I had the absolute pleasure of joining the hosts of The Whatnauts: The Captain’s Log podcast to discuss a whole ton of things. Included in that is my former life as a co-host of Talking Comics, my current co-host duties for Caper Cast, and then of course writing and I bring up Pacific Rim: The Musical…JUST LET ME MAKE IT, GUILLERMO!
You can check it out on their website or on Spotify OR you can watch the video below:
I had the great pleasure of chatting with Ben at Empires Comics last night. We discussed my upcoming release ParaNorthern as well as LIFE, my project currently on Kickstarter. Plus we chatted a bit about the writing and editing process, and I answered a few fantastic audience questions.
Check out the full interview below and be sure to show your support to a great shop!
We had the great pleasure of talking to Brian at Comix Experience about Oh My Gods! Our book was their Graphic Novel of the Month (for Kids) title. We talked about our process, the story, the art, characters, and answered questions! You can watch it over on their YouTube channel here:
Thank you so much to Brian, Jordan, The Beat, and to everyone at Comix Experience who made the interview happen. It was such a smooth experience and a true joy to do. We hope you’ll check it out (and the book too!)
Recently I was a guest on the wonderful Creator at Large podcast with Jeremy Melloul. The episode is live now and I wanted to share it with y’all! Below is the copy from the site:
Stephanie Cooke is a comic book writer, editor, and ally to comic creators everywhere. She takes on a frankly stupefying amount of projects all in an effort to support the comic industry and push forward positive change. In this episode she joins me to discuss:
Why she keeps taking on new projects & can’t slow down!
Her own career & progression from assistant to writing, editing, and other side projects!
Creator Resource and the work of supporting comic book creator
The Page Rates Survey
The growth of the graphic novel kids market in comics
I’m a writer who likes to dabble in art but mostly when it comes to drawing silly cartoons and pigeons. I’ve wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember – I didn’t pursue it as an option in school but came to it professionally as a news editor and critic for a popular film web site. My writing evolved and changed until I made my way to comics… finally.
What comics/comic creators inspired you to make comics?
It’s more like amalgamations of the stories I’ve read in comic form have made me want to try my hand at telling my own stories in the medium. It gives you an amazing opportunity to work alongside wonderful artists to tell a story in a medium that’s comprised of both written and visual components.
There are creators that I admire and I hope to someday be able to tell stories that bring joy like they do. Gigi DG’s Cucumber Quest, Noelle Stevenson’s Nimona, basically everything by Raina Telgemeier, Sam Bosma’s Fantasy Sports, Lorena Alvarez’s Nightlights series – they’re all creators and stories that I’m drawn to.
What about Life Finds a Way caught your imagination enough to submit a story?
I loved the concept of trying to think of a positive spin for the end of the world. Post-apocalyptic stories are all over the place in every medium, and every day we’re plagued with the fact that our real world is dying – so trying to think of ways to make things less dark was really appealing.
On our theme of hope, what did you find fun about creating stories within this framework? Furthermore were there any unexpected challenges?
I loved trying to build the world for my main character and help her find something to be excited about when everything is bleak and depressing.
Every story has its own unique challenges and for me, I decided that I wanted the story to be dialogue free. Trying to tell the story that I wanted to tell while not using narration or dialogue to assist was difficult – I didn’t know I’d be working with the wonderful Dom Astri before the script was done, so I was relying on the hope that I would be paired up with someone who had a strong style and could pull off the expressions and key moments in the story.
Part of the fun of Post-Apocalypse is the worldbuilding, how do you deal with the limitations of the short story format with that in mind?
I quite like writing short stories – I think it’s a fun challenge to find a way to bring readers into a world that feels already established and doesn’t require a lot of set-up. I think it’s a matter of figuring out what the readers absolutely need to know and what they can figure out on their own. Do I need a ton of exposition to explain what happened to the world? Or can I simply start by showing a devastated world in ruins and assume that within a book of post-apocalyptic stories, the reader will figure out what something bad has happened? For me, it’s trying to know what I can leave out to leave room for the story itself.
What’s your favorite post-apocalypse media, and why? (Games, Movies, Books, etc.)
