It’s obvious from your pages that you really love the medium. Have you always been a comics fan, and what is it about comics that makes your heart sing?
I’ve been. Comics fan since I was a little kid. Started off on Beano and Dandy and the Giles collection which I received every year from my Aunty Doreen and progressed to 2000AD and Eagle. I found American comics very sporadically but I happened to start reading them more regularly in 1986 (and what a year!). I was always attracted to artwork first – still am! I find if the art is good, the story is usually good too. Now, what makes my heart sing is when I discover a unique voice in the medium. Originality and flair is the most important thing. If I see art that heavily references other art or relies too heavily on things like 3D models, I lose interest. I’d be lying if I said that I hadn’t done both of those things at some point in my development, but that fact has simply added to my desire to see people who have moved past that. If I see the person’s personality in the art, I’m happy.
You wrote AND drew your Star Wars Tales stories – is that something you want to do more of, or do you still enjoy working with writers? And how did it affect the final work? Did you still end up writing a full script for yourself?
I love writing and still do it a lot. I have pitches out in the world that I’ve either written or had a hand in writing. My biggest influences are writer/artists so I’ve always thought that I’d follow that trajectory – as it turns out, I’ve had the great joy of working with some wonderful writers who I now count as friends – including yourself, David! I would love to write more Star Wars for sure but I have a lot of stories to tell, so I’ll keep on writing them down! Maybe some of them will see the light of day. I hope so!
As well as being a masterful comics artist, your talents also extend into the realms of music! Could you tell us about Blues Harvest, and where we might next be able to see you guys play?
Blues Harvest started out as bit of a lark and has snowballed into something bigger. We’re a pop-culture tribute band of sorts. Our show revolves around renditions of music from the movies we all love, from Star Wars to the Marvel Movies to the TV shows we all grew up watching. Our aim is simply to create a party atmosphere using tunes from our (geek) culture. If you come to one of our shows, you’d have to be a pretty miserable person to not walk away with a spring in your step. Galactic Party Music Party – is our motto.
You can find us often playing at Conventions and after shows. If there’s a Star Wars Celebration going on, chances are Blues Harvest (SW PUN) will be playing nearby… Tokyo, here we come!
What can fans expect to see at your table on Artists Alley?
I will have a pretty broad selection of my various SW offerings to my creator own graphic novels such as DEAD SEAS (written by Cavan Scott) and COLD IRON (written by Andy Diggle). I’ll be doing some sketch commissions too. More importantly I’ll be harping on about Star Wars and how and why I love ALL OF IT. Yes ALL OF IT.
What are you working on / really excited about right now?
NB: I’m working on a story by Daniel José Older called CRASH AND BURN which is one of THE HIGH REPUBLIC ADVENTURES stories that I’ve been a part of on the periphery of for a few years now. I love working with Cavan, Dan, Mike S, Christina and the whole gang. I get to inhabit a little piece of my beloved Star Wars.
I’m also working on a story for 2000AD which I am extremely excited about… I can’t say anything about it yet! Argh!!! Actually I’m really buzzing about our latest tale, David. It should be out soon in 2000AD. Tons of fun with a couple of little bits of drawing which I’m quite pleased with. Usually I’m my own worst critic but, I patted myself on the back when I did a certain page. You know the one… enough self-aggrandizement. Back to the self-deprecation! We’re British, don’t you know??
Yes, I hear that 2000AD story is really something. (It is – I’ve seen the art!) Thanks Nick – see you in a couple of days.
