Interview: Comic Creator K. Lynn Smith

I've been going to a lot of comic conventions recently, and it's given me a great respect for the challenges of the medium.

Naturally, you meet a ton of people at an event like this. And many of those people have stories they're trying to sell. Some ideas sound great in a pitch, so much so that you drop $5 to buy the comic. But when you actually read it, you think, oh ... the writing of this wasn't nearly as good as the logline made it sound.

It's disappointing, but this happens frequently. You throw it in the trash and move on with your life.

Equally, there are some books where the storytelling is out of this world! The characters are rich, the world is vibrant, and the dialogue is top-notch! But ... the art doesn't grab your attention. The lines are uneven, and the panel design is not exciting. It's another instance where you put it down and lament what might have been had the creator been more skilled.

Comics is a medium where both skills need to be stellar for it to work. You must have talent with a pen AND a keyboard. You can’t have just one.

K. Lynn Smith is that comic creator. The rare one who can do both. She writes and draws equally well. SIDE NOTE: She's also an extremely talented colorist, but I wasn't going to mention that, because nobody likes someone who's good at everything [looking at you, Tom Brady].

I ran into her when I attended Planet Comic Con KC back in March. I was drawn to her table by some beautiful pet portraits she was showing off. I flipped through one of her books and was impressed by the art. I decided to buy it.

That night, I reached into the grab-bag of goodies from the show that I definitely spent wayyyyy too much money on and randomly picked out The House of Lowther. I decided to crack it open and read a couple chapters before bed ...

Y'all ... I read the whole thing. In one sitting. I couldn't put this book down.

The next day, I ran as fast as I could back to K. Lynn's booth and begged on my hands and knees to let me interview her for Pipeline Artists. She was gracious enough to make time in her busy schedule to hop on a Zoom call to talk shop:

Spike Scarberry (SS): Hi K Lynn! Thank you for taking the time to talk to me!

K. Lynn Smith (KLS): It’s my pleasure! Just make sure to take out all my ‘ums’ and ‘uhhhhs’ before this goes live.

SS: Don’t worry. My goal here is to make both of us sound smart.

KLS: Oh, thank God. (laughs)

SS: Alright, let's get started with a really basic question. Tell me how you got into comics.

KLS: I actually went to school to be an animator. I did film and video through Grand Valley State University out in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and I was gearing to be a storyboard artist or a character designer or something of that nature. I wanted to be a cog in that machine. Upon graduating, I learned that there were a lot of creative grants in Michigan. I was very hopeful that I would get a job at a studio somewhere, or, dare I say, Disney. But of course, all that dried up. The layoffs were happening. Continuously. Which meant jobs weren’t very plentiful. I decided to do my own thing. I started drawing and writing a comic and started posting it online.

SS: That’s so cool! Was making your own comic your first foray into the medium?

KLS: There were these Disney cartoon comics that I would see growing up, and I would buy those occasionally. But beyond that, I really didn't read comics. Animation was my real love. But yeah, I just started doing this web comic on the side, and the audience started growing and growing. And then someone was like, “Hey, I would like to get this in my hands. Can you bring it to print”? And so, I went through Kickstarter to raise the funds, and then it just started rolling from there. Suddenly people were giving me money for something I was giving away for free.

SS: That’s awesome. Obviously, you didn't start in comics, but would you say that there was a specific moment that kind of made you want to be in animation?

KLS: My earliest memories are with me having a pencil in my hand. I've always been the artist in the family. My parents knew I was going to go into art some way or another. And with my love of movies and animation in general, I just thought that would be the direction I would go in.

SS: Did you have a favorite Saturday morning cartoon growing up?

KLS: "Gargoyles." 100%

SS: Oh, good answer!!

KLS: I still have the VHS with the board game that came with it that you play. Oh my god, I ate that up. I actually have a Brooklyn figure that I have in my office. It was a big part of my childhood, for sure.

SS: Let’s shift gears and talk about your stories. When you're starting a new project, how does it take shape in your mind? Is it with something that you really want to draw, or a plot twist or a plot point? Which comes first?

KLS: It depends. Because there are stories that I really want to write, but I don't want to draw. And some I want to draw, but don’t want to write. You know, there's a lot of complicated stuff in my brain. (laughs)

The House of Lowther is my current series. And it was inspired in part by a lot of the movies I watched growing up. Don Bluth’s films were something I watched religiously. Secret of NIMH. All Dogs Go to Heaven. All those really cute but also dark movies, and The House of Lowther is me living out my Don Bluth dreams. Putting all these cryptids in a house together and making them weep.

SS: So, with Lowther, did it start with the werewolf character? Did you go, “I can draw Bigfoot, Moth Man, a werewolf (etc.) really well. Let me write a story with them in it.”  Or was it more about: “I want to tell this emotional story of personal strife and discovery. Let me learn to draw it.”