Oh goshhhhhhhhhhh! I have a few things that I really love – in video games, the Fallout games for sure; specifically Fallout 3.
For books, it’s Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel – it’s a book that I devoured while I was reading it, and it just stuck with me after I was done it. It actually has a similar kind of theme to it in that there’s a group of people who try to give hope to everyone left through a traveling theatre group.
I think the question was is there any one thing that you love but now that I’ve said a video game and book, I need to also share a movie. That’s how this works, right? Well, I don’t have a particularly original answer to this, it’s Mad Max: Fury Road. A beautifully ridiculous film that I never get sick of watching.
Clichés, our editors outlined some that we did not want in our stories in our narrative guide. What elements about post-apocalypse media do you think are over-done?
I can’t say that post-apocalyptic media is my go-to genre for anything. The world is pretty bleak so it’s not usually something that I tend to gravitate to. That being said, it’s not necessarily cliché but I’m sick of seeing women abused, sexually assaulted, and just mistreated in many post-apocalyptic things. There’s no quicker way to get me to tune out of something than to have gratuitous sexual assault in any media.
I guess that’s one of the reasons why I loved Mad Max: Fury Road. There are women who’ve been sexually assaulted and abused in it, but it’s never shown on screen. They rely on the intelligence of the audience to put two and two together when it comes to the abuse and it never gets heavily dwelled on and it’s essentially non-existent as a larger plot point.
Post-apocalyptic fiction can often be a reflection of anxieties that occur in contemporary society, does your piece reflect any societal anxiety that you can identify?
I think the world becoming a desolate wasteland is definitely something that gives me anxiety. I’m a big lover of nature so the idea of the plants, animals, and birds, not being around because of how we’ve treated the planet is upsetting.
Do you think you could survive a week in the wild with a knife, a poncho, and a fishing hook?
Weirdly enough, I really do. I’m a city girl these days, for sure, but I grew up in the country and spent my summers camping with my family, and at summer wilderness camps for weeks at a time. I’m not saying I’d want to or I’d like to but I think if I had to, I’d be a-okay.
Where do you look to find hope for humanity’s future?
I guess it comes down to our generation and the one immediately after us – how we vote, and how we react to the urgent things we need to address to save the planet, nature, and humanity will be vital in our survival.
Do you have any projects you’d like to plug? I have a couple cool projects coming up that I’m not allowed to talk about just yet but in the meantime, check out Creator Resource (www.creatorresource.com) which aims to help comic creators at any level better navigate the comics industry and create transparency to thrive and grow your career.
Stephanie Cooke has worked in several different roles within the world of comics, settling into two very different editorial roles as of late: as a freelance editor working on a variety of comics including We Are The Danger, published by Black Mask Studios; and as editor-in-chief for websites Rogues Portal and Creator Resource.
The MNT spoke to her about the former, learning more about her journey into editing comics, and her advice for anyone looking to start out in the industry.
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The MNT: Can you tell us a bit about how you got into comics editing – and what drew you to it?
Stephanie Cooke: A couple years ago I wrote a story for the fourth volume of The Toronto Comics Anthology. I had an amazing time working with the team there and when the publisher put up an ad the following year for a new Lead Editor, I wanted to see if I would be a good fit. I wanted to get involved in comics in new ways and expand upon what I was already doing. I also wanted to find a way to give back to a community that’s been so supportive and uplifting to me.
I really believed (and still believe) in what the folks at Toronto Comics are doing in ushering in new eras of creators and helping to give them a published platform to tell their stories. Helping to make the book more inclusive and tell a bigger variety of stories was something that I wanted to tackle with the team.
From there, my comics editing quickly grew and I began working on other projects outside of the anthology.
What do you love most about being a comics editor? And what sort of challenges have you encountered?
Comics editing is something that I unexpectedly love doing. I hadn’t really anticipated that my career would take a turn into editing but I’m really glad that it did. There’s something so satisfying and rewarding about working with a comics team to help improve on an already good idea and make it great. As a writer as well, it can be really hard to see things that don’t work within a story so I love being able to help focus ideas and make things work even better.
