One thing that
can be said about James Kolchalka is that he’s well, a
character. Having a good amount of stories under his
belt, including
MERMAID, PARADISE SUCKS! and his MAGIC BOY series of
books, James
presents a poignant and almost innocent view of life
through his work.
In QUIT YOUR JOB!, the hero, Magic Boy, finds a magic
ring in the
snow, only to forget about the power literally at his
fingertip later
on in the story. QUIT YOUR JOB!, like most of his work,
lets the
spectacular things in life (i.e.: powerful pieces of
jewelry capable
of great destruction) take a back seat to to the little
things in
life. In his books, Kolchalka’s characters definitely
take time to
smell the roses.
I interviewed
Kolchalka through mail after meeting him at the Small
Press Expo a few months back, and would like to thank
him for his time.
CHRISTOPHER IRVING: I’ve heard that you’ll be doing
the comic
adaptation of THE STARR REPORT, yet with the angle of
a love story
rather than a scandal. How did you get involved in the
project, and
how does it differ from your previous work?
JAMES KOLCHALKA: The comic is titled MONICA’S STORY. It’s
written by
anonymous, penciled by me, and inked by Tom Hart. I usually
do all
three tasks myself, but it’s been a fun change of pace.
Bill and
Monica had an interesting little romance that’s been
obscured by all
the media attention. We’ve restored it to its full beautiful
human
glory.
CI: What was your first comics work, and when?
JK: I drew my first comic back in third grade, but of
course it was
never published.
CI: Who is the cat symbolic of, or is she just a cat?
JK: The cat in my comics is symbolic of my real cat, Spandy.
She’s
looking at me funny as I write this. There are a lot
of odd
relationships we all fall into: husband/wife, parent/child,
owner/pet...they’re loving, but never quite equal.
CI: Why do you have such a heavy use of robots in all
of your work,
especially in QUIT YOUR JOB! and MERMAIDS, what made
you use robots
rather than humans?
JK: Well, the way I feel about my own body must be similar
to how a
robot feels. My body is a strange machine that my mind
is trapped
inside.
CI: What can you tell me about THE HORRIBLE TRUTH ABOUT
COMICS? Is it
an anti-Understanding Comics, or just general silliness
bound
in-between a front and back cover?
JK: THE HORRIBLE TRUTH ABOUT COMICSis my comics theory
comic book.
Scott McCloud’s UNDERSTANDING COMICS is interesting,
but it’s not how
I experience comics. I experience comics like a joyous
dream or like a
confusing nightmare.
CI: When is TRUTH due out?
JK: THE HORRIBLE TRUTH ABOUT COMICS is due out in December
1998.
MONICA’S STORY is due out in January. KISSERS is tentatively
scheduled
for April 1999 (from Highwater Books).
CI: I understand that KISSERS is coming out with a CD
of love songs,
also by you. Do you hope to see mediums such as comics
and music
intertwine in the future?
JK: One way my comics and my music are intertwining is
in the animated
music videos I’m working on. But that’s top secret! The
other way is
the KISSERS project.
CI: What can you tell about KISSERS, and does it have
Magic Boy in it?
JK: KISSERS does have Magic Boy in it, as well as my wife
Amy, my cat
Spandy, and several of our friends. Basically, it’s all
about love,
the search for love, and related problems. It will come
with a new
C.D. of my songs. Half [are] love songs and half [of
the] songs about
how the world is doomed.
CI: What type of music do you perform?
JK: It’s my own special kind of music. Very catchy tunes,
but
twisted-sounding.
CI: How is the daily comic strip going, and how much of
your life do
you plan on documenting that way?
JK: My daily strip is going great! Every day I draw one
or two strips
about what happened to me or how I’m feeling. I’m trying
to capture
the rythm of my life! It’s not running in any papers,
I’m just drawing
it in my sketchbook for fun. I plan to do it for a year
(if I can
stand it, it’s hard work!) and then find a publisher
(They’d have to
be crazy!).