A Hagenized "Grandma Rose" will be at Intervention Con this weekend.

David Hagen reveals another painting, saying "Grandma Rose at it again! Was she a big Dr Who fan?"

This will be on sale at Intervention Con this weekend.

Meet a Local Cartoonist: A Chat with Reuel Smith

Reuel Smith was at Intervention con this fall with his all-ages comic book. Branching out like his animation heroes, he already had some neat little figurines based on the characters for sale too.

ComicsDC: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Right now I’m working on a manga-styled comic for all ages called ThunderKid.  It’s a story about a group of kids and their adventures in a world of weather.

How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

Actually I use a healthy blend of the two.  I still do all of my pencil work by pencil and paper.  Then I scan the drawing into the computer and ink and edit using a computer tablet.

When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

I was born on November 13^th, 1980 right here in the DC/Maryland area.

Why are you in Washington now?  What neighborhood or area do you live in?

Well mostly because I’m still doing my PhD in Engineering at the University of Maryland, but primarily because I still live at home where my family still lives.  I actually live in Gaithersburg Maryland where I do most of my work.

What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

I’m mostly a self-taught cartoonist.  I picked up on it by drawing my favorite characters from comics, manga, cartoons, and anime and developed my skill as I grew.

Who are your influences?

I have a lot really: God, my family, Joseph Hanna, William Barbara, Walt Disney, Arthur Rankin Jr., Jules Bass, Naoko Takeuchi, Hayao Miyazaki, and many more people.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

I tend to believe that everything that happens to you happens for a reason, good or bad.  However if I could change something or do-over anything, it would probably be to get a firm handle on my message of reading a lot earlier than I did at first.

What work are you best-known for?

Currently I’m known for my first really big work, ThunderKid. 

What work are you most proud of?

Again that would be ThunderKid.  It has been my first project that I pursued on a professional level.

What would you like to do or work on in the future?

The ThunderKid story has only begun and I would like to keep going with it until it’s completed.  I would however like to work on an animation project within that time, like short or an episode about ThunderKid.

What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

Well, my dad often tells me I work too hard sometimes so just resting my brain often helps when I am in a rut.  Though I feel restless when I’m not doing something active so I often doodle or sketch during my breaks.

What do you think will be the future of your field?

I honestly don’t know.  I’d like to believe that with some education among authors, there will be a resurgence of all-age comics and comic authors, which is something that I’d love to see again.  There are already signs of this in recent years though, from efforts by DC and Marvel to create all-ages content to more attention to the family at comic and anime conventions.

What local cons do you attend?  The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others?  Any comments about attending them?

In recent years, since mid 2011, I had pulled away from the convention scene in favor of more traditional marketing scenes where there’s more attention to the family.  These include the Fenton Street Market in Silver Spring, Maryland and the annual Montgomery County Agricultural Fair held during the summer in Gaithersburg, Maryland.  Fenton Street Market is a very friendly group of vendors and craftspeople and I’ve had good times there.  The same goes for the Montgomery County Fair where I have recently concluded my third outing.  Though there’s a good following from those events, I have recently decided to reintegrate the convention scene back into my current arenas starting with Intervention.  We had a good outing this year and met and reconnected with a lot of great artists.  I’m looking into attending some Comic Cons in the near future such as New York Comic Con as well as anime conventions Katsucon (DC) and Otaku Fest (Ellicott, MD) next year. At every event we attend I consider it a success when we can educate any number of people about ThunderKid and connect with fellow vendors.

What's your favorite thing about DC?

My favorite thing about DC is the history within its architecture, monuments, and museums.

Least favorite?

I would have to say that getting lost in DC is my least favorite thing.

What monument or museum do you like to take visitors to?

The Air and Space Museum and the Museum of Natural History.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

I have a couple including Red Robin and Hakubas.

Do you have a website or blog?

I do.  My main website is at www.thunderkidmanga.com and my blog is at www.thunderkidmanga.com/blog/.