The biggest challenges for me tend to be with the feedback in terms of how much or how little to give. I try to communicate with the creators I work with to see how they work, what they expect out of the project, and what sort of approach I should take to each story. Finding that sweet spot where you’re giving constructive feedback without it feeling like you’re taking over the story can sometimes be tricky. You want to fix any issues that you see but you also don’t want to completely change what the creator has built.
A recent project is We Are the Danger – a book written and illustrated by Fabian Lelay – how did that come together?
Cooke: Fabian and I have known each online for a while now. I was a fan of his work on Jade Street Protection Services as the co-writer and artist of that, so when he asked if I’d be interested in working on a new book with him, I was really excited. He brought me on as he was getting the outline together so I was on board very early on to help guide things and give encouraging pep talks (inspirational pep talks and motivational speeches are included as a part of my editing services!)
What are your favorite aspects of We Are the Danger?
Cooke: I love our team so much. Fabian did the story and art but getting to work with Claudia Aguirre and Taylor Esposito (on colours and letters, respectively) has been such a treat. I love the story that we’ve all put together and the amazing characters too, but Fabian, Claudia, and Taylor are all creators that I have been wanting to work with for a long time. Getting to work with them is such a blast and each of them make it stand out in their own ways.
What role did you play in the research for We Are The Danger?
Cooke: Fabian had a pretty clear idea of what he wanted to do with the story when I came in. He had a look in mind for the characters, the outfits, and everything. Julie’s (the main character from the series) heritage is very in sync with Fabian’s own experiences and he was writing from the heart. My job was essentially to let Fabian know if anything didn’t work but mostly just to guide his vision.
How collaborative was the experience?
Cooke: It felt very collaborative for me. Fabian didn’t just leave me on the outskirts of the book to make notes and suggestions, he actively asked for my input throughout the whole process. We’re still finishing up the last couple of issues but it’s been an experience that I will always remember very fondly.
For other people interested in editing comics – what do you look for in a potential project?
Cooke: I think most people automatically assume that you just need to like the project itself to take it on. For me, it’s about the story but moreso about the creators working on it. We need to be able to work together and the way I give critiques and feedback needs to be in line with what they want to get out of the whole experience.
Do you have any other editing projects coming up that you can talk about yet?
Cooke: Not just yet! I’m working on a very cool project with the fabulous Johnnie Christmas, and I feel it in my bones that Fabian and I will wind up working together on at least one more project in the near future.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Cooke: Editing would not have been something that I would have actively searched out a couple of years ago, but here I am! I love it and it’s reaffirmed that you should always try things and keep an open mind. Comics can be a really hard industry to break into, especially if you’re looking to do one of the more “traditional” roles (ie. writer or artist) but there are so many other aspects to this industry that we desperately need more people filling.
The point is this: try a number of different things in comics. You might just be surprised at what sticks.
Creator Resource is a tool to help comic creators navigate the industry. Stephanie Cooke talks about how the site came to be and her vision for its future.
Disclaimer: Rosie Knight of WWAC helped Stephanie Cooke and some other folks put together Creator Resource.
Anyone can make a comic, and anyone can enjoy a comic. Whether it comes in the form of a webcomic, cartoon, graphic novel, comic book series, or even an interactive digital comics, the right story with the right aesthetic can draw in a new reader at any time. As the new comics creator resource website, aptly named Creator Resource, says, “Comics Are For Everybody.” This shiny new informative platform is less than a month old in concept and execution, and ready to help comics creators everywhere. Women Write About Comics sat down with founder and comics creator Stephanie Cooke to find out more about the vision for Creator Resource, and what it can bring to comics.
What inspired the idea for Creator Resource?
I saw a tweet from Nick Hanover talking about how the industry needed a new fairpagerates.com. The site had been such a great tool for discussing what creators were currently being paid, and it was a shame that it fell apart.
The whole thing got me thinking that it wouldn’t be a lot of work to put together a new version of Fair Page Rates. But after thinking about how to do it, I realized that there was a need for something more. There isn’t a unified place to go to find information on contracts, copyrights, and other resources. It felt like an opportunity to not only relaunch our version of Fair Page Rates but to incorporate all these other things. I wanted to make a place that would help usher in new generations of creators who come in with a better understanding of the industry and help the industry to grow, evolve, and prosper.
