by Rajan Khanna

Tim Truman is a veteran writer and artist. From his time with First Comics in the 80's, where he helped co-create Grimjack, he has been bringing us unique visions of worlds and characters not typical in the comic industry. Truman created Scout for Eclipse Comics, retold the origin of Hawkman in DC's Hawkworld, and told the historical account of Simon Girty in Wilderness. He's equally adept at doing westerns (The Kents, Jonah Hex), science fiction (Star Wars), and dinosaurs (Turok). In addition, he has done illustrations roleplaying games and for musicians such as the Grateful Dead. Tim also teaches at the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design, teaching courses in Illustration and Sequential Art.

Tim's current work includes Grimjack: Killer Instinct, from IDW, and upcoming Conan work from Dark Horse.

Tim is a very nice guy as I learned when I met him at Wizardworld Philadelphia, and he kindly agreed to answer some questions for us.

1. You're an accomplished artist, and yet many people have also come to respect your writing as demonstrated on such titles as Scout, Wilderness and Hawkworld. How did you get into writing your own works?

I'd always wanted to write, just like I'd always wanted to draw. The drives to do each has always been the same. Most good comic book artists ARE writers, to a degree. The good ones that don't have specific literary skills most certainly have storytelling skills. In my case, when I was a kid, I would write prose for a few hours then draw for a few hours. Later, I would write, then draw, then spend hours playing the guitar. I had to do all three, and for a long time it was a struggle trying to figure out which one I'd try to make a profession of. Luckily, comics offered me the advantage of being able to both write and/or draw a story. Will Eisner once told my class at the Kubert School during a presentation he was giving that comics are the most sophisticated and complicated artform that one person can get into, because the form encompasses so many separate disciplines. It sounds self-righteous, I guess, but hey, he was absolutely right.

2. When writing projects that you are also illustrating, do you even bother to write out a script? How does that work?

Yes, because the editor likes to see a script. So I'll either do a full plot for them to read-- "Marvel style", as they say. I did my Scout scripts that way. Or sometimes just go ahead and do a full script for myself. The full scripts I do for myself won't have the kind of super-specific details that I'd give to another artist to draw, but they have to be tight enough to impress the editor.

I've often wanted to start from a blank page, with no idea in mind, and see what would develop. Giraud tried that in the 1970's -- as a go-for-broke, stream of consciousness artistic experiment-- and it was the key to his becoming "Mobius". And when Joe Lansdale writes his scripts, he sort of wings it like that, without much of an outline, and let the characters and situation develop into a story. He's great at it-- a natural storytelling conduit. However, my stuff is usually too researched to do that. I like to get an idea, do research, look for a theme or a hook that the story can and then let something develop from that.

In any case, editors and publishers like to see where you're taking a story or property, so most demand some sort of synopsis or outline up front. That's OK with me, because it fits well with how I develop a tale anyway.

3. Is it more difficult to write for other people to illustrate? Do you have greater expectations about how things will look?

Not really. The only difficulty comes when I don't know the person I'm working with, or when the book changes artists after I'm a few issues into it. That's really a horror, because I try to write for the artist. It's a really fun collaboration when you're working with someone whom you respect, or whom you've been anxious to do something with. Working with Paul Gulacy and Rags Morales on Turok was were my favorite experiences, as was working with Scott Eaton on Creature Commandos. Scott's a perfect example of what I mean when I say that I write for an artist. I wrote the first script of Creature Commandos without knowing who would be the artist, just an idea of the style I wanted to see. Scott came into the picture while I was scripting issue 2. So you can almost see this leap take place in the writing between issues 1 and 2. Issue 2 really catches fire, because I had Scott's character sheets in hand. I had an idea what the people in the story looked like and I had a better idea what the thing might look like, visually.

John K Snyder III and I had a ton of fun on Prowler. It was a dream come true working with one of my best and oldest friends, Tom Yeates, on Tarzan Vs. the Moon Men.

