Q: Your works, whether middle-grade novels, web comics, or graphic novels, all blend truly creepy elements with humor. Where does this come from? And what are some of your biggest influences?
A: Even as a kid, I was always drawn to stories of creeping dread—the feeling that something awful lurks just behind the façade of everyday life. I’ve struggled with anxiety for much of my life, and I think reading eerie stories was a way of dealing with it long before I had a label for how I felt. If you’re a little kid who’s feeling worried for no particular reason you can pinpoint, I think reading a good creepy story is a way of focusing that feeling and giving it an outlet that you understand and control.
As for mixing spooky with humor—I blame my dad for introducing me to the work of Charles Addams and Edward Gorey! I remember being immediately drawn to the black-and-white artwork and the blend of humor with the weird and unsettling. It’s a question of nature vs. nurture—would I have always loved to mix humor with creepiness anyway, or did Dad warp my soft little brain? We’ll never know!
Q: How has your experiences as a children’s librarian impacted your writing and illustrating?
A: Working as a children’s librarian, it was tremendously inspiring to see first-hand how much joy, inspiration, and comfort kids still find in books, even in the digital age. Those experiences help me hold onto my passion for creating books for kids, even when the day-to-day grind threatens to drain the joy out of it!
Library work also showed me how graphic novels can grab reluctant readers in a way nothing else does—a big part of the reason I began to explore creating my own comics. I also loved to see how comic books inspired my library kids to create their own artwork. I’m a huge believer in the therapeutic power of art, so I think that’s incredibly important. Overall, I think comics have a unique power to help kids discover a love of both art and words.
Q: Congratulations on your two-book graphic novel deal with Algonquin Young Readers! What can you tell us about your upcoming graphic novel THE PUZZLING FATE OF MILLICENT GRAVES?
A: I’m so excited for this book to come into the world! I love stories about magic gone wrong. I also love to dream up characters who are radically different than I am, and then drop them into wild situations to see what they’ll make of it. This led me to Millicent Graves—a girl with boundless faith in herself, who isn’t afraid to jump in and take command. Millie is out to make herself, her family, and her world the best they can be.
When Millie meets a strange woman who seems to have the ability to control people’s lives, of course Millie decides she should try wielding this power herself. Magically rearranging the lives and personalities of your friends and family—what could possibly go wrong?! Oh, only everything.
Q: Whether through your words (as in the hilarious middle-grade novel THE HAUNTED SERPENT) or your illustrations, you always do such a great job of capturing character expressions and emotions. How did you learn to do this? (Any techniques you'd like to share?)
A: I’m fascinated with emotion and expression, so I’ve always paid very close attention to how we pick up on the feelings of others (verbally and non-verbally). For an illustrator, I think it mostly comes down to really looking at the world and the living things around you. I think there’s also something about sympathetically feeling the movement or the expression you’re trying to capture in your own body, if that makes sense. For example, I often catch myself making the facial expression I’m trying to capture on the page (very embarrassing, and one of many reasons I rarely draw in public!). As a writer, this applies too—I’m pretty sure I scowl when I write angry characters and grin like a loon when I write a goofball like Lucy in THE HAUNTED SERPENT! Empathy is crucial to both writing and illustration, I believe.
Q: You have two very popular web comics – THE CURSE OF THE CROOKED MILE and NINE CROW. Why web comics? And what are some of the joys and challenges of creating these?
A: Web comics are fantastic because they let you get your work into the world without finding a traditional publisher and see for yourself if your stories can find an audience. Web comics are also fantastic if you struggle with perfectionism—you come to realize readers want a compelling story, engaging characters, and frequent updates (ESPECIALLY frequent updates) much more than they want you to spend 16 hours perfecting the background scenery in a panel!
For me, the biggest joy is also the biggest challenge: web comics let you connect with readers directly. Knowing there really are people out there reading my work and waiting for every new page is a huge gift—but as a person with anxiety, it also forces me to face a lot of fear every time I hit that “publish” button. That’s something I think I’ll always struggle with!
Q: Any advice for aspiring writers and illustrators?
A: My top advice for aspiring writers is simple: read as much as possible. To illustrators: draw every day. Those really are the biggest keys! After that, my top advice for creative people of any stripe: remember to do it for the love of creating. Don’t get overly focused on external measures of success like being published or making money or being well-known—those are outside your control. It’s a recipe for depression to get hung up on those motivations (ask me how I know). What you can control is enjoying the act of creating. Whether it’s writing, drawing, needlepoint, crocheting toilet roll cozies…whatever you enjoy making, remember that you do it for yourself, because you love it.
You can find more of Dora's work at www.doramitchell.com.
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