I had just put myself in serious debt, and most anyone I told how thought that I was some moron. But by doing so, I had managed to convince one of my favorite artists to draw a pin-up that I could publish in my comic.
At this point, after meeting him a couple times, sharing my work, and exchanging some emails, maybe I felt that we were closer friends than we were (since we weren’t friends at all). Isn’t it interesting when you feel you know people like this so well, because you’re so intimate with their work, and in some ways, you really do get to know them that way. But you’re just a stranger to them. They don’t know you at all.
But I was feeling cocky and sure. I had learned, in the process of buying his pages, that he was drawing his pages on 9″x12″ paper. This is considerably smaller than the industry standard 11″x17″. That’s interesting, don’t you think? I also deduced that the reason he had switched to this size was as a means of getting work out more regularly, so that he’d have more books under his belt for his fans to enjoy. I deduced this because he had told me at San Diego that he had been looking for ways to streamline his production. I also knew he’d seen Bruce Timm’s original work, which was smaller, and which he found very impressive and awe-inspiring, to be able to encapsulate so much energy into such small pages.
So I posted a new public note on his message board, saying I knew that he worked small, and would he care to talk about why he worked this size. I knew he would see the post, and assumed he would be absolutely tickled by what I considered my wry little in-joke with him, and then write something interesting, to enlighten his fan base. The fans would enjoy the intimate, unique info, and I really was interested in learning about his creative process, and I thought everyone would get a kick out of it, all around, all thanks to my cute little inquiry.
With my other posts to his message board, he had answered almost immediately. But this one never got a response. Finally I got a personal email from him saying the pin-up was done and he’d mail it. But as a side note, he asked that I please DO NOT talk about or publicly post his process of art-making.
I was really shocked. First of all, I didn’t think it was a big deal if people knew he was working smaller. But mostly, I had just gotten scolded by one of my favorite artists in the industry. What a shameful feeling. It gave me a stomach-ache, and I couldn’t stop worrying about it.
I wrote back and apologized profusely, and assured him I wouldn’t do it anymore. I pointed out I didn’t think asking about it was a big deal.
He responded, and made me feel much better. He said that he considers his comics a sort of magic-making, and he doesn’t like to give away his “tricks.” He likes to keep it magical for his readers. He admitted that if people ask the questions, he’s happy to offer the information, he just doesn’t like to ruin it for anyone who wouldn’t want to know, or think to know. Fair enough.
His pin-up, along with all the original art, was the first pin-up I received. Getting the package in the mail felt like Christmas back in elementary school, when I still felt excited about things, When things were exciting and important. I opened it, and he had filled the box with Atomics notepads and stickers, and a Madman action figure, as well as a hardcover Madman gallery and some comics! What a package! I pulled out the art, and the pin-up was right on top, and it was gorgeous! I was surprised by the smaller size, but really pleased with the image. I couldn’t believe he drew Madman in the pin-up. I thought to myself, my book is going to have Madman in it! Wow!
Soon after, Mike posted on his website that he was officially announcing his intention to try and sell artwork, but only full issues. He said as soon as he made the decision, one of his fans already bought a full issue, and I proudly realized that was me! What a celebrity I had become! So I was using him by buying his art to get a pin-up, and he was using me to show there was a demand for his artwork. Happy to oblige!
Last thing I want to mention is that, reading these posts, you may have noticed the irony, my writing about the size of his artwork and my promises not to do just that. Well a few months after what I call my “shaming,” someone else publicly asked about Mike’s art process in an interview, and he went into great detail about how he works in a smaller size with a smaller brush, and he defies anyone to try and figure out which of his pages he did smaller, and which pages were larger. And this he unapologetically linked from his website. So he shared his secret process first!