Graphic novels are HUGE in my classroom, which is just one reason I was excited to enjoy the Fable Comics blog tour. Some of my students are familiar with fables, many are not. Having them in the graphic novel format makes them so much more accessible to my students and gives them a desire to learn more about other fables.
Today I'm excited to interview the author of one of the fables inside of Fable Comics, Roger Langridge. My questions are in purple, his answers follow. Enjoy!
What brought you to creating comics? Were you a comic reader as a child?
I essentially learned to read from the Disney Duck comics of Carl Barks, which my mother used to give to my brother and me when we would go on long car journeys in order to keep us quiet. I started reading comics then and I’ve never really stopped. When I was around six or seven years old, a teacher gave my class an art assignment to draw a comic strip. Most of my classmates drew a three- or four-panel strip, but I took the strip of paper we’d been given and covered it with 16 or 20 tiny panels on each side. I’d found my thing! From then on I never seriously considered doing anything else with my life.
What advice would you have for my students regarding writing and drawing?
Do a lot of it! Just be as productive as you can, because the best way to learn is by doing. And try to find the part of the process that is the most fun for you and build outwards from that, so that writing and drawing becomes the thing you most want to spend your time doing.
Are there any fables you remember as a kid? What did you make of them?
I’m sure I was exposed to them as a kid - I vaguely remember the one about the fox wanting a bunch of grapes - but I’m not sure they made a huge impression on me. Lots of interesting stories that I didn’t necessarily feel a great connection to, but which are useful to have rattling around in your noggin, because they’ve seeped into the wider culture so much. One of the wonderful things about the Fable Comics project is its mission to make these stories feel accessible!
How was working on an anthology different than working on your own project?
Obviously, it’s much shorter! I like working in anthologies, and on shorter pieces generally, because it gives me a chance to try things out (for example, new inking tools or coloring techniques) and see what happens in a way that would be much more risky in a longer project of my own, because if it all goes wrong in a longer project you’ve committed yourself to months of frustration and struggle. With a nice little two-pager like this, you’re in and out again. It’s like a refreshing dip!
Regarding your fable in Fable Comics, Demades and his Fable, how did you make the decision to tackle it? Was this a fable you were familiar with before this project?
The fable was assigned to me by editor Chris Duffy. I think, because I came on quite late in the day, it wasn’t so much that I chose this fable than that it was chosen for me; it might have been the only one that was left! I hadn’t heard of it before it was offered to me. I hope I understood the gist of it well enough and didn’t mangle it too badly. Chris didn’t write me an angry e-mail after I turned it in or anything, so I might have gotten away with it!
From the publisher:
From classics like “The Tortoise and the Hare” and “The Grasshopper and the Ants” to obscure gems like “The Frogs Who Desired a King,” Fable Comics has something to offer every reader. Twenty-eight fables from different cultures and traditions are wonderfully adapted and illustrated in comics format by twenty-six different cartoonists. Edited by New York Times bestselling Fairy Tale Comics’ Chris Duffy, this jacketed hardcover is a beautiful gift and an instant classic.
Fable Comics is:
James Kochalka and ‘The Fox and the Grapes’
Tom Gauld and ‘The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse’
George O’Connor and the ‘Hermes’ fables
Sophie Goldstein and ‘Leopard Drums Up Dinner’
Charise Harper and ‘The Belly and the Body Members’
R. Sikoryak and ‘Lion + Mouse’
Jennifer L. Meyer and ‘Fox and Crow’
Eleanor Davis and ‘The Old Man and Death’
Jaime Hernandez and ‘The Boy Who Cried Wolf’
Simone Lia and ‘The Crow and the Pitcher’
Graham Chaffee and ‘The Dog and His Reflection’
Maris Wicks and ‘The Dolphins, The Whales, and The Sprat’
Vera Brosgol and ‘The Hare and the Pig’
Kenny Widjaja and ‘The Demon, The Thief, and the Hermit’
Corinne Mucha and ‘The Elephant in Favor’
Liniers and ‘The Mouse Council’
Mark Newgarten and ‘Man and Wart’