Meet a Local Cartoonist: A Chat with Kathleen Brenowitz

Kathleen Brenowitz was at this fall's Intervention con in Rockville displaying her work. She kindly answered my standard interview questions (all images except the photo are from Kathleen's websites).

ComicsDC: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Kathleen Brenowitz: I'm a pen-and-ink illustrator who writes and draws my
own comics, along with taking commissions for illustrations.

How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

Dip-pens with acrylic ink and sometimes watercolors are my usual tools of choice. Something about the scratching tremors I can feel up my hand and the smooth glide of ink is really very calming? I'm usually a ball of energy bouncing around but I like how traditional inking and painting allows me to still myself and focus. I've started experimenting with digital coloring though - I love the broad, even expanses of color you can get with digital, so experimenting has been fun!

When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

I was born in 1990, in New York (and you can hear it in how fast I talk).

Why are you in Washington now?  What neighborhood or area do you live in?

I'm actually more towards Baltimore, up in Towson. I went to Goucher College and still have friends in the area, plus the rent's cheaper around here. I've been enjoying my time here though!

What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

My mother's old college pals from her art school days are still close friends of the family, and taught me drawing tricks when I was younger, but for the most part I'm self -taught. I did take some classes in high school and college – life drawing (so useful!) - but I eneded up majoring in communications with an interest in film. I think film has aided me in telling stories more visually, and using panels as camera shots.

Who are your influences?

A bit of an odd mix for drawing – Aubrey Beardsley for his clean and sensual linework, Herge for his Tintin comics with their hyper-detail and lovely panel layouts, and Mobius for his beautifully weird designs. Writing is harder to track, since I devour books; I'd say Mr. Asimov had a hand in my love of sci-fi, along with Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett for warping my sense of humor at a young age.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

I'm just starting out but...I think I would have tried to get up my webcomic while I was still in college? Would have been nice to have that underway when I graduated so I had some more momentum.

What work are you best-known for?

My black-and-white inks and insane amounts of detail. If I had to describe my style for writing and drawing, I'd have to say 'fiddly'.

What work are you most proud of?

Right now the first issue of my comic series, Pertho. It's called High Hopes and I think it turned out rather
well!

What would you like to do  or work on in the future?

I'd love to have more published works under my belt, along with completing a visual novel.

What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

Sometimes I run errands on my bike – the movement helps to clear my head and remove any excess nervous energy that might be blocking me. Or at other times I try to get some new imput buy going to a museum or listening to a new band a friend recommends. You can't give good output without some input, and I've found usually writer's block is simply that I'm running myself dry.

What do you think will be the future of your field?

I have no idea – and that's what makes it so much fun :D

What local cons do you attend? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

I went to Okatcon two times, but I've never been a major con person ; never really had the extra money to spend. But I enjoyed my time at Intervention - this was actually my first time tabling at a con and it couldn't have been more enjoyable! I'm going to be visiting SPX for the first time this year as well, as an attendee :)

What's your favorite thing about DC?

The museums! I still haven't seen all of the National Gallery and I probably never will – it's just that big.

Least favorite?

Well, I'd like it if the mass transit system got some more upkeep. The Metro might look straight out of 1960s French sci-fi, but both it and the buses could use some love.

What monument or museum do you like to take visitors to?

I love the Freer Gallery – it's an oddly intimate gallery, being that it was all one person's taste that collected the pieces. I love taking people through it and seeing if they get that feeling as well, of walking through another person's thought patterns made manifest in their taste.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

Sushi Hana, up here in Towson? Order the fire salmon with a side order of avocado sashmi – it's delicate slices of salmon that have been lightly seared. When you place one in your mouth you can feel them softly melt, the texture a perfect blend of resistance and submission – like a truffle of savory oils. Combine with the avocado, and the flavours of both are perfectly complemented, the avacodo carrying the salmon's inner sweetness but providing perfect contrast for the fish's outer shell of cooked flesh. Seriously, buy it and savor it – it's utterly delicious.

Do you have a website or blog?

