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Talking with the Modern Masters: TwoMorrows Editor Eric Nolen-Weathington

Posted: Thursday, May 29
By: Tim O'Shea

Over the past few years TwoMorrows Publishing has established a reputation for providing a forum for comic book history and present day analysis through an array of periodicals and books. One of its latest releases, Modern Masters Volume One: Alan Davis, is a book (the first in a series--Volume 2 will feature George Pérez) dedicated to the art of Alan Davis, edited by Eric Nolen-Weathington. According to TwoMorrows, this first volume explores “the life and career of Alan Davis, with his longest, most in-depth interview to date…This book, profusely illustrated with a deluxe sketchbook and gallery of rare and previously unpublished artwork, includes a tutorial by Davis on the artists that influenced him, as well as his views on graphic storytelling. Also included are interviews with long-time collaborators Paul Neary (who provides the Foreword) and Mark Farmer (who contributes the Afterword).”

In order to find out just what it took to develop the book, SBC spent a few minutes with Nolen-Weathington.

Tim O’Shea: Given the somewhat scholarly nature of this book, who suggested the humorous cover?

Eric Nolen-Weathington: If you'll notice on the back cover, I emphasize that Alan's work is, above all else, fun to look at and fun to read. When I approached Alan about the book we talked about that and that I wanted it to be reflected throughout the book. When he asked me if I had anything in mind for the cover, I said that I would like to have Captain Britain (the first character he worked on) and Killraven (the character he was currently working on), and Alan took it from there. When he first faxed over the rough, he wasn't sure if having a word balloon on the cover would be okay, but I thought it was perfect!

TO: Were there any areas/projects that Davis did not wish to discuss, or areas where you sensed the discussion may have been something he was uncomfortable addressing?

ENW: In the early stages of the interviews, he seemed rather cautious about what he said, but as we went along Alan became very open. In fact, when he copy edited the text he rewrote a lot of the responses to fill in some details. Alan was willing to talk about anything I asked him.

TO: Toward the end of the book, Davis conceded that he initially entered the project feeling extremely cautious and suspicious. How do you think you were able to interest him and gain his trust?

ENW: Alan has had some bad experiences with the fan press, so I was pleasantly surprised when he agreed to do the book, as he'd turned down several previous offers. Basically I made sure I presented myself as professionally as possible. I sent Alan transcripts as soon as they were ready, assuring him that he had final say on every word in the book, and I think that helped as much as anything. Alan enjoys the TwoMorrows line of books and magazines, too, so that probably was an advantage, as well. That being said, Alan agreed to do the book on the condition that he be allowed to discuss his influences at some length and properly credit their work. I told him I was all for it, and in fact, I'll be using the Under the Influence section throughout the entire series now. The fact that I knew who Frank Bellamy was probably won me some points, too.

TO: What was the most interesting/enlightening element that you learned about Davis or his craft, or what surprised you the most?

ENW: I knew going in that Alan valued storytelling above anything else, but I'm not sure I realized just how strongly he felt that way. I kept coming back to the Monkey legends (ancient Chinese legends and parables -- Dragonball, among other things, is very loosely based on them) that Alan is such a huge fan of. He collects these stories in every form he can find them in.

TO: Was any material edited out due to space?

ENW: All the text was left intact after Alan's copy editing. As for the artwork, Alan sent a huge stack, a lot of which I couldn't fit in. But all the pieces I thought were essential to the interview are in the book.

TO: Do you think you could have done this book as effectively, if you were not a fan of Davis? Also do you feel you had to stifle the fan in you in order to be an effective interviewer?

ENW: I think being a fan of the artist you interview is a positive, especially in a longer, more in-depth interview. You are much more familiar with the work you're discussing and know where to steer the interview if things run off course. Showing some enthusiasm during the interview usually results in a better interview -- it helps pull the reader in, I think, and sometimes will help the interviewee open up a little more.

With Alan I was quite nervous at the start -- given his past experiences with the fan press, I was afraid I might say something that would offend him. But as the interviews went along and I realized how similar our tastes were and so on, it became more like talking to a friend. Even now that the book is over, I feel that I could call Alan up and just chat for a few minutes about nothing in particular.

TO: What can you tell us about Volume 2?

ENW: Modern Masters Volume 2: George Pérez will be out in late August. It has an introduction by Marv Wolfman and will be the same size and format as Volume 1. The art is being provided by George and Andy Mangels, who did the George Pérez Archive for CBLDF, and there's going to be a lot of art that's never been published before, as hard as that may be to believe. The problem I'm having with George is trying to fit his career into only 128 pages. The man's done a lot of work! I'm finishing up the interviews now and it's been a lot of fun so far!

TO: After Perez, do you have other greats lined up for this Masters series?

ENW: Yes. Modern Masters Volume 3 is in the very early stages. I don't want to say who it is until I have the contracts back, though. I'm planning on announcing it at the San Diego con. I'm also lining up a special Modern Masters Presents book for two years from now. Hopefully we'll get the contracts sorted out this summer and be able to start production on that. Beyond that, I've talked to several artists about the series, but it's just a matter of who's available when, as I can only do two books a year at this point.