Broken Frontier

Joelle Jones is new to the comics industry. So far, her published work consists of six pages in the Sexy Chix anthology, published by Dark Horse this past Spring. On October 11th,  12 Reasons Why I Love Her will be her first full-length work. What we’ve seen of the work so far leads us to believe she’ll be a bright new star. Getting a head start on the paparazzi, we were able to talk to Joelle about her start, her work, and… her feet?

BROKEN FRONTIER: Since your new to the scene, can you introduce yourself to our readers?

JOELLE JONES: Oh geez…um, I don’t know. I basically just moved to Portland to go to Art School. I went to PNCA – Pacific Northwest College of Art, where I studied art until I basically ran out of money. And then I decided to go to a convention and show my work, which is pretty much what I always wanted to do: get into comics at some point. So I basically got really lucky, which is awesome.

BF: When did you move to Portland, and from where?

JJ: I moved from Boise, Idaho. I grew up there. I’ve been in Portland for about 4 years.

BF: And then you showed your work to David Mack?

JJ: Yeah, I’ve always really admired him, I looked up to his stuff for a really long time, and I heard he was coming and wanted to get his opinion of what he saw of my work. And I also wanted to give him a gift, something I drew for him. So I just made a beeline towards him and he gave me some really great feedback, he liked what he saw of mine. He was really nice. And he introduced me to Diana Schutz right after that.

BF: So, then you got involved with the anthology Sexy Chix. How did that all come about?

JJ: Well, basically Diana really liked what she saw of mine and she gave me a call a little bit later with Sexy Chix, with all women creators, and explained the premise of it. And then I got to read “The Art Of Letting Go” and I just really liked it, and got right to it.

BF: And what did you think of the response you received for your work in the book?

JJ: I was really surprised. It was just six pages, but the reaction to it was really great. That’s how I got to meet Jamie Rich; he saw it and liked it. I got a lot of emails from a lot of working professionals that had a lot of words of encouragement. So, I was really surprised that people even took notice of it. That was great.

BF: So, your next work was the upcoming 12 Reasons Why I Love Her. What do you think of how your work turned out on the about-to-be-published book?

JJ: I’m pretty happy with it, since I’m not used to seeing my stuff in print. It’s a little hard, a little jarring. You know, to just let it go, and just be out there. It’s a little strange. I’m ultimately happy with. But I’m excited about it, to see how it does.

BF: Jamie’s script is very specific to emotions. Were you ever worried that you wouldn’t properly convey them in your artwork?

JJ: Yeah definitely, it was hard. Some of them were really, like… exasperated. I mean, “Wow, how do I show that in one small gesture?” It was really hard, because I knew the whole thing was based on emotions; that made the whole story click. So it was really important that I got those emotions across, that it was a huge focus for Jamie. But he seemed happy with the whole thing, and that I did all right as far as the emotions. Still, it was a huge concern, and I think it turned out alright.

BF: It sure looks like it did. How about the fact that with each chapter your style had to change a little bit. Was that fun, or difficult?

JJ: Yeah, it was a lot of fun, I really enjoyed it. I wanted to take it a little further, but when I look back am glad that I didn’t. But I really enjoyed it. It made the work go by a lot faster, kept it all a little more challenging. It kept my interest. It really came about in casual conversation between Jamie and I, that it would be kind of cool to do, a really cool effect. And I’m really happy with some of them. I think the joke chapter is my favorite.

BF: You mentioned that things changed with casual conversation. How much did you coming into it affect the script? Jamie had the script written first, and then you came aboard.

JJ: Let’s see… It’s funny; Jamie and I live only a few blocks away, which we didn’t know. So Jamie and I started meeting for coffee and discussing the book. And it was really easy for us to hang out, have a drink at the local bar, and just go off. It was really easy. I would just say, “I really wanted to do such and such to this chapter” and if I gave him enough drinks he’d say, “Yeah, that sounds great! Let’s do it!” I think by the end he was allowing me to do much more with it, which was fun. But I think most of it was just him.

BF: And what’s your opinion of working in black and white?

JJ: It’s a challenge. I studied painting for so long; working with color, so making that jump at first was hard. The first couple experiments didn’t work at all until I got used to it. I would definitely like to keep experimenting with black and white. But I think that once you pare it down to just the essentials, that you are forced to be more creative, because you don’t have a wide variety of things available to you, so you have to stretch your talent a bit further. It was actually rather gratifying.

BF: The genre of the book is romance. Was that something you expected to work on?

JJ: It wasn’t what I expected to be working on. I had never even read a romance comic until I got involved with 12 Reasons. Just now, I’m starting to read romance comics, and I’m surprised I had never read them before. They’re fantastic. There’s some really great stuff out there. But mostly, I expected to get into what everyone expects to get into: superhero comics. But I love romance comics; they’re a lot of fun. There’s a subtlety to it, in some parts, and I really enjoy that.

BF: Where do you want to go from here? Into superhero comics, or stay with romance?

JJ: I’m not sure. I’d like to stay open. I want to do as much as I can. I’d like to try everything, if that’s even possible. The next book that Jamie and I are working on is a crime fiction/noir book, which I’m totally psyched about. I’ve been obsessed with reading hard-boiled crime for quite some time now, and I talked to him about it and he’s open to it, so we’ll be collaborating on that. I’m really excited to get into something besides romance. Not to say I wouldn’t want to do romance again, I just want to try as [many genres] as I can.

BF: Who’ve been your biggest influences?

JJ: David Mack totally influenced me! There’s a painter I really like, who paints a really illustrated style called Paula Rego, who influenced me quite a bit as well. But there are so many artists who influenced me that I like to look at and collect, and follow their career. There’s a lot.

