1. Who do you list among your artistic influences?

Okay boys and girls, ready for this? Alan Davis, Bryan Hitch, Adam Hughes, Neal Adams, John Bryne, Jerry Ordway, Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, Alex Ross, Dick Giordano, Don Newton, Travest Charest, Jim Lee, Mark Silvestri (Remember just because you don't see elements of a person's style in the work doesn't mean they weren't an influence.) Mark Shultz, Al Wiliamson, and far too many more to mention here. Basically I believe every artist you see influences your work to one extent or another, whether it be good or bad. The people I mentioned here fall in the good category.

2. Can you pick one favorite artist and define why he or she is so?

Alan Davis is (and I don't know this for a fact because I've never seen him part the Red Sea or anything, but then I've never actually seen him either) a God. Actually, since I've never met the guy I don't really know if I'd like him or not but as far as his art goes he has to be the most consistently solid artist I have ever seen. His characters and layouts almost always seem flawless to me(with the exception of the pixie quality he sometimes gives to his woman and children). Whether the characters look the way I like them to look or not it always looks as though he knew exactly what he was doing when he put pencil to paper. I can only hope to be that consistent someday.

3. At what point in your life did you realize that you wanted to be a comic artist?

Age 19. I was reading comics for about a year when my local shop owner's wife, after having seen some of my drawings, suggested I submit to comics. Up until then, I hadn't even considered it. I knew I wanted to do something in the art field but I didn't have a clue as to what. That's why I never went to school for any of this, I just wasn't sure. Now I realize the importance of schooling. It took me ten years to learn techniques that an art school or college could have taught me in four. I plan sometime in the next year to take courses in painting, sculpture, and digital media but I'm not sure I'll ever be ready for a full course load.

4. What sort of technique do you use to get such clean pencil work?

Technical pencils, 5 mm H and HB lead and a very fine strokes on smooth bristol board. Then I smooth everything out with my finger. The board is very important. It has to be smooth finish, a rougher finish will make the image look rougher. Also, I start the entire image off with the harder 5H lead and I don't fill in any of the large darker areas of the illustration at all.Once the image is drawn I go over the darker areas with the 5HB lead and I also fill in the blacks. Keep a sheet of paper between your arm and the image at all times to prevent smearing the picture and spray it with fixative (near an open window, for God's sake). In the beginning a picture will take longer to produce using this technique but eventually, once you get used to using a soft hand it won't take quite so long.

5. Recommend some books you've read on comic art and/or drawing.

Okay, everyone's probably heard this one a thousand times before, but HOW TO DRAW COMICS THE MARVEL WAY by Stan Lee and John Buscema is still probably the best book for an artist just starting to get him or herself familiar with comic book storytelling. THE ART OF COMIC BOOK INKING by Gary Martin with Steve Rude is a must have for pencilers and inkers alike. Gary teaches you how different inking styles can affect the look of the pencils and if you pay close attention can even help a penciler develop his work better as well. This book should be a must have for editors in the industry also. FIGURE DRAWING WITHOUT A MODEL by Ron Tiner can give you a good lesson in portraying the human form in motion (The human form is always in motion, SO YOU NEED THIS BOOK) And anything you can find by Jack Hamm, the man is a genius at teaching the human and animal form, as well as backgrounds, etc . . . in a simple and easy to follow way. Also, draw from life, photos, anything you can get your hands on. It can only help.

6. Who is easiest (and then hardest) character to draw?

Spider-Man is the easiest, not just because I love him to death, but he wears a full face mask and his costume isn't that detailed when you take a good hard look at it. Hardest would have to be anything with a likeness or ridiculous amounts of detail in the costume design.

7. Who, if not yourself, would be the ideal person to ink your pencils?

MARK FARMER!!! I WANT MARK FARMER AND I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL I HAVE HIM!!!! Oh sorry, I get a little carried away when it comes to inkers, but yes, Mark Farmer would be my choice.

