The following is an interview with cartoonist Nick Cagnetti regarding the release of the collected edition of Pink Lemonade through Oni Press. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Cagnetti about finding the perfect home for the series, his contributions to the psychedelic sci-fi series, Xino, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Congratulations on the release of Pink Lemonade! For those who may be unfamiliar with this larger-than-life series, what can you share with us about Pink Lemonade and the world that she seeks to save?
Nick Cagnetti: I appreciate it! Pink Lemonade is about this colorfully dressed lady who’s out to see the world, make new friends, and do cool stuff, but the world has other plans for her, as it tries to take advantage of her good nature and her identity itself. Basically, she’s full of childlike wonder for the world, and she’s pitted against the entertainment industry’s sometimes unforgiving nature and the challenge is seeing if she’s able to maintain her positive outlook. The mission so to speak is asking if we look at those things we’re so surrounded by close enough through her inquisitive nature.
BD: How would you describe your creative experience in revisiting the world and characters of this series, given that you are writing and illustrating three new chapters for the edition?
NC: Well, really I never stopped working on the series as it switched publishers and found a new home at Oni Press. I wasn’t sure what was gonna happen, but the story was pertinent for me to tell so I knew it was something I needed to keep doing. Thankfully, by the end of all the work, Oni felt it was important, too, and it’s all finally out in one complete book!
BD: If given the opportunity, would you be interested in returning to the world and characters of Pink Lemonade for other expanded series?
NC: Totally! There’s a lot more I’d like to do there, but first it was important to me to just put all my effort into making this whole first series as good as it could be. I think that’d generally be my kind of preferred approach to projects, just do a contained and satisfying story and then hopefully try making another. But yeah, Pink Lemonade herself is such a fun character to write and draw so I can’t see myself staying away for too long.
BD: In addition to your work on Pink Lemonade, you have also collaborated with writer Chris Condon on the story, “The Chip,” for the psychedelic sci-fi series, Xino. What were some of your visual inspirations for the look of this story, in light of the video game-specific narrative?
NC: I like video games, too, so that whole angle to the story was neat for me. I got to put a lot of fun Easter eggs in there as the character in the story is somebody who’s immersed in that world, so definitely look close in there! The one sequence early into it I took some heavy, old-school Splinter Cell inspiration into consideration also.
BD: Are there any upcoming projects on which you are currently working that you would like to share with our readers?
NC: I’m gearing up to start drawing my next indie book later this summer. It’ll be something totally unrelated to Pink Lemonade and brand new, so I think everybody’s gonna be in for a cool swerve. All I’m gonna say is it will be something spooky and fun!
BD: Lastly, what is the best way for our readers to find more information about Pink Lemonade, Xino, and your other work?
NC: The best places to follow me are probably Instagram (fudgy1nick) and Twitter (Ncags), as I tend to post lots of process stuff for whatever I’m working on, especially going into the new thing you’re gonna want to stay in the loop! I also have a website (RadicalRealmComics.com) that mostly just acts as a catalog for a lot of my work and a general information hub.
