Broken Frontier

Last month marked the first installment of what is shaping up to be one of the finer post-cataclysmic titles out there. Wasteland takes place 100 years after the world has been decimated by a global warming-enhanced flood known as “the Big Wet.” The series follows along as citizens Abi and Michael traverse the wilderness.

BROKEN FRONTIER: What do you think of the response Wasteland has received?

ANTHONY JOHNSTON: It's wonderful. Honestly, I'm kind of surprised it's been as well-received as it has. Wasteland is a very personal work for me, and I'm being accordingly selfish in the way I write it - the only person I'm trying to please is myself. If other people like it too, obviously that's great, but that's not my main concern when I'm actually writing the story. So having a large number of people connect to the book is very gratifying.

BF: How did the series come about? Where did the idea of Wasteland come from?

AJ: Well, it's a very old idea - it started in the back of my mind about fifteen years ago, in fact, so the details are a bit hazy. What I do know is that in the mid to late '80s, global warming became an international talking point, and the notion that sea levels might rise catastrophically was introduced to the global consciousness for the first time.

I've been fascinated by that idea, and the possibility of other environmental disasters, ever since. The vast majority of humanity's principal communities, especially older ones, are very close to sea level because of our reliance on water. Even a rise of just fifteen meters in sea levels would destroy something like 80 per cent of the world's modern cities. It's mind-blowing.

So the original idea was just a simple post-global warming book. But I wasn't writing fiction at the time I had the idea, so I shelved it and expected to forget about it completely. Except it wouldn't stop resurfacing; it's been bubbling away in the back of my head for the past decade and a half.

Finally, when Oni and I started talking about doing an ongoing series, it came to mind again and I figured it was about time I got this story out of my head. So I started seriously looking at what I wanted to do. The original premise has changed considerably, of course. It's now a sprawling, epic mystery, more complex and multilayered than before, and with more going on than 'just' global warming. But the basic idea is still the same as it was fifteen years ago.

BF: Will we see any of the pre-"Big Wet" world in the book?

AJ: Yes, eventually. I can't say any more than that.

BF: Have we seen the entire cast, or are there anymore major players yet to be introduced?

AJ: There are more characters to be seen. We'll have met most of the major players, at least for a while, by issue #6. But there are some we won't encounter for some time beyond that, and many more minor players to meet along the way.

BF: You have a finite ending to Wasteland, how many issues do you think are required to tell the full tale?

AJ: In total, probably something like 50. That's a rough estimate; I have the ending mapped out, but exactly how long it'll take to get there could change up or down along the way. If everything goes to plan we'll run for about five years.

BF: You've mentioned having maps drawn for the world, can we expect any kind of atlas or handbook to the world in the future?

AJ: It's something I've considered, yes, but not in the near future. Possibly not even until the book's finished. I don't want to give any of the surprises away!

BF: At the end of the first issue, you have a "story of the new earth". Is
that a feature that will continue through future issues?

AJ: Walking The Dust will be a regular part of Wasteland through at least the first six issues. I may continue it beyond that, but I haven't decided for sure yet. It's a good way to show people a different perspective of life after the Big Wet, and I enjoy writing it, so the chances are good. And I like to think that it and the letters column give the serial issues extra value for money to regular readers, because they're exclusive content - neither will be collected in the trade paperbacks.

BF: Is there any special process you go through to get in the proper mindset to write the book?

AJ: Listen to a lot of heavy metal! I'm only half-joking, but the truth is I don't really need to get into a 'zone' for Wasteland. It's been in the back of my mind for fifteen years, it's practically my default setting by now.

But I really do listen to a lot of heavy metal.

BF: How are things going with artist Christopher Mitten? What do you think of his work?

AJ: I absolutely love it, and things are going very well. Chris was my first and only choice for Wasteland. His style is perfect for the feel of the book, very gritty and harsh, but also very clear. And he's a great collaborator - very accommodating while remaining very creative. His storytelling is second to none.

BF: What are your opinions of working with Oni? How did that relationship come about?

AJ: I was originally introduced to Oni via Warren Ellis, who knew I was looking for a publisher that wouldn't dismiss true mainstream, non-superhero ideas out of hand. I'd wanted to work with them ever since I got back into comics in 1998, so when I finally got in touch with Jamie S. Rich, I just fired pitch after pitch at him until eventually there was something he liked. That turned out to be Three Days in Europe.

Oni is an ideal publisher for someone like me who doesn't really care about genre labels, because neither do they. All they care about is a good story, which is music to my ears.

BF: You designed theWastelandwebsiteyourself, is there any planned integration between the website and the book?

AJ: That depends what you mean by integration. The website is all supplementary, and nothing on it is essential to enjoying the book. If you never visit the website, you're not missing anything vital; you'll still get a hundred per cent out of the comic. On the other hand, if you're already a reader and want to dig a little bit deeper, then the website is there for you.

It's also a good promotional tool, to both attract new readers and give existing readers a resource to draw on if they feel the need. It's working very well, I think.

BF: You're a self-proclaimed music lover, how has music influenced Wasteland? What are you currently listening to?

AJ: I answered this very question on the website last month, actually...! Music is a big influence on me in general, but with Wasteland it goes far beyond anything I've done before. Story titles, references in the dialogue and text, even a couple of story points are inspired by songs... The book's full of these little references and influences. If you don't get them, it won't matter; if you do, it's pretty cool.

I'm currently listening to Party Shuffle on my iTunes, which I normally have running all the time when I'm writing. I know many authors who can't concentrate when they're writing, but I'm completely the opposite. Listening to music actually helps me zone out the outside world and focus on work.

Let's see, the last few people I've listened to are: Ladytron, Paradise Lost, Peter Gabriel, Evanescence, Faithless, Superjoint Ritual, Linkin Park, Destiny's Child, The Strokes, Clan Of Xymox, Taproot, Orbital, Covenant, Motörhead and the Bee Gees. That's a pretty good cross-section of my tastes, I think. I'll listen to anything as long as it's good, but I do tend toward metal and goth stuff.

(My last.fm page is at http://www.last.fm/user/antonyjohnston/, if anyone's all that interested.)

BF: Finally, besides Wasteland, what else is on the horizon?

AJ: I've got an Image book in the not-too-distant future, which I'll be announcing soon; a story in next year's Postcards anthology; Stealing Life, a fantasy novel, coming out in January; Point Blanc, the second Alex Rider graphic novel, is also published next year; and I'm going to work up a sequel to The Long Haul soon, because Eduardo wants to do one and no way in hell am I going to turn him down.

Plus, of course, yet more Wasteland. And maybe some other stuff too. I like being busy.

Be sure to pick up the first two issues of Wasteland – on shelves now – while you still have the chance, and check in on more of the story on the official Wasteland website: www.thebigwet.com.