Yup! I have an 'official' site at www.ksbrenowitz.weebly.com and a tumblr at www.puzzlinghappenstance.tumblr.com

Local cartoonists at Intervention con today and tomorrow

There's a handful of local cartoonists at Intervention con today - here's some that you can head up to Rockville and meet.

Chris Flick

Chris Flick

Raechel Hixon

Reuel Smith

Simon Ladd and Viga

Megami Jadeheart and Jennifer Zyren Smith

Darren E. Canton

Kathleen Brenowitz

Shawn Padraic Murphy

Novelist Bill Campbell

Shaenon Garrity and Jeffrey Wells (not local)

Death is Good

Meet Two Local Cartoonists: Barb Fischer and Chris Impink of Studio Unseen

Barb Fischer and Chris Impink are webcomics creators who have worked on two long-running webcomics strips. On their Studio Unseen website, they describe their respective roles: "Barb Fischer does the writing as well as merchandise assembly and convention spotting; when not plotting out the nuts and bolts of Sledgebunny, she takes care of her nine-year-old son which gives her just enough time in the day to take one or two breaths before plunging back into the fray. At some point, she’s hoping to find the time to use up the boxes and boxes of fabric she owns. Chris Impink does the artwork and web design; he has been featured in Antarctic Press and did much of the graphic work forThe Babylon Project role-playing game. Additionally, his work has been featured at various conventions such as Katsucon, Technicon, and Rising Star. He is also mildly notorious for co-founding Katsucon, though his team of spin doctors has kept that under wraps for many years. In his rare moments of free time, Chris works with the crew from Super Art Fight, running the Wheel of Death and notching up wins on the championship belt." I met them at Intervention con this year and they agreed to answer my usual questions.

ComicsDC: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Barb: We have a graphic novel-style webcomic based in the world of roller derby called "Sledgebunny".

ComicsDC: How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

Chris: The initial drawings are done in pen and ink, but the backgrounds and coloring are done in Photoshop.

ComicsDC: When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

Barb: 1970 in Roanoke, VA.

Chris: 1971 in Allentown, PA.

ComicsDC: Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?

Barb: When I moved here in 1999, it was because my then-husband had gotten a job up here. I currently live in Centreville.

Chris: I grew up in the area, but had moved to Blacksburg for a while. I came back when the job market wasn't great in southwest Virginia for artists. I currently live in Annandale.

ComicsDC: What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

Chris: While I have a degree in graphic design, my training in cartooning is largely self-taught.

ComicsDC: Who are your influences?

Barb: Monty Python, Terry Pratchett, the Marx Brothers, and Joss Whedon.

Chris: Miyazaki, Bill Watterson, Bryan Lee O'Malley

ComicsDC: If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

Barb: We'd be a bit more aggressive in marketing ourselves; we tend to be a bit quiet.

ComicsDC: What work are you best-known for?

Barb: Fragile Gravity.

Chris: The work I've done with Super Art Fight.

ComicsDC: What work are you most proud of?

Barb: I've really enjoyed the work I've done on the new comic.

Chris: Fragile Gravity, because I stuck with the project for seven years.

ComicsDC: What would you like to do or work on in the future?

Barb: Animation would be nice; there's also some short stories I've got on a back burner.

Chris: To revisit "The Vince Posthumous Files", which was a story-within-a-story in our last comic.

ComicsDC: What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

Barb: Be very depressed, then back away from the story a while until I can get a clear head again.

Chris: Minecraft.

ComicsDC: What do you think will be the future of your field?

Chris: Content delivery is being changed so much by tablets and smartphones that it's difficult to predict, but clearly comics will drift further away from traditional forms.

ComicsDC: What local cons do you attend ? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

Barb: Intervention, Katsucon, Otakon, Anime USA, Balticon -- and that's just the ones in the DC metro area. We're very lucky that there are so many choices for fans here.

ComicsDC: . What's your favorite thing about DC?

Barb: The fact that there's so much to try out and do at almost any time of the year.

ComicsDC: Least favorite?

Both: The traffic.

