First Comics News: What has been your best comic book-related job so far?
C.J. Hudson: I think my ongoing series, Granite and Interstellar Dust, is where my mind lives primarily now. Long form has taken me over, where previously I was more apt to engage in one shots or short stories, now I feel that long form, 25-50 issues, is something I want to make happen. Will I get there? Who knows…but I’m sure going to try.
1st: What inspires you to write?
CJ: I have an unrelenting desire to tell stories, and so that’s what I do. I spend my free time mostly thinking of stories and coming up with bizarre characters. I’m an avid reader of comics and books, and love all sorts of entertainment media, so my mind is always overflowing with things I want to put on paper.
1st: Who is Granite?
CJ: Alaina Callhan is Granite! She’s hard-hitting and hard drinking. She’s rough around the edges and lives a fast lifestyle, but at the end of the day, she’s a hero and wants to do the right thing.
1st: Who are a few of the villains Granite faces?
CJ: Granite has a great mix of villains from the super lame Thrash, who is just a dude with super strength that talks in the third person, to gods of old like Hades, to superpowered harpies like Petra. Granite has a definite A+ rogues gallery, with a lot of them making appearances throughout the first 3 arcs of the series.
1st: How does Granite mature as a superheroine and person in the series?
CJ: This is a great question! And honestly, there is so much to reveal about her that I can’t go into too much detail on this right now. Maturity and acceptance are essentially the themes of the story, though. I hope that under all the crass jokes, people will find a compelling story that they can’t get enough of.
1st: How did you come up with the look and costume style for Granite?
CJ: That’s all, Fritz Casas. I told him I wanted something functional, not too sexy, even though Granite loves to be sexy; she’s also someone who needs to be able to move around if she gets into a brawl.
1st: What is the storyline in “Interstellar Dust?”
C.J.: Interstellar Dust follows a group of prisoners and staff aboard a prison vessel that breaks down in deep space. Ultimately, a riot ensues, and a number of the criminals and staff escape only to find themselves being victims of a maniacal warden. I’ll spare the rest of the details in case people want to avoid spoilers. There is a vol 3 in the work,s though. So much more to come!
1st: What is Commander Lake like as a person and commander?
CJ: She just wants to be taken seriously and respected. She lost her shot to be the captain of her own vessel, so now she has to settle for commanding prison transports. She’s very tough and logical, but she’s also realistic and has a good heart.
1st: Can you describe the Afterglow?
CJ: A massive prison transport vessel that traverses space, funneling prisons to their ultimate destinations. Igor did a marvelous job designing it. It’s got funky-looking cells, a lunch room, and all that good stuff a vessel should have. Ultimately, though, artists hate prison stories