Q&A with Joshua Hale Fialkov

Throw a rock across the internet and you can't help but hit a great review of Elk's Run, the "down home" militia/cult comic by Joshua Hale Fialkov, Noel Tuazon, and Scott A. Keating. Joshua answered a few questions for us about his comics career so far and Elk's Run, which recently moved to Speakeasy Comics.

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JK: Can you tell us a little about yourself and how you got into comics?

Joshua: Well, I've been writing since I was a kid. I started out as a playwright, directing my own work from the time I was 16. I went to college for theater and film, and have a B.F.A. in Writing and Directing for the Stage and Screen. When I was graduating from school, a buddy and I wrote a pilot for a TV show and started shopping it around. To everybody's surprise, we found a producer and went into pre-production. After Sept. 11, 2001, our producer was personally devastated by tragedy -- he lost a lot of close friends, and narrowly escaped dying himself -- and the project fell apart. We'd already relocated out to L.A. and found ourselves struggling to find a way to get our creative voices heard. I wrote a few more specs, both for film and TV, and was getting painfully frustrated with writing to no actual end. My whole life I’d been a fan of comics, and suddenly, it just seemed like it was a medium I'd like to try my hand at.

Comics and episodic TV have a lot in common, both structurally and aesthetically. They both give a creator the chance to build characters over time, rather than just race out stock characters and situations to fit into a 120-page screenplay. I started out with a simple Web comic called Poorly Drawn Animals, which was essentially three panel gags with my own ... awful style of art with them. It turned out to be kind of an online sensation, we were getting nearly 25,000 hits a day at one point, and I attempted to segue way that little success into mainstream comics. And here I am.

JK: Do you currently have a "day job," or are you a full-time writer now?

Joshua: I don't, actually. Lost my job about six months ago now and have been living off some savings, odd jobs and help from my folks as needed. I spend pretty much all day cranking out scripts and running the business of the comics. Take it from someone who's doing it, kids -- don't quit your day job ‘til you're signing the back of a giant check.

JK: For the uninitiated, what is Elk's Run about?

Joshua: Elk's Run is an eight-issue miniseries about a small town in West Virginia that's completely cut off from the outside world. A series of pretty unsettling events make a few of the kids in town realize that it's not in their best interest to stay, and they start trying to find a way out.

JK: Elk's Run is pretty different from most other books on the stands, in terms of themes and tone. Also the story is pretty unique. Where did the idea come from?

Joshua: A couple of places. I grew up in Western Pennsylvania and was surrounded by kids whose dads were Vietnam Vets. And no matter how irritated my friends would get with their parents, there was always this innate respect for them. They did things that we can only dream/have nightmares about, and it really bred a level of respect for them. I've also always been obsessed with cults and militias. The idea of an adult giving up their freedom for the sake of a “greater freedom” has always fascinated me. Plus, if you've ever been to really rural West Virginia, you'll know that it's a scary place. It really is totally desolate and isolated. I had friends who lived on the border of West Virginia and Pennsylvania, who grew up without electricity, hell, some without indoor plumbing. And this is in the 80s and 90s!

JK: One thing that drew me to the title was how "real" the characters are, especially the kids. How much do you draw from your own life and experiences when writing the title?

Joshua: Well, like I said before, I think the book really captures the feel of that time (the early 90s) and that place because I lived through it. I know kids who lived in conditions similar (although no cult-like militiamen... although I suspect some of the guys who beat me up in high school might've been close.) I also think there's a habit of writers to underwrite teenagers, to make them into more or less stammering, angst-ridden vessels for their own ids. I remember being a teenager, and feeling so desperate to express myself, but never having the words. That's what I really wanted to do with the book.

JK: Who are your influences, both comic and non-comic?


Joshua: I'm pretty wide in my tastes. I'm a massive Fellini fan, and I think Terry Gilliam in his heyday was far and away the best American film has to offer. But, on the other hand, I think Die Hard might be one of the greatest movies of all time. For current guys, I think Tarantino continues to do stuff that's really exceptional, and the smaller indie guys like Solondz, Jarmusch, Kelly and P.T. Anderson are each bucking the system in their own ways.

For comics, I'm crazy about the old E.C. horror stuff and its late 70s D.C. brethren. There's a conciseness to the storytelling, where you just feel like every single panel and line of dialogue is being used to its fullest extent. I'm also a big fan of Brian K. Vaughan's work, especially Ex Machina, and I think Warren Ellis still gives more bang for your buck than just about anyone on Earth. Read FELL #1 if you think I'm kidding. Just goddamn superb writing right there. I also think that Powers is one of the great masterworks of our time, as is Usagi Yojimbo, which is painfully ignored by the mainstream comics audience.

JK: Elk's Run has gotten rave reviews across the board. Has that translated into sales?

Joshua: If we had sales to match our reviews, I would have health insurance. Or at least be able to pay rent. There really hasn't been any jump in sales. That being said, we also have been consistent in our sales, meaning that the numbers haven't moved down at all from issue to issue. That says to me, as a publisher, that we're doing something right. Now we just need to get that number of people up to something that translates into a little less money-hemorrhaging.

