GS: Between the script and the finished product there is obviously an element of interpretation. How does the partnership between the writer and the rest of you work? To what degree do the artist, colourist and letterer shape the story? Can you each give me an example of where you have added layers to the book that were not overtly in the script? GH: From my point of view, Cy’s scripts are great to draw from. They have just enough detail, but not so much that it’s overwhelming. Also, he is very hands-off from an artistic point of view, pretty much giving me free reign, which was so refreshing. I can’t think of any point during the production of this book when Cy wanted something re-drawing, except a few continuity issues (bloody hand). PM: Well, as the colourist I tried to include the passage of time to make it really feel like Morley is running out of time - such as the day and night cycle and Morley looking worse and worse every with each issue and each time he is out of Cancertown. So that’s my contribution of adding layers, if you will. NW: A letterer doesn’t really add to the story in an overt sense. It’s more a question of amplifying what is there and needs to brought up the surface, what needs to emphasize the action, or to reinforce the visuals, or where what we “hear” what needs to stand in contrast to what we see and through that controlling flow, rhythm and timing.
As the final stage in the process, the letterer will work really hard to make everything “gel”. Bad lettering can ruin the reading experience of a comic with otherwise great art and story. What we letterers do is unseen, but extremely risky. We are like the Black Ops unit of the creative team!
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town, time has moved on six months. There are going to a few changes and I think that helps to sell them. GS: Lettering is usually an invisible art, only standing out when things go wrong, yet it is absolutely integral to the individuality and style of the Cancertown books. Just how does the placement of text, the size and the style of writing affect the way the reader perceives both story and character? Where does lettering fit in to the process in terms of putting together the comic, and what happens when the practicalities are at odds with the script? NW: Lettering is the art that makes the audible visible and present in time and space! I spend a lot of timing thinking about what various sounds, voices and noises look and feel like so that a reader can translate something static they experience with their eyes into something that moves in time that they experience with their ears! What you are doing is trying to give indications, hints and support through an intuitive visual grammar that readers can “see through” to the content. For example “KRAAKKK”, even in a font like this, is very different to “crack”. There is a lot of consideration of how time is passing in the script in lettering. It’s equally about “how”, “where” and “when” something is said in the panel, as well as “what”. Where the lettering sits in relation to other dialogue, action and layout conveys much of “what is said” beyond the actual words a character speaks. A shift of emphasis (making a
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GS: There is quite a difference between Cancertown 1 and 2 in the visual style and the colour palette. How do you stamp your identity onto a project without making it something entirely different? To put it another way, how important is it for a comic artist to bring their own vision to an ongoing project when they step on board, and how do you balance that against the reader’s desire for cohesiveness? GH: After reading through the script, $???????????????????????????????????????????
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