Wednesday, June 30, 2010

9 Years Ago From Today....

I created my story of stories! Growing up, I've always had an insane imagination - and when ever I had 'down-time' in my mind, I made up stories. It all started with a super hero universe, then a twisted take on fairy tales, high societal gangsters from the 30's, a cross-country vampire caper, a Greek tragedy, and finally, the culmination of every story I ever made up in my head: Skyscraper.I first came up with the idea for Skyscraper when I saw the The Godfather in 2001 (yes, I came to the party late). I wanted in on the action and decided to create my own version of the beloved movie. Around the same time, I was also enamored by the art of Franz Marc. His paintings hearkened me back to the twisted fairy tales I made up in High School about Prince Charming's adventures in hooking up with all those princesses you see in Disney films. It seemed natural for me to make an Art Deco Fairy-Tale about a guy named Charming coming into a big city filled with wolves, gangsters, jesters, and mimes, and his desire to conquer the underbelly of it. On June 30, 2001, I finally decided, instead of just building stories in my head that would start writing things down.

I ended up writing an entry a day for 7 years. There were a ton of breaks in between, but eventually I reached a staggering 1000 entries. I realized I created a mythology! With an arsenal like that, I was ready to write a novel! - in comic book form.
So, starting in August, the first issue of Skyscraper will be available to the public. It can be very exciting to see a creation go from this:


to this:


to this:


and finally coming out in August...this:


Also - I'll be writing the original entries in every day. It's fun saying 'knowing what I know now today could have really helped in the past'. Since I'm writing a comic that is essentially based on these old entries, I have the ability to make tweaks and modifications to what I originally wrote. It's the closest I'll ever get to going back in time!

The Original Skyscraper #1 - 6/30/01

Once upon a time, there was a young man who lived in a quiet suburban surrounding. His name was Johannes Charming. One day Charming decided to leave his comfortable setting in search for adventure in the sprawling metropolis known as Sevick City. Sebastian Rose, Charming’s bulky best friend gives Charming a place to stay in the spare room of his penthouse. Although Sebastian Rose is rich, no really knows how he amassed his wealth.