The Big Question with Troy Hickman: 2-7-04
The Big Question with comic writer Troy Hickman
by Troy Brownfield
Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like Indiana has been going through a period of artistic growth. We’ve talked at length here about comic book artists like Andy Kuhn and Stuart Sayger. We’ve gone on and on about local music, recently spotlighting an interview with Jason Weidner from the soon-to-be-huge band Loretta.
It’s time once again to turn our eye back to comics, but it’s still fixed on Indiana. Several years ago, you may have noticed a piece in Wizard about a mini-comic being pushed at conventions that went by the name of Holey Crullers. The book was distinguished by clever ideas and fine writing by Hoosier up-and-comer Troy Hickman. The book caught the notice of some important people, and years hence, they returned to Hickman with an incredible notion: revamp your original concept for a full-color national release through Top Cow.
Here then is a story that combines skill, luck, and a lot of heroic effort. Meet Troy Hickman.
THE BIG Q&A
Q1. How did you first get interested in comics?
A1. I’ve been reading them since I was about three years old. Loved them all my life. I remember as a kid, when my dad would take me to the barber shop on Saturdays for a haircut, afterwards he’d give me some change and let me go to the drugstore around the corner and buy a comic or two. As I got older, I became totally absorbed in the Marvel and DC universes (and this was the 70s, when you could afford to explore those universes in their totality!). In the 80s I discovered other genres of comics, including autobio type stuff, which I grew to dearly love, and which has influenced me quite a lot, even on superhero material like Common Grounds.These days I don’t have a lot of cash for comics, but I try to keep up with what’s going on, and I still think it’s the greatest medium ever.
Q2. What was the defining moment when you decided to make your own comic?
A2. I had done a story called “Beyond the Speed of Life” for another guy’s mini-comic, and unfortunately his book went under before even an issue saw print. So there I was with this story I dug, but that had no venue. And then it occurred to me that the whole story was set in this donut shop, Holey Crullers, and I decided to base not only that issue, but a whole series, around the concept. Holey Crullers would be a place where heroes and villains could get together and talk without the slugfest that usually arise. It seemed like a natural, as it would allow me to merge two of my favorite things: superheroes and slice-of-life. It would also be an interesting challenge for me, to see if I could take a potentially static, talking heads kind of idea and keep it interesting.
Q3. Crullers got early attention from Wizard. How did that come about?
A3. Jim McLauchlin stopped by my table at the ‘97 Chicago convention, and apparently the title grabbed him enough that he picked up all the existing issues (very unusual for him to get a mini-comic, he tells me). He loved ‘em, the other folks at Wizard loved them, and the next thing I knew they were doing a long article about the comic. I was in hog heaven! It lead to a huge boom in sales of the comic, and to me getting some work from Fabian Nicieza at Acclaim. It was a great time for me.
Q4. How many issues of Crullers did you actually do? Were there other projects floating about?
A4. I did seven issues of Crullers between 1994 and 2000. And yes, I was always working on other stuff. I published a lot of digest-sized comics myself, including Tales of the Pathetic Club, Twilight Guardian, Liberty Balance, Made-Up Stuff is Stranger than Fiction, Popery, Yoyo the Dieting Clown, and others. I also wrote probably a million stories for other folks’ mini-comics. I’ve done a number of full-sized books, as well, including Turok: Adon’s Curse, Narcoleptic Man, Cosmic Waves, Circle Weave, and others.
Q5. How did “Common Grounds” get jump-started?
A5. In January of 2003, Jim McLauchlin took over at Top Cow, and one of the first things he did was to get in touch with me and ask about Holey Crullers. He wanted to take my existing scripts and have them redrawn by some of the best artists in comics. We worked out the arrangements, came up with a new name (Top Cow wanted something a bit more serious), and the book was on its way.
Q6. What can you tell us about the new book?
A6. Common Grounds is basically a full-sized, full-color version of Holey Crullers. Each issue will have two stories, both written by me. One of them will be drawn by Dan Jurgens, and the other will be by a guest artist. Our other artists are (in order) Mike Oeming, Ethan Van Sciver, Chris Bachalo, George Perez, Carlos Pacheco, Angel Medina, and Sam Kieth. The covers will be beautiful paintings by soon-to-be-famous artist Rodolfo Migliari. The book is monthly, and scheduled for six issues, but I’m really hoping that it’ll do well enough to justify making it a regular title. In it, you will meet such characters as Speeding Bullet, Mental Midget, Man-Witch, Digital Man & Analog Kid, Flammabelle, Strangeness & Charm, Deb-U-Ton, the Acidic Jew, Blackwatch, Knockout, Eternal Flame, and American Pi. The stories are a mixture of comedy and drama, as is most of my work. And, um, I think we have a swell comic here.
Q7. You’re a long-time wrestling fan; how do you feel about the current state of the product?
A7. Well, I’m not crazy about it right now, for a number of reasons. First of all, if we’re talking WWE, it’s simply crappy product. The storylines are either lame or non-existent. The wrestlers don’t seem to be trying much of the time. The bookers have no idea to do with the fairly vast amount of talent they have in their roster. Beyond that, I haven’t been happy with the sleazier side of the biz for the last several years. I’m hardly a prude, but they go beyond risque to out-and-out tastelessness at times. Y’know, my girlfriend is not a wrestling fan at all, and I have a hard time trying to defend it to her when there’s such sophomoric behavior (and that’s an insult to sophomores) going on in the ring and elsewhere. I can’t comment on TNA, as I’ve only seen a few tapes of it. Seems a bit more interesting, though. For my money, the best wrestling to watch these days, and it’s probably always been this way, is indy stuff. I’d rather pay my 8 or 10 or 12 bucks to go out for a night of heartfelt grappling and homegrown gimmicks than sitting in front of the tube zoning out while Scott Steiner and Test have me longing for the welcome release that death will bring.
Q8. All right, here’s your chance. Give us the hard-target, bottom-line pitch for why our readers should grab up “Common Grounds”.
A8. OK. Common Grounds is probably unlike any comic you’ve ever read. It takes the conventions of mainstream superhero comics, and does a complete 180 degree turn. Unlike some books, though, it doesn’t do this through deconstruction. Common Grounds maintains a reverence for the comics we love, the comics we grew up with, the comics that fuel our fantasies. These are the stories you always wanted to read, the ones that normally take place between issues, between pages, between panels. I promise you, if you have any heart whatsoever, you’ll be affected by these stories. If you have a sense of humor, you’ll laugh your backside off at the dialogue. And if you’re a comic fan, you’ll probably say “Oh, man, I always wanted to read something like this!” So give it a chance…and then drop me a line and let me know what you think. Now, time to make the donuts…
Big thanks to Troy (Hickman) for dropping by! Make sure you get out to local shop and demand Common Grounds; it’s a terrific reading experience. Check out more at Top Cow.
As always, if you have someone that you’d like to suggest for a Big Question, let Troy (Brownfield) know at psikotyk@aol.com.