ComicsDC: What monument or museum do like to take visitors to?

Both: The Udvar-Hazy Air & Space Museum.

ComicsDC: How about a favorite local restaurant?

Barb: Korshi.

Chris: Jaleo.

ComicsDC: Do you have a website or blog?

Barb: Our webcomic can be found at http://www.sledgebunny.com; we're also there on Facebook and Twitter.

Meet a Local Cartoonist: Monica H. or "MonMon"

I met Monica Horn, who draws as Monica H. or "MonMon" at last fall's Intervention con. Here’s her interview:

Mike Rhode: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Monica H: I run a webcomic called Ocean Tides which is on Smackjeeves.com. It is a ghostly romance drama about a girl name Lily who Lily meets a spirit named Alex. She has to help Alex realize what’s happening around him and wonder why he hasn't crossed over yet. I update every Friday unless stated otherwise.

How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

It is a combination of both. Along with my laptop, the materials and programs I use are computer paper, cardstock, Black Faber-Castell ink pens (SX, S, M, B, and F), Prismacolor markers, lightbox, HP scanner, my tablet and Photoshop. I start out sketching a thumbnail based off of the script I wrote for the chapter. Then a larger sketch, I ink using my lightbox. Scan, clean it up and tone in Photoshop.

When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

I was born 1986 in Monterey, California.

Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?

I moved out here because of my job as a graphic/web designer. I currently reside in Northern Virginia.

What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

I majored in graphic design and minored in illustration. I have been drawing every since I was little, and inspired by many different Artists. I am a graphic/web designer by day and a webcomic artist by night.

Who are your influences?

Walking in the artist alleys at conventions sure does inspire me at times but I have to say many other webcomic artists, Illustrators, my friends, my family and of course my fans of my comic.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

I wouldn't change anything about my career, though I am always willing to learn new things and learn ways to improve my work.

What work are you best-known for?

I guess my webcomic Ocean Tides, or my watercolor paintings. If you asked me this 5 years ago I would say my fan art for different anime shows, but I felt that I need to improve my own work and find my own style.

What work are you most proud of?

Since I only have one webcomic at the moment and I can say that I am proud of Ocean Tides, my style has changed in the past three years. I can say I am proud of trying to find my own style as well with in those three years.

What would you like to do or work on in the future?

I hope to complete Ocean Tides and start working on a new webcomic that I am currently scripting.

What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

I sketch or doodle anything, whether it be characters from my webcomic or just characters from a show and book. I just keep at it until something sparks my interest. I also paint -- painting is also a great stress relief.

What do you think will be the future of your field?

I plan on trying to get my work out there for others to enjoy and by the end of day to know that I am placing something out there for others to enjoy, I am happy.

What local cons do you attend? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

Intervention Con 2011 was my first con that I attended as a artist and I have to say I have had a lot of fun, I learned a lot from the other artists in the artist alley. As for other cons I do go to Otakon as a attendee, I always enjoy going.

What's your favorite thing about DC?

I enjoy the Cherry Blossom Festival and the 4th of July Fireworks

Least favorite?

The traffic, I can live without it. Haha.

What monument or museum do you like to take visitors to?

I enjoy the National Gallery of Art, but I haven't been to any monuments recently.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

I enjoy the Hamburger Hamlet in Crystal City, they make a great rueben sandwich and the sweet potato fires.

Do you have a website or blog?

My blog is http://chibihoshiko.wordpress.com/  and my webcomic for Ocean Tides is http://oceantides.smackjeeves.com/

Meet a Local Cartoonist: Gregory Uchrin

A rarer breed than many other cartoonist types, Gregory Uchrin is a webcomic political cartoonist who answered my questions at last fall’s Intervention con.


Mike Rhode: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Gregory Uchrin: I’ve been doing a political cartoon on the web since 2003. The original title was “Hail Dubyus!” -in response to the imperial aspirations of our then administration, but since 2008, I’ve published under a more neutral title “Intravenous Caffeine” , since I realized I would have much more scope for parody with the new administration. I also wanted to expand into less political areas with other works.