Israel Sanchez and ‘The Milkmaid and Her Pail’
Ulises Farinas and ‘The Great Weasel War’
R.O. Blechman and ‘The Sun and the Wind’
Graham Annable and ‘The Hare and the Tortoise’
John Kerschbaum and ‘The Grasshopper and the Ants’
Braden Lamb and Shelli Paroline and ‘The Thief and the Watchdog’
Gregory Benton and ‘The Hen and the Mountain Turtle’
Roger Langridge and ‘Demades and His Fable’
Tom Gauld and ‘The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse’
George O’Connor and the ‘Hermes’ fables
Sophie Goldstein and ‘Leopard Drums Up Dinner’
Charise Harper and ‘The Belly and the Body Members’
R. Sikoryak and ‘Lion + Mouse’
Jennifer L. Meyer and ‘Fox and Crow’
Eleanor Davis and ‘The Old Man and Death’
Jaime Hernandez and ‘The Boy Who Cried Wolf’
Simone Lia and ‘The Crow and the Pitcher’
Graham Chaffee and ‘The Dog and His Reflection’
Maris Wicks and ‘The Dolphins, The Whales, and The Sprat’
Vera Brosgol and ‘The Hare and the Pig’
Kenny Widjaja and ‘The Demon, The Thief, and the Hermit’
Corinne Mucha and ‘The Elephant in Favor’
Liniers and ‘The Mouse Council’
Mark Newgarten and ‘Man and Wart’
Israel Sanchez and ‘The Milkmaid and Her Pail’
Ulises Farinas and ‘The Great Weasel War’
R.O. Blechman and ‘The Sun and the Wind’
Graham Annable and ‘The Hare and the Tortoise’
John Kerschbaum and ‘The Grasshopper and the Ants’
Braden Lamb and Shelli Paroline and ‘The Thief and the Watchdog’
Gregory Benton and ‘The Hen and the Mountain Turtle’
Roger Langridge and ‘Demades and His Fable’
Today is the last stop on the Fable Comics Blog Tour. Here is the complete tour schedule in case you'd like to go check out a post you missed:
SLJ Good Comics for Kids features Fable Comics editor Chris Duffy, 9/21http://blogs.slj.com/goodcomicsforkids/
Charlotte’s Library features James Kochalka and ‘The Fox and the Grapes,’ 9/22http://charlotteslibrary.blogspot.com/
Musings of a Librarian features Tom Gauld and ‘The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse,’ 9/23 http://musingsoflibrarian.blogspot.com/
Sharp Reads features George O’Connor and the ‘Hermes’ fables, 9/24https://sharpread.wordpress.com/
Fly to Fiction features Sophie Goldstein an ‘Leopard Drums Up Dinner,’ 9/25http://flytofiction.blogspot.com/
Supernatural Snark features Charise Harper and ‘The Belly and the Body Members,’ 9/26 http://supernaturalsnark.blogspot.com/
It’s All Comic to Me features R. Sikoryak and ‘Lion + Mouse,’ 9/27 http://itsallcomictome.blogspot.com/
Ex Libris Kate features Jennifer L. Meyer and ‘Fox and Crow,’ 9/28http://exlibriskate.com/
The Roarbots features Eleanor Davis and ‘The Old Man and Death,’ 9/29http://theroarbots.com/
Fleen features Jaime Hernandez and ‘The Boy Who Cried Wolf,’ 9/30 http://fleen.com/
The Book Monsters features Simone Lia and ‘The Crow and the Pitcher,’ 10/1http://thebookmonsters.com/
The Brain Lair features Graham Chaffee and ‘The Dog and His Reflection,’ 10/2http://www.thebrainlair.com/
Librarian in Cute Shoes features Maris Wicks and ‘The Dolphins, The Whales, and The Sprat,’ 10/3 http://librarianincuteshoes.blogspot.com/
Women Write About Comics features Vera Brosgol and ‘The Hare and the Pig,’ 10/4http://womenwriteaboutcomics.com/
The Busy Librarian features Kenny Widjaja and ‘The Demon, The Thief, and the Hermit,’ 10/5 http://www.busylibrarian.com/
The Book Rat features Corinne Mucha and ‘The Elephant in Favor,’ 10/6http://www.thebookrat.com/
Read. Watch. Connect features Liniers and ‘The Mouse Council,’ 10/7http://mrschureads.blogspot.com/
Cherry Blossoms and Maple Syrup features Mark Newgarten and ‘Man and Wart,’ 10/8https://innocencewalker.wordpress.com/
Jenuine Cupcakes features Israel Sanchez and ‘The Milkmaid and Her Pail,’ 10/9http://jenuinecupcakes.blogspot.com/
Bumbles & Fairy Tales features Ulises Farinas and ‘The Great Weasel War,’ 10/10http://bumblesandfairytales.blogspot.com/
Graphic Policy features R.O. Blechman and ‘The Sun and the Wind,’ 10/11http://graphicpolicy.com/
The Book Wars features Graham Annable and ‘The Hare and the Tortoise,’ 10/12https://thebookwars.wordpress.com/
Sturdy for Common Things features John Kerschbaum and ‘The Grasshopper and the Ants,’ 10/13 http://www.sturdyforcommonthings.com/
Kid Lit Frenzy features Braden Lamb and Shelli Paroline and ‘The Thief and the Watchdog,’ 10/14 http://www.kidlitfrenzy.com/
Maria’s Melange features Gregory Benton and ‘The Hen and the Mountain Turtle,’ 10/15http://www.mariaselke.com/
Read Write Reflect features Roger Langridge and ‘Demades and His Fable,’ 10/16http://readwriteandreflect.blogspot.com/
