The subject of technology and the arts is one I’ve always had a vested interest in, from making fanzines on copiers when I was in high school to connecting with people through the internet on blogs and the other opportunities the internet can offer up to artists. But with those opportunities for artist to grow and shine, technology has also always been a double edged sword for the artist and the consumer also with pirating hitting artists and consumer fraud for those purchasing the works of artists. I hope to get a better understanding from this series of what is being felt on the subject not just by me but by others. I also hope you enjoy reading these interviews as much as I have as they have come into my inbox.
With this interview I get answers from Lea Hernandez
Lea Hernandez is a twenty-plus years comics veteran who has published in traditional print and led the charge to publish comics on the web. Her graphic novel series include Texas Steampunk, the tart pop satire Rumble Girls (the first print comic series to move to the web) and the 90% true Near-Life Experience. Her comic, "Ribbons Undone" was part of the Eisner and Harvey Award-winning "Comic Book Tattoo" anthology.
She is currently writing and drawing a new middle-grades series, "The Garlicks," and publishes "Near-Life Experience" weekly-ish at divalea.livejournal.com. She also does lots of work hidden deep under layers of non-disclosure agreements.
Lea is a single mom of two teenagers, and lives in San Antonio, Texas.
QUESTIONS FOR LEA HERNANDEZ
-Hi Lea! Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to talk to answers some questions! I will try to keep these short but cover as much as we can. With your work with Rumble Girls in mind do you believe things are headed in the right direction for artists when it comes to technology?
-I have enjoyed viewing some of The DivaLea Shows you have done. What made you decide to do this?
*It's the kind of thing I like to watch: someone's drawing process with smartassery. I love commentary tracks and making of documentaries and short subjects.
-Have you ever gone the pdf route or considered doing so with your work? Any big reasons for or against? This is my preferred way of getting my work out but I know others have problems with going that way.
Let's turn this around: why do you prefer PDFs? Ease of reading? (Not having to click endlessly through online archives.) Ease of distribution?
-I prefer PDFs because one, you can get a large amount of materials out there pretty quickly. Another is the money you can save. The only thing I spend money on is for cover artists and editors and then share profits with LuLu who I publish my PDFs through.
The main reason I started in the begining releasing stuff as PDF was during a time when I was sending free short stories and poetry collections to friends by email. The PDFs could be read on most computers without screwing up my formatting.
The main reason I’m doing it now to be honest is because I’m still learning the craft. I handled my learning disability and the diffcultity it gave me when it came to writing with anger for years and that slowed my progress down. If I had thought my first book was good enough I would have tried print publishing but it wasn’t. When my 2nd book is full and complete I will look it over also and make a decision but as long as I’m inproving and getting better that is my biggest goal. PDFs and internet release lets me release projects as my learning process keeps going, get feedback, and it not cost me tons of money…which I don’t have anyways.
Isn’t it great no one wants to interview me, I just ramble.
-With piracy issues for every form of art when it comes to technology at large and what seems to be a twisted view by some that all things should be free do you think the pros will out run the cons when it comes to the effects of technology and the arts?
OTOH, creators need to, as much as possible, identify the people who steal their work because their books are hard to find, to get readers to buy online, get from libraries, buy at shows.
Comickers are in a position to have more direct contact with their audience than prose writers. It's a business that has a lot of hand-selling. So, it's easier to follow this route. By which I mean other than comics and Cory Doctorow, I may be talking right out of my ass.
-Here is my off the wall questions. Is technology like Twitter helping more artists or hurting them?
It can be another excellent online procrastination tool, like web forums, and newsgroups and AOL and Compuerve...
On the whole, I find it fun and it's wonderful and there's an instant gratification that helps motivate creators who usually work in a vacuum. It's a great way to connect. I am fascinated by the way it's shaping lives and events in its tiny bites.
-Anything you want to promote?
*I'll be appearing at MangaNEXT (http://manganext.org/) as a guest, likely running a workshop on story conception, and a panel that is unlike anything done at an anime/manga convention.
I'm currently writing and drawing an all-new middle-grades comic, The Garlicks. Think a supernatural "Romona and Beezus."
I also put up a sketchnote comic, "Near-Life Experience" once a week-ish at divalea.livejournal.com. NLEx has been running off and on since 2003. It debuted with the launch of Modern Tales.
-Thanks Lea, and again Thank You for taking part in this series and answering these questions.
The next Interview in this series will be posted on October 22 as I ask Damon Ford questions about art and technology.
And as always support your local comic book store, Mine is Famous Faces And Funnies
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