How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?


I sketch, pencil and ink traditionally. Depending on the complexity of the cartoon, I may scan in the sketch or pencil work and print it out in non-photo blue for inking, but usually I will ink directly on the pencils. After scanning my inks, I color them on the computer.


When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?


1951—I was 60 in October. I’m an old fart :D I was born in New Jersey.


Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?


I grew up in New Jersey, but came to DC for college and stayed on because I liked it here. I lived up by Catholic U in Brookland. I also did grad school at Catholic, but since marriage, I’ve lived just outside the city in Alexandria VA.


What is your training and/or education in cartooning?


I’m self-taught, but with all the art books and internet tutorials available, being self-taught is a highly individual thing. I grew up watching Jon Gnagy on live television and that was the start of my artistic education. Classwork can be very important though, because if you’re self-taught, you have to figure out everything for yourself, while a good teacher will help you to learn the techniques that will aid in the realization of what you’re trying to show.


Who are your influences?


So many to choose from! I really love the late 19th/early 20th century illustrators like the Brandywine School, Edwin Austin Abbey, and J. Allen St. John and the science fiction/fantasy illustrators of the 30s/40s like Virgil Finlay and Margaret Brundage. In serious comics, for sheer style, I go for the classics like Hal Foster and Alex Raymond, but for comic stuff, I go for the early MAD school, like Harvey Kurtzman, Wally Wood, Bill Elder and Jack Davis. New Yorker cartoons, especially Charles Addams. CREEPY and EERIE (and EC reprints) were another early love. In politics, I love Herblock and Doonesbury, but they really haven’t influenced my style. I’ve been getting more and more into manga but at this point, it’s too early to talk about any influences except in a general way. Except Masamune Shirow!


If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?


LOL - I would have started a LOT earlier and taken some courses in anatomy and life drawing.


What work are you best-known for?


My political cartoon series are still my most recognizable works, but I’m starting to be known for my quirky humor pieces, like my Chibi Last Supper, a parody of the da Vinci picture.


What work are you most proud of?


My next one :D. I did some rather hard-hitting cartoons during the Bush administration that make me feel like I actually did something important. And I’ve got a BLEACH parody (called BLECCH!) that makes people laugh out loud. On a more artistic note, I recently did a pastel portrait of a cosplayer friend of mine that surprised me that I managed to do it so well. It’s on my deviantart site.


What would you like to do or work on in the future?


I’d like to do a narrative webcomic that’s character rather than news driven. With political cartoons, you spend 75% of your time reading and watching news, looking for something that gives you a comic image. I’ve got a series of “fantasy casting” pieces--what actors/actresses I’d cast in a live version of an anime or manga and I’m currently working on a “Ghost in the Shell” picture. And I’ve been sketching out a horror story I’d like to turn into a graphic novel.


What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?


I experiment with sound restoration. 78s. PRE-VINYL! And I do research on the medieval period and Arthurian legends. Anything far from actually drawing anything. I’m not a games player though. I never seemed to develop that kind of hand-eye coordination with the early videogames. Which may be a good thing for me since it keeps me working.


What do you think will be the future of your field?


I’m not sure. After the insanity of last week’s Miss Republican Idol—ooops, I mean, CNN tribute to anyone running against Barry--oh, wait, was that supposed to be a debate?--I’m not sure politics hasn’t gotten so ridiculous that it’s impossible to satire. It’s probably a good time to expand beyond it.


What local cons do you attend ? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?


I attend all of the local cons, but I’ve only started participating in Artist’s Alleys in the past year. InterventionCon is only two years old and it’s becoming a very well run event. I also did AA at Katsucon and Anime MidAtlantic, but I missed out on applying to AnimeUSA because they announced the Alley practically the same day of the Japanese earthquake and my attention was elsewhere. But I like AUSA a lot and may actually cosplay there this year! T-mode is a nice small con, but I’ve only attended once. And of course, Otakon is mind-blowing. Both as an attendee and Alley participant.


