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

Posted at 4:04AM, Apr. 2, 2008

This interview is conducted by JustNoPoint!

Username: Vakanai
Comic: Rumbles, Rumbles Late Night

Heya Vakanai, let's start with a bit of information about yourself, shall we?

Yes, let's shall!

(That's not really the 1st question, but feel free to answer if you wish… I ain't a dictator)

Good to hear, cause I already answered. Oopsie!

Vakanai? Where did you come up with this unique username?

Well, I like dragons, and one day this word just popped into my head and I thought it would be a kickass name for a dragon.
And then I started using it on the Net.

How old are you?

Twenty, nearing 21 rapidly though.

Are you married? Dating?

Single and looking, sadly.

Do you read a lot of real comics?
Webcomics?

Yes and yes!

What are some of your favorite of both?

Hellboy is my absolute favorite. I also like Hellblazer. I also read manga, I really like Chobits.
On the webcomic side of things, I like Bob and George, Ansem Retort, and Order of the Stick.

Why did you name your comic Rumbles?

A lot of the characters come from the CBR forums and hang out at the Comic Book Rumbles section. So it's a nod to that.

Are you actually as skinny as you draw yourself in the comic? I mean that is like stick skinny! O_o

I wish!
I sadly have a bit of stomach. And now I'm self conscious all of a sudden. Time to start dieting!

How long have you been tinkering with the idea of this comic?

About late summer to early fall of last year. It kind of started on a thread I made over at CBR.

Does it have an ending or are you simply seeing where the comic takes you?

It does have an ending. In fact most of the story is planned, 4 story arcs in total, I just need to write it. I think I'm confused on how long arcs are supposed to be though, this first one should take well over a year.
The ending will be quite a surprise.

I see you have went through 3 other assisting artists.
How did each get involved and how was it like for you to work with them?

How each got involved? I'll be honest, I just asked for help from my fellow CBR posters and kept my fingers crossed. Thankfully they've all been quite skilled and were just great to work with and get along with.

How exactly do you contribute to the artists? Scripts? Layouts?

Scripts, the story is more or less all mine, though I do listen to suggestions. Also, some of the character designs are based on my stick figure designs.

How do you communicate? Forums? Chat clients?

Mostly forums.

You have 2 comics currently, one being a spin off… which one is more fun to make for you?

Oh the spin off, definitely. I can't draw worth a darn, but I just love making those little stick figures and doing all the work myself.

What all inspired your character's designs and personalities?

Well, I couldn't draw hands or a neck well in Paint, so I gave him his red, turtleneck sweater to sort of make him workable. I gave him glasses and a goatee because I have glasses and a goatee. And yes, he has a small beard even as a stick figure. If you look you'll see it.
As for personality, he's basically me, only blown out of proportion. He's an attention craver of the highest order and he suffers from extreme boredom, so his habit of doing and saying whatever comes to mind is a way to attract attention to himself and combat said boredom. Much like me.

Along that line, how close does the character Vakanai act to the real you?

He's louder, he has less control over his ego, and no desire to control said ego. He's the kind of guy who can't really see a problem with going into a room, taking a cursory glance at everyone there, and saying, "You all suck," just to because.

Lastly do you have any future projects in mind?

I do actually, two in fact. A secondary semi-spinoff comic that features mostly new, original characters and myself in a more superhero type setting. And I'm only in it for the introductory/origin story, and then only cause my red sweater happens to become the hero's main source of power. It's a good sweater. I figured it would be something different from what I'm doing.
The second project I have planned is adult. Very adult.
Whether I get to do these depends on my schedule and if I can find willing artists.

Any final things you would like be noted that I may not have asked?

I am Batman.
Wait! I didn't say that! Tell no one! Ack!XD

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

I wanted to know more about the variance of art styles posted in the comic…

Posted at 10:04AM, Apr. 4, 2008

Man I used to read the CBR forums back in the day. This was years and years ago back when it was still comicbookresources.com and not very big. I met some of the other posters there at San Diego comicon and man, some of those guys were weeeeeeird (some others were pretty cool though) I bet none of em are even around anymore, like me.

That is pretty awesome you've found some great people to cooperate with :)

Posted at 7:04PM, Apr. 4, 2008

That's what I should have asked! What the heck is CBR anyway?! lol!

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

CBR is a website basically about print comic stuff- news articles, weekly columns, stuff like that :) It used to be called comicbookresources.com and a big part of the site was its forums, where users could unleash their geek upon each other. One of the forums was Comic Book Rumbles which was about fights between comic characters… Vakanai would have to fill you in more on that, I didn't much go to that one. Obviously the site is still around so you might want to check it out :)

Posted at 10:04AM, Apr. 8, 2008

I wanted to know more about the variance of art styles posted in the comic…

That's more a result of different artists working on it than anything else.:cat:
Well, each artist does their own thing and has their own unique vision. Though truthfully I like that just fine, cause you'll never know what kind of art style to expect from it.

Posted at 10:04AM, Apr. 8, 2008

Man I used to read the CBR forums back in the day. This was years and years ago back when it was still comicbookresources.com and not very big. I met some of the other posters there at San Diego comicon and man, some of those guys were weeeeeeird (some others were pretty cool though) I bet none of em are even around anymore, like me.

That is pretty awesome you've found some great people to cooperate with :)

Thanks. Also, the CBR posters are still weeeeeeird (and pretty cool).

That's what I should have asked! What the heck is CBR anyway?! lol!

Actually, skoolmunkee pretty much covered it.

CBR is a website basically about print comic stuff- news articles, weekly columns, stuff like that :) It used to be called comicbookresources.com and a big part of the site was its forums, where users could unleash their geek upon each other. One of the forums was Comic Book Rumbles which was about fights between comic characters… Vakanai would have to fill you in more on that, I didn't much go to that one. Obviously the site is still around so you might want to check it out :)

Nope, I really can't explain it better than you did. Rumbles is the place where we discuss fights between characters, and where everyone is insane. Hence the oddity of the comics.