Meet the Author: Josh Elder
A graduate of Northwestern University with a degree in Film, Josh spent several years successfully avoiding gainful employment until 2005 when Mail Order Ninja won the grand prize in Tokyopop's Rising Stars of Manga contest.
The first volume of the Mail Order Ninja graphic novel series was released a year later to great acclaim from his close friends and immediate family. Someone else must have liked it too, as Mail Order Ninja was soon picked up as a syndicated comic strip in over 45 newspapers - including the LA Times, Denver Post and Boston Globe. The series has garnered rave reviews from numerous sources, including The Chicago Sun-Times, Time Out Chicago and The School Library Journal where it was named one of the 25 best graphic novels for children.
Josh's other works include several issues of the DC Comics' all-ages action/adventure title The Batman Strikes, the romantic comedy graphic novel Love Bytes for Platinum Studios and numerous stories for the StarCraft: Frontline anthology series based on the best-selling videogame for Tokyopop. He has also worked as an associate editor at Wizard magazine and written freelance graphic novel reviews for the Chicago Sun-Times.
When not writing, Josh plays an important role in Kids Love Comics, a non-profit group that promotes literacy using comics, graphic novels and manga. He gives numerous lectures and organizes dozens of workshops at schools, libraries and universities all over the country on the organization's behalf. Recently he was hired as a consultant for the Indianapolis Children's Museum, the largest museum of its kind in the world with over 1.2 million annual visitors.
Still, he takes the most pride in his position as Chief Awesomeness Officer of the American Awesomeness Association and keeper of the master list of All Things Awesome. It is, as one would expect, quite awesome.
Josh lives in the small, Midwestern town of Chicago, Illinois and can be found online at www.joshelder.com.
Q&A with Josh Elder
A graduate of Northwestern University with a degree in Film, Josh spent several years successfully avoiding gainful employment until 2005 when Mail Order Ninja won the grand prize in Tokyopop's Rising Stars of Manga contest.
The first volume of the Mail Order Ninja graphic novel series was released a year later to great acclaim from his close friends and immediate family. Someone else must have liked it too, as Mail Order Ninja was soon picked up as a syndicated comic strip in over 45 newspapers - including the LA Times, Denver Post and Boston Globe. The series has garnered rave reviews from numerous sources, including The Chicago Sun-Times, Time Out Chicago and The School Library Journal where it was named one of the 25 best graphic novels for children.
Q: What started your love of comics and what made you want to become a comic creator?
A: When I was four, my mother was reading to me an issue of "Transformers." About halfway through, she lost her voice. This was completely unacceptable, Optimus Prime was in a lot of trouble and I had to make sure he'd get out of it okay. Since I could already follow the story through the pictures, I just had to look up all the words I didn't know. And within a week, I was reading.
Comics opened the world of literature to me, and they've been a huge part of my life ever since. As I grew older, I also grew to appreciate how comics were more than just Pow! Biff! and Bam! (not that there's anything wrong with that). There's also the subtle interplay of words and pictures and a unique visual vocabulary unmatched in any other medium. The works of good cartoonists speak to me in ways no poet, novelist or filmmaker can match. After being so moved, how could I not want to create comics of my own that would in turn move others?
Comics have been very good to me, and now I want to be good to them.
Q: What is your favorite thing about working in comics? Any memorial experiences or stories you want to share?
A: I wake up everyday excited to go to work. I'm doing exactly what I've always wanted to do with my life, and I'm creating work that people enjoy. Kids approach me all the time telling me how much they love "Mail Order Ninja" and that's just 31 flavors of awesome.
It's also pretty cool to be able to write off all my comic purchases as job-related research expenses. It's every nerd's dream, really. Well, that and having a working lightsaber.
But my best experience - and the one that convinced me I was doing exactly what I should be in life - was when I was on a train in New York coming home after a convention. A fight broke out and a number of small children narrowly escaped serious injury. This left the children frightened, confused and bawling their eyes out. So I did the only thing I could think of - I gave them all copies of my comics left over from the show. The waterworks stopped almost instantly as they immersed themselves in the same four-color world that had sheltered me through many a storm in my own childhood.
That's the power of comics - and that's why I'm proud to say I make them.
Q: How have kids reacted to your series Mail Order Ninja? Is it rewarding working with kids? Are there major differences between writing for kids and writing for adults or teens?
A: Kids have responded in a big way. The book is already in its 3rd printing and hopefully there shall be many more. The reason I think they respond so well is that I don't write down to them. I don't include inappropriate content, but I also don't insult their intelligence. Like the Looney Tunes, I try to write material that's just as entertaining (albeit it in different ways) when you're 10 as when you're 40.
Pixar is the most successful movie studio in Hollywood because they make movies that everyone can enjoy. My goal is to do the same with my comics.
Q: What are some of your favorite books and writers?
A: There are so many… My favorite novelist is Frank Herbert, author of "Dune." I first encountered him as a teenager and he's the one author who most inspired me to become a writer myself. He created a fictional world that felt as real as the one I lived in everyday. I've been following his example ever since.
In the world of comics, I'm primarily influenced by cartoonists who push the boundaries of the form and clearly have a great time doing it. Creators like Alan Moore, Grant Morrison, Frank Miller, Jeff Smith, Otomo, Jim Gownley and many, many more.
Q: 5. Do you have any advice for kids or teens who want to someday work in comics?
A: First, imbibe as many stories as you can. Whether they be on film, in novels or comics - just get out there and absorb everything. Then figure out what you like and what you dislike. Then dissect those stories to find out why. Then you'll be ready to start telling stories of your own.
Also, you have a lot of bad stories in you - write and draw as much you can to get them all out of the way as soon as possible.
Most important is to tell stories for yourself first and foremost. If you want to be rich and famous, there are far more effective ways of doing that than creating comics. If you want to tell stories that you can be proud of, then you're on the right path.
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