Frequently Asked Questions

Where are you from?
I grew up in Lutz (rhymes with boots, not butts), Florida, a rural suburb of Tampa.

Did you go to art school?
No and Yes. For undergrad, I went to the University of South Carolina, where I studied criminology and criminal justice. For various requirements, I took a fundamentals of art class, a manga production class, and many many theatre performance classes.
I later received my Master’s degree in cartooning from The Center for Cartoon Studies. An art school, yes, but storytelling via comics was the focus over technique.

How long have you been making comics?
I’ve been drawing for practically my whole life, but I think I made my first paneled comic around 7th/8th grade for a book report on The High King by Lloyd Alexander. In high school and college I drew comic strips and illustrations for my school’s student newspapers.

Inking with a brush is hard… how do you do it?
It IS hard! I used tech pens for a very long before switching to a brush. I kept noticing more and more artists whose worked I loved, like Becky Cloonan, Faith Erin Hicks and Jeff Smith, and I wanted that line quality for my work. I just started practicing when I was gearing up to draw my webcomic, Luminoso. I decided to use a brush for that whole project in the hopes that I would improve and learn the technique as I went. And I did! I learned so much by just forcing myself to use it for all of my inking always.
In the middle of creating pages for Luminoso, I also met Jeff Smith, so I picked his brain about using a brush and he said: just commit to using it and one day it will click. Jeff is wise.
I inked Scullion and A-Okay mostly with Raphael 8404 brushes, sizes #1-3, with Platinum carbon ink on Strathmore 300/400 series smooth bristol board or mixed media paper.

Do you make a living from your work?
Technically, yes (this is a recent development), however, I have a part-time job that I love that gives my life structure, financially and schedule-wise, so I am not a full-time cartoonist.

Are you open for commissions?
Unfortunately my book projects are my primary focus at the moment, so I am unable to take on commissions or work on spec.

I’ve heard you help with coloring…will you help me color or flat my graphic novel?
Possibly! Depending on my schedule, I take on a few flatting/color assisting jobs every year. Feel free to contact me via my about page.

Will you draw my comic/graphic novel?
I mostly write and draw my own original work, but I am open to working in collaboration. If you are a published writer or artist with credits to your name and you think we might work well together, you are welcome to contact me to gauge my interest.
Official inquiries for book/graphic novel projects should be directed to my agent, Kelly Sonnack at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency.