Reviews and Fan Mail
Your average comic book fan will recognize the "With Great Power Comes Great
Responsibility" line which is almost a Spider-Man mantra. It can also apply to comic book
"journalists." The lead item in this week’s column is a departure and an effort to
make up for an oversight on my part. In the transition from my old site to this one, I tried to
keep on top of things I had in the pipeline. Unfortunately one thing got left overlooked (only
temporarily thanks to good friend, former online TCR partner in coverage and current ORCA message
board poster Robert "Past47" Dawson, who reminded me). The project is Jane Irwin’s
Vögelein, which is a five-issue independent miniseries about -- "a clockwork faerie,
crafted over three hundred years ago by a Bavarian Clockmaker, has been living for fifty-three
years with her most recent Guardian, Jakob Sweintonowski. Gifted with an eidetic memory, she
forgets nothing she sees -- unless she winds down. In the issues ahead, Vögelein is forced to
leave the protection and safety of her Guardians to find her own way through life -- a life in
which she finds that real Faerie do exist..."
Jane was nice enough to send me the first issue in late December, and I had planned to cover it
well before it hit the stores in March, but time got the best of me. So rather than waiting to run
this in the ORCA Q&A slot, I’ll give it "special" treatment (all independent
creators, really deserve special treatment and support if you think about it, given the challenges
they face without the support of a large company) and run a quick Q&A about the series in this
week’s SOB. Be sure to visit Jane's website (
http://www.vogelein.com/vogelein/voghome.shtml), where you can find more
information and even purchase the book online (
http://www.vogelein.com/vogelein/store.shtml) if you're so inclined
(please note however, that Vögelein is also available through both Diamond Comics
Distributors and Cold Cut Distribution, or you can order it directly through Jane, using a secure
ordering system, sponsored by PayPal.).
I plan to do a review of the first issue in the next few weeks (but I think you'll tell from
the tone of my questions that I enjoyed the first issue).
O'Shea: How much research did you have to do before
embarking on this book? Granted I know from visiting your website (
http://www.vogelein.com/vogelein/readingroom/reviews.html) that you've been
interested in fairies since your childhood, but still there are some aspects that I think would
warrant research?
Irwin: Tons. I did quite a bit of research on the
Rom, the "Gypsies" for a character that you will meet in an upcoming issue. I knew this
was an ethnic group that had been maligned like no other over the centuries, and I wanted to make
sure that they got a proper portrayal in my book. I also have several friends who are literal
libraries of knowledge; particularly David MacMillan, who is an horological guru of epic
proportions. David taught me everything I know about watches and clocks and how they work. I
confess V's inner workings were a 'black box' (you know -- that sort of thing that writers defend
their ignorance of by saying "It's magic, silly -- get over it.") before David pulled me
aside and explained how fusees work [Note from Tim: A fusee is a conical spirally grooved pulley
in a timepiece from which a cord or chain unwinds onto a barrel containing the spring and which by
its increasing diameter compensates for the lessening power of the spring.] Now, while I still
don't have a clear design of her insides, I can at least bluff my way through how she works.
One other major area of research was on Heidelberg itself, and the historical happenings therein.
In fact, the story ending changed radically after I finally got a clear picture of what happened
in that part of Germany during the 1680s. (Stupid French Kings!)
O'Shea: For folks who may want to embark on starting
their own independent comic, give a little insight into how hard a process it was just to get your
product in the stores?
Irwin:I was in luck for two reasons:
Mark Oakley gave me a full--issue preview in the back of Thieves and Kings #36. T&K Has a
loyal, devoted readership, and that really gave me a big boost to begin with. some shop owners and
T&K readers even preordered the issue because of it.
I had the book printed several months before they were available through Diamond. This gave me the
chance to sell them locally and pass out promo copies (and increase interest!) while I was waiting
to appear in Previews. It worked pretty well.
Before the books came out, I made up promo posters and haunted every comic store in town, passing
out swag and making sure that all the shop owners knew me well ahead of time. Ann Arbor has a
huuuuge comics scene -- six stores in a 15--mile radius, and all doing quite well. I bought
something from every store I went into (basically spread out my monthly take over all the stores)
so they'd know I wasn't just a shill, but a regular customer, too. Ann Arbor is a college town, so
I also made fliers and papered the coffeehouses, lampposts and the Student Union several weekends
in a row before the first issue came out.
Once the books were in hand, I went round to almost every independent store in the area that
carries comic books. I offered them one price ($2.00 each) if they took the issues on consignment,
and another ($1.20 each) if they bought them outright. Every single shop owner took at least a
couple issues on consignment; most bought them from me directly. I'd also made up handbills,
posters, and these little foamcore standies that I gave out free to anyone that'd take 'em. After
seeing my name around town so often, all the shop owners were happy to carry the comic... and they
were all very nice and helpful and eager to help out local talent!
