Q & A with Jeremy Whitley, author of hit comic ‘Princeless’

Many of you have heard about ‘Princeless’, the hit comic about a princess who doesn’t need to be rescued at all. This comic has grown to have a very loyal following, garnering important critical acclaim and various mentions in almost every main comic site in the blogosphere. ‘Princeless’ was named “Best Limited Series” of 2012 by Graphic Policy, earned Glyph awards for “Best Story of the Year”, “Best Writer” and “Best Female Character” and was nominated for two Eisner Awards.

In ‘Princeless’, intelligent and witty Princess Adrienne really doesn’t understand why she has to stay locked up in her tower waiting for some guy to save her. Why can’t she go into the world and have adventures on her own? She decides to rescue herself and go on in a crusade with her female dragon Sparky to save her 7 sisters all of whom are locked in separate towers… The comic book downplays gender stereotypes very intelligently and has so many elements uncommon in the industry of today, it’s a special piece of work and a real gem in the all ages market.

Jeremy has a degree in English and Creative Writing from the University of South Carolina, co-founded the comic press Firetower and is currently The Marketing Director of Action Lab comics.

We wanted to interview Jeremy so our readers could get an insight of his work, the current state of the comic book industry, and of course some insider info about ‘Princeless’

Can you tell us a bit about how Action Lab Comics started out?

Action Lab is a collection of creators who had all been self-publishing their own stuff. One year at Heroes Con in Charlotte we all were having an abysmal con and the idea was batted about that we should start our own press that prioritizes the creator and their book above all else. With a little elbow grease and some good luck, we launched with some of our own books and then moved on to look for new creators who were facing the same trials. We each have our own strengths and together we form a sort of Voltron of comic books!

What makes Action Lab Comics different from the rest?

We are all comic book creators who have built our own books from the ground up. We know what it takes and how hard it is to break in. We look for dedicated creators with original work that they are passionate about. We do our best to help the creators find the markets for their books, but above all we’re about making great comics of all kinds and helping them get to the people who want them.

What kind of stories is Action Lab interested in? What is your target market?

It’s our mission to produce great creator driven stories. We do all-ages, we do horror, we do action, we do superheroes, we do comedy — we’ll do anything at least once. It’s more the types of creators that drive us. We pick our market on a book by book basis, letting the creators drive our success.

What is your diagnosis on the current state of the comic book industry?

It’s changing, there’s no doubt about it. Right now every month is a completely different ball game. I won’t lie, it’s tough to be an independent press in a market dominated by a handful of companies, but the fact remains that those companies continue to produce hundreds of books each month concentrated on a very specific part of the market and continue to ignore the rest of the market. With the expansion of the digital part of the world and the fact that you can find graphic novels right next to other books in the store, I think there is plenty of room for great independent books as long as they’re not determined to keep fighting with DC and Marvel for the same small market share. In short, it’s a world of opportunities, as long as you’re willing to take chances.

Jeremy Whitley (right) and Jorge Aguirre, writer of ‘Giants Beware’ at a signing.

How much does it cost today to produce and get a printed comic book on the street?

I hate to be the guy that says things like “that’s the wrong question” but in this case, I think the question is “what do you want to do with it?”. Between Print on Demand services and the variety of creative software out there, you can make a comic for nearly any price. There are artists that show up to SPX every year with Kinko’s printed comics on their table and make a great showing. It’s not as much about the money as it is about the drive to get work out there. For that matter, there are literally thousands of people out there posting webcomics for free every day.

How many copies does an artist have to sell (Both digitally and in print) to make a title sustainable?

For a publisher, it varies. With small press books, we try to stay around 1,000+ copies throughout the run. As long as you can keep up that kind of sales and sell some books at conventions, it’s sustainable. Now, if you want to make money at it…that’s a much more difficult question.

What was the inspiration behind “Princeless”? How was your creative process in that project?

I wanted to make a book that I would feel good about sharing with my daughter. Not only something which she could read, but something I’d be happy to have her reading. I wanted to leave her with a positive role model and a positive message. Also, having a daughter who is a woman of color, I wanted the lead to be a woman of color, which is depressingly rare in comics. Also, fantasy is just so much fun to write.

In “Princless” your main characters are Black. Was that choice intended solely to subvert the blue eyed princess formula or did it have other objectives?

I kinda answered that one already, but let me go into a bit more depth. There is this weird pre-conceived notion in fantasy that everyone has to be tall, white, thin, and blond. Whether or not the creators mean it this way, when you spend all of your time talking about how people like that are beautiful, it leaves those who don’t see themselves reflected there with the conclusion that they are not beautiful. Beautiful girls of all colors and types need to see themselves reflected in their media…and that goes double for my daughter!

How would you advise a starting comic book writer to break in the industry?

Don’t wait for somebody to give you permission to make comics. Make comics. Find somebody to collaborate with. Carry a notebook around with you and make notes any time you have ideas. Contacting a publisher is not the first step. You can make your own agenda.

Are you working on something new right now?

Yes! I have a lot of new Princeless on the horizon and I’ll have some announcements to make about that soon. I also have several new books I’m working on that I’m very excited about. Nothing that I’m ready to announce right now, but keep an ear to the ground. Things are coming.

You can find more about ‘Princeless’ at the official Tumblr