KLS: I just knew I wanted to involve cryptids. I guess the werewolf came a little later. All Dogs Go to Heaven is one of my favorite movies. And drawing Charlie B. Barkin was a small leap to drawing my type of Werewolf. It was just a matter of falling into the rabbit hole of cryptids and then where to place them. Because I love vintage stuff. So, I was like, “Okay, I'm gonna drop them into this early 1940s Gothic mansion—stuff just kinda rolled from there.

SS: Understanding that one of these takes longer than the other, do you feel like you work harder at writing or drawing? Do you feel more naturally talented at one or the other?

KLS: It's so strange to me because I'm trying to write long prose for a novel right now. And I get so hung up on everything! It'll take me a couple hours to have a chapter done writing long form. But yet I can write a script, if it's comic form, in no time because I know I can fill the gaps in later with art. So yes, writing is easy in the comic world, but hard in other mediums for me.

With that being said, drawing takes a lot longer. I love my comic writer friends, but they're always bragging, like, “oh yeah, I wrote four or five issues today. What did you do?” And all I can say is, “Well, I drew one page.”

SS: That’s gotta be demoralizing.

KLS: Yes, exactly.

SS: Tell us about your early career, just starting out. You were doing these web comics for free. What was the most challenging part of getting the web comic going?

KLS: My very first series was Plume. That was the web comic that just kind of paved the way for this career. And I did restart it maybe three or four times before finally telling myself, “Stop. Just keep going, no matter what.” Because it’s so easy to second guess yourself when you're new to the world, and you don't know what's going to work and what's not. And especially with it being a web comic, where people are along for the ride, and they’re actually following the story live. You don’t want to mess up.

So, for me, the toughest part about the early stages was constantly second guessing myself. Questioning everything. Eventually, I got over that hump. I wouldn't say it was smooth sailing after that, but it gets a lot easier. Seeing the reaction from fans really helps though.

SS: It sounds a little bit like you had some imposter syndrome, and like you didn't want to let these people down who were enjoying your story. Is that right?

KLS: Absolutely. And that's not past tense. That's continuous situation for me all the ways.

SS:  Talk a little about how you started to build your fan base. Was it really as easy as they would read Plume, and then subscribe to your social media pages?

KLS: At first, I was posting Plume onto SmackJeeves, which does not exist anymore. I'm so old that it's no longer a site. It was basically the very first Webtoons or Tapas. When I started, it was during its heyday, so I didn't struggle to find an audience. There were already people on that website looking for new stuff to read, and I just happened to land there at the perfect time, because my readership grew pretty rapidly. I got spotlit on the site, getting put on the front page. And I was on DeviantArt as well, and they spotlit me there, too. It was just happy happenstance.

Once the ball got rolling and things were growing, I started a site of my own, which I funneled everyone to. And then it just started growing more and more. At that point, I decided to travel to conventions and meet people in person, which really helped.

SS: It kind of sounds like being consistent is a real key in this business, trying to make sure that you're consistently delivering product for people to read, right?

KLS: Absolutely.

SS: That ties into the next question. Most of the people reading this are probably right at the start of their comic careers. What tips would you give to people jumping in at the very beginning that you wish you knew?

KLS: I always say, “Don't be a dick,” because you attract what you put out. If you cultivate an audience where people are pleasant and nice, and they're here to enjoy your stuff, you're doing it right. And I mean, maybe I'm just not big enough to where jerks are coming at me yet. And I hope it stays that way.

But more than that, what you just said about consistency is important. You don't have to wait for a “yes” from a publisher, or anything of that nature. If you have a large enough audience that like what you do, you can do it all on your own.

SS: As your career took shape, you had the chance to work for several publishers, including doing Garfield projects at BOOM! Studios. How did you get those opportunities, and how do they differ from your creator-owned work?

KLS: I was approached—I’m so lucky in that I have never reached out to a publisher to get work. They've always reached out to me. And it's not that I've never wanted to work with a publisher. It's just that what I was doing was working, so I didn’t have to. But when Jim Davis comes and knocks on your door, you're like, “Yes, I’ll draw the cat. I'll draw that cat all day!”

SS: How did they find you?

KLS: I think it might have been through Kickstarter. They saw my work and reached out because they needed someone for Garfield: His Nine Lives. There were multiple artists involved in that; they wanted different styles for each of his nine lives. I got the Egyptian one, and I jumped onboard. We all worked as a team.

I didn't have very much to do with anyone else on the project. Literally, I just got a script and that was it. They were super happy to have any kind of collaborative intake, but for the most part, I was on my own. I just drew it and handed it over.

SS: Kind of sounds like a dream, honestly.

KLS: Honestly, yeah, it was. It went super smooth. You love when a plan comes together like that.

