1. What part of the country do you hail from, what can you tell us about yourself?
I’m originally from Utah, but I have been in LA for all of my adult life so that feels like home. I’ve written a lot of animation, including the DC Super Hero Girls webisodes and movies. The DC Super Hero Girls graphic novel, Finals Crisis, was my first foray into comics.
2. I understand you made a fairly natural transition from writer of the DC Super-Hero Girls animated series into the writer for the original graphic novels for DC Comics. While the two mediums have their similarities, were there any difficulties in changing your approach for writing in comics vs animation that you weren’t e
xpecting?
There are a lot of similarities, but writing for comics requires much more specific visualization of each action. In animation, you can write “Supergirl flies over a field,” and the story board artist and director will take that and make it work. It might be a two second shot, or it might be 30 seconds of Supergirl flying through clouds, passing a flock of birds, and narrowly avoiding an airplane. In comics, we write panel by panel, so everything is very specific. If I want that flying over a field beat to be 6 panels, then I must describe in detail what each panel is, while making sure each panel moves the story forward.
3. What was the first comic you ever read? (and anything you want to tell us about it, were you hooked, was it awful?)
I don’t remember specifically, but I do remember Archie comics being around. The town I grew up in was so small we didn’t even have a comic book store. I didn’t actually get into comics until I was an adult.
4. Why should people pick up Wonder Woman now that you’re writing it?
I think people who’ve liked the most recent run should definitely stay on board for this arc as we pick up where the last arc left off. In the Heart of the Amazon arc, we get to see Diana take on new threats as she defines how much of herself she’s willing to sacrifice and how much she must preserve. We also get to see a lot of Diana and Etta’s friendship, which has been perfectly captured in the art by Mirka Andolfo.
6. Was your first comic convention as a guest or as an attendee? Where was it and how was it?
San Diego was the first comic con that I went to as an attendee and Long Beach was the first as a guest.
7. I read that you’re committed to at least 5 issues on Wonder Woman, can you announce if you’ll be staying any longer? Do you think you could handle a bi-weekly series on a regular basis?
There is another creative team coming on after this five issue arc. I’d love to do a regular series, if that opportunity arose!
8. Writing that you’re most proud of? (comics, animation, anything, whatever you feel best represents your best)
I really love our most recent DC Super Hero Girls graphic novel, Summer Olympus. I think it has a lot of honest heart to it, and the work that Yancey Labat, Monica Kubina and Janice Chiang did on it is amazing!
9. Any comic artists that you’d really love to work with?
Too many to list! I’m won’t name names though because I don’t want anyone to feel left out and I would definitely unintentionally leave people out.
10. How do we get Saturday Morning Cartoons back?
You don’t, but you live in the wonderful time of cartoons all the time, any day of the week! There is so much more content to choose from now and really high caliber of storytelling in today’s animation.