Comics Dreams Come True!!!

So, you read in my last post of my lifelong dream of doing comics. No, Alex Ross did not call me, but what happened was the next best thing: I heard from artist and avid Diana Laurence fan C.C. Rogers, and she offered to collaborate with me on a little comic!

Well color me thrilled!

Who better to illustrate my writing than C.C., who has read every single word of fiction I've ever published, even the obscure ten-old-novel The Resurrection of Captain Eternity? Turns out--O wondrous twist of kismet--C.C. has always wished for an opportunity to try her hand at such a project.

I came up with five possible passages from my stories for her to create in a two-page comic book spread, and she chose one from my fantasy tale "As Commonplace as Rain," from Soulful Sex Volume I. The story concerns Pasha, a young priestess whose order eschews men, and Tristan, a knight with psychic powers (and, of course, sex appeal), who may be the cure for her debilitating angst. The scene in question shows Tristan helping Pasha cope with the anxiety and excitement of being with the first male of her acquaintance.

C.C. was quick to get busy, and in no time created a storyboard that was eerily close to what I had in mind for the spread. It was perfect. She then designed the two characters, coming up with a charming Pasha, innocent and lovely, and a Tristan who, frankly, proved all by himself that comics can be sexy. :-)

Over the weekend C.C. sent me drafts of costumes for the pair, a process I called "paper dolls on steroids." Pasha's gown is simple and modest but very pretty and subtly sensual. Tristan's outfit is, well, the sort of thing that draws me to Ren Faires: knightly, elegant, manly and very flattering. What fun it was reviewing C.C.'s drafts--in a way it was like she was a contestant on "Project Runway" and I was Tim Gunn. No, I did not at any point tell her "make it work." She managed that on her own! LOL

So, today C.C. started work on the actual panels of the comic. I'm really not sure if I can handle all the excitement of this. At one point I showed the drafts to my daughters and they read the narration and speech balloons that C.C. had set up. One of the girls praised the bit of narration in one panel and I, like a giddy schoolgirl, said, "I wrote that." "Yeah, Mom, we know." Well, the thing is, text that I wrote is in a comic! I feel almost like...almost like...

Neil Gaiman.

Okay, cue Twilight Zone theme music. Could this be what my whole weird escapade with Neil was leading up to? Well, there have been many benefits to it along the way concerning my actual writing, but never during this Gaiman phase did I think I would ever find myself being a comics writer like Neil. I mean, how could that possibly happen?

Then I found in C.C.'s latest draft she had added this:

It's true, I could see my actual name in the credits box of a comic. I can die a happy woman now.

Or, at least once we finish this two page spread. Obviously, once it's done I will share it with you. Heck, I will be forcing it in the face of everyone I meet. I'm just glad C.C. is having as much fun with this as I am.

Will keep you posted!