1. Who are you and what are you working on right now? (2 questions in 1, I know!)
Sam Medina, and right now, I’ve got 3 irons in the fire: Jake the Evil Hare, Darkfell: Return to Moonshadow, and Katarina the Dragonslayer and the Secret of Kilara’s Keep (a novel)
2. What drew you to digital comics?
Well, I was kind of too poor to try going directly to print when I started, so it seemed like a good idea at the time 😉
3. Webcomics or digital comics?
Both! JTEH and Darkfell both started as webcomics, and have since made the jump to digital, with collections coming out in print as well.
Almost anything! As with every form of literature, it’s the story that matters most, though great art always helps.
They can, but as long as people still want a physical book in their hand, they’ll be around. Indeed, I recall an artist’s surprise when he found out that the Wonder Woman print comic was losing money. His editor said to him something like, “It’s all about selling Underoos.” So there is that element of print comics, that they serve as brand placement for merchandising, so that may well help to keep them around, too.
Pretty easily. The same files I’ve used for the digital versions are used to create the print, so it’s pretty seamlessly on that end. The digital versions are also a great way to advertise the printed editions.
7. What don’t you like about digital comics?
The biggest challenge for me has been distribution. I haven’t liked the way that the best distribution channels treat the independent creators like second class citizens. I won’t name any names, but there’s one distributor who doesn’t care how popular Jake the Evil Hare is online, they won’t touch it with a ten foot pole, because they prefer the larger indy studios. I am, however, determined to see Jake succeed with or without them 😉
8. What digital comics/webcomics do you read?
Hmm.. Quite a few… Phineus: Magiciain for Hire, Epic Fail, Life After Death, Off Season, Mohagen, Out There, Bug Pudding, The Bean, Twilight Monk, Vinnie Vampire, and a bunch of others I can’t remember at the moment.
I think we’ll see an attempt by the big media companies to take over the game, much like what’s happened in digital novel publishing, except that I suspect they may have a harder time in the attempt. Sure, they have a presence in digital comics, but they’ve remained within the box of conventional publishing, so when they finally make the decision to stop treating it as a sideline, it might be too late, and that’s a very good thing. I think we may see a bigger effort from the indies to pool their promotional efforts as digital comics makes further headway into social media, as well.
10. Who do you think we should look out for in digital comics?
I think we can expect great things from Dan Butcher of Vanguard. I first came across his work when I was on WeVolt, and he’s really grown as an artist and storyteller in the last few years. I think he will one day be one of the true masters of comic art. I’d also keep a steady eye on Carlo Ostrout of Life After Death. He’s shown a lot of improvement since he started that comic, and has a great sense of timing with his humor… I think his comic could become really popular as he develops his style.