — "The watch, sadly not mine anymore."

…I've found a pretty exciting turn to see nerd-culture finally getting the recognition it deserves. However, as a writer trying to pitch new mythos, it's been a pretty frustrating time.

I've had a lot of meetings lately that have gone something like this:

Executive: Love the script. What an amazing idea. I really didn't see any of those twists coming at all. Just fabulous.

Me: Thank you.

Executive: HOWEVER, I don't think though that it's quite right for us… too hard of a sell. Such a big world. Now if it had been based on a comic book…

And scene.

Wash. Rinse. Repeat. At some point the message starts to sink in. Unless you are fortunate enough to have a big track record, it's tough to sell something that's not the same old same old. Unless that is, it's based on existing I.P. About the fifth time I heard this, I started to think — Well, why not? I should just create my own I.P., turn my television series into a comic book series. How hard could it be?

The truth is to do it right, it's really, REALLY hard. Every type of writing is different — film, animation, television, comics, novels, they all have different limitations and advantages. Plus there's the production side of things — lining up the right art team. A team that fits your vision for the book, who knows how to capture the perfect moments in time….

Plus you have to find a printer, distribution channels, etc. And I was planning to take this all on myself. Was I crazy?

Well, yes, I'm a little crazy. However, I also knew it was time to take the plunge. I think we all hit points in life where we realize there's a critical mass saying either we do a thing we've been finding a thousand reasons to put off doing, or we don't. And maybe for you that thing is moving across country, or proposing, or committing to that job at the bank. Or maybe, as a Bleeding Cool reader, like me that thing you've been teetering on the edge of doing forever, is making a comic book.

See I grew up on comics. They were my first love long before film and way before television. In college I interned at Marvel and were it not for a job offer with a film company in Los Angeles, my plan had been to move to NYC to embark on a career writing comic books. So it wasn't like this was out of the blue. But it was a risk. Where does one even go to find a penciler, inker, colorist and letter. I didn't exactly have the Marvel Editorial Office's rolodex at my disposal.

Well hello there internet, I'm looking at you. Specifically, Deviant Art, Reddit, Penciljack and Digital Webbing.

Turns out if you have project that people think is worth their time (and a little money), there are a fair number of amazing artists looking for work. The process of how I found the right artists for White Ash is best saved for a different post, but needless to say over 120 submissions later, I'd found THE team. And they're incredible.

Conor Hughes, our virtuoso penciler/inker was one of the winners of Mark Millar's showcase for rising talent in the cookbook industry. And Fin Cramb, our Scottish colorist, has worked for Dark Horse, Madefire and a slew of others. Together they form a team that can take simple sentences like this…

Going wider we realize we're in —

INT. LILLIAN'S BEDROOM – NIGHT

and turn it into this…

The staggering breadth of Conor and Fin's talent is just one of the many reasons I'm excited I decided to take the plunge and make the book. It's rare in life that one takes a risk that's rewarded so handsomely. But mostly I'm just thrilled that I'm able to share the world of White Ash with you unencumbered from studio notes. This is the pure, uncut stuff that would have never made it to the air. What we've been able to do with the comic has far surpassed my vision for the television series.

You don't need to take my word on the comic, you can check it out for yourself. Our Kickstarter is currently live. AND for being Bleeding Cool readers, we have a special Bleeding Cool offer for you.

If you use the codeword BLEEDINGASH, we'll bump you up one pledge tier (all the way up to our $75 tier). So if you pledge a $2 thank you credit, we'll also send you the $7 PDF of the book. If you choose the $7PDF, we'll send you the $10 deluxe version. If you go with $15 postcard and PDF set, we'll bump you up to a print copy of the book, etc.

(Note: you won't be able to enter the codeword until the Kickstarter funds and we send you a survey. )

So remember, if you come to a fork as you drive down the road of life don't sit idle. The time has come to take that plunge and bet on yourself. But if you need it, don't be afraid to ask for a hand along the way. Or as Seth calls it…