Space Station Horror
When you're stuck on a Space Station, is there really anywhere to hide?
The second second story in our first Volume, Obligations brings thrills and surprises around every corner. Read it at the link below!
Written By Brett Simon and Drawn by Rich Green, Let's look at the inspiration behind the story.
Here’s Rich and Brett!
RICH GREEN (Artist): Hi, my name is Rich Green; I'm the comic artist for the short story Obligations. During the day, I work at a vinyl record distribution center, and at night, I work on creating comics.
BRETT SETH SIMON (Writer): Hey folks! My name’s Brett Seth Simon and I’m the writer of Obligations! Excited to share some insight into my background and comics journey.
How long have you been creating comics?
RICH: I created my first comic at eight years old. It was a huge rip-off of Dragon Ball Z, Power Rangers, and Sailor Moon. My comic even had my "original idea" of 9 tiger balls that grant wishes. Even though I've technically been making comics for the last 26 years, I would say the last five years were when I started taking comics seriously as a profession. My studies with Comics Experience and my teacher Michael Hampton have helped me grow as an artist and a comic creator.
BRETT: Oh gosh…for a long time! I wrote and drew a bunch of comics as a kid, including the rare (and definitely a collector’s item) Armor Guy & Wolf Dude #1 that I sold 10 copies of to my first-grade class.
My more serious comic creation journey started around 5 years ago when I got deeper into the comic creation process. Big shout out to my long-time friend Angeli Rafer (@AngeliRaferArt on Instagram) who drew the comic “The Mellow Wallpaper” which was my first horror comic and kicked off the comics journey I’m continuing today.
Inspiration?
BRETT: I wanted to do something a bit different: a sci-fi story that seemed like horror, but was actually comedy! I got the idea when I was trying to write a script and realized I needed to do the dishes. It got me thinking: what if the alien monster just wants the human “victim” to fulfill his commitment to cook dinner? What if their chase is really just a game of hide-and-seek? From there, the script just flowed.
How’d you find your creative team?
RICH: I posted on the Panelsmiths’ Slack channel that I was available to work on the anthology. Brett Simon contacted me to see if I was interested in collaborating with him. After reading his script, I was excited to team up with Brett. What I usually look for in a collaborator is someone who can tell a clear, concise, and entertaining story. I never take on stories that bore me. I feel it's a disservice to the writer and my art if I am not fully engaged in the project. Luckily, Brett is a top-notch writer that I’ve been very fortunate to be able to collaborate with.
BRETT: I saw Rich post his art on the Panelsmiths Slack channel and mentioned he was looking for a collaborator. I sent him my script, and the rest is history! I’m super glad we got to work together - I can’t say enough how awesome Rich’s art is, and how many great ideas he had to help the comic flow better. The final pages look better than I ever could’ve imagined!
After Rich read the script’s first draft, we talked further about how we wanted the story to flow. We ended up meeting once every other week or so to discuss ideas, talk about updated script drafts, and review in-progress art. We also used this time to talk about who we wanted as collaborators, which is how we landed on the awesome Josh Jensen and Justin Birch.
Did anything about your story change during the process?
RICH: Just the usual minor tweaks when it comes to collaborations. The biggest thing I can point to is Brett allowed me to make the final panel on page one into a sound effect.
BRETT: Yes! I have a tendency when writing scripts with narration, to have way too much of it! I cut down a lot of Leo’s (our protagonist) internal narration once I saw Rich’s art on the page. I didn’t want to slow down the flow, nor did I want to risk covering up his art!
Also, the “THUNK” at the end of page 1 is all Rich - it was his idea to show that, and I think it does a superb job of building the tension for the story.
How many stories have you gotten published in other anthologies or as stand-alone comics?
RICH: None so far. I have a terrible habit of finishing a project and then putting it in a drawer, never to be seen again. But I'm trying to change that starting with this anthology.
BRETT: I’ve had several stories published in anthologies over the years. Two of my horror stories were featured in works from Hellcat Press, with one story in Tales from the Public Domain (“The Mellow Wallpaper”) and the other in Screams Heard ‘Round The World (“Emes”) - both stories were drawn by Angeli Rafer. I also self-published a horror anthology a few years back called Coins for the Ferryman. Some of my comics have also been featured in PanelxPanel magazine. I’ve got some additional stories that can be read for free on my website as well, www.brettcomics.com.
Also recently my girlfriend Stevie Eng (@StevieEngArt on Instagram) and I collaborated on our first comic together, “Divide & Concur.” We printed some copies recently, and it was super cool seeing the final product in our hands!
Who are your influences and fantasy collaboration team?
RICH: My art influences started with Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira). Before reading Otomo's manga, I was enamored by animation; even though I was drawing comics, I didn't truly appreciate the medium until after reading Akira. Sean Gordon Murphy (The Wake) is my current comic hero. I can't get enough of his fantastic art. I study his works religiously. Other artists that have had influences on my work are Stuart Immonen (All New X-Men), Joe Kubert (Sgt. Rock), and Olivier Coipel (Magic Order). Finally, I would feel remiss if I didn't mention the music that has greatly impacted my art. Nirvana's bombastic energy and Smashing Pumpkins' refined psychedelic goth melodies are something that inspires my creative process daily.
There are three writers that I hope to collaborate with in my lifetime: Neil Gaiman, Brian K. Vaughn, and Mark Russell. Gaiman's written words have a captivating rhythm; I can only imagine trying to embody his words through my art. Vaughn's world-building is second to none. Finally, Russell's ability to use history and social issues without feeling soapboxy is quite a feat. If any of them want to do a creator-owned book with me, it would be a dream come true.
My all-star team would be Brian K. Vaughn (Writer), Myself (Pencils), Richard Friend (Inks), John Rauch (Colors), Nate Piekos (Letterer), and Nicole Boose (Editor). With that said, I think the team Brett and I built has been pretty special.
BRETT: Ed Brubaker is without a doubt my biggest influence. I love crime comics, both writing and reading them, and his collaborations with Sean Phillips are some of the best comic book stories of all time. I also love the work of creators like Gail Simone, Neil Gaiman, Jeff Lemire, Tom Taylor, and Kentaro Miura. Some novelists who influenced me are Alexandre Dumas, Bernard Cornwell, Ray Bradbury, and James M. Cain.
I would love to have my writing drawn by Tomas Giorello, Andrea Sorrentino, or Jim Lee someday. Giorello if I was writing a crime story, Sorrentino for horror, and Lee for superhero/action. They’re all amazing creators with unique styles and I’ll read anything they draw! I’d love to put Phillips on the list as well, but I’d feel a bit bad pulling him away from more work with Brubaker haha.
Though I gotta say: I’ve loved working with Rich on Obligations! I hope we can keep collaborating on stories for years to come!