VODKA O’CLOCK 1540
WES LOCHER
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Returning to Vodka O’Clock is comic book writer WES LOCHER. He’s been on episodes 1404, 1427, and 1513 to talk about writing comics, comedy, drama, and art heists. He has a new one-shot out with Tyler Kelting called HIPSTERS VS. REDNECKS.
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POP CULTURE
Can we please have a LONGMIRE and THE GLADES crossover on Netflix? PLEASE!
I educated Wes that there are JEM & THE HOLOGRAMS cons and even a LONGMIRE con. And yes, Caico, makes public appearances at cons and Free Comic Book Day. Plus, Wes had never heard of Amish Noir until now.
HIPSTERS VS REDNECKS
The Hipsters are Sloane, Salinger, and Pete. It’s more Sloane’s story than anyone else’s. She’s wandering between cities after an apocalypse where the Rednecks have taken over much of the land. She ends up in New Brooklyn governed by Salinger.
Areas of creating that Wes and I talk about include whether stereotype based comedy is lazy, pulling from real life experience living in small backwater town, and how the heck this silly project came to be (hint: Twitter).
“We make equal fun of both groups, so it’s not like we’re necessarily putting one group down more than the other. We’re exploring a lot of the stereotypes that people know about when it comes to that. But then also seeing how these people, whether they be rednecks or hipsters, how that stereotype would react when confronted with the end of the world.†~Wes Locher
When it comes to hipster culture, how ridiculous can the band names be? We talk about including playlists in the comic.
Tell us your favorite hipster or redneck songs. Add them in the comments or tweet to us: @weslocher and @elizabethamber. Just how redneck are we? Well, we talked about pickup trucks a lot. Wes had never heard of lumbersexual before. Oh boy. He’s in for a treat: http://gawker.com/are-you-a-lumbersexual-1657844454
HIPSTERS VS. REDNECKS was always planned as a one-shot, but if the mood strikes and the feedback is positive, Wes and his collaborative artist Tyler Ketling are willing to make a sequel. Wes and I brainstorm all the various possibilities for opposing forces to be in a future issue.
COMICS & ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY
Wes talks about the movement of creator-owned properties and hopes comcis never goes the way of book publishing which requires an agent. He did, however, find that some comic publishers don’t do much of anything in terms of promoting the titles of creator-owned books.
Building a media base, not only a fan base, is essential. Get your comics into the hands of bloggers and podcasters. This goes for creators running Kickstarters; due to the nature of Kickstarter requiring an exchange of money, not press, creators need to consider having a press list and giving the reward of at least a .PDF in exchange for honest coverage. I’ve given bad reviews; it happens. I can’t be expected to love everything – but the galleys and press copies are how bloggers exist.
What’s it like being asked to contribute to a massive project with people who are legends? I talked about the creative process behind my story in the PROTECTORS: HEROES anthology which benefits Protect.org. http://protectorsbooks.org/
Writing crime stories based in the past because smartphones, Google, and GPS shouldn’t solve every case.
We wrap up the show with much ado about STAR WARS, the prequels, and the upcoming movie.
LINKS & STUFF:
Unit 44 is out in tpb.
Tyler’s MyFriendDeath.com or on Comixology
Tyler’s site: Tkinkart.com
Founder and Editor-in-Chief of AmberUnmasked.com and Vodka O'Clock Podcast. Author of The Farrah Wethers Mysteries, comic book short stories, prose, and non-fiction. Cosplayer and figure model.