David Doub interview

 

 1)Alright so please give us a brief overview of your career as a writer how did you get started and how many projects have you completed? 


I started just trying to get writing work with others and get artists involved with my projects. I did a lot of random comic scripts for a lot of different people that most of didn't go anywhere, but it was all a good experience none the less. After working with a publisher or two, I took the few stories I had done for my vampire comic Dusk and compiled it with several others to make a graphic novel.

After that I made several more graphic novels of Dusk, as long with several other titles of mine and started publishing other people's works as well.

Since then I started on The Trials and Tribulations of Miss Tilney and I am working on getting more of my books out. I easily have 9 comics ready to come out of my work and crossover comics with other people's books.



2)I know you recently had a Kickstarter for a new book can you tell us about your most recent project and your experience with Kickstarter as a comic writer?

Kickstarter isn't like winning the lottery. It's a lot of hard work to mobilize your fan base and getting the word out. The examples of some Kickstarters going viral isn't guaranteed and in most cases a lot of work went into those Kickstarters to get it viral. It's a tool that a comic creator can use to help create comics, but like any other tool, it has to be used correctly.



3) Do you recommend Kickstarter for someone who doesn’t have a strong following for their comics yet or do you think it’s only something that can work in your favor once you have a audience?

I don't think it's for anyone starting out. Kickstarter doesn't drive traffic to you unless you hit a certain plateau of attention and that means you have to bring people to the site first.


4) Who are the artists that you work with and why did you pick those specific artists? What do you look for in an artist when you are looking to collaborate?

I work with a lot of different artists for a variety of reasons. I work with local Dallas folks like Halo and Terry Parr because I know them well and they can deliver what I am looking for. I've used several artists overseas like Dominic Racho because you can get great quality at a lower price because of the power exchange rate for other countries vs the Dollar.


5) Who are the authors or books that have inspired you to go this path? Do you write any traditional books and if so are they available on kindle?

Oh my goodness, where to start. I grew up on so many different books and authors. Their was Robert Heinlein to HP Lovevcraft to Robin McKinnley to the various writers of D&D novels like Hickman and Weis' Dragonlance novels. This of course doesn't count all the comics I read from mainstream DC and Marvel to the indies.


You can find the e-book of the Dusk Novel at -

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWPJOWH

6) Can you briefly describe your writing process? Do you consider yourself a gardener or an architect when it comes to figuring out the macro of the story?

I do a lot of brainstorming and outlining in my head.  When I go to bed at night or when I'm driving I will go over the story over and over again until I know the general plot works.  Then when I write the script, I hash out the details and do a lot of research.  I have to provide a lot of reference links to the artist in a script so they can visually see what I am talking about (especially if it's a specific location or time period).

So I would say I am very much stream of consciousness when I do my writing.  Editors love me for it🙂

7) What do you think is crucial for a writer to know before setting out to create their own stories and comics? Do you think its best to start with characters and them watch them as they evolve and interact with one another or do you focus more on plot and the how of the story? 

Mainly it depends on what comes first the plot or the character but for me the plot mainly comes first.  That said I have to adjust the characters until they fit, or if the characters don't fit I have to examine if the plot is flowing correct and needs an overhaul.  With Characters I've already established it's obviously far easier to know how they would respond to a plot and the trick is giving them a plot that doesn't force them out of character

8) So what are some upcoming projects you’re looking forward to? You just started a Kickstarter, can you tell us about that ? What is the idea behind your new book and how did it come together with your new artist collaboration? When can people expect he next book to be released?

Dusk Vs. Cheerleader Karate School
A crossover comic by creators local to Denton TX

BJ Lewis and I have both lived in Denton and influenced by the town for awhile now, so we thought it would be fun to do a crossover of our two supernatural stories.  Eve from Dusk fights vampires and other supernatural creatures and the ladies from Cheerleader Karate School fight demons, so it seemed like a classical superhero team up to us, just done in our own unique style.

And then the Corona Virus Pandemic hit and we paused the Kickstarter considering what was going on.  Then we realized that artists make their money based on projects, and conventions and commissions, so we decided to relaunch but with a renewed focus on supporting fellow creators during these tough times.

If this works out well we will be doing other Kickstarters with other creators to help them out as well. You can support the kickstart here.