What's your favorite thing about DC?


I like that it’s a big town that’s small enough to know. I can go anywhere and wind up running into a friend or colleague.


Least favorite?


Traffic.


What monument or museum do like to take visitors to?


The Smithsonian, National Gallery, Freer Gallery, Hirschhorn.


How about a favorite local restaurant?


Since moving to Alexandria, I don’t get much into the city for dining, especially since there’s a number of great restaurants in my neighborhood that I love: Hana Tokyo, La Casa for pizza, and Tempo for more elegant but laidback dining.

Do you have a website or blog?


Politics: Intravenous Caffeine— http://ivcaffeine.com/ —my older Bush era cartoons are still on HAIL DUBYUS! http://haildubyus.com/  I display my non-political works at DeviantArt at http://gregoriusu.deviantart.com/gallery  My books BUSHWHACKED and BLECCH! -are available at Ka-Blam http://ka-blam.com/  (search for the titles).

Meet a Local Cartoonist: Garth Graham

 Garth Graham was at last fall's Intervention con and answered my usual questions.

Mike Rhode: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Garth Graham: I'm a webcomic artist. Right now I'm working on an urban fantasy, before that a slice-of-life comedy strip, next up who knows! Something in space maybe.

How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

I used to pencil and ink by hand, but these days I do everything digitally. I use a Wacom Cintiq, do my line art in Corel Painter and all of my color work in Photoshop.

When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

I was born in '83. I'll leave you to guess which century.

Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?

Actually I live in Virginia, down in Stafford. I came here when my parents moved here and haven't found a particularly compelling reason to move away yet. The greater DC area is very centrally located to a lot of the conventions I go too, and there's quite the wealth of comic artists in the area.

What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

I don't have any formal training in cartooning. I went to Virginia Tech to get my degree in Industrial Design, which overlaps a surprising amount with what I do. But the art and the story telling and all the comic-specific skills are things I've worked at and built up on my own over time.

Who are your influences?

Probably too many to list, but chiefly among them reside Mark Silvestri, Phil Foglio, J Scott Campbell, Neil Gaiman, Jim Butcher, Simon R. Green, Douglas Adams, Robert A. Heinlein, Peter F. Hamilton and many many others.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

That's a hard question. I don't really know if I'd change anything. Hindsight says I might have been better off if I had timed some things differently (launching new titles right as the housing market crumbles for instance), but there isn't really a moment that I wish I could go back to and re-do.

What work are you best-known for?

I am probably best known for my series of twisted faerie tale art prints.

What work are you most proud of?

Whatever is most recent. Every new page, every new print. Each piece I feel is better than the last, and that's what I'm most proud of.

What would you like to do or work on in the future?

In the future I'm hoping to work on some more sci-fi kinds of stuff. Science fiction is what I grew up on, and while a lot of people consider me a steampunk artist, sci-fi is still my go to source for awesome and wonder.

What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

I go do something else. Anything else. I boot up the xbox, I go for a jog, or go to the gym to do some rockclimbing. Something that works a different part of my brain, or no part at all. I let my subconscious churn it over for a bit and it always comes back to me with a solution.

What do you think will be the future of your field?

I think, given time, all comics will be webcomics. They'll be in print too, absolutely, but the first point of distribution will be digital, will be on the web. I think this will allow for a real surge of independent (i.e. not Marvel or DC) comics into the public eye. The Marvel and DC universes won't be the entirety of what make up American comics in the minds of the general populace. It's going to be a wild trip.

What local cons do you attend ? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

Local to DC, I attend Intervention and Katsucon regularly. AnimeUSA is another local con I've been to in the past. I'm hoping to get into SPX next year.

What's your favorite thing about DC?

Let's be honest, there's a LOT of cool stuff going on in DC. Not just history and politics and the center of power of what is arguably still the most powerful nation on the planet, but there's enough social life going on that no matter what your interest or inclination you can find it happening somewhere and join in the party.

Least favorite?

The traffic.

What monument or museum do like to take visitors to?

