Thread "Amanda interviews JustNoPoint!" in forum "Interviews"

Posted at 11:03PM, Mar. 31, 2008

This interview is conducted by amanda!

Username: JustNoPoint
Comic: The Devon Legacy (Prologue)
Age: 26
Location: Judsonia AR USA
Marital Status: 3 cats xD
Day Job: Working three 12 hour shifts Saturday, Sunday, and Monday at a Wal-Mart Distribution Center

How did you first become involved with comics?
We met at a bar, I was a little tipsy and… oh wait, I misread… As far as buying real comics goes I never was really a big collector. I was a huge TMNTurtles and Ren & Stimpy fan as a kid. My parents were grocery shopping and I saw a TMNT comic. I began getting those and Ren & Stimpy comics.

I never thought about making a comic at 1st. As a kid I always wanted to make my own cartoons. But that's just too much work. So I finally started making comics as an alternative. 1st I made a TMNT rip off comic, then a Ren & Stimpy rip off. I wanted to make something a bit more original… I sketched out a monster in class one day and basically decided to make a story around it.

Most of my story came from the 1st time I actually made the comic. I just drew stuff and kinda started making a story for it on the fly. I found out who the characters were and began focusing more on story elements as I grew older.

You've had TDL in your head since the late 90s…what inspired this story?
Um, uh… EVERYTHING! From blatantly ripping off things I see on tv or in real lie, to actually trying to come up with new innovative things. My biggest story inspiration at the moment is Avatar The Last Airbender. Not as far as ripping things off as much as the way they tell a story. I love their story structure. If you watch the whole thing you see all kinds of stuff building up. But you can also just watch any random episode out of order and understand what's going on. You're not lost and FORCED to know all the plot twists and developments beforehand.

Are the characters (even loosely) based on real people?
Some of them kinda are. Most are just a different aspect of my own mentality twisted up and amplified in areas. Fenny has to endure a lot of my perceptions of the popular super model type girls. Though I try not to write too harshly, I do want people to like her after all =p

Which character do you relate to the most, and why?
Right now many of my characters have still yet to enter the mix. So most of the ones I feel I relate to or that have mentalities closest to my own are not there yet. Very soon (at the end of issue 4) a new main character named Frank Mote debuts. He's probably most like me of all the characters. Though I relate the most to Sally at the moment actually. I'm pretty quite, shy, chaste, and have a bit of a happily ever after love conquers all complex of my own. Which, like her, makes dating and socializing pretty tough.

Do you have an end in mind, or is the story evolving organically?
I have 10 stories "Volumes" currently planned. If more are added they will be added before the last one because it is a definite ending. The 1st volume/chapter is ending at issue 6. That will be the last of the "Prologue." It's the only volume that is only 1 chapter long as well. It will be my 1st ending point.

Is there a particular message you're hoping readers will glean from TDL?
Um, not really. I think there might have been at one time when I thought I may want to get really deep or something… but if there was, I don't remember =p

It's more just an adventure comic for people to enjoy. I guess the message is "SOMEONE TURN THIS INTO A CARTOON FOR ME!" =D

What's your process for putting a page of TDL together?
Tiresome. 1st I have to plot outline the volume, then most of the story arcs in the volume, then I have to break the story arc down into chapters. I try to stay 1 chapter ahead in full plot outline giving me a rough estimate of the # of issues in each of the chapters. I figure out the story I want the issue to tell and how it will advance the plot and develop the characters. Finally I start writing the issue…

Or actually I start drawing the issue. I make rough drafts on the fly thinking about how the story should unfold. I jot down many notes and go back often to remove/add/tweak pages.
When I finally actually get to make a page I view the draft and attempt to make it a bit more dynamic if I can. I also put lots of thought into how the page will flow for the readers.

I generally sketch everything without panels 1st thinking of pages more along the lines of a collage of pictures telling a story than individual boxes with pictures in them. After pencils I ink. Everything has 2 ink layers (backgrounds, foreground, characters) One is mostly a silhouette that separates all the different colored areas. The other is for all the details, lines, and shading. This makes it easier to color since I can color fill areas without all the detail in the way. Then I can activate the "detail" layer over that.

Who/What would you cite as your influences?
My main influences growing up were mostly martial arts cartoons and 2d fighting games ala Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Darkstalkers, King of Fighters, etc. I'm a huge action fan. Obviously anime played a pretty big role since my art has a pretty strong anime influence.
Mostly Ranma 1/2, Ronin Warriors, Guyver, and probably a number of others. Though capcom and midway's artworks are what I tried to emulate the most. More recently my inspiration comes from many of the members of DD. Too many to list but I must say above all else mlai.

He constantly tries to beat into my skull to take the proper time with my art. I'm very hard headed but try to do everything he tells me. I'd say 80% of my improvement came from either his feedback or looking at his great comics Fight and Fight 2.

Do you have any future projects in mind?
Well my current other project is Off Hours where I collaborate with all kinds of cool artists and writers.

And me and a friend that goes by the name of Sominous are actually working on another comic together. We work on it only once a day and it's very different. We intend to show it only after we finish making the 1st issue. The comic is a horror/fantasy/adventure… I have no idea what the genre is. Too many for sure. But it's becoming VERY interesting and fun!

What are some of your favorite DD comics?
My recommended list is a good way to see that But I suppose my all time favorites would have to be Fight2, Para Ten, Shades, Signifikat, and StarSign

What are some of your favorite non-DD comics?
Hmmm, I actually don't read comics outside of DD. I used to read Loserz until it died. I also read Chugworth Academy, since it came back I haven't really been into it though.

Any closing statements?
How the heck did you actually sit through some of my earliest work? HAHA

I just want to continue to improve in art, writing, and dialogue. And keep having fun progressing my story. I still have a long road to travel in all aspects. I never expected anyone to really care about what's happening at the moment and love everyone that supports me and likes my work to death. All my readers still deserve better, and I plan to do everything I can to comply!

One more thing [evil plug] Read The Devon Legacy! The 1st story arc is coming to a close soon! 2 more issues to go! You don't want to miss the conclusion!!![/evil plug]

Posted at 6:04AM, Apr. 4, 2008

Here's another user who has been working hard on their comic for many many years. Jost No Point art as with Usedbooks as well has gotten better and better over the course of the comic. And majorly intrigued about this new comic JNP has planned. Looking forward to it. Sounds interesting. :)

Posted at 5:04AM, Apr. 5, 2008

I thought this was a really informative one with lots of good questions :) There's a ton of stuff that goes on behind making a comic and most creators I know love to talk about them :)

Posted at 11:04AM, Apr. 8, 2008

Thanks! It was the most interesting thing, reading through the backlogs knowing I'd have to ask some questions. It forces you to think harder about what the comic is about and what the author is doing - very fun! Plus, JNP gave some awesome answers and is, in general, a very cool person. Hurrah!

Posted at 5:04AM, Apr. 15, 2008

Not being much of a forum-y person I just stumbled across this interview by accident, and I'm humbled signifikat made it into JNP's list of all-time-favs. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Posted at 2:04PM, Apr. 15, 2008

Great interview here, and I learned a lot! I like how much time you put into your stories, and it shows. Keep it up!

Posted at 8:04AM, Apr. 16, 2008

Great read by interviewer and interviewee.