The roughest experience I ever had was on some of my Star Wars stories. The original artist for the series blew the deadlines on the very first issue of my run, and after that there was this endless series of fill-in and catch-up artists. It was very heartbreaking, because I was writing stories that I was extremely proud of. The fans liked the books, and I became one of the series' favorite writers, but it was heartbreaking and frustrating, nonetheless, because I like to write for an artist and get in sync with what they're doing.

4. As an artist you've worked with some great writers such as John Ostrander and Joe Lansdale. What kinds of things have you picked up from them?

From John, the best thing I picked up was that each character should have their own special voice-- a vocal style, a dialect, a way of saying things that sets them apart from the other characters. That was a big revelation when John told me that. Few writers do it. John is great at it. Also, when working together John and I had the mutual revelation that the action stories that people enjoy most are the ones that also have a healthy dose of humor.

The thing I picked up from Joe by working with him was to keep things rolling. Joe has such a brilliant pacing style. Also, most recently, that you should think of something that your readers might expect the character to do, then do something else. Twist things 90 degrees and do the unexpected. That's why Joe's stories are always so interesting--something really unexpected and strange is always happening to the characters. Joe deplores the obvious.

Ostrander and Lansdale are my brothers. When I work with either of them we become these mutant artistic extensions of each other. We get so in sync with each other, it's scary. But way fun. Always.

5. You've been busy lately as an artist, most recently with Grimjack and now working on Conan. Any plans to write anytime soon? Any projects in mind that are just waiting for the right time?

Since 2003 or so, I've been working on a big project called Odin the Wanderer. It started out as a children's book idea, but has since turned into a concept that would basically be an illustrated book that children and adults could enjoy. Comics cross over like that, and I think that prose books can, too. I work on the book whenever I get some time. If anyone wants to see samples of that I've done thus far, go to my website, http://www.timothytruman.com and hit the "Odin Gallery" button. There's also a draft for one of the chapters, too. I'd like to do Odin as three books-- the old fantasy trilogy thing, doncha know: Odin the Wanderer, Odin the Warrior and Odin the King. I've had some interest from publishers, but finding the right one will be the chore. Mike Gold is repping the project for me as a book, and Ken Levine, our Grimjack partner in Hollywood, will rep movie rights. Ken is the guy who sold "Road to Perdition" and Hellboy" to studios. Both are great guys to have on your side.

Writing-wise, Odin's the main project, and it's a real dream project. I'd like to return to Scout at some point, for a miniseries or graphic novel, but I imagine we'll do another Grimjack miniseries before that, which we're hoping to start after I complete my Conan projects.

Other than Conan, art-wise, I pitched John Ostrander and Mike Gold an idea do a special graphic novel about St. John of Knives and St. Dryden, two demon-slaying outlaw priests who are mentioned in the Grimjack: Killer Instinct miniseries. I'd love to get into that. The story would take place during an earlier time in Cynosure-- if such a thing as "an earlier time" can indeed exist in that multi-dimensional place. I visualize it as a sort of "Victorian Era" Cynosure, before the Demon Wars. I think it would give us a chance to expand the borders of the Cynosure mythos a bit. I'd love to hear what fans think of the idea.

6. Which of your works, as a writer, are you the most proud of and why?

Scout and Wilderness, of course. I'm real proud of Hawkworld, too-- there's some good commentary about heroes and society in it, but it's nicely encased in an adventure story. I think Dragon Chiang is my best writing, dialogue and caption-wise. It's like a big rock opera. It's been interesting that some people have recently leaving posts at my message board at my website which note that the global industrial picture that I envisioned in Dragon Chiang-- the fact that China would become a huge industrial giant-- is coming to pass. (Note: Anyone who wants to check out Wilderness and Dragon Chiang can pick them up at "Timbomart" at Tim's website.)

I must say that Creature Commandos, Black Lamb, and Guns of the Dragon have a real special place in my heart, because I was so tremendously pleased with them when I wrote them yet they didn't sell very well. Argh!

Gee, that doesn't leave out much, does it? Sounds like I'm cheating a bit on your question, I'm sure. I've been unusually lucky throughout most of my career in that most of the stuff I've done has been miniseries and special projects, so I've been able to write stories that I really felt inspired to do.

