This month in the Zuda competition we have been treated with another great set of comics, one of which is created by well-known independent creator Dwight L. MacPherson, author of the indie hit The Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo. Dwight’s comic Sidewise has been causing quite a buzz because of it’s “steampunk” theme and fantastic art by Igor Noronha. I talked with Dwight and Igor about their Zuda entry, the state of independent publishing and Igor’s cool steampunk designs.

1) Tell us a little bit about yourself and your comic Sidewise. How did the project come about?

DWIGHT: Well, I’ve been in this wacky biz for about 4 years. I was nominated for a Harvey and Eagle Award for my fantasy epic The Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo. I’ve published creator-owned titles with Image, Silent Devil Productions and Arcana Studio and written stories for IDW, Devil’s Due Publishing and Slave Labor Graphics. I am married to a beautiful, intelligent, witty woman named Rebecca and I have three sensational sons named Clayton (13), Duncan (11) and Logan (8).

I am billing SIDEWISE as “Sublime Steampunk for the 22nd Century. The story is about a teen genius named Adam Graham. Adam borrows his parents’ time device to visit 1902 London, only to find himself in an alternate dystopian past. As a member of Nikola Tesla’s band of young freedom fighters known as SteampunX, Adam must wage a war against a myriad of deadly steam-powered robots, mad scientists and a nefarious state police controlled by Queen Victoria’s preserved brain to free the oppressed nation, crown a new monarch and return to his world in time for a final exam.

I created SIDEWISE after my 13-year-old asked me what Steampunk was. Originally titled SteampunX, I took the idea to my pal Igor Noronha after he suggested we work on a Zuda submission together. Igor really dug the idea and began working on a few character sketches. Production moved along quickly, we submitted the project and here we are.

IGOR: I am a Brazilian born artist and am currently living in Denmark. When I have the time, I develop my characters and stories over at my website www.tlobstudios.com. I am 24, and I have been an independent comic artist and creator since I was 15, so I know a bit how rejection and (relative) success are like. So far, I worked for Brazilian publishers and for Image as colorist. But the will of creating my own stories made me a one-man band — now I write, pencil, ink, color and letter my own comics. To tell if I am successful in all these tasks, you gotta read my motion comic Light Apprentice Nate (lan.tlobstudios.com) to find out. Now I am trying to develop each skill the best I can.

2) Give us your pitch, can you briefly summarize the concept behind the story for people not familiar with your comic?

DWIGT: SIDEWISE is a time travel story with a twist. Instead of merely traveling back into time, Adam moves “sidewise” into a parallel universe where he is forced to fight for his life against robots, science-sorcerers, a ruthless state assassin and a dead Queen’s brain.

Throw in Nikola Tesla as a resistance leader and advanced technology exo-suits and you have SIDEWISE.

3) On your blog you have written several articles exploring alternative methods of publishing for comics, Do you think Zuda is on the right track with the future of the industry?

DWIGHT: Oh, absolutely. In today’s industry, creators should use every distribution option available to them. For instance, I have two webcomics: The Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo (http://www.drunkduck.com/The_Surreal_Adventures_of_Edgar_Allan_Poo/) and Interagents (http://www.th3rdworld.com/web-comic/Interagents). Interagents is also available for purchase exclusively through IndyPlanet (http://www.indyplanet.com/catalog/advanced_search_result.php?osCsid=1e258e9192ea502064cde4e551daebd9&keywords=interagents&osCsid=1e258e9192ea502064cde4e551daebd9&x=22&y=6). Now I have SIDEWISE on Zudacomics.com (http://www.zudacomics.com/node/1305). I’m always looking for new distribution options to get my work out to readers.

Yes, Zuda is definitely leading the way. The key to selling a print comic book successfully is to build a fanbase before the book’s released. Especially in a tanking economy. Readers simply do not have the extra cash to risk on an unknown property. By making SIDEWISE–for example–available for viewing on Zudacomics.com, we can build a fanbase and generate interest in the property before the book is released in print. It’s a genius move.

IGOR: Besides that, I think Zuda is a pioneer in the webcomics medium and is a great opportunity for both amateur and independent artists to show their work to a big crowd and get some cash for it. Many people complain about the format of the competition but I think it makes the experience unique for both the artist and the reader, and that’s a thumbs up.

4) This next question is of particular interest to myself and other aspiring comic book creators. You’ve got several project going on right now including the popular American McGee’s Grimm, What’s your secret? How do you continue to create great comics and not go insane with all the deadlines?

DWIGHT: 14 years in the Army taught me how to multi-task, focus my energy, remain cool under pressure and to be pro-active and tenacious. I don’t sweat deadlines, I just get to work and accomplish the mission. In most instances, publishers and editors have been amazed with how quickly I can produce. On American McGee’s Grimm, for instance, I completed the first three scripts before the deadline for issue 1.

I don’t have a secret to my success. I’m just a hardworking perfectionist who’s been blessed with an overactive imagination.

IGOR: And, he’s a zombie!!

5) This last question is for Igor, What was it like collaborating with Dwight on this project? What inspires those cool “steampunk” designs for the comic?

It has been extremely cool to work with Dwight. He lets me free to create the art like a kid in a backyard with all those toys to play with. And that’s why I am enjoying so much to work on this project, I have the freedom I want to explore things my way, tapping here and there before. From the start, we had the idea of working on a steampunk all-ages comic with the appeal of manga-style art. But I wanted to add a bit of more of my own style and ideas, that I think most of them wouldn’t go through if I were working with a strict editor. For inspiration, I watched a lot of steampunk-themed videos like Blur’s A Gentlemen’s Duel and researched about Victorian England architecture for quite a while. Since the story is set in an parallel reality, I used my artistic freedom to develop the designs from there to something more personal of mine.

For more information about Sidewise visit zuda.com or visit Dwight’s blogs at:

http://dwightmacpherson.wordpress.com/
http://dwightmacpherson.blogspot.com/