BF: How’s it been working with Oni Press?

JJ: It’s been great; they’ve been really nice. They definitely let you – the creator – have a lot of say about what’s going on. I thought it would be more constrictive, but it’s very open. It’s been really fun; I’ve really enjoyed it. And they’ve been nothing but great, letting me and Jamie do this next book. I’m just really excited to work with them in the future, if that were to happen.

BF: Excellent. How about your dream job? Say, someone gives you the keys to the comic kingdom… where do you go first?

JJ: I think in high school, I really wanted to do Gen13. That was my dream job, I was obsessed with it. I don’t know. I think that would be it, just to satisfy the high school girl, I’d want to do that.

BF: Ok, changing subjects. Do you feel that women are underdogs in the comics community?

JJ: I don’t know. It’s hard for me to say, as I’m just so new to it. I don’t really have much of a sense to the comic community. I wouldn’t say underdogs, as I follow a lot of women’s careers. Maybe I have blinders on, but I feel like there is a lot of opportunity, and there’s a lot of attention paid to what women are doing, especially after Sexy Chix made me aware of all the talent that women had to offer. So you know, I’m a champion for them. [laughs]

BF: Ok, what about how the medium is presented to the audience, with it targeted to the male demographic, do you see that as a problem?

JJ: It’s hard; I grew up reading superhero comics as a kid. And a couple of my girlfriends did the same. I could definitely see that it was geared towards men, but there were certain comics out there that women could seek out. I’d like to see comic books more directly marketed to a young girl audience. That would be awesome. I mean, I know there are some out there, but you kind of have to look for them.

BF: It certainly looks like it’s going that way with Spider-man Loves Mary Jane and the resurgence of romance comics.

JJ: Yeah, it’s kind of nice. I don’t remember seeing those growing up. Romance was a whole new genre to me, and now that I’ve gotten into it, I really like it. I’ve been seeking it out more and more at the comic shops and collecting a bit more of it.

BF: What are some of the titles you’ve been reading recently?

JJ: I really like Love is A Foreign Language. I really enjoy that. I’ve also been reading a lot of Shojo Beat, which I never thought I’d like in a million years. I’ve been going back and really reading ones that I hadn’t found before. Like Love Fights, which I really think is great. And Um… Scooter Girl. There’s a lot of them that have caught my interest.

BF: Ok, since you are so new to the industry, what advice do you give to people who are trying to break into the business?

JJ: Oh, geez. Um…. Let’s see… that’s tough. Give me a minute. [laughs]. I guess hard work and follow through, what everybody says.

BF: Many artists and writers list music as being a big influence, and with 12 Reasons every chapter has a song associated with it. Is music part of your creative process?

JJ: Yeah, definitely. I mean, my ipod mix is really important. I have tons of them, depending on what kind of mood I’m in. I know that sounds kind of scary, but it works for me very well. And then, Jamie would make me a soundtrack for “12 reasons.” And if I found myself in a hard spot, I’d listen to the song for that chapter and it would help me get back to what he was originally trying to get across. Which really helped. But for me, just having a good time, I can’t really do it without music. That’s probably something really sad.

BF: What’s in your current playlist?

JJ: Right now, I just got into CocoRosie. I’m obsessed right now; they’re my new favorite band. And ACO. And…there’s another on I just got into… Laketrout. Kind of fun. I didn’t like CocoRosie at first, but it really grew on me.

BF: What’s a typical day for you in the creative process?

JJ: Well, for the days when I don’t have to work my day job, coffee is really important to me. I like to brew a pot of coffee, and I like to sit down, put on a really good album, make sure I have some really comfortable pajamas on, and just go for it. Stop to have some sandwiches and bathroom breaks, and that’s about it.

BF: And what is your day job?

JJ: I bartend and waitress. Which is one of the most important skills you can have. You know, I make people happy. And I’m popular at parties.

BF: So what’s your favorite drink?

JJ: I drink the most simple drink, I drink greyhounds (which is vodka or gin and grapefruit juice). I’ve tried everything else, but I can’t get away from it. It’s Morrissey’s drink too, which I didn’t know, I just found out. But it made me feel really cool. He probably copied me.

BF: Oh, obviously.  We’ll have to have a talk with him, make him pick another drink.

JJ: Right. At least put salt on the rim or something like that. A different garnish.

BF: Care to comment on the rumor that your feet are the Scarlet Johanssons of the pedicure world?

JJ: [laughs] Really? Oh, well it’s no rumor. It can’t be a rumor if it’s true. Me and Jamie got a pedicure together, and I wasn’t trying to be mean, but when the girl doing me saw my feet, she gasped a little bit. She gasped; they were so beautiful. And I think the girl doing Jamie’s feet, I saw her face, she didn’t want to do it. I speak a little Korean, and they said I have beautiful feet. Which is totally a lie, I don’t speak Korean. But, I could tell.

BF: Alright, is there anything else coming up you’d like to mention?

JJ: Not really, taking it easy, I guess. Just taking it easy as it comes. But, You Have Killed Me is what Jamie and I are working on. It’s gonna be great, lots of guns. I think it should be out October of next year. It’s hard to shake Jamie, he lives right down the block. But he’s great, and I love working with him. We have a blast, and we’ll keep it up. That is, if he’s not too jealous of my feet.

Check out 12 Reasons Why I Love Her when it hits the stores October 11th, and fall in love with Joelle’s artwork. This is one new artist who will be one to watch in the upcoming years. And keep your eyes on Broken Frontier for any more out of Joelle, Oni, or any other corner of the comic kingdom.