» Interview: Pyroman

Alex: The idea is that I make a weekly comic strip, which tends to be about nothing in particular --just funny things that have been thought of or said-- but done in manga form. I decided at the beginning that, because the comics had no structure or main plot direction in which I'd insert jokes, the characters would just be made up.

Technically I don't have any recurring characters, [though] in many of the comics there're characters that look similar or exactly the same as the last few comics, and that's usually because I just subconsciously do that. I do hope that in later web comics I can have a full story. It is really fun to make and I've been lately adding more complex poses and action scenes to jazz it up a bit.

A: I was just talking with a friend one time and we were playing Prince of Persia, and we came up with a few jokes as we played, it was then we thought we should make a web comic, with him originally planned to be my writer, but that fell through and I ended up writing 48 or so comics. But I'm not really an ideas man, I can write well, but not come up with ideas that well. Recently I've been working with Will0391. He writes the scripts and I just draw them. Sometimes shortening or lengthening them to make them look or feel right.

A: Well he still lives across the road, and I often test out comic ideas on him to see what his reactions are. He's a very honest person if he feels the joke is really bad, but also is compassionate enough not to tear me down. Because I hate that...

I'm not sure if he's doing anything online, other than Myspace or something, but I don't think he ever will, as he isn't really interested in becoming a writer. (Maybe he just tricked me, ha-ha!)

A: I myself am not a BAD writer it's just I've never been good at coming up with ideas, I'd just sit for ages, and then make up an excuse when I couldn't think of anything (though I didn't miss many comics due to this. Most of the missed comics were from things I couldn't prevent). I've really enjoyed working with Will, him writing the scripts mean I can focus entirely on my art rather than fretting until the last minute over what story will be and ending up with a bad joke combined with a bad piece of art.

I think the only Problem I've had so far is that due to time zone differences I often get the script at the last minute anyway, leading to me having to rush through it. But I gave him a bunch of time over the Awesome boy story arc so I'm kind of hoping he wrote some in advance (laugh).

I think the Funniest thing that has happened so far was how caught up I got with Awesome boy. Will sent me a half a page script, from which I produced 5 full pages. There was just so much I wanted to put in, so many poses I wanted to happen, so much action I wanted to portray, and of course another bad pun to put in. I was so afraid that Will and the readers would be all angry and wanting to see the next comic, rather than my failed attempts at ending it. I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did making it.

A: As of yet I have no plans of expanding the comic, just a month of so ago I made it full page (thanks to Dan's wonder upload limit increase!) But other than some aesthetic updates, such as a new template which is on its way, I don't really plan on doing anything. Unless some amazing idea comes along that I can't pass up Passive Maturity is staying as it is

A: I myself really am not an ideas man, which is coincidentally why I hired a writer! I could write a lot of stuff if I had an idea to spark off some brain function, but usually I just can't.

But I do believe Will is planning on furthering the 'Awesome boy' saga that was recently posted. I don't know how it's all going as of yet, but I'm sure he'll let me know eventually.

Other than that I'm free to do what I want, I'd love to make a comic with an actual plot and recurring characters, because usually these one-shot comics don't have much action (though lately I have been putting a lot in…)

A: The only Collaborations I really like are writer/artist collabs, for the reason that I like to draw everything myself! I just like having the freedom to draw what I want, but still have a story to run by. I would love to one day pull off a magic theme, with lots of magic battles and stuff mixed in to a storyline. But I really don't mind what I do, I'm just not into Fantasy. That's my only barrier.

A: Of course it is a Manga style, but I like to think it also has a Cartoony feel. One day I hope that I can shake that off, but for the moment it fits my ability perfectly because I need only do the amount of detail and artistry that I can to the best of my ability, without losing the look and feel that I would if I had a more realistic style.

A: Okay, basically I get the script organized by drawing a bunch of practice shots on post-it notes (unless the script is a short easy one that needs no funky camera angles or art direction at all).

Then I sketch it down on a piece of white printer paper with a 4H pencil making sure not to be too rough otherwise it becomes hard to trace later.

Then after the page is complete and when I look at it I don't have the urge to tear it up I place it on my lightbox with another piece of paper and ink it. I use fine liners because for some reason, despite every artist in Australia using a Nib pen, I can't seem to find ANYWHERE to buy them. Sometime I'll just have to go and buy one on the net.

Anyway, I use a range of fine liners, doing the borders with a 0.7, the speech bubbles with a 0.5 and the main bulk with either a 0.1 or 0.2.

After the comic is inked and lovely I scan it onto my computer, stick it into Photoshop, clean it up (but I don't usually need this step coz my scanners nice) and put in text. I use 'A.C.M.E secret agent' as it's the nicest one I've found.

When I save I tend to use JPGs just because they work fine. Also on Photoshop when you save a JPG you can adjust the quality which can also dramatically reduce the file size.

And then finally I post it!

A: Ha-ha I love reading these from other artists, and often complain about how generic and useless they are, so I made it nice and long.

A: I have been Drawing since I was 12 (just three years ago), but I have only been making comics since around the end of 2005. I started my web comic on the 28th January 2006. It was a great step in my art as I'd had a DevART but I was not good at single pieces yet. If I did receive comments, which I pretty much never did, they were usually off-putting. I think the only good comments I received were for my almost stick-figure comic "Pyroman".

