Long-running Christian comic
The Cardinal now has a new home online. Creator
K.J. Kolka has been producing adventures of the high-flying superhero since 1990 -- and now you can follow them weekly at
Comics Sherpa. (You can also have the comics emailed weekly to your InBox.)
To celebrate, we represent this Q&A with Kolka from July 2006:
* * *
Are you an "entertainer" or a "minister"?Neither.
If anything, I’m a teacher. I like to communicate. There’s so much
misinformation in the world, especially about the Christian faith and
Jesus Christ. I hope that what I write will help clarify that.
But
in another sense, to be a Christian writer, you need to be able to
entertain the reader as you are educating them or ministering to them.
No one wants a boring story.
Who are your literary influences?
Ernest
Hemingway.
Frank Peretti.
Ralph McInerny, who writes the Father Dowling
mysteries.
Lee Falk, creator and writer of the
Phantom and
Mandrake the
Magician comic strips.
Hemingway had people in complex
relationships, where there was more going on beneath the surface. You
often felt as if you were reading a mystery, trying to assess what was
really happening with the characters.
I like Peretti because he
has issued in new genres in Christian fiction. Who’d have thought we’d
be able to read a book like "Monster" we purchased at a Christian book
store? That was one great thrill ride. I couldn’t read that book fast
enough.
McInerny writes books about murder. Yet, he writes about
his characters with compassion and understanding. He turns his
armchair-detective readers into amateur priests in confessionals where
we hear first hand how sin has ruined lives and led to desperate
moments. And because his main character is a priest, McInerny can talk
about controversial moral issues in books which are sold to the general
public.
The late Lee Falk is one of the unsung heroes of comic
strip writing. His name may not be as recognizable as
Charles Schultz
or
Lynne Johnston, but he has written two of the most enduring
adventure strips. Especially if you go back to the 1930s and '40s
Phantom tales, there were great cliffhanger moments and witty dialogue
between characters. Often when the Phantom and his girlfriend parted
ways at the end of some wild adventure it was because of some tragic
incident which left their relationship itself in a cliffhanger moment
that might not be resolved for months. Falk knew suspense.
Who are your spiritual influences?Currently,
Martin Luther,
Michael Yaconelli,
Bill Gaither. There’s an eclectic lot.
It
amazes me how after hundreds of years that Martin Luther’s words on
faith and its application still ring true. A very wise man. I think he
got his priorities right. We’re saved by faith, but without works how
will others know of our faith? We often confuse their importance.
I’ve
also been reading Yaconelli’s "Messy Spirituality". It’s about how we
often see only one side of people in church. Too often people seem to
be so with it, have their spiritual life together and lack troubles in
life. It’s easy to think, "Gosh, what’s with me? Why can’t I be that
together?" Yet, as we look through the Bible, we see many examples of
people who didn’t lead perfect little lives and yet were used of God.
Bill
Gaither isn’t exactly a spiritual leader in the traditional sense of
the word, but I’ve been reading his autobiography. He talks about the
development of his Homecoming concerts and how they are more than about
music. It’s about bringing the family of Christ together. Not everyone
in his gatherings sings the same type of music, but they find a place
for them within the performance. It’s about a spirit of inclusion. Too
often we don’t see that today. Christian media and even churches are
often aimed at traditional people who are married and have their 2.5
children. Are we even trying to reach beyond our comfort zone and
embrace our distant cousins?
What is the best thing anyone said about one of your comics?I
received one email from a young, single mom who was making ends meet by
prostituting herself. Evidently, something I wrote touched her heart.
She gave up prostitution and said the story gave her "hope."
What is the worst thing anyone said about one of your comics?"No thanks. I’m not interested."
How many books do you read a month?I
don’t know. I’ve never kept track. I read every night before I go to
sleep. My routine is just start a book and read until I’m through.
Although, I often mix reading time up with a chapter or two of a good
book and then a dose of either a graphic novel or a short inspirational
story. If I’m really tired, it’s just the latter.
What are your writing habits?When
it comes to creating a story, first I choose a theme or subject. Which
is something I never run out of. I read newspapers and watch the TV
news and documentaries for ideas. I have files of news clippings and
ideas I’ve jotted down that’re just bulging. As well as some that are
lying around on desks, dressers, book shelves. I’m a clutterbug of
information.
Then, I get on the Internet or go down to the
library and spend some hours researching the subject matter. Sometimes
I’ll go out and take photos of places to use as settings for the
scenes. I try to draw as much from real life as I can. Then, I sit down
and go through everything and decide what can be used. From there, I
begin to develop a plot.
Are you an "outline" writer or a "make it up as you go" writer?I’m
an outliner. I have to be. My mind hops from one thing to another
otherwise. My train of thought is constantly derailing unless I’m
focused. And I get stuck in these tangents.
Having an outline
doesn’t mean knowing how a story will end for me though. I often work
that out as I get closer to the end. In the most recent Cardinal story
I developed four possible endings. I went back and forth among them
several times. I even considered drawing up two different endings and
blindly picking one and stuffing it into the envelope for the person
who scans the artwork, so even I wouldn’t know the ending until it
printed. In the end, I simply chose the ending which seemed to fit the
story and the direction I wanted to take the Cardinal in in the days to
come.
Are you a full-time cartoonist?I wish. That would make my life much simpler. But then, from what I have read, few comic creators are full-time.
What is your day job?I’m
a proofreader for a local newspaper. I get to make other writers look
their best. Actually it’s a good job. I get paid for reading the
newspaper from front to back. Who wouldn’t like that? My wife refers to
me as her own Gary Hobson, because I do get to check out the "Early
Edition."
What advice do you have for aspiring writers?Forget
about the other aspiring authors around you. Don’t compare yourself.
Concentrate on you and your strengths and weaknesses. Work on both.
I
had a friend from high school who was extremely talented in writing.
The work he did back then was fiction on a deep, philosophical level.
He awed the teachers. My work couldn’t even compare to his. I always
felt second rate. I caught up with him recently, twenty-some years
later. He had stopped writing years ago and didn’t get anything
published. It was a sad experience. Meanwhile, I had kept working on my
skills and was getting work published. Potential means nothing without
dedication.
What one aspect of God do you most hope your readers will take away after reading one of your books?God
is a God of love and mercy. He loves and accepts you just as you are.
And he offers you his gift of mercy and forgiveness. It’s a chance to
wipe the slate clean and start over. Who doesn’t want that?
What about writing do you wish non-writers understood?Writing
is a lot of work. It’s not all fun and games the way writers are often
portrayed in movies and on TV. You don’t just sit down and write a
final copy off the top of your head. There’s various stages you go
through before you get your final product.
What about writing do you wish other writers understood?Stop using the word "said"! That has to be the most overused word in the publication field today. Think thesaurus!
For the writer with a new publication, what do you consider the BEST thing he or she can do to promote it?Make a costume of one of your characters and run around in it. Or does that only work at comic book conventions? [laughs]
What
has really worked for me is getting the media involved. You have to let
people know your product is out there and what it is about. I created a
very brief press release for the local newspaper when I released my
first Cardinal comic. The paper called me back and asked for an
interview. I ended up being on the front page of the feature section.
Someone at the local Christian radio station read it and asked for an
on-air interview. Within a few days of the radio interview, book stores
were calling me up for more copies. All that from a press release that
might have been a half page long, double-spaced.
* * *
Many thanks to our guest,
K.J. Kolka, creator of
The Cardinal. Read the comic online at
Comics Sherpa, or find info about the first Cardinal film
here.
An update on the previously mentioned graphic novel adaptations of Ted Dekker's Circle Trilogy:
Over on its official 
