Part 2 of My Interview with Artist Tomás Morón

I've been getting some nice e-mails and comments about my story. Thanks. (And keep 'em coming.)

But now, as promised, here's the second part of my interview with artist Tomás Morón. THIS PORTION CONTAINS SPOILERS. So if you haven't read the story yet, mouse your way over to the right and click on the story icon, read it, and then come back. (You'll be glad you did.)

I’m interested in your thoughts on the story “The Customer Is Always Right.” What do you remember about your first reaction to the script?

First, I thought it was a great story, and with 5 pages, the characters and the situations were great, too. And it has a werewolf!

Can you explain your approach to designing the characters in "Customer"?  What were some of the things that stood out--that drew you in? 

First, I read your desciptions and tried to approach the words and the sense they gave me. In the Ben character, I tried to reflect his fatigue for his situation and how desperate he was. In Donny, I tried to do the same--but with a character with low moral values and who does illegal things--so I tried to give him a threatening look. I hope I got it.

Oh, yes. Definitely. In bringing this story to life, what were some of the influences you drew from?

I don´t know, but I think I remember some of the Creepy issues or Terror stories from the seventies with that B&W and grays that were so strong.

Was there a part of the story that was more challenging than other parts?

Well, on the fourth page, many things happened, and it was hard for me to draw the panel where Ben faints, hits the table, and Donny stands up.

You've been drawing and teaching comics for awhile now: What kinds of classes do you teach? 

I've taught for 15 years, and I've done a bit of everything. I teach classes on comics, inking, manga, and some years ago, history of comics. But now I do comics, inking, and manga.

What are some of the key things you stress to your students?

First of all, they have to think before drawing. And the most important part of comics is having the right layout to tell the story. If the panel or page don't work for the story, it is useless.

Does teaching illustration force you to raise your skills? I would think you'd feel a need to stay ahead of your students.

Yes, and if I discover some new technique or some new tools, I tell them and try to teach them the best I can. And I try to teach them how you have to interview with editors and how to show your portfolio and what you have to put in it.

What kinds of advice do you have for artists just getting started?

First, they must know that the job is great, but it means working many hours and you need to have a strong attitude. It's also important that you try to never fail to meet a deadline.

Who are some of the writers you would like to work with?

Robert Kirkman, Alan Moore, Dan Slott, Geoff Johns, and, of course, TDR Bach.

And finally, would you like to list some of the things you've worked on in the past and what you are working on now?

Well, in the comic field, I've worked for several Spanish and foreign publishers. I worked for Comicon doing the comics from Digimon for Germany. I did the inks for a Conan story for Marvel Italy, and worked in pocket comics for Semic with characters like Zembla. I also did a short story for an anthology published by Narwain Publishing from a Shannon Denton script as well as the comic prequel for the movie Zoom, Academy for Superheroes, published by Viper Comics. And finally this year, I was a part of an anthology named Fairy Tales that Chris Stevens edited and that was born in the Digital Webbing forums. I've also worked in publicity doing cartoons, children's illustrations, storyboards, etc. And now I’m working on children's illustation for Vimartic and doing a graphic novel for Kickstart comics.

Tomás Morón is also the artist on "The Customer Is Always Right," which you've hopefully read by now. (If not, click the link above.) Check out his fine work here: http://eldibujantesinpoderes.blogspot.com/