To be perfectly honest I'd never even thought about web comics, or really knew much of them, before I launched my own. I think the only web comic I had read was 8-Bit theatre, and possibly Penny-arcade. I always planned (in hindsight rather immaturely) that I would get really good, and then go to Japan and somehow procure a job in the manga industry and produce manga in the usual weekly/monthly form.

But I was an idiot back then. I didn't actually stop to think about how on gods earth I planned on getting to Japan, much less on how I would get a job, and even less on what story I would publish. I've read plenty of career documents from Japan that state just how hard it is, and read many whiny blogs. Since becoming a part of SmackJeeves, I understand how hard it must be to push into that kind of work. I guess it never hit home until I saw what great art some people were producing.

A: I try to go for the manga style, with combo of mildly realistic (as in the elbows don't buckle backwards etc.) but also the cartoony look that saves my art from looking really terrible. So far it's worked out, and I can't wait until I CAN draw more realistic pictures, but I'm only 15 so I've got a lot of stuff to learn.

Generally I just draw what I want to draw, trying out new poses, new clothing, new paper, new techniques, and…well you get the picture. I always try to push myself to draw something better than the last picture I did, which often leads me to be ashamed of art I did less than 15 minutes ago, but in the long run provides a base for a new picture.

I draw almost constantly. I draw at home; I draw when I'm out, and on just about anything. The only place I try not to draw is school (at least, not during class) due to the current workload and pace being to fast for me to doodle.

A: I have tried watercolors but I've never really been good with manipulating them, they always turn out all blotchy and the colors just look bad. Painting has never really sat well with me either, because again I guess I just can't get the right feel to it; it ends up being some slop. I tend to fail at anything hands on, like pottery or sculpting.

I think the only thing I've been even mildly successful in is Digital art. I like to play around with Photoshop, and I did several flash movies a year ago.

A: My Flash art was basically my little escapist fantasy. Mainly they were the usual childish boy art, lots of explosions and killing. I only made a few that probably didn't involve guns; and I don't think I ever placed them on my Deviant. I did think I was great at it, but, when I look back, I just embarrass myself. I didn't have the patience to draw the same picture over and over again, when at the time I could barely make a character look the same in two panels. I believe they are still all up at my now abandoned deviantART, though I can hardly guarantee their quality as they are a few years old.

I Haven't gone back to flash as of late due to the fact that I got a new computer about half a year ago, and I didn't have the software to begin with (illegal copy, heh…), so rather than get ANOTHER illegal copy ( I don't like using them) I just gave up. Also, they are really hard [to make], and take up so much time that I'd rather spend doing pictures. In the end, that seems much more rewarding.

A: I often have a fear of sharing my work around, that it will be hated because it's not as good as the next persons work. For example it took me a long time to build up the courage to get this web comic, I was so scared that others would hate it and that I'd just be so bad at it that I'd end up giving up and being a failure. But SmackJeeves has really helped with that, I feel a lot more confident about my art because I know others are enjoying it. I hope to start a sort of gallery on my web comic, but I'm not really sure yet.

A: I haven't done a commission yet, because no one has asked (ha!) but I'd be glad to do it. I'm always surfing the artist collaboration forum seeing if there's something I could turn my hand to. I think the only piece I've given to someone lately was a sig picture to my writer Will, because he had a picture in his forum sig copied straight from my comic, but it was covered in my pen lines, so it wasn't a nice lineart. I just drew him up and original piece colored it and sent it off. I felt it was better to have an original piece anyway.

A: Originally it was Ken Akamatsu, author of A.I love you, Love Hina and Mahou Sensei Negima. Before that I had a few manga art books like Katy Coope's how to draw manga, which influenced my style a great deal, but Love Hina just opened my eyes to how great Manga could be. Even though my art back then was eye-gougingly horrific, you could see the definite effect his art had on mine. Soon I began to collect a lot of manga and many styles hit me. Lately I've been mesmerized by Kazu Kibuishi's amazing art, and all the artists in his FLIGHT compilation book. But also I've been in love with Dr. Mcninja, because not only is it really funny the art has given me some great inking tips.

A: Lately I've only read one, Blink by Malcolm Gladwell. It explores our unconscious ability of quick thinking and the way some people can read a situation in the blink of an eye. Tipping point was great so I had to look into this one and once again loved his work.

A: - Dr. McNinja: is just so great; I'm ashamed I didn't discover it sooner.
- VGcats: is another online gem, the art is great and the jokes are game orientated, but still funny to those not familiar with the game being parodied.
- 9th Elsewhere: This online manga is amazing. Sure Carmen updates every blue moon but the story is fun, with many twists and turns, and the art is quite exceptional.
- Penny Arcade: Sure everyone seems to hate this comic, but I don't see why. I guess too many the game jokes would seem like in jokes unless you'd played the game…and the jokes are rather subtle AT TIMES…still it's a good comic.
-oh no there's so many more I want to put here... uh lets be general and say all my smackjeeves favorites.

A: Well of course I know a bunch of artists that I love on SmackJeeves, but they're all really popular right now. Yeah I'll pick this one, the road to 24 hour comic's day. 24 hour - the art is great and the story is funny. Check it out.