8. Do you find that people frown on comic art? What are your feelings on that?

I think it really depends on the type of comic art. If the comic style is more illustrative people generally seem more impressed with it. If it's a cartoony style, unless it's someone who's really mastered it, people seem to think less of the artist. I don't know if it's because it looks more like something a kid would enjoy or what but the response seems more negative. For instance, I get many more oohs and aahs when a people look at the art I've done for my online auctions than I do from my comic book work, even though the comic book style (although still more illustrative than cartoony) takes more discipline to produce. The Shaded pencils do however look like they take more skill to accomplish and have more of a look of maturity to them.

9. Are there any writers you would like to team up with?

ALAN MOORE!!!! ALAN MOORE!!!! I WANT ALAN MOORE AND I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL I HAVE HIM!!! Whoops! there I go again. Alan is my all time favorite and I would kill to work on one of his Americas Best Comics, but I'd also love to work with Warren Ellis, Roger Stern, Chuck Dixon, Kurt Busiek, Peter David and a host of others including R. A. Jones again. We worked together for Malibu Comics on The Protectors years back and have occasionally done other projects for other smaller companies. It's always been a pleasure working with him and I believe one day given the chance he'll be rank among some of the best writers in the business. Of course ALAN MOORE will always kick his ass! Hey R.A., I love ya buddy.

10. What are your feelings on the comic book industry as a whole?

From my perspective, comics have become a research and development department for hollywood. That's not necessarily a bad thing in that it promotes more creative freedom in many cases but at the same time it means the industry has kind of given up on finding ways to bring new readers into the industry. Advertising outside of comic shops is practically nill and the newsstand is all but dead. New readers seem to be older these days and stumble onto us by accident.

11. Marvel or DC . . . who's better? Why?

I don't think I want to answer that one. I will say this, I've been a Marvel boy since I was a kid but I'm currently enjoying more DC, you fill in the rest.

12. How has the Internet changed the comic book industry?

Unfortunately, I don't think it's changed it all that much. With the exception of the comic companies using it as a form of advertising and a forum to talk with fans (which we already had to an extent with comic conventions, just not on a daily basis). But when it come to the internet most of the people that will come across a comic book website are the people who are looking for it in the first place and again, that does not bring in new readers.

13. What are your feelings on variant covers?

A marketing ploy that I hope one day won't be necessary to sell extra copies of a book, but for now it serves it's purpose.

14. What was the first comic you remember reading?

I don't remember the issue number, but it was the first time Spider-Man encountered the Puma in Amazing Spider-Man. Spidey was wearing the symbiote costume and Tom Defalco and Ron Frenz were the creative team. I know, I know,I came into comics kinda late but remember, my first exposure to super heroes was on television in the form of the Ralph Bashki Spider-Man cartoon. Also, the book I mentioned was the first one I remember reading well enough to describe it. I read others before that they just didn't leave a lasting impact up to that point.

15. What titles are you reading now?

Okay this is gonna take a little while. The Spider-Man, Batman, and Superman books, Green Lantern, Birds of Prey, Nightwing, Preacher, Transmetropolitain, Martian Manhunter, Astro City, America's Best Comics, Daredevil, BlackPanther, Inhumans, the Hulk, Avengers Forever, Ironman, Thor, Xmen (occasionally), Wonder Woman, Planetary, Authority, Rising Stars, Aria, Strangers in Paradise . . . among others.

16. If you could pick one book to illustrate, which one would it be?

Amazing Spider-Man. I've wanted to draw it even before I knew it existed.

17. What is your favorite comic book related movie?

Blade. It probably, in my opinion, the best example of superhuman action I've ever seen on film.

18. Batman vs. Superman . . . who'd win?

Given time to prepare, Batman will always find a way.

19. Considering your passion for drawing beautiful women, who is the finest looking woman in all of comicdom?

She Hulk, but that's just me.

20. Finally, where do you see yourself in five years?

I hope to be working for one of the big comic book companies or maybe producing my own creation.