Comics Features

INTERVIEW: Scott Drummond, Creator of NIGHTSMOKE

Scott Drummond is a comic artist, illustrator and art director located in Kansas City, MO. For the past year and a half, he has been updating Nightsmokecomic.com with the continuing story of David, a teenager who moves to a new city with his parents and just wants to fit in.

Subsequently, Drummond has decided it was time to take the plunge and launch this project on Kickstarter, in order to raise the necessary funding to produce a printed version of his first volume. With only a few days left to go, his project has been very well received and he has exceeded his pledge target.

Scott was good enough to take the time to talk to us about NIGHTSMOKE :

AP2HYC: Congratulations on blowing your Kickstarter pledge limit out of the water for NIGHTSMOKE, what, with only days to go! What initially led you to consider the crowdsourcing option?

Scott Drummond: Thanks! It’s been great! I’ve been thinking about doing a Kickstarter for NIGHTSMOKE since the beginning. I think it’s a great way to get startup funding for indie comics, especially ones that have already been written and illustrated. I’m a big believer that backers should get something for their pledge, so I wanted to wait until I had enough of the story finished to do the first book.

AP2HYC: “Awkward teenagers, bad decisions and accidental superpowers!” A heady mix indeed, as stated on your Kickstarter page. What inspired you to set about telling this story in the first place?

Drummond: I’ve loved superhero comics for as long as I remember, always drawing my favorite characters and making up some of my own. I got out of it for a while, focusing on comic strips and illustration, but felt compelled to get back and do what I’ve always wanted to do: make up a new superhero and tell some stories about him. I started the script for National Novel Writing Month in November of 2011 and haven’t looked back since.

AP2HYC: Would you mind telling us a little about the world of NIGHTSMOKE and the characters therein?

Drummond: Sure! NIGHTSMOKE is set in a modern day big city (think New York), where superheroes don’t really exist. The story follows David, a shy high schooler who moves there with his mom and dad, as he tries to find his place in his new surroundings. He meets Mariana, who is a bit more of a trouble-making risk-taker, and, well, I guess you’ll just have to read it to find out more.

Nightsmoke Two

AP2HYC: When devising NIGHTSMOKE, who have you considered you’re addressing and what would you suggest is its appeal?

Drummond: This is going to sound sort of terrible, but really it’s for me. There are so many comics with niche, this-meets-that or gritty premises; I really just wanted to make a book that was a classic style comic story for the modern era, because that’s what I like. I figured that if I enjoyed it, hopefully others would, too.

AP2HYC: You clearly love the medium of comic book story-telling? Which comics and creators have particularly inspired you?

Drummond: I grew up on [Mark] Bagley’s run of Amazing Spider-Man. His stuff blew my mind and continues to this day. Brian Michael Bendis‘ real, conversational writing style is top notch, so their Ultimate Spider-Man is one of my favorite books ever. The new Hawkeye from Matt Fraction and David Aja has recently made me redouble my efforts to think through all the decisions that go with layout and presentation. I love Jamie McKelvie‘s clean line style on Young Avengers. There are so many influences; I couldn’t possible say them all!

AP2HYC: Is adopting this funding format likely to have any impact on how you’ll be producing NIGHTSMOKE in the future?

Drummond: I doubt it. The plan has always been the same. Make the best book I possibly can, and hopefully people enjoy it. It seems to be working pretty well, so I’ll probably do something similar when Volume Two is ready to print.

AP2HYC: Why should people continue to back the project if the goal has been met?

Drummond: For the cool stuff! There’s a Kickstarter-exclusive print available for the Kickstarter and you can get a sketched in book, too! This stuff isn’t going to be around forever, ya know.

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AP2HYC: This being “NIGHTSMOKE: Volume One”, do you already have set plans for subsequent instalments?

Drummond: Oh yeah. I’ve got the next one written already and am thumb nailing out all the pages. I have a third one in mind for after that, too. I think this concept has some legs. It’s going to be a lot of fun.

AP2HYC: Is there anything else you would like readers to know?

Drummond: Just that they should head over to the Kickstarter to check it out before it’s too late! There’s everything from digital wallpapers to hand delivered marker sketches, so I’m sure you’ll find something you like!

 

Without going into unnecessary detail, I recommend that at the very least, you take a few seconds to review Scott’s work. It really does look rather good. You can take a peek at NIGHTSMOKE or go support his Kickstarter!

About the author

Patrick Smith