I've a long standing love of the Smithsonian Air and Space museum, both the one in DC and the big one out by Dulles.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

While not technically in DC proper, I'm a big fan of Piratz Tavern in Silver Spring. Great atmosphere, great food, wenches, sea shanties, fire shows, and belly dancing. What more could you want?

Do you have a website or blog?

Several, in fact! My most actively updated website is, of course, my current comic Finder's Keepers which can be found at http://www.finderskeepers.gcgstudios.com/ . My former site is http://www.gcgstudios.com/

Meet Two Local Cartoonists: Mike Isenberg and Oliver Mertz, writers of "First Law Of Mad Science"

Mike Isenberg and Oliver Mertz, co-writers of "First Law Of Mad Science" were at the fall Intervention con and answered my usual questions. I took the liberty of merging their separate e-mail responses into one since this comic is the first for both of them, and their answers overlapped as a result.

Mike Rhode: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Mike Isenberg & Oliver Mertz: I am the co-writer of the comic series "First Law Of Mad Science." It is a print comic that we are self publishing, and it will be available in comic shops nationwide this November.*

MI: In addition to the writing, I'm also responsible for lettering the book.

MR: How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

MI: Oliver and I write together using Skype and GoogleDocs, which allows us to see what the other is typing in real time, from hundreds of miles away. He lives in DC, and I'm in NYC, so being able to collaborate so directly over the internet is really essential for us. Once we finish a script for one of the issues, we send it to our artist Daniel Lapham, who draws using traditional pencils and inks, which he then scans and sends back to us. At that point we send the inked pages along to another artist, Jeff McComsey, who adds the grayscales digitally. And finally, I use Photoshop to digitally letter the comic, and then InDesign to put everything together for the printer.

OM: I live in DC and Mike lives in NY, so face to face writing isn't possible. We then work with several other artists, who bring our scripts to life. Daniel Lapham does our pencils and inks. Jeff McComsey does our grayscale. Jamie Noguchi, who is also from the DC area, does our cover art. All three of them are incredible artists.

MR: When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

MI: I was born in DC in 1982.

OM: I was born in 1982 in Silver Spring.

MR: Why are or aren't you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?

MI: Right now I live in New York City, in a neighborhood of West Harlem known as "Hamilton Heights." I grew up just outside DC, though, in Bethesda, and then later spent a year living with some friends in College Park.

OM: Washington is a great city. I live in Cleveland Park, right by the Uptown. By the way, living by the Uptown was kind of a childhood dream of mine. It was always an event going to the Uptown. Movies always seemed better.

MR: What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

MI: I studied Creative Writing in college, and took a couple of comic-book history classes while I was there as well. As a writer I often wish I had cartooning talent; it'd make things a lot easier if I could draw our story on my own. There's something to be said for collaboration, though; a good collaboration can become much more than the sum of its parts, and it's been really exciting seeing all the amazing talent that other people are bringing to our story.

OM: I studied film at American University. This may be why most of our early comic scripts resembled film scripts. It's not that I didn't love comics. I always have. It's just that I learned to write in film script form. That took some time to adapt. After months and months of reading any and every comic script I could get my hands on, I felt confident writing in that form.

MR: Who are your influences?

MI: Yukito Kishiro, Alan Moore, Jeff Smith, Warren Ellis, Will Eisner, and Jason are all comics storytellers that I really admire. And of course H.P. Lovecraft gets a few direct homages in our book.

OM: I don't think you can approach one art form and expect to create something without being influenced by other art forms. I grew up devouring stories in any form I could get them; I read tons of comics, watched every movie ever made, and read any book I could get my hands on. I love early Ridley Scott films, I'm somewhat of a Hemingway nerd, and owe my life to Rob Schrab's Scud: The Disposable Assassin.

Also, if I can ever find a way to work Robert Altman-style overlapping dialogue into a comic, I will.

MR: If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

MI: It's still a bit early for that, I think; we've only really just gotten started in comics. I'm sure we've made plenty of mistakes, but thankfully they all seem to be small ones so far.

