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Kill Your Artist – The Cadavers Conundrum 

Matt Hardy writes,

I work with a great artist. There are hours, even days sometimes, when I don't need to yell, scream and threaten to kill him.

The problem is he's my best friend.

So when Bleeding Cool asked me to write this article, I thought a cautionary tale on the pitfalls (and advantages) of creating an independent comic with a close friend might be a good idea. I certainly had plenty of material to use.

Let's get one thing straight first of all. I love Edward Bentley's work.

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We've worked together for nearly 5 years. A comic series and two graphic novels later and I know we do good stuff together. Our current book Cadavers 1: Doppleganger is chugging away very nicely on Kickstarter – and I'd say the majority of that support is down to Ed's eye-catching art.

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Although I'll take some of the credit. The concept of 'Cadavers' – an underclass of supernatural migrants, scapegoats for societies problems and forced to resort to illegal means to survive – seems to have caught peoples imagination.

So although the end result may be pretty – the process is anything but. With the disclaimer that these are my own personal experiences – for those of you thinking of making a comic with your mate from the pub, your girlfriend's brother or your childhood friend – these are some of the issues you may face: –

It's not your comic anymore. 

I know some of you will see this as an article on the difference between paying an artist for work or getting your mate to work for free – but there is so much more than that.

Many of us have story ideas that knock around in our brains – a meta concept that one day we hope will see light of day. We have a perfect vision of exactly how we'd want it presented to the world. Yes? Well, if so, don't make a comic with a friend.

I self publish under the name of Mad Robot Comics (Madrobotcomics.com) and we have a number of titles in the works. Those are all through 'work for hire' artists. I tell them what I want on the page – it comes back – they get paid. That is my comic and my vision (interpreted through an artist's eye).

Ed and I split the costs and (maybe one day) the profits of our comics. That's an equal share in everything – which translates to an equal say in the work.

So although Ed and I have a traditional writer/artist relationship – I write the words, he draws the pictures – as it's a joint vision we both feel we have a joint say in the outcome. Basically don't bring your 'my way or the highway' attitude to the table. That's not going to work. You are building something together and that means you need to be flexible in your approach.

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Friends are friends. Money is money. 

Even though some of this article is a bit of a moan – making comics with your friend is still great fun.  You'd be surprised how much can be achieved by throwing ideas around in the pub. But it's also a labour of love. We both make sacrifices to get the work out there. In a nutshell what I'm saying is… making comics with mates doesn't pay much.

So even though the Kickstarter is going very well  – did I mention the Kickstarter –  all of the proceeds will go towards printing, promotion and conventions. It won't pay the bills.

So consider this – even if you and your friend are creating a masterpiece – a seminal work that will rock the comics industry – that doesn't compete with actual paying work.

Ed has been asked to draw Hexes issue 3 for Blue Fox Comics. So a paying job. It's a great story by writer Simon Birks and I'm looking forward to reading it, but that doesn't stop me telling people that Simon stole my artist! Thankfully 'Cadavers' is virtually complete, and Ed is committed to finishing all 5 issues. But after that I'm going to have to lose him for a while to 'real work'.

So friends are friends. But money will make them walk. Be prepared to lose your artist – and your project – to paying work. The trick here is to work the artist to death before someone else gets them (This article IS entitled 'Kill your Artist').

Or you can support our Kickstarter – the more money we make the more I can hold onto Ed. Bleeding Cool readers get signed copies of the book and more importantly you may be saving a life….

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Artists draw things they like drawing. 

Again if you are not paying your artist, you are open to suggestions on what will be included in the book. Our previous comic 'Madhouse' told the story of a mental asylum patient grappling with concepts of identity and reality. The first issue concentrated on his time in the asylum – uncovering the experiments of the corrupt warden.

For the second issue Ed wanted to draw a car chase. THE BOOK IS SET IN A MENTAL ASYLUM!

But we worked on it and found a way (which worked out better than my original plan).

