Before he started on his cannibal cop series, Chew, published by Image Comics, which has won two Eisner Awards and two Harvey Awards, comic writer John Layman had a range of different ideas revolving around food.
“I had everything from a Chicken Flu outlaw to a Cannibal and a woman who could write about food that you could taste by reading. They all seemed like gags that couldn’t sustain a series,” recalls John who was in town as part of the Bengaluru Comic Con.
“Then I realised that if I could mine all of them, I would have a rich tapestry. There are so many aspects to food. Suddenly it became limitless.”
Chew, which ran from 2009 to 2016, revolves around a USFDA (United States Food and Drug Administration) agent who has ‘psychic impressions’ from all kinds of food, including humans.
“I don’t have any big messages. I don’t want to horrify people, I don’t want to preach to them. At the end of the day, I just want readers to have fun, laugh and care about the characters, maybe break their hearts a little. But mostly, I want to entertain them.”
He describes his creative process as ‘terrible’ and ‘subconscious’.
“When I am writing, I go to bed every night thinking about the possibilities for my next scene. I half sleep, dream about it and work it out in my head. Then I jump up at around four or five am and type it. And I am exhausted by ten am. I do this for over a week, until I finish an issue. Then I play video games like a zombie for a few days, to recharge. I don’t recommend this process, it takes a lot out of you.”
Over the years, John, who has worked with some of the biggest names in the comic world from DC to Marvel, says says he has become more confident as a writer and has found his voice. He has also become more clear about his interests.
“I don’t write anything that I don’t want to read. I am fortunate that I have done well enough in my career that I don’t have to accept a project I am not passionate about. This makes for better comics,” he explains.
“A lot depends on the artist. When it comes to finding an artist to collaborate with, it’s almost like dating. Once you find the right artist, it’s a marriage. And not all marriages are perfect, but you learn to work with others and write for yourself.” He believes that luck and hard work play an important role in the life of a successful comic writer.
“There’s a lot of heartbreak along the way. People think they are going to get rich and 99 per cent of them don’t. You have to do it for love, if you are doing it for money, you are going to get hurt. But if you do it for love, just to be creative, that’s the way you are going to find fulfilment and happiness as a comic writer.”
He observes that India is the biggest emerging market for English comics because, as the Indian ‘middle class’ grow, a lot of them are finding hobbies that are ‘nerdy’.
“At the Delhi Comic Con, I felt like I was watching an explosion of Indian nerd-dom. It’s great because you realise that fandom is the same around the world. The nerds are all one big, universal family.”
What makes comics so popular, according to him, is that they are deeply relatable. And comics are here to stay.
“A picture does convey a thousand words. You can sit down with a comic and experience a new world, a new story and you get to know characters from all walks of life,” he explains.
“In the future, I think comics are going to get bigger, more accepted. When I was a kid, nerds used to get beaten up for their lunch money. Now they rule the world, even the world of entertainment. Comics are now being made into movies, television series and video games. I can’t predict what’s next, perhaps virtual reality. Who knows?”
But what he loves most about it, are that these characters who can touch people’s lives.
“It is deeply fulfilling to know that someone cares about a story you made. I also get to travel the world because I got lucky with a successful book. I am in India now, six months ago I was in Israel and in South Africa. I love travelling, meeting new people.”