Today I had a great time eating dinner and interviewing Anthony Fleecs, creator of the new comic “In My Lifetime”. We talked about life, school and his breakthrough comic as well as some of the new projects he’s working on. Go ahead read all about it below!

Michael: Where are you from?

Anthony: I’m from Baltimore, Maryland.

Michael: What influences do you have?

Anthony: I started drawing because I liked Saturday morning cartoons. My style is cartooney because of that. I like Batman, Disney; DreamWorks' “Prince of Egypt” and “Road to El Dorado”.

Michael: What comics did you read as a kid?

Anthony: As a kid I read X-Men and the New Mutants. I liked Batman because of the movie. I also worked in a comic book store and read all the Image stuff, and then from Image I moved onto "Stray Bullets" and "Strangers in Paradise". After that I got into the black and white stuff. Frank Miller’s “Sin City” got me into it.

Michael: How about now?

Anthony: My favorite book every month is Powers. I read pretty much everything Brian Michael Bendis writes. Brian K. Vaughan, I like Joss Whedon’s Buffy and Angel. Warren Ellis I dig him a lot.

Michael: Who are some of your favorite writers?

Anthony: I like Brian Michael Bendis a lot, and old Frank Miller.

Michael: Artists?

Anthony: I like Arthur Adams, Bruce Timm, Billsien Kevich.  I like Gustav Klimt, Alphonse Mucha, and Al Hirchfeld.

Michael: What materials do you use to draw your comics? Pencil? Ink?

Anthony: I use blue line paper, professional size 11x17. Maurado Black Warrior, it’s like a black pencil, the eraser’s really good and it’s cheap. For ink I use a brush pen mostly. I make all my panel borders in the computer, and I use Photoshop for all the greyscales in my books.

Michael: I love the humor from your comic “In My Lifetime”.

Anthony: Thank You!

Michael: Can you tell me where you derive some of this from?

Anthony: I don’t take anything too seriously, and the comic is a true autobiographical story.   It’s about stuff that happens to me, and the way I perceive it, it’s funny.

Michael: How long did "In My Lifetime" take you to finish?

Anthony: It took me about a year altogether. Anyone who’s made a comic understands that it’s hard to find time in between to work on one.

Michael: I can definitely see that your storytelling and presentation throughout “In My Lifetime” is very well thought out and put together, did you learn a lot of these skills in art school?

Anthony: No, we didn’t have comics. Art school wasn’t really geared for comics, it was more towards animation. My storytelling is about trying to be as clear as possible without being boring.

Michael: Personally I see a little bit of Bruce Timm style in your art, which in turn was influenced by Jack Kirby, would you agree when I say that I see a Jack Kirby influence in your style?

Anthony: Yeah! I dig Jack Kirby. I like the Fantastic Four, and the first appearance of the Black Panther. I do a lot of Jack Kirby influenced commissions. I like the energy he has in his drawings, and I like the Kirby Krackle.

Michael: What’s the Kirby Krackle?

Anthony: It’s where he draws black dots around the fist or when he draws outer space. It’s all Kirby Krackly!

Michael: What are you working on right now and when can we expect to see it?

Anthony: Right now I’m working on the “Postcards” graphic novel. www.allyouleave.com

It’ll be coming out next year.

On “Superhero Happy Hour” I just finished 3 pages.

Michael: What’s it about?

Anthony: It’s about a bar where Superheroes hang out.

Michael: Is it funny?

Anthony: Yeah, it’s a comedy!

I’m also doing a book. It’s called “Unhappy White Girls” by Silent Devil. They published my other book, “In My Lifetime”, the writer is Christian Beranek.

I have a short horror story coming out that I did with Josh Fialkev, and that’s going to be in an anthology called Hellbroth and Hexes. After all that I’m still working on “In My Lifetime #2”

Michael: Cool! What else do you enjoy other that comics?

Anthony: I like movies a lot. I enjoy books and autobiographies. I like to see how somebody thinks of their own life. It’s all pretty normal stuff, nothing crazy. I don’t parachute or anything…

(Michael laughs)

Michael: Is there any advice you can give to aspiring cartoonists/artists out there?

Anthony: If you want to make comics, then make them! If you think you’re doing something good, then go forward! Press on with it! I don’t pretend to have any excellent advice I’m still new myself.

Michael: Lastly, I would love to tell you it’s been great interviewing you and I hope to read more of your comics in the near future.

Anthony: I’m looking forward to you guys reading them. Thanks for spotlighting my work, and thanks for buying me that hamburger.

Michael: It was a pleasure!

Go to www.SilentDevil.com and pick up “In My Lifetime #1”

And for more Anthony Fleecs check out his website www.FleecsDesign.com

More about Michael… http://www.comicbookbin.com/michaelstewart.html

Feedback? Comments? Michael@comicbookbin.com