Pat Lewis
I met Pat at the MoCCA Arts Festival around 2008 or so. I immediately dug his work. His art has a wonderful throwback vibe to it. His book The Claws Come Out, a collection of lighthearted monster stories is a delight.
Pat lives in Pittsburgh, PA. His work has appeared in High Five, Scout Life Magazine, and Highlights. (How cool is that? What kid hasn’t read Highlights?)
His latest book, Agents of S.U.I.T, a spinoff from the super-popular InvestiGators series is out now.
And now, 3 Questions with Pat Lewis.
1. Why comics?
My family always bonded over the newspaper comics section, so that was a huge part of my childhood; there were always old Peanuts reprint books around my house growing up as well. I always wanted to draw a comic strip professionally, but by the time I finished college, that market was pretty much gone. So instead, I started making my own comic books and self-publishing them, which led to me making some friends in the industry, which in turn led to me making graphic novels for a living right now!
2. What is your favorite part of the process?
I really like all the steps of creating! The initial rough stages (thumbnails, pencils) are satisfying because I really feel like I’m creating something out of nothing, slowly building up a world, but that’s really hard work for me–I have trouble seeing clearly what a scene will look like until I actually draw it, so there’s a LOT of trying something, scrapping it, and starting over. Maybe inking is my ACTUAL favorite part because that’s when my messy roughs start to look “real” and I can just get lost in the process with some favorite music or a TV show on while I work.
3. What are you currently working on?
I’m currently working on book 3 of the Agents of S.U.I.T. trilogy, even though book 2 won’t be in stores until February of next year. I’m trying hard to make it the best one yet!
You can find Pat and links to his work at the following:
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