7. Which of your works, as an artist, are you the most proud of and why?

Without a doubt, comics-wise, this new Grimjack stuff. I've always hated looking at my own work. All I see is the deficiencies. But over the last two or three years I've felt like I've finally been getting where I want to go. Editors who haven't seen my work in awhile have really seemed to be amazed. They've commented on how much my technique has changed and improved and that's felt great. Four things happened: a- I started teaching, and that made me want to live up to my own lessons. Plus, it put me back into an environment where people are constantly learning and experimenting; b- I got glasses. My eyesight isn't that bad at all, but the glasses made a nice difference. I was always used to having perfect 20/20 vision, so things snuck up on me and I wasn't really aware that my vision had changed a bit; c- I got diagnosed with ADHD about 5 years or so ago. I was off the charts-- 98th percentile!-- and I'd been operating that way for more than forty years. I was always so impatient and tended to rush through things. Getting treated for ADHD helped me settle down, relax and focus on my artwork more, so I can concentrate on my work. It's been amazing. Finally, there's d- I took a needed break from comics for a few years at about the time I started teaching and made an effort to do more illustration jobs. So I did a ton of single illustrations, book covers and CD jackets and used them to refine my technique. I discovered that in comics, I'd been depending on a lot of shortcuts and doing some really half-assed drawing, but my storytelling and layout techniques always overcame my drawing deficiencies. When I started doing single illustrations, it gave me a chance to really concentrate on each and every drawing so I learned to tighten things up a bit. Also, it gave me a chance to experiment with different black and white and painting techniques. I developed a new painting technique that felt really comfortable to me, using a mixture of fully-toned graphite drawings and Peerless watercolors. Peerless is a watercolor system that was developed for photo retouching.

Besides comics, I've done a lot of book covers and CD jacket illustrations that I'm real proud of. The best of these can be seen at my website-- look in the galleries. My favorites are the cover to Joe R. Lansdale's novel "Flaming London", the cover to Norm Partridge's short story collection "Mr. Fox" (these can be seen in the "Illustration Gallery"), and a CD cover that I did for country singer Jim Lauderdale (which can be seen in the "Rock 'n' Roll Art Gallery"). I'm also quite proud of the cover I did for Issue #1 of Grimjack: Killer Instinct. When I look at these four paintings, I can enjoy them on a weird level-- almost as if they were done by someone else. That's never really happened to me before.

And of course there's the Odin stuff, which really represents where I'd like to take my work. I made real breakthroughs, stylistically, when I started on that project. We'll see where it goes.

8. What's it like working on Grimjack again?

Well, I've finished art for the entire series, and it was a fantastic experience-- working with John Ostrander and our old editor and Mike Gold again, getting to draw Grimjack again-- who, of all the characters I've ever done, was always the most comfortable and natural one for me to draw-- and doing it in my "new improved" art style, with the added advantage of me being able to scan my own work.

Doing Grimjack was like coming home. I missed the book and character tremendously. The characters and the locations are so easy for me to visualize and put down on paper. I love Grimjack, and I absolutely love working with John.

9. Are you happy with the book's reception? Where would you like to see it go from here?

The response from fans and retailers has been almost 100% positive. I think I've only read one so-so review. It's been really gratifying. The plans are to start work on a new series early next year, after I take my long-anticipated trip with Conan into Hyborea.

10. Tell us a little about your upcoming work on Conan. Were you a fan of the Howard stories? Have you changed your style for the work?

I'm an unrepentant, unreconstructed Robert E. Howard Conan fanboy. Have been since 1970, when I bought the Lancer edition of "Conan the Conqueror". Conan had perhaps the biggest impact on me than any character or concept I've ever come into contact with. Howard's stories and Frazetta's covers literally shaped me and made me-- they formed the mold that all my other influences got poured into. Howard's Conan stories have influenced every hero I've ever created and every story I've ever done. So working on the character is in every way a dream come true. I was born to draw the character, but except for a pitifully executed 8 pager that I did for Marvel many years ago I've never had the chance to.