SS: You've also been part of projects where you were just in charge of illustrating and not writing. What did you learn about yourself as a creative in that role, and does working on other people's stories impact how you approach your own?

KLS: It's interesting because in those situations you are trying to fulfill someone else's vision. And it’s tough because you want to be completely respectful of their desires. You don’t want to disappoint them. I feel the pressure when I'm doing another person's work.

And I mean, as an artist, you can see your flaws … I see my shortcomings much more in a collaborative work like that, because the nerves are there. You can see that I wasn't entirely comfortable because it wasn’t my story. But at the same time, some of the collaborative projects I’ve done are my favorites. So overall, I’d say it’s a much different dynamic.

There is a flip in your brain where you're just like, “Do good, do good, do good, do good.” And that's when you trip up.

SS: This question is as much for me as it is for the readers … you have been wildly successful at crowdfunding. I was looking at your Kickstarter history, and some of your books have been overfunded by several hundred times over … like 500% funded, which is insane! Do you have a “secret” to your success, and what tips would you give to newbies preparing for their first campaigns?

KLS: I’m going to go back to what I said earlier: just don’t be a dick. Seriously, be a good person. Be transparent in your campaigns, even when things go wrong … especially when things go wrong. That’s where the audience wants the truth and it’s better if you own up to a mistake.

Also, do your research. Know your shipping costs. Especially nowadays … those can skyrocket at a moment's notice.

Most importantly though, support other Kickstarters. When I check out a campaign, and I see this person has one project created and there's zero projects that they had supported, I'm like, “Scratch someone else's back first,” you know?

You don’t want it to seem like you’re just asking for a handout. You need to support other artists for sure.

SS: Fantastic advice. I love that.

Let’s talk about the practical nature of the work. How do you protect your creativity when comics become your job? Do you ever deal with burnout?

KLS: Oh my God, yes. I have artist friends who just ooze art. Like we go to a restaurant, and they're sitting there drawing. They draw the waitress while we're sipping coffee. They’re drawing constantly.

I’m not like that. I love my work to death, but I also need balance. So, my main advice would be this: let yourself breathe. Forgive yourself if you don’t get something done. A car needs to refuel … Planes need maintenance. And you need to sleep. Creativity comes from a well of life experience, so if you take a day just to walk around your neighborhood, or to consume another show, that’s refilling your well. Be kind to yourself.

SS: As a creator, where do you see the comic book landscape going in the next five years? What do you think you'll be thinking about for the rest of this decade?

KLS: I had a conversation at Kansas City Comic Con with somebody about this. It was a father and a daughter; he was a writer, and his daughter was the artist. They’re gearing up to launch their first series. And they were adorable. I love them. But we were chatting, and he was talking about how he sat in a class that was using A.I. to help write prompts for scripts. I cringed so hard when he said that. I'm really sad that an educator is using A.I. to teach something to potential creators. It's just doesn't compute. Like, I don't understand why someone would do that.

It applies to the art landscape, too. I've seen Kickstarter campaigns where it is clearly A.I. art, and it's gathered over $150,000 dollars in total! It just breaks my heart to see that. I think Kickstarter has definitely cracked down on it, which is good. But as much as I hate to say it, I think the pendulum is going to swing to where we see a lot of A.I.-generated stuff.

The good news though is that I think once we reach that peak, we’ll eventually realize that it's completely lifeless. Which will cause it to swing back the other way. Back to hand-drawn, human-created art. That’s my gut.

SS: I had a very strong suspicion this was where the A.I. talk would come up. But, I mean, I feel like you're probably correct.

Alright, we're gonna end on two fun questions, and I think I know the answer to this one: if you had the ability to adapt any IP into a comic, what would you pick and why?

KLS: "Gargoyles"! But they already did it. So, assuming I can’t pick that, I’d say the UNCHARTED series. I love videogames like The Last of Us, Red Dead Redemption, along with Uncharted—those are my top three. Absolutely love them. But if I had my pick: give me Nathan Drake. Give me Nathan Drake all day long.

SS: Last question, what is the most memorable interaction you've ever had with a fan?

KLS: At shows, I do pet portraits quite a bit, and I often get requests to draw dead animals. I love these jobs because I feel like I'm honoring their memory, which is absolutely amazing. But once I hand over the portrait, and the girl takes it, and she's looking at it, and she starts crying. And I reach out, and I'm like, “oh my God, is the dog, you know, passed? “And she looks at me, completely teary-eyed, and goes, “No, he's just at home. And I miss him so much!!

SS: Oh my god!!

KLS: Right?? That one sticks with me. I don't know why it's such a small moment, but that's hilarious. Because I was thinking, “Am I gonna have to, like, pick this person up off the floor??” Thankfully I didn’t. (laughs)

SS: So, if people want to get you to draw pictures of their dead pet, should they reach out on your website?

KLS: Yes!