As for nationwide... it was really easy to get picked up by Diamond and Cold Cut. Everyone there
was very nice, and answered all my stupid questions. Just go to their web sites and read all their
submissions information, and call them if you have any other questions not answered by their FAQ
list. (If you're getting started, that's really the best thing to do -- call up Diamond and ask
them every question you can think of. That's what they're there for.) I'm also being carried by
Ingram Periodicals, who ship to Barnes and Noble and Waldenbooks, so I'm hoping for a big turnout
in those stores as well.
O'Shea: After reading this first issue, I was struck
at how much it reminded me of how I felt after reading my first issue of Neil Gaiman's SANDMAN.
You've obviously been influenced by Gaiman, but I was wondering what is it about his writing that
influenced you and also what other creators have had the greatest impact on you and how?
Irwin:**Blush** OK, I can die happy now. Someone's compared me to Neil Gaiman.
No, Seriously. Neither Jeff (Berndt) nor I had read all the Sandman books until about halfway
through the writing process. Jeff and I hammered out the first issue together, then laid the
groundwork for the next issue and a half. When I took over as sole author, I had to go back and
gut a lot of what we did and start over, but the basic theme was still there; the basic plot
line/story arc. When I was rewriting, though ---- you're right, a lot more of Gaiman's influence
came through, and the story got much darker than it was originally.
The authors that really influenced me were Charles deLint -- I've been wanting to write stories in
the same vein as his since I first read Dreams Underfoot 10 years ago; John Crowley, whose Little,
Big is still my favorite fantasy book of all time; Ray Bradbury, whose prose is like a transporter
to his setting; and the work of Charles Vess, who mixes ancient with modern in a way that still
stuns me.
O'Shea:This current series is slated for five
issues, if demand warrants it, could you see going past that point?
Irwin:Oh my goodness, yes. I'm currently writing
the next story arc, which will span something like 15 issues when it's done. Frankly, though, if
there's not enough call for it, I may just release the prose on my web--site in installments. It's
awful tough to work a full (or more than full!) day job and then paint a comic every night. I'd
have a very hard time getting the book out with any regularity; it'd be quarterly at the best. If
circumstances allow me to go to part--time and work the comic the rest of the time, then you
bet.
O'Shea:Are there other kinds of stories you want to
tell other than this incredibly ambitious and engaging, Vögelein?
Irwin: Well, most of the stories rattling round in my
head are variations in the Vögelein theme, like the Sandman Stories. Not all involve Morpheus
directly, but they're all under the same banner. I think once more of them have been told, I'll
want to do other, different material. Until then, however, I find it really difficult to think
about more than one story at once, so I've tried to keep as focused as possible on Vögelein.
Otherwise, I spread myself too thin trying to attend to too many stories at once.
O'Shea: Could you ever see yourself painting stories
for another writer or do you prefer to paint your own creations?
Irwin:Ultimately, the most desirable work is your
own. However, if the story was right, I'd certainly work on someone else's creation, provided
that I still had time to do my own.
O'Shea:Artist Alex Ross is constantly using models
to complete his work, I was wondering did you just need your friend Dagny Hanner (
http://www.vogelein.com/vogelein/dagny.html) to model as Vögelein for
one day, or were you constantly needing her to come by, to help out with certain, more complex
scenes?
Irwin: Dagny was a huge help, as were several
others. In about 1998, I rounded up everyone who I wanted to use as a body model and did several
big photoshoots. I have a bulging shoebox full of reference material. Since I already had a fairly
complex idea of the story I wanted to tell, I could get them to act out certain poses well ahead
of time. ("Hold your hand like this. Your character is holding a wine glass.")
O'Shea: You list a whole lot of people who helped make
this book happen, but Jeff Berndt was the one who designed the characters and concept of the
Vögelein with you. Any plans to collaborate further with him down the road?
Irwin:Jeff's life has taken him in a very different
direction -- he's just become a daddy. His son Alex is so terribly cute. Fatherhood has really
taken over his life for now, but if Jeff ever wrote another story that we both felt good about,
I'd be happy to illustrate it for him. He's a wonderfully creative guy, and quite a bit of
Vögelein's story came from him.
O'Shea:You have a great line when describing the
creative process ---- "let ideas out of your head before they make it explode" (
http://www.vogelein.com/vogelein/scary.shtml). Are there ever times when you're
at work, and an idea pops in your head for a graphic novel or a scene, but you can't do anything
about it, because you're at work?
Irwin:I always carry a sketchbook with me, and so I will often spend my lunchtime cribbing notes to
myself. The last "Real" job I had was a web firm with a very lax Internet use policy, so
I did a ton of research both on lunch and after hours. Sometimes, I'd just shoot myself an email
to remind myself of something I was thinking.
***
My thanks to Jane Irwin for her time, and please be sure and do yourself a favor and visit her website to see the beauty and depth of her work. This is a project I genuinely hopes takes off, as the industry always needs a greater number of successful female creators (which in turn will attract more fans [both male and female]).
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