I'm glad it's happening now, though. In may ways, I don't think I was up to the task, artistically, before now. My drawing chops are so much better now , so I feel more comfortable doing the project that I might have felt even two or three years ago.

A lot of fantastic artists have done Conan. I especially love what Barry Smith did, especially his later stuff-- Red Nails, Hawks of the Sea, and the Song of Red Sonja stories. Those were a huge, huge influence on me. However, though I loved the drawing, when I compared his drawing with Howard's writing, I never felt he was really doing REH's Conan. It was Barry Smith's Conan.

Buscema I loved, too, especially when he was inking himself. He had this magic way of doing Conan's anatomy. His Conan never looked entirely like a weight-lifter, you know? He looks like a big, very well-defined strongman. And Buscema's abilities with facial expressions and body language are things of glory. Absolutely unreal. (By the way, I'm hunting for a copy of Buscema's "Conan the Rogue" graphic novel, if anyone out there has an extra!)

My very favorite Conan by far is Neal Adams' version. His "Curse of the Golden Skull" and those precious few pages that he was able to do complete on his own for Savage Sword of Conan are really high water marks. He and Mike Ploog, who did an astounding King Kull adaptation for one of the Marvel black and whites, might be the only artists out there who really, really understand what Howard was doing and what Frazetta tapped into.

I was blown away by the illustrations that Mark Schultz and Gary Gianni did on the new reprint editions. They're fantastic, aren't they? I really liked what my buddy Gary Kwapicz did with the series, when he was inking his own work, and it would have been real interesting to see what he would have done without the Marvel/Buscema model. And Cary Nord and Dave Stewart have done some really striking work on the new series.

Love all these guys as I might, I have to reluctantly confess that I never, ever got that nearly religious surge from their work that I felt the day I first encountered Robert Howard and Frazetta's Conan. No one ever really nailed that vibe, although, like I say, Neal Adams always comes really, really close.

My personal goal is not to compete with anyone, because that would be impossible, given some of the people who have been connected to the character in the past. I'm approaching the Conan projects with a sickening reverence. This is my own little artistic pilgrimage to the holy Robert E. Howard Mecca. It's a personal test, and I'm intent on making it a personal best.

Working with Kurt Busiek should be fun-- I'll be doing two issues of the regular book, as well as a miniseries that's separate from the main title, which will be written by Joe R. Lansdale. Kurt talked on the phone the other day and got along great. We're into a lot of the same stuff, as it turns out. He's a Norse myths freak, too, for one thing.

And I'm real anxious to Work with Dave Stewart, the colorist. The digital painting techniques that Dave has developed have been really groundbreaking. I don't think many people realize that. So Dave and I will be trying to come up with a style that will mesh the best of what he does with some finishing techniques I've been wanting to get into.

As far as working with Lansdale again, what can I say?

In any case, I promised (editor) Scott Allie that I wouldn't give away too many nitty gritty little details about the series now, because Dark Horse wants to time the announcements just right for press releases and such. Keep your eyes on my website for news, though.

11. In the current market, which creators and projects tickle your fancy? Why?

I love Walking Dead-- I just discovered that book a few months ago, though it's been out for awhile. Great story, good writing and really good layouts and storytelling. I like the Goon, especially the early, self-published editions. Fun story and really cool inking technique. I love and have always loved Hellboy. Mignola's work astounds me. Mike is such a nice guy. I always feel nervous and stupid when I'm around him because I'm so awed by his command of the medium. Really silly, because Mike is so approachable and self-effacing. There are other things out there-- the stuff the Kubert brothers do, Jan Duursema's and John Ostrander's Star Wars, David Finch's work. I'll just stop there because I'm sure I'm going to get someone miffed at me for not mentioning them.

12. You're a writer, an artist, and a musician. Where does all your creativity come from? Could you give any of them up?

Man, I don't know. Maybe if I concentrated on one thing I could do it better! I've just always been that way. I serve the spirits of creativity, I reckon. I'm compelled to have a go at all three things with equal interest, devotion and enthusiasm. I can't help it. I could
never, ever give any of them up. If I did, I wouldn't be me. Lord help us all.

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