For the third issue Ed had just watched 'Mad Max:Fury Road' and wanted to draw a post-apocalyptic future. THE BOOK IS SET IN A MENTAL ASYLUM!

But it worked. We talked through my story and it took the ending in a fresh direction.

The fourth issue Ed wanted to set on a spaceship. THE BOOK IS SET IN A MENTAL ASYLUM! This is where you wish you could fire his a**.

A lot of you are saying – why didn't you put your foot down? It's your story. And this is true – there will always be moments where you have to say 'I need this section to work like this – draw it that way' – but you also have respect for your friend – your artist. There is that moment when you are sitting there with your story and your friend talks though his visuals – and then this massive light bulb moment where everything just works!

Or one of you throws a pint over the other……… Ah – collaboration.

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Read more damn comics. 

This section is for those considering working with an artist with no background in sequential storytelling.

Ed's a huge fan of Scottie Young's 'I hate Fairyland'. Fair enough – it's a great book. I told him to read it so I should know. But to my mind reading a single book does not make you a comic-book reader. I'm firmly of the opinion that if you want to become the best in your field you need to immerse yourself in the best works of that field. All the great film directors study the other great film directors. I read widely in comics and fiction.

Ed watches a lot of TV. A LOT of TV.

This is not all bad – it lends itself to a very smooth visual way of storytelling. Cinematic is a word that is banded around – for panel transitions and action sequences Ed's ability to draw from that medium and incorporate it into his work is superb. And there are a lot of great TV shows around these days to pull stuff from.

BUT comics give you a scope, a freedom, a budget that TV does not have. With no-one actually being paid to move the camera – you can put the camera basically anywhere, film anything and create anything you like.

Again if Ed was my employee I could stipulate he read certain works (I'm currently getting the artist on our other book 'Night Terrors' to read through 'Locke and Key' – as this is the vibe we want for that book). But Ed is not my employee, he's my friend.

Ed knows he has a Jamie Hewlett feel to his art, but his argument is that he doesn't want his art to be influenced further, too 'corrupted' by the work of others. His style is his own and he wants to keep it that way.

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So I don't want to compromise my friend's vision of his art, again it's the friend thing getting in the way – it's something important to him and you support your friends goals and ideas.

But I need him to learn. There will come a day when I need a Mexican sheep parachuting out of a plane onto 40,000 people filling the courtyard of the Vatican. I'll be able to visualise that page, I know I've seen the components of that image in other books before. I'll be able to think of how I've seen it done on paper. Bits of Darick Robertson or Humberto Ramos. Ed won't. Not many TV shows about parachuting Sheep.

So writing a comic with your friend means nagging him constantly. You need a good friend for that.

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So at the end of the day what I'm saying is – be prepared to compromise. A lot. Even more so than 2 paid creators working together on a comic for a major publisher – because friends want to support each others dreams, care about what they are producing and at the end of the day – still want to be friends.

But don't be afraid to upset them. The screaming and yelling I mentioned is real. Friends fall out all the time – worse if it's actually for a reason they both care about.

At the end of the day if the project is good enough you'll come back to it.

And there is an upside. Yeah eventually I got around to mentioning the upside. The friction, the arguments, the passion – all makes for a better product, a better comic. It may not be what you started out with – but it's better. And as you created it with your friend it's something both of you will always treasure.

Although when I share this article to my social media it's going to be with the tagline – "I wrote an article for Bleeding Cool about how much I hate Ed".

I'll then have it pointed out that maybe I shouldn't have made him best man at my wedding…..

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So in conclusion – artists are a pain the in neck and writers are perfect.

I mean I'm 100% positive that Ed has no issues with me at all……


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Rich JohnstonAbout Rich Johnston

Founder of Bleeding Cool. The longest-serving digital news reporter in the world, since 1992. Author of The Flying Friar, Holed Up, The Avengefuls, Doctor Who: Room With A Deja Vu, The Many Murders Of Miss Cranbourne, Chase Variant. Lives in South-West London, works from Blacks on Dean Street, shops at Piranha Comics. Father of two. Political cartoonist.
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