Did this take a long time to come to fruition?
I have exactly zero chill when it comes to a new project. I think the gears in my brain started turning on this project at the very beginning of June 2018 and it took hardly anytime at all to know that it was something that I wanted to do.
I tweeted about whether this would be something that people would want out in the world and it got lots of positive response. I knew that it was important to make happen.
We still have a lot of resources to get up, but over time, we hope that the site will act as a community where other voices can share their expertise and guide other creators.
How did you put together the team that worked on Creator Resource?
I put out a call for people who might be interested in helping out with a project like this because it was a little intimidating at first to have this huge idea in my head and to try to carry it out on my own. I have a lot of projects on the go and I wanted to have other people who could help carry out the vision for the site. Plus having a team helps help people accountable.
Beth Barnett was the first to reach out to say that she wanted to help make this happen and she had a ton of ideas. Then Rosie Knight and Eric Kim reached out to say they wanted to help out too. All three of these people are amazing and well-respected members of the comics community, and it made me really excited to have them on board.
We hunkered down and started brainstorming all the things we wanted to do. We made a bunch of lists of blogs, resources, and other stuff that we felt would be essential to the site. We divided things up amongst ourselves and began working on the content to produce for the site.
We still have a lot of resources to get up, but over time, we hope that the site will act as a community where other voices can share their expertise and guide other creators.
The banner for the new website, Creator Resource
Please share your top three goals for Creator Resource
In no particular order:
I think my biggest goal with the site is to have a transparent place for people to hear from creators and other pros about what the industry is really like. Almost like hands-on training in the industry.
I want Creator Resource to start a conversation in the comic book community:what creators are getting paid, how they’re treated, how we can all do better. I want this to help show people that we have a lot of work to do to treat creators properly and compensate them for what they do.
Webcomics are a huge part of how comic books are evolving now. We no longer need publishers to make comics that people will read and respond to. With the resources we provide, I hope new creators can learn about their rights, contracts, how to brand themselves (and their work), social media, and creative stuff like coloring, lettering, hiring an editor, and more. The more resources we put out there, the easier it will get for people to try their hand in this industry, and bring in much needed fresh blood. (We’re also working on a column called Ask A Professional so that specific questions can get answered and addressed.)
I want creators to have one place they can go to find out everything they could possibly want to know about comics and the people who make them.
Where do you hope Creator Resource will be a year from now?
I hope that Creator Resource is a thriving community of inclusive voices that are offering up education, insight, and resources for everyone who wants them.
It would be nice for the site to help start discussions about how comic books can grow more positively as an industry, but I want creators to have one place they can go to find out everything they could possibly want to know about comics and the people who make them.
I hope that a site like Creator Resource helps young creators make informed choices when it comes to their intellectual and creative properties and to have resources to make their work the best it can possibly be.
How are you hoping to influence the comics industry with Creator Resource?
I think I’ve sort of answered this a few times along the way to this point, but I want this to help make comic books a better and more positive place, as hokey as that sounds. I hope that a site like Creator Resource helps young creators make informed choices when it comes to their intellectual and creative properties and to have resources to make their work the best it can possibly be.
Comics can be full of predatory people, and when we look out for each other and educate our peers, it can go a long way to making comics a much better place.
Thanks to Stephanie Cooke for chatting with us about this new platform, and be sure to check it out for yourself.
Q. What were your major influences or inspirations for Miss Monster?
A. A while back now, I got obsessed with RuPaul’s Drag Race and I wanted to write a fun story that capture the essence of that but with monsters. The people, the puns, the pageantry, the cattiness – I wanted to write something that incorporated it all!
I never really watched “real pageants” growing up. I think my first experience with them was probably watching Miss Congeniality (that’s how all pageants are, right??) and then in my teen years, being forced into participating in a pageant to be crowned the queen of my local county fair… which I did not win.
