Q&A With Stephen McGee

It’s been a while since I posted a Q&A so I feel like it’s about time I got back to it. Here’s a Q&A with Stephen McGee, creator of the webcomic Rain Dogs. Stephen can be found on Twitter @raindogcomic.

How long have you been making comics?

I’ve been making my webcomic, Rain Dogs since 2010, however, I didn’t launch it until 2012 due to the amount of prep work I wanted to do beforehand. I had always casually drawn since I was 10 but I never really had the courage to do anything with it. I would try to emulate Todd MacFarlanes work A LOT, but it would take close to a month for me to finish just one of his covers. Over time, I realized that the only thing holding me back from turning this into anything was self-doubt…that horrible, utterly merciless beast that artists battle with on a daily basis.

What made you want to make comics?

The catalyst to starting a webcomic came when someone introduced me to the Perry Bible Fellowship. I had never seen anything like it. I wasn’t even sure what a webcomic was at that point. I was immediately hooked, and soon afterwards, I had roughly 30-40 bookmarked sites that I followed religiously including Space Avalanche, Loading Artist, Fatawesome, Channelate, and many others. Then during a lunch break one day I started sketching in a 3-year old notebook with 4 drawings in it, that I never had the time for. I filled it in 3 months.

What do you enjoy most about making comics?

My favorite part of making comics is that fleeting moment when you realize you’ve just done something new that works. It’s brief, but when it’s there, it’s enough to convince you that maybe you can actually make this happen.

What is the hardest part of making comics?

Writing. Webcomics are often updated anywhere from daily to weekly, so the constant demand of material can stretch one thin creatively. With Rain Dogs updating 3 times a week, I am constantly on a mission to outdo myself or make an idea funnier or more clever. I probably aimed high coming into the scene with no experience and such a rigorous update schedule, but it’s forced me to go beyond my comfort zone as an artist.

Where do you get your inspiration from?

Most inspiration comes from visiting record stores or going to shows when possible. A lot of the time I bounce ideas off of my wife to gauge her reaction. Other artists are a large part of that too. Twitter has been a huge source of inspiration and camaraderie for me. The webcomic community there is so understanding and supportive. I’ve met so many wonderful people through there that have become true friends whom I respect for their talent and determination.

What was your first comic book?

I’m not sure if this was the first or not, but one of the most memorable was “The Comet” by Impact Comics in the early 90s. My family was at the beach and my dad took me and my brother to pick up some reading material from the bait shop. My brother grabbed a copy of the “The Fly”. The shop was carrying a bunch of origin stories from the “The Crusaders” heroes of Impact Comics. We loved them so much that we made paper cutout toys of them and made our own adventures.

Is there anyone that you admire in the comic book industry?

1) Christopher Grady of Lunarbaboon.com. He’s one of the first artists I reached out to in the webcomic community. At the time, we were expecting our first child, and I instantly became a huge fan of his strip about fatherhood. His artwork and writing style are so clever and relatable. He’s the next Bill Waterson.
2) Kenneth Rocafort. Kenneth Rocaforts style is absolutely fascinating. His linework is so beautiful, and he has such a mastery of color and style. I’ve been religiously following his Mitografia tumblr series in sheer amazement.
3) Dave McKean. Dave McKean’s work has shown me that the bounds of art can always be broken through and reinvented. His collaborative work on Signal-To-Noise was such an inspiration for my secret mission of wanting to learn more about anatomy and pastel work.

What’s your favourite comic book right now?

Most of what I read stays in the Graphic Novel realm, and I’m always reading 3 or 4 at the same time. My current favorite has been Power Nap, an online graphic novel by Maritza Campos (powernapcomic.com). I just finished Asterios Polyp by David Mazzuchelli, which I fully recommend. It’s so intelligent and well-written. Also, new Sandman this year, so that’s extremely exciting.