10 Questions in 10 Minutes
I'm a big fan of Will Henry Wilson's comic strip, "Wallace The Brave" comic strip which is published at GoComics daily. It’s not only clever, but I love the drawing style. It reminds me a lot of Calvin and Hobbes and Cul de Sac. There’s not usually a gag each day, it’s more of a slice of life. I recently interviewed Will about Wallace the Brave.
Will Henry Wison in his liquor store/studio
TOM: You have two comic strips, Wallace The Brave and Ordinary Bill. Ordinary Bill was simple line drawing and black and white, Wallace is a masterpiece of art and color. How did that come about? The change in look, I mean?
WILL: Ha, "masterpiece"... made me laugh. I created Ordinary Bill when I was in college. It was an incredibly limiting strip and my style and ideas were still developing. Throughout the years I was writing Ordinary Bill I felt it was important to keep the original look, even though my style developed. Eventually I ended Ordinary Bill and thought I'd start a new comic that better represented where I was. That's where Wallace came from
TOM: How far ahead do you work before a comic is published?
WILL: Legitimate year, maybe more. I even have two years of unpublished Wallace Sunday strips....slacker.
TOM: Do you draw digitally or the old fashioned way - pen and ink?
WILL: I'm a 32 year old dinosaur, it's all pen, paper, ink and watercolor. I do color the comics digitally for the web, though...so yeah I'm hip.
TOM: Wallace is a "little maniac," your words. Is he based on you?
WILL: I don't believe I was THAT rambunctious as a kid. My mother may disagree
TOM: There's a lot of Cul de Sac and Calvin and Hobbes in your work, do you realize that?
WILL: Absolutely! I crafted Ordinary Bill to resemble the line work of Calvin and Hobbes and my original Submission to syndicates for Wallace the Brave had a heavy Cul de Sac influence. I've been drawing Wallace for a couple years and I think I'm just now developing a look that is distinctly me.
TOM: Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall?
WILL: Nothing beats summer in Rhode Island
TOM: Friends or Seinfeld?
WILL: Honestly, neither. Arrested Development
TOM: Other than cartooning, what talent would you like to have?
WILL: I'd love to be able to juggle. Not just balls, but chainsaws and torches
TOM: What living person do you most admire?
WILL: Grandma Betty. You don't know her, but she rocks
TOM: What is your motto?
WILL: "Hold my beer"
Thanks, Will!
Read Tom Falco's blog Tomversation for his own comic panel, along with his take on art, comics, culture, history and more.
Wallace the Brave