Q. What comics do you enjoy most–did any of these find their way into your story for Wayward Sisters?
A. I read a lot of comics—although admittedly lately, I have not been as on the ball with them. That being said, I love a little bit of everything and some of my favourites include Through the Woods, Runaways, 4 Kids Walk Into A Bank, Velvet, Bandette, Lumberjanes, Giant Days, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, and Backstagers.
Light-hearted comics are my favourite, something I can just escape into, but good comics are good comics, and I try to keep up with as much as I can.
I don’t think much seeped into my story for Wayward Sisters but things like Lumberjanes and Giant Days are definitely inspirations that I want to use for projects in the future.
Q. How did you get your start in comics?
A. I started as a podcaster in comics where I would talk about my favourite things with three friends. I did that for several years and started working behind the scenes in comics as an assistant and editor.
I never thought I wanted to be a writer until one day, an artist basically pointed out that if I liked writing and already worked in comics, that I would be a dumb-dumb to not take advantage of that. I sat on it for a while and then realized that I should give it a shot so I started pitching to anthologies and such to practice and hone my craft and build up a proper portfolio.
Q. How has the comics field changed in terms of creator representation since you first got your start?
A. I got started in comics professionally in 2011/2012 or so, and even then, a mere 5-6 years ago, there was a lot of need to be the “cool girl” in the industry. People weren’t calling creators out heavily at that time— but it was pretty close to the start of big changes that really started to pave the way.
I’m incredibly grateful that I didn’t start working as a creator myself until the last couple of years, otherwise I may not have moved forward with my career. Diversity and representation in comics a long way to go, and I think we’re slowly getting there, but it can be discouraging whenever you see an announcement made for some BIG EVENT THAT’LL CHANGE THE UNIVERSE FOREVER and it’s the same old white dudes on the books time and time again. Dudes that can do no wrong despite their politics, their personal opinions, their behaviour and more while women and POCs aren’t being hired solely because they’re not these white dudes.
Honestly, that’s why we need more books like Wayward Sisters. We need to show the world that there are women here. We are working on cool projects. We’re doing things that anyone can read and enjoy and we have cool, fresh angles on things. More stuff like this can only help amplify what we’ve known all along: women make amazing comics.
Q. What is your idea of the perfect monster date? October 31? Because it’s not too hot, not too cold– all you need is a light jacket?
A. Oh man, I think you already stole my answer here, but my perfect monster date… HMMM…
You can’t go wrong with a beautiful dinner on a full moon. The moonlight perfectly lighting up each and every fur as you run through the forest, paw-in-paw (or claw-in-claw!) and howling in unison.
Stephanie Cooke cut her teeth in the comics industry as one of several hosts on one of the original comic book podcasts – Talking Comics. From there, she was able to work behind-the-scenes at many comic conventions, eventually becoming the personal assistant of some of the biggest names in the industry. Now, she has struck out on her own as the founder and editor-in-chief of Rogues Portal a pop culture review and commentary website. A writer in her own right, her work has appeared in the Toronto Comics Anthology, The Secret Loves of Geek Girls and more recently, Mark Millar’s Millarworld Anthology 2017 and the upcoming Blocked and Wayward Sisters Anthologies. In this conversation we discuss how she takes much of her inspiration for her work from her own life and what it was like working with Mark Millar (Kick-Ass, Kingsmen: The Secret Service, Wanted) and his team.
I’m Fred Kennedy, host of Issue Zero, this week we chat with Steph Cooke, she’s a writer. What I love about her is she’s so honest about what she’s doing. The trials and tribulations, we’ve talked to many established people, and creators in the industry so far, and Steph is one of those people that is bubbling under, has worked on a lot of things, done a bunch of smaller press things, and now is starting to break through. She started working at a vintage movie store, did acquisitions, podcasts, blogging, doing reviews, then started writing and working as an assistant to a writer, and now has work a talent search with Millarworld, and is having her first major work published. She also has write prose and has a literary agent, it’s cool and inspiring to have someone at that level talk about what inspires them, and it’s a different perspective than what we’ve had before now.
Read more at http://issuezeropodcast.libsyn.com/podcast#X7Yu9slvim4FAR1R.99