OM: Being that "First Law of Mad Science" is our first comic, I'm looking forward to making mistakes that we will one day look back on and lament.

MR: What work are you best-known for?

MI & OM: First Law Of Mad Science.

MR: What work are you most proud of?

MI & OM: First Law Of Mad Science.

MR: What would you like to do or work on in the future?

MI: "First Law" is really only just getting started, and we've got a lot planned for it, so I'd love to be able to keep that going for a while. We had a side project recently, writing two short comic scripts for the upcoming WWII zombie anthology "FUBAR 2", and that was a lot of fun, so we may look into doing some other side projects while we're working on "First Law."

OM: I would love to continue writing "First Law" and to continue to tell (hopefully) satisfying stories.

MR: What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

MI: The great thing about working as a team is that usually if one of us has writer's block, the other will still have some fun ideas to kick around, which tends to clear up the writers' block pretty quickly. In the off chance that we're both in a rut at the same time, we'll just shoot the shit over Skype or maybe play some video-games together online. Taking a small break like that seems to help a lot; usually by the next time we meet we'll be ready to get back to work without any trouble.

OM: There are points when either Mike or I have writer's block. Working as a team allows for one teammate to snap the other out of it. If one of us is excited by an idea, it's usually not long before the other is rejuvenated.

MR: What do you think will be the future of your field?

MI: Well of course right now everyone's buzzing about digital comics, and I think we're clearly heading somewhere in that direction, but I think it's much to early to really say where we'll end up. Will the "e-book" model that DC and Comixology are using really hold up for comics in the long run? Or are we going to see more and more creators swing towards a webcomics-style model? I really don't know, but I'm excited to see how things progress.

OM: The way I look at it, stories are stories. I don't write to make money. I write to tell stories that I want to read. Hopefully, others will also want to read them too. People will be reading comics for a long time. It may be that one delivery method for stories and art will be no more. That's fine. It just means that people will get their comics in another format. It doesn't mean that the demand for high quality content has changed.

MR: What local cons do you attend ? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

MI: This year in the DC area, we attended Intervention and Baltimore Comics Con. We would have loved to exhibit at SPX, but we were wait-listed for a table and didn't get one this year. SPX has always been a big deal for me; back in high school I used to bike down to the show in Bethesda every year. It would have been great to come back to my home town and attend my home convention again, but on the other side of the table and with a comic to show. Next year I'm going to be watching the SPX website like a hawk so I can submit our exhibitor application the minute they start taking them.

OM: Mike and I exhibited at Intervention and the Baltimore Comic Con this year. Both were great shows. I did really enjoy getting to Intervention by Metro. Big points for that.

MR: What's your favorite thing about DC?

MI: All the great friends I still have in the area.

OM: Big Planet Comics. I love comics and they are nice enough to sell them to me.

MR: Least favorite?

MI: Probably a tie between the humidity and the traffic.

OM: The lack of hover-cars. This is probably due to the fact that hover-cars don't exist. But come DC! Get some hover-cars!

MR: What monument or museum do like to take visitors to?

MI: Air & Space! Maybe I'm just a giant nerd, but I still geek out over touching moon rocks and hanging out under the Spirit Of St. Louis.

OM: I love the third floor of the National Portrait Gallery. I suppose, that or the Hirshhorn.

MR: How about a favorite local restaurant?

MI: Uncle Julio's Rio Grande Cafe, in Bethesda. When I was a kid, they were located across the street from Big Planet Comics. As soon as we'd place our dinner orders, my folks would give me a couple of bucks and I'd run out to Big Planet to check out the new comics. I think a few of my older comics still have salsa stains on them from trying to read them at the table when I'd get back.

OM: Filomena in Georgetown is really great. I've had the privilege of sitting the kitchen table in the back of the restaurant. It was the best meal I've ever had.

MR: Do you have a website or blog?

MI & OM: http://FirstLawOfMadScience.com

*November 2011, shortly after this interview was conducted.