This week we welcome
again, Danny Coleman as our guest blogger. Last week, Danny took us inside a
NaNoWriMo write-in. This week, he shares with us a recent interview with Peter
Dabbene, book reviewer, writer and graphic novelist to talk about his graphic
novel, Ark.
Take it away, Danny
and Peter!
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“Most
people’s experience with comic books is that it’s meant for kids; kids get
older and still like comic books,” says author, graphic novelist and Hamilton
resident Peter Dabbene. “The comic book companies realized that it’s still ok
to read comics as an adult, so they began publishing graphic novels.”
By
definition, a graphic novel is “a novel in the form of comic strips,” and Dabbene, a Staten Island
native, recently published his first; a space age suspense thriller entitled
“Ark.”
Set
years into the future and based on a premise that there are other planets which
are inhabitable in the vast
The
novel has several plot twists and turns and is rife with foreshadowing, which
only serves to heighten the suspense and
drama that Dabbene masterfully intertwines within its pages.
Recently
I caught up with Peter for an informative Q & A about himself, graphic
novels and the comic industry. An extremely pleasant conversationalist, as well
as informative and funny, he easily opened up to me and was more than willing
to talk about his passion.
Danny Coleman: Have you always been
or was there another vocation for you prior to becoming a graphic novelist?
Peter Dabbene: “I am actually a book
reviewer. I’ve always liked to write, in the past I’ve written poetry, plays,
and short stories; the beauty of it is, there are things that you can do with
one but not the others. Being
a reviewer, I get to make money off of something that I like to do; it’s great
because I’ve really found some hidden gems in some of my work that I never
would’ve known of.”
DC: How did you
gain interest in writing a graphic novel?
PD: “I grew up in Staten
Island and moved to Hamilton about fifteen years ago. As a kid I had an
interest in and started reading comic books. I was about five when the original
“Star Wars” came out, Marvel Comics put out more on that series and I kept
reading, then I branched out into Superheroes. As I got older my tastes changed
and I advanced to the graphic novel type.”
DC: Tell us about the
concept behind “Ark?”
PD: “I don’t know really.
I wanted to do something Science Fiction and this story developed over time; I
take a lot of notes. I like tension, drama, people trapped in one place and the
interpersonal tensions that develop. “Ark” has a few moments of humor but it’s
also a fast paced thriller.”
DC: You mentioned that it
developed “over time,” how long did it take from the original concept to
completion and what is the average time length that it takes for a project such
as this?
PD: “You know, I couldn’t
tell you an average time. It took me about a year; well it’s been in the works
for about four years, I took my time over the last year working up the script.
So yeah, it took about four years once everything was in place.”
DC: You had to choose an
illustrator/artist; can you talk about that process?
PD: “I looked for quite a
while. I went the standard route, put up ads at comic shows, asked around and
the like, I finally found him on line. He actually lives in the UK and his name
is Ryan Bayliss. I have yet to meet him face to face but I did hear his voice
for the first time when we did a podcast for a Scottish web site. We’ve worked
together for a while now and we know each other, trust each other and have
built a good relationship; we just let each other go with it creatively.”
DC: What can you tell me
about the characters in the novel?
PD: “That’s a good
question. The ensemble was created so that you don’t know who the main
character is. The main character tends to stay on for the whole story as
opposed to secondary ones who get killed off early or fade away. I designed
them to keep you more interested in the story, wanted the reader to wonder; I
throw in random elements to stamp them as my own, I like readers to be
surprised. First I decided to make it the Captain, then I was not sure but I
think I settled on Harmony Smith.”
DC: Is there a target
audience and a marketing strategy?
PD: “My publisher, Arcana
Publishing handles most of the marketing; they’re on the west coast. I’d say
our audience is probably older teens but mostly adults. Fans of “Star Trek” or
“Babylon 5” are most likely to get into this type of novel but if people like
to read and give it a chance; they may like it.”
DC: Will there be a
follow up to “Ark?”
PD: “I’m currently
working on a different graphic novel using the same artist; it’s called “The
Adventures of Spam Fram. It is based on virtual worlds that people use for
entertainment like an avatar or Sims. Arcana have contracted me for three total
books, so there will be two more in the series. Once I’m done with the new
novel I will return to the “Ark” series.”
Arcana
Publishing has priced the digital version of Dabbene’s “Ark” at $4.99 and the
print edition is available for $19.95. Along with it being available at www.arcana.com and at some comic bookstores; it can
also be found at Amazon.com.
Peter Dabbene’s poetry has been published in many online and print
literary journals, and collected in the book Optimism.
His stories can be found online at www.defenestrationmag.net, www.mcsweeneys.net, www.piginpoke.com, www.wordriot.org, and elsewhere, and
his comic book work can be seen in the graphic novel Ark and the magazine Futurequake. He has published
two story collections, Prime
Movements and Glossolalia, and a novel, Mister Dreyfus' Demons. His
latest book is the humor collection Spamming
the Spammers (with Dieter P. Bieny). He writes a monthly column for
the Hamilton Post(viewable
at www.mercerspace.com/blog/
Danny
Coleman is a veteran musician and writer from central New Jersey. He hosts a weekly
radio program
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