Boom! Studios: Q & A With Ross Richie

Since launching last year, Boom! Studios has featured the work of such talents as Keith Giffen, Steve Niles,Mark Waid, Mike Mignola, and J.M DeMatteis. Boom'’s titles have included: Hero Squared and Planetary Brigade (super-hero satire in the tradition of the Giffen/DeMatteis Justice League), Giant Monster fun from Steve Niles, and undead action with Zombie Tales.

Recently named the best new publisher by Wizard, Boom continues to grow with future offerings that include the Cthulu Tales anthology and The Stardust Kid from Mike Ploog and DeMatteis.

Publisher Ross Richie was nice enough to answer some questions about his work with Boom! Studios and the rest of the comic book industry.

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HZ: Once again Ross, thank you for taking the time to answer some questions for The Great Curve.

Ross: Love the site! Pleasure's all mine!

HZ: In a recent interview at Word Balloon, Keith Giffen showed a lot of enthusiasm for Boom! Studios. How do you get that kind of loyalty from a creator who seems able to get plenty of work from the larger publishers?

Ross: Scotch.

Probably a good idea leaving the comedy to Giff and company...

I'm honestly not particularly sure. I never understood why you wouldn't be a straight-shooter with a guy like Keith. Why you wouldn't be interested in him as a creator, who's been vital in nearly four decades of comic book publishing, who's invented major characters that have made DC some major money, who's constantly reinvented himself for different generations of comic book readers.

There's no question that Keith is a force to be reckoned with creatively, and I try to listen to his creative instincts, only chime in when I actually have something to say, keep him informed of important developments, and work to market his books.


It's the same thing I've tried to do while working with Mark Waid, Steve Niles, Mike Mignola, JM DeMatteis, Alan Grant, Andrew Cosby, John Rogers, Johanna Stokes, any number of other high-profile comic book and Hollywood writers. Of course, I try to be the same way with my artists -- Dave Johnson, Joe Abraham, Chee, Andy Kuhn, Mark Badger, Nat Jones, Josh Medors, etc.

I try to pick people who are much better at what they do than I am, empower them to do it and listen to what they think.

HZ: You've mentioned that you generally operate by coming up with an idea for a comic book and then recruiting the creative team to work on it. Do you have any desire to write your own comics?

Ross: Already tried that. And it's all Keith's fault. Back when I was spending most of my time producing projects for film, Keith called me and asked me to write DOMINION at Image Comics. Keith did stellar work and played clean-up batter for me, while I totally dropped the ball and humiliated him as a scripter. To anyone who bought DOMINION, I'm sorry I sucked! I did the best I could.

Augie DeBleick at www.cbr.cc carped about my "poetic leanings" as a writer in one of his reviews, and he was spot-on.

I promise to write no more!

HZ: It's been reported that Boom plans to reprint collections of titles like Cyberella, Trencher, and Seekers: Into The Mystery.

Ross: We won't be collecting Cyberella, unfortunately. Trencher's already been printed. Seekers is on the docket for 2007 -- all three volumes, plus THE LAST ONE (another deMatteis fantasy book) and MERCY.

HZ: I remember that Seekers was a great series from DC/Vertigo that was canceled way too soon. Is there any chance of new material being produced for any of these titles?

Ross: I'd love to do that. JM DeMatteis and I are prepared to move once we see the response from collecting Seekers.

HZ: What's your take on the recent demise of Speakeasy? As another small publisher, what have you done to avoid a similar fate for Boom! Studios?

Ross: Adam Fortier is a close personal friend whom I have a great deal of respect for. So I was in great pain to see that happen to him.

I launched Boom! with a single three issue mini-series -- Hero Squared -- and then built it out via Giant Monster and Giffen's "10" and Fused Tales into a company that produced two monthly comics a month, for about six months. Slow and steady wins the race is something I take to heart. I've always considered Boom! a boutique. I'd rather sharpshoot, than grab a shotgun.

HZ: Outside of your colleagues at Boom, who do you admire in the comics industry?

Ross: There's a wide variety of people who are smart and doing things well. The first who deserves a mention is William Christensen at Avatar Press. He's been a dear friend for an extremely long time, and is a survivor who's built his company slowly and deliberately into a top ten publisher, and doesn't get enough credit. I don't read his books -- and I tell him so, they're not to my taste -- but I have a tremendous amount of respect for the stature of creators and licenses he's attracted, and the juggernaut of a company that he's built.

I'm gay for Larry Young, who I know from my producing days. A master innovator, he built a tremendous brand and following out of thin air -- pure grit, marketing savvy. Larry's an icon.

I've known Joe Nozemack since Oni started, and have always had tremendous respect for him and his company. From White Out to Queen and Country to Scott Pilgrim. He's plunged in difficult directions fearlessly, and often lead the way.

Ed Dukeshire, who runs the website Digital Webbing and the publishing house, is a comrade and a compatriot. He gives selflessly, works tremendously hard, and often boosts people's career with no discernible payoff for himself. He's truly giving to the industry, and deservesadulationn and respect.

Nick Barrucci, from Dynamic Forces and Dynamite, has assembled some spectacularly impressive titles to publish. Army of Darkness was a brilliant move, Red Sonja is a huge property, and I'm insanely jealous of anyone who's got Battlestar Galactica. Those are three great choices, so there's some really smart publishing strategies going over there. What's more, he liked our little underdog comic, "What Were They Thinking" so I'll forever owe the guy drinks at the bar.

I've always had a soft spot in my heart for Ben Dunn, who startedAntarctic Press. I'm originally from San Antonio, TX, their hometown, and when I was a kid I'd take my crappy ninja drawings into the local comic shop, and Ben would take time to critique my work (great critiques, by the way!) and was always kind. You've got to have tremendous respect for the guys that did the original OEL manga in North America, and were in on manga twenty years ago. They've built
an impressive empire.

You've got to be impressed by what Ted and Chris and Robbie have done at IDW. Ted has been incredibly kind to me, and Chris as well, and hats off to them. They're often leading the way in the back of the catalog.

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Related Links:

The Boom! Studios Home Page
Ross Richie's Blog

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