We continued our interview with Martisa, where she shared what had changed since the last post.
“Since we last spoke, I have made a lot of new comics, some new prints, and exhibited at the Small Press Expo. (One of my favorite expos!)
I have also been teaching a sophomore illustration course that will finish up next month at Parsons School of Design in New York. I've got a great group of students that have worked really hard this semester, it's been wonderful watching their growth!” wrote Martisa.
We wondered if Martisa had ever scrapped a comic idea after starting it.
She responded: “Oh, all the time. Sometimes I'll scrap it immediately after writing down the idea, sometimes I'll finish the entire comic and decide I don't like it anymore. There are tons of reasons to put it down. Most of the time it's because the core of the idea is something I like, but I haven't quite found the right way to express it. Should it be a single panel comic? A four panel comic? A pie chart? Sometimes I have to sit on an idea for a long while before finding the right format. Sometimes I get worried that something I make will be misinterpreted– or sometimes I step back and realize that I've actually put something together that is insensitive and I've got to check myself.”
The best way to uplift a creator is by sharing how much their artwork means to the audience. We asked Martisa about a time when a reader's feedback truly made her feel proud of her work.
“There's so much hate on the internet that I'm always touched when people reach out with kind words about my work. The positive DMs make a difference! Making art for an online audience can be very isolating, so I'd also say the in-person interactions I have at expos are probably the ones that stick with me the most.
A couple once came to my table to tell me that one of them had bought one of my prints for the other as a birthday present when they first got together, years ago. Now, they were moving in together and they had just hung my piece in their new place, as it had become an integral part of their relationship. I got so much fulfillment from that, and it really made my heart burst that they had sought me out to tell me,” wrote Martisa.
As for the most challenging comic or project Martisa has worked on so far, she shared: “There are so many challenges in making comics, it's hard to pick, but I'd say the one I've never quite surmounted is long-form comics. The longest comics I've drawn have been around 30 pages, but I've never been very happy with how they've turned out. Keeping strong, sustained momentum and even pacing in a longer story is really an invisible art I have a lot of respect for. I definitely haven't overcome that obstacle, but sometimes the best way over is through– just continuing to try until I get better at it. So, I may take a crack at it again one day, but for now, I'm still a short-form comic artist at heart.”
Lastly, Martisa added: “Well, since the holidays are coming up, I guess I will plug my online shop! I'll have new prints available and a discount code (BLKFRDY2024) for some holiday shopping starting November 29. Patreon members get an even bigger discount.
And, if you enjoy my Working Cats or Six Chix comics, there's holiday merch for that as well.”
