The following is an interview with Dillon Gilbertson regarding his upcoming return to Kickstarter for the third issue of the comic book series, My Neighbor Necromancer. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with the Gilbertson about his shared creative process in working with artist Jason Piperberg to bring the story and characters to life on the page, the incredible backer rewards available through the campaign, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Congratulations on your upcoming return to Kickstarter for the supernatural fantasy series, My Neighbor Necromancer! Where will readers find themselves in this third installment of the 6-issue series?
Dillon Gilbertson: Thank you so much! In Issue 3 we get to see some of my favorite places and characters. Jessie is still learning the ropes of necromancy and struggling to do everything perfectly. She has a tendency to put her own flair on the spells Cirino is teaching her, so we see some of those personal touches. And when the friendly neighborhood undead mailman delivers an invitation from The Body Farmer to visit his home, we’ll travel with them across another section of the map more dangerous than last issue. Readers will also witness a short history of Death itself, which really brings the central themes of the book into focus. I couldn’t be more excited. I honestly think this is the best issue so far.
BD: What can you tell us about your experience in seeing how the series has resonated with critics and readers alike after its first two issues?
DG: The first response I usually get from people who read the first issue is “How dare you?” It’s in a loving, joking way, but people were really affected by the ending of Issue 1. So, when people started coming back with this reaction, I went to Jason and Luca like, “I think we have some solid characters in this book.” People don’t get upset when something happens to a flat, underwritten character. I knew then we had done something special with them.
And when Issue 2 came out, people mostly forgave me about Issue 1 and they started to see more what we are trying to say in the series. The big message of Issue 2 is that everyone deserves love even if they are different from what you expect or remember or even want. In the world of My Neighbor Necromancer, Death itself had a physical body once, and we find in Issue 3 that maybe their intent was/is not as nefarious as we might assume.
People also people fell in love with Gavin, the skeleton cat with flower eyes. I had to tell everyone that no harm would ever come to Gavin. He is precious and will be protected at all costs.
BD: In continuing your shared creative process with artist Jason Piperberg, do you feel that you’ve developed a creative shorthand or shared creative language?
DG: Absolutely. With Luca Romano, our colorist, too. The Cover B you can get on the Kickstarter for Issue 3, we all fell into calling it the “spicy” cover without any spoken explanation. I think because the color vaguely resembles Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. But with Jason specifically, to be completely honest, our “creative language” might be typos. A lot of character names or locations or ideas are the result of a typo we think sounds interested. Like Backstrom, the sentient suit of armor who lives with Morda in Issue 2, his name was the result on me trying to type the word “backstory” but came out “backstrom” and Jason jumped on it immediately. It sounds like a fancy butler name.
BD: Why do you feel that crowdfunding – and Kickstarter in particular – has been such a valuable resources to ensuring the success of today’s comic book creators?
DG: It’s a support system. It’s a helping hand for new and established indie creators to not just get the book made but find an audience for them. Any publisher in the world will have criteria they want a book to meet to be considered viable, but with crowdfunding, there is no obligation to from your idea to fit their mold. And that goes both ways, as a creator and a backer. Crowdfunding allows you to directly support the work you want to see more of. And because people can see what you’ve backed, creators see repeat backers and you start to build a little family. I’ve gotten to know some of my backers personally. Some of those backers may be creators like you, and if you like their work, you can support them. Crowdfunding lets people support the books/creators they like and make the books they want to make. And that’s a magical thing.
BD: If given the opportunity, are you interested in exploring new stories or characters within the world of My Neighbor Necromancer?
DG: Very much so. We have fun ideas for Jeff, the mailman, in Issue 3. A character like that is like a living story engine. Anyone can tell a story in any genre with him at the center.
But the world we created is too big for six issues. We have a number of characters we just didn’t have room for in these 6 issues. I don’t want to say too much, but Jason is dying to draw someone we won’t get to see in the flesh any time soon. Though if you look hard enough, there is a reference to them in issue 2. It’s almost a cameo, really. So, there are several characters like that, we want to explore the world with them so badly, but there just isn’t room right now. And it’s the same with locations. We wrote a story behind every spot on the map, but we have to carefully choose the ones we tell with the space we have.
BD: Lastly, are there any specific backer rewards that you would like to highlight as part of the My Neighbor Necromancer Kickstarter campaign?
DG: We always want to emphasize that you can get every issue in the series so far. This isn’t just for returning backers. This campaign is for everyone. So, if you haven’t backed before, you won’t miss out.
For new rewards, every year our Skull Spell shirts are one on our most popular tiers, so this year they are back with our new design, the Cannoli Summons Skull! The twist this year is we have an exclusive Golden Cannoli Tee limited to only 25. So, get there before they’re gone forever.
We’ve also added a Necronomicon tier. This is a 150 page, matte-laminated, hardcover notebook decorated with your choice of the Skull-Paw, Gavin Sprouts, or Cannol word balloon. Because why read an ancient tome of prophecies, funerary incantations, and demon resurrection passages compiled by a race of beings known as The Dark Ones when you can write your own?
And Necromancer Familiar Commissions are back! We got such a big response to them last year, we decided to offer them again. Jason will draw your pet(s) as familiars in the world of My Neighbor Necromancer. You’ll receive a high-quality, 6×9″ print of each commission, as well as the high-resolution digital images.