JK: How did the Speakeasy deal come about?

Joshua: Darwyn Cooke. I was hanging out at the D.C. booth at Wizard World L.A. dropping off some books and introducing myself, and Darwyn was just standing there shooting the shit. He overheard a conversation I was having about the frailty of the direct market and chimed in. While we talked, he asked for a copy of the book in my hand, and started to flip through it. The flipping soon changed to reading, and there was a silence as I watched a genius of the medium read Elk's Run #1. He got to the end, closed the book and looked at me, and said, "This is selling really well, right?" I said, "No." He said, "This is one of the best comics I've ever read. I'm going to help you fix that." And he dragged me over to Speakeasy's booth and introduced me to Adam Fortier. The rest, as the say, is history.

JK: Besides Darwyn Cooke, who else has helped you along the way or given advice on the comics industry?

Joshua: Steve Niles has been a good friend and supporter of me from literally day one. We met at our local comic shop and became fast friends. We share the same obsession for horror comics from the 50s, 60s and 70s, so we get on like a house on fire. Steve really helped to “show me the way” in terms of career path, because that guy walked a long road to get where he is and knows so much about the pitfalls of the industry. Phil Hester's also been a great support, constantly offering encouragement and well wishes when he really doesn't need to. The relationships I built with a lot of the pros who worked on Western Tales of Terror have really been just plain invaluable. I'm really lucky, in that not only do I have luminaries like Niles and Hester, but I have guys like Stuart Moore, Jay Faerber, Tom Mandrake, Kieron Dwyer, and Tony Moore who are always kind enough to give advice, opinions and critiques. I'm really, really lucky to have them.

JK: What can you tell us about the "bumper" edition of issues 1-3? Are there any "extras" that will be included?

Joshua: It's actually loaded to the gills. First, it's got a gorgeous cover by Darwyn Cooke, then an introduction by Steve Niles, all three issues of the comics, and then about ten pages of extra stuff. There's a cover gallery, early concept work by Noel, the original pitch for the comic that got sent around (and roundly rejected) to publishers, a coloring tutorial by our colorist Scott Keating, and a behind the scenes of the editorial process from our editor Jason Rodriguez. It's really pretty informative and interesting stuff, actually. It's the sort of stuff I wish was in comics when I started making them.

JK: One "extra" that fans can download is a podcast commentary for each book. Where did you get the idea to do that? What has the reaction been from fans?

Joshua: The podcasts have been an interesting experiment for us. I wanted to find a way, much like the extras in the bumper, to let fans in on the process. Comics is very much a communal medium, and I want to let those rabid readers get a chance to see what goes on behind the scenes. So, I thought doing a podcast gives me a way to provide commentary and insight into the books, without it just being a large chunk of prose on my blog. The second one, which just went up, has Jason Rodriguez (our editor) and Scott Keating (colorist) join in on the fun, and we'll have a quick "Here's what the other guys think" mini-cast that'll go up in the next few days, featuring Noel and Jason, our letterer.

Reaction’s been good. We have a decent number of subscribers, especially considering the low exposure the books gotten thus far, and all of the comments have been, "Keep 'em coming." I'm really trying to make each one as different as possible, so that it really is an evolving, exciting piece of content rather than just me blathering on about it. I'm actually considering doing a "diary style" one for issue six, which we're just starting production on now.

JK: I saw that you'll be participating in Ronin Studio's HOPE volume, which will benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina. How did you become involved with this project?

Joshua: I'm a Bendis Boarder, which is Ronin's home away from home, and saw an opportunity to make up for my complete lack of financial ability to give something back. Those guys are all really well-meaning folks, and it's a great opportunity to hopefully do some good.

JK: Do you have any friends or family who were affected by Hurricane Katrina?

Joshua: Thankfully, no. Kody Chamberlain (30 Days of Night: Bloodsucker Tales) is a good friend of mine, and I know he got out early, and stayed safe. He's also doing an art-print-for-charity thing that you should be able to find on his website.

JK: Any hints about your contribution in particular?

Joshua: Well, prior to the incident, I'd been in the final research phase on a new series that's set in New Orleans that in light of the tragedy is being reworked. So, I have lots of fodder for stories. New Orleans is a magical place, and I doubt the people there will let this tragedy crush that forever.

JK: Besides Elk's Run and the HOPE book, do you have any other projects in the works?

Joshua: Well, I wrote a 15-page story in Boom Studios' FUSED ONE-SHOT, which is one of Steve Niles' properties. The book has Niles, The Easy Way's Chris Long, and I on writing chores, Nick Stakal, Chee, and Andrew Ritchie on art. That's in Previews now. I also have a graphic novel I'm hammering my way through right now, and a strange new anthology project that's been percolating in my head for quite awhile now. Hopefully, 2006'll be "The Year of The Fialkov." Or people'll stop misspelling my last name. Either would be fine.

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Elk's Run ordering information:

• Issue 1-3 Bumper Edition: AUG05 3101
  
• Issue 4: SEP05 3086

Related links:

• Joshua's Blog
  
• Hoarse and Buggy Productions
  
• Speakeasy Comics
  
• Information on Kody Chamberlain's charity print

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