The following is an interview with writer Ananth Hirsh (Lucky Penny), artist Tess Stone (Not Drunk Enough), and colorist Fen Garza regarding the recent release of the new colored Buzz! hardcover with Oni Press. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Hirsh, Stone, and Garza about their shared creative process in revisiting the high-stakes spelling bee story, the new features available to readers, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Congratulations on the recent release of the Buzz! hardcover! What will readers have in store with this new expanded edition of the story?
Ananth Hirsh: Thank you! It’s been so exciting to revisit the world of underground spelling bees in this fresh, full-color edition of BUZZ! I love seeing underdogs Webster, Bonnie, and Khan and their spelling battles in a new light, and it’s all thanks to the hard work of Tess Stone and Fen Garza, and the folks at Oni Press! I remember working with Tess on this story back in 2013, and seeing him return to tag-team the colors with Fen has been killer. On top of the color treatment, readers will also get a peek at the original character designs from when we were first developing the world of BUZZ!
Tess Stone: Thanks so much! I honestly can’t wait for people to dig into the book again with these wonderful colors. Fen did an incredible job bringing old familiar characters like Webster, Khan, and Bonnie to life with the new coat of fresh paint. And like Ananth mentioned, we’ve added some concept sketches I went through before finalizing! Always fun!
Fen Garza: Thank you! Buzz! is a great story, so I was excited to be brought into the project. Ananth and Tess’ world is creative and fun, and I was enthralled by it while putting color to it.
BD: In looking back at the creation and development of the project, what can you tell us about your shared creative process that really made this story unique to your body of work?
AH: When I first pitched the story, there wasn’t an artist attached. Tess Stone was at the top of my list, because I had seen his kinetic linework and strong sense of typography, but I assumed he would be too busy to collaborate. A friend luckily reached out and connected me and Tess, and we hit it off immediately. We have a lot of similar sensibilities that mesh really well, and I think this book really is a blending of our creative voices.
As an example, BUZZ! is particularly unique because so much of it had to be hand-lettered, and the text had to be ultra-accurate. We used IPA pronunciations when the characters are given words to spell, to maintain a sense of mystique (If you say the word before the protagonists try to spell it, there’s no tension.), and those had to be transcribed faithfully… and they also had to look really cool, haha. Tess took all that and distilled it into an incredibly cool visual style. I was amazed when I saw the first pages come in… he really stuck the landing.
TS: Working with Ananth is an utter treat. He’s a well of incredible, lovable characters and dynamic (but relatable) storytelling that always has drawn me in. I was already a fan of his and Yuko Ota’s Johnny Wander, so when he reached out to collaborate I couldn’t be more excited! Then, when he told me it had a lot of typography for me to do, I was stoked. Coming together to make a world built off words was too unique a concept to pass by!
Meanwhile, Fen made the colors look easy! I made a few pages as examples, and he nailed every single one after. I couldn’t have asked for a better collaborator.
BD: What makes Oni Press the perfect home for this story?
AH: Oni Press took a risk on us! The pitch line for BUZZ! was ‘shonen spelling bee’, which I don’t think most other publishers of the time would have gotten excited about or run with. It was a bit of a different landscape back in 2013, so they let us do it as an artsy black, white and yellow book, too. Today’s market is a lot more defined, and the Oni Press of today was super on board to bring this story into the present with a new, full-color edition. So, I feel lucky to have had Oni’s support in both the past and present.
TS: Ananth is right! They did take a risk and even let us have that original electric spot yellow. I remember doing it simply because I thought it looked cool in a concept and Oni’s enthusiasm brought it to the pages. How cool is that?
BD: At Fanbase Press, our #StoriesMatter initiative endeavors to highlight the impact that stories can have on audiences of various mediums. How do you feel that Webster’s story has connected with and impacted readers throughout its publishing journey?
AH: You know, to this day I still get people coming to me at a show or sending me messages that they randomly checked out BUZZ! from the library and here are all their thoughts about it! So, I’d like to think it connects with people when they read it. I do hope some kid out there gets into spelling bees after reading it — that would be the coolest.
TS: Webster is the type of kid that is easy to relate to. He isn’t ”cool” like Khan or Bonnie, and lacks the self confidence to see his dreams through…at first. I think a lot of people can relate to that! We’ve had both parents and kids tell us that they enjoyed and often revisit Webster’s journey, and I can only hope that when they’re done they leave with some inspiration and maybe an interest in spelling (or even typography!)
FG: I think we all can relate to Webster a bit! At least I do. Doubting oneself in unknown territories is normal but being confident and doing a bit of preparation! will bring us through.
BD: Are there any other projects – past or current – that you would like to highlight for our readers?
AH: Totally! Tess and I recently also did a book with Random House Graphic called Greater Secrets — it’s a coming-of-age roadtrip at the edge of the world to find the protagonist’s runaway rockstar sister. And I do an ongoing comic with my partner Yuko Ota (Lucky Penny) called BARBAROUS. You can find that and all of our other work free to read online at johnnywander.com. Outside of comics, I’m also Senior Writer on a game called Fields of Mistria, which is available now on early access on Steam!
TS: Yes! Greater Secrets is another title that Ananth and I worked on together about three teens on a mysterious road trip to find a missing sister. Not Drunk Enough is a horror comedy about a late night repairman getting trapped in a building full of monsters and mad scientists, and can be read at www.notdrunkenough.com!
BD: Lastly, what would you like to tell fans who want to learn more about the Buzz! hardcover and your other work?
AH: I’d say you could check out the aforementioned website, johnnywander.com! And you can pick up the book at your local library, in stores, or buy it online at the outlet of your preference. Thanks so much for the chat!
TS: The book is available through local, online or in libraries, and you can find my other art and what I’m up to at my Bluesky (@whoatess)! Thanks so much for everything, and hope everyone has a blast with words like we did!
FG: Give Buzz! a read! A second one — and then just look at the beautiful art. Incorporating color and lettering within the story gives it a satisfying and whole new version to read. For me… I’m on instagram a lot (@fengarza), and definitely check out other books by Ananth and Tess, their range is vast!
