Fact: People in the comics industry are always busy! That’s been especially true the past few months for Croatian writer and artist Stjepan Šejić, with the release of the latest volumes for two of his creator-driven comic series.
Raunchy fantasy Fine Print Volume 2 (our review) came out in April; and a month later, on 15 May, the third book in the Sunstone Mercy arc (and Volume 8 in the greater BDSM romance saga) became available. We’re still steeling ourselves to endure the emotional hits packed into Mercy Book 3 – look out for our review soon – but in the interim, we were given the opportunity by Top Cow Productions, an imprint of Image Comics, and publisher of Šejić’s trade paperbacks, for a Q&A with the man.
We spoke about how he divides time between his various projects, how exactly the shared comics universe with wife Linda Šejić’ works, his creative influences, and the pressures of being a “sexy comics” guy. We even squeezed in a question about the drawing demands of Šejić’s early Witchblade days, before he dedicated himself to the creator-owned route.
Check out the interview in its entirety below.
Pfangirl.com: With so many ongoing projects, how do you balance them all? Do you ever have to suppress a desire and inspiration to work on something because you have a set calendar of deliverables to stick to?
Stjepan Šejić: Supressing my desire to engage with other projects is half of what I do. No joke I have about 20 comic concepts at any given point but life is a finite thing and I have to focus on finishing my books, so most of these ideas will never become comics.
How do you find your characters’ very distinct, idiosyncratic voices?
Stjepan Šejić: I hear them. I will often just sit in silence and run mental simulations of conversations, just letting the characters argue in my head; talk to each others, develop their little quirks, and interests. Half of all the writing I do is purely mental exercises.
Of all your characters, Lauren in Fine Print is arguably the biggest hot mess – likeable, understandable but pretty self-sabotaging. Who do you think is second?
Stjepan Šejić: It’s a tie between Fine Print’s Leliah and Heureca. I will not elaborate beyond the fact that Fine Print Book 3 will absolutely floor the readers, though Matthew is a very close second. Again, we’ll get to it soon.
The dynamic between Cale Morningstar and Rachel Simms in Fine Print is so interesting, and obviously vital to kickstarting the plot. Will we be seeing more of them beyond Vol. 1?
Stjepan Šejić: They are a major part of the story, not just for the sake of starting things off. They are a thematically important element as a lot of this is about self realization. By the end of Book Two we learn that they are both very much around and there are massive implications to that finale.
Related to that, you’re probably known best of all for being the “sexy comics” guy, so how did it feel to represent someone on the Ace spectrum?
Stjepan Šejić: Fun. Just like the sexually active characters of Sunstone and Fine Print are fun bunch of fuckups, the same goes for Rachel. First rule of writing for me is make every character feel human and Rachel is just that: a passionate writer, curious, competitive, but also doesn’t deal all that well with failure, and at times takes critique too close to heart. She’s an artist. And yes, she is asexual. This plays a big part in her life and makes her a polar opposite to Lauren and how she approaches her contract.
Still talking Fine Print, your and (your wife) Linda’s characters (from Blood Stain and Punderworld) have crossed over into each other’s books multiple times. How does that work? Do you have free rein to depict the characters and world as you like, and then receive feedback, or is it more of a collaborative guided depiction from the start?
Stjepan Šejić: Collaborative and guided from the start. We have a lot of world-building and continuity planning sessions behind us, and just as many ahead of us as most of our works are in a shared universe. The characters remain consistent, if at times more mature by a few millennia. You’d think that makes a big difference but shockingly it doesn’t.
BDSM lifestyles, LGBT+ characters… The depictions in your work have done so much good in terms of representation, heightening understanding and empathy. Do you ever feel the weight of responsibility in this regard, like you have to be careful in what you show? Or, alternatively, do you feel pressure that these aspects are now expected in all your work?
Stjepan Šejić: I feel no pressure. Representation is not a matter of one author making one perfect piece. It’s a question of critical mass of different approaches. My work is just a piece in the larger puzzle so I just focus on making the best stories that I can.
You’re open with your creative process but we’re struggling to think of times you’ve spoken about your artistic and industry influences? Who are they?
Stjepan Šejić: At this point it’s predominantly animation. I’ve developed an obsession with body language and expressiveness. Character acting in general.
While we think we know the answer already, is there a project of yours that you wish had found more of an audience? On a similar note, is there one of your characters you wish you could spend more creative time with?
Stjepan Šejić: Death Vigil for sure but also Ravine. It was my first attempt at writing. Clunky, yes, but it’s still dear to me.
Having experienced both sides, what’s the biggest difference between being an artist for hire and working on your own creator-driven projects?
Stjepan Šejić: Freedom. Pure and simple. I draw and write what I want, and use as many pages as I need to do it. This does cause my books to vary widely when it comes to page count but I’m very much okay with that.
What are your feelings about the comics industry as a whole right now? Do you think it’s changed over the past, say, decade or is much the same as it’s always been?
Stjepan Šejić: I’m predominantly disconnected from it. Comic sites tend to ignore my work and honestly the feeling is mutual. Besides the works of my wife Linda Sejic, Mirka Andolfo, and a few others, I barely even read comics anymore. Too busy. So I can’t say if things changed or not as I’ve fell completely out of touch with it all. I have no time for it. I have comics and a novel to make.
Would you come to South Africa if the opportunity arose to attend a comic con here?
Stjepan Šejić: Most likely. Just a matter of free time. As always…
A silly final question: Do you ever suffer from PTSD from drawing all that chinky dragon scale-styled armour for Witchblade back in the day?
Stjepan Šejić: Believe it or not, that armor took about five minutes to make from zero to finish. For the last twenty or so years I’ve refined what I could make in Photoshop and how fast, and I have gotten very fast.
