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We at the Collector Times, are always on the lookout for
amazing works that deserve wider recognition. At Wizard World
Texas we discovered the works of web cartoonist Zach Miller.
He has a collection of his strip Joe and Monkey, in print. We,
of course, bought one, and Zach was kind enough to consent to
an interview.
Sheryl:
Tell me about your background. Are you a comics fan?
Zach Miller:
Yeah, I've always been a comics fan. I've always been interested in comic strips. I actually grew up about 3 blocks from where Charles Schultz lived. It was sort of a big thing in my life. My parents were like, "Yeah, Charles Schultz grew up about 3 blocks away."
Sheryl:
Wow, you got inspiration from that right there. If he could do it, you could do it.
Zach:
Yeah, He draws a little better than I do.
Sheryl:
I might disagree with that. Did you have any formal art training?
Zach:
No, not really. I went to the University of Minnesota for film, but I figured out it was too expensive. So then, I just started drawing, and it's taken about 7 years to get to this point.
Sheryl:
You show your progression as an artist in your book. I think that's pretty neat, you aren't ashamed of your earlier work. You don't want to hide it.
Zach:
Sheryl:
Why did you decide on web comics?
Zach:
Basically, it's zero overhead. I have a cheap host. The only thing that costs me money is the art supplies. And that's it! Everything I make is 100% profit.
Sheryl:
Most of the cartoonists who do really warped, funny stuff reside in the great snowy north. Do you get snowed in with cabin fever and go crazy or what? What's the deal here?
Zach:
(laughs) I don't know. I can't even think about that. I . . . really can't answer that.
Sheryl:
All right. Did Satan lead you down the primrose path? Is that how you started your first webcomic?
Zach:
Satan? Oh yeah, um. Well, the first webcomic I did, the character of Satan didn't show up for a long while. And when he did, I liked the kind of attitude I had written for him, he became a major character in it. Satan on vacation, his whole purpose was bugging the main character.
Sheryl:
Yeah, it was like Satan was his evil twin! How does one go from Satan to monkeys?
Zach:
Very Carefully. Actually, Joe and Monkey was created before I had the character of Satan in my comic. So I already had these guys in my mind. It came about, my friend was talking to me online, she told me that she had ordered some bras online, and they had arrived, reeking of cigars, and they were just nasty. So, I'm drawing a comic at the time, No Pants Tuesday, and I said, "You know what? I'm going to tell the story of how you got these bras." So I drew this bra factory in the jungle. In the first panel, I put this little monkey in a tree, with a thermos, a little tiny lunchbox, and eating a sandwich. I said, "I'm going to use this monkey in every single panel." So eventually, he gets into the bra factory, and the delivery boy shows up. At this stage, he's just a nameless delivery boy, who I wanted to be kind of a white boy idiot. The monkey starts to follow the delivery boy, and after awhile, I found that their reactions together, their repartee, really worked. So after that story, they kind of sat on a shelf for awhile and then I came back, and decided to make a comic out of them and give them their own series.
Sheryl:
So tell me, do monkeys really sell, as DC Comics claims?
Zach:
Everyone loves monkeys. I have so many people come up to me at cons and email me and tell me how much they love monkeys.
Sheryl:
Do you write your comics from your own life? Is it autobiographical to some extent . . . minus the monkey and the insane robot?
Zach:
Actually, that's the ONLY autobiographical part of it. (laughs) No, I try to take some points from life. A lot of it is just me, sitting around, thinking of what could be cool. What I find funny, and using that. Other times, it's semi autobiographical in Joe's moving into his parent's basement. Actually, his parents moved into HIS house, and he had to move into his basement. That came really for me, having to move back in with my parents, live on the cheap.
Sheryl:
Oh yeah, we've all done that. What's the deal with Wil Wheaton?
Zach:
Wil Wheaton is awesome. Period. I had Joe get this idea that he was going to run for President at a time where they aren't having a presidential election. So, I was sitting there and thinking about who could be his running mate? Kleptobot? No. And then I thought about it, maybe a celebrity, and what celebrity could be his running mate? Have you ever read wilwheaton.net? He's really entertaining, his books are great. He's just a cool guy. And I thought, why not Wil Wheaton?
Sheryl:
What's the deal with Paris Hilton?
Zach:
Paris Hilton sucks. I can't stand her. I can't stand her shows, I can't stand any news about her. She sucks. Go away.
Sheryl:
Where do you want to go with this? Is this going to be the first and last collection of Joe and Monkey?
Zach:
I'd like to take it to San Diego. I don't have a very big plan for it. I know how it's going to end, if it ever does. I like watching it evolve naturally, it's a progression where I don't know where it's going to take me. I've had weeks where I couldn't write a thing, and I've put some really lazy jokes in there. I wonder if I'm going to be able to do this anymore. Two months later I'm writing all sorts of great stuff. A lot of this comes from my friends. Like my friend Mitch helps me a lot with some jokes. I have a basic idea down and he can come out, and put one comment in there and it just makes the joke click. It makes it from good to brilliant.
Sheryl:
You have dealt with writer's block in your career. How did you overcome it?
Zach:
Hiding in my room and crying. *laughs* No, um, really, just taking a walk, watching some TV . . . with Joe and Monkey, it's really easy to overcome that, because I can think of any kind of weird situation that I can put them in, and have them talk about it. Because . . .
Sheryl:
Zach:
Yes, he's sitting around with a talking monkey. How more to real life can you get?
Sheryl:
Who are your inspirations, besides Charles Schultz?
Zach:
Number One? Bill Watterson. Calvin and Hobbes, I reference it where ever possible. It's just a huge influence on me. Otherwise, I like quite a lot of artists. In comic books, the inker on Green Arrow for Phil Hester, Andy Parks. I was at a convention, the first convention I ever went to, like about 4 years ago, Phil Hester was there, and I was looking at his art, and I noticed how well it was inked, and how much it brought out the art. At that point, it just kind of clicked, how good inking can change the way some art looks. Of course, his pencils aren't half bad, but the inking just made it look great. Actually, I had a situation . . . I was in Kansas to go to, I think Planet Comic Con, and Andy Parks came up to my booth, and he was like , "Yeah, I really like your stuff," and I'm like "Wow."
Sheryl:
Isn't that wonderful when that happens? I'm always surprised when people come up to me and say, "Oh, Collector Times, yeah!"
Are you making a living out of doing your webcomic, or do you hope to?
Zach:
I actually am making a living off of my webcomic. Right now my comic is my job. I'm surviving off of advertising on the site, and like I said, it's so cheap, I don't have to really put my money anywhere . . . my supplies and my DVD collection.
Sheryl:
You have pictures from your webcam on your site . . . what's that about? Do we get to see live cartoonist in action on there?
Zach:
No, the webcam I haven't updated in a long while. (another creator leans over and says, "That's an awesome idea" and everyone laughs.) I should update that sometime. I get complaints from readers, seriously. I actually want to make a little film of me drawing an entire comic and then taking out all of the sound and speeding it up a bit and putting it online so people get to see how it's done. Because I love watching people work. I will stand and watch an artist at a con just and just be completely amazed.
You can find his online comic strip (and his webcam!!) at:
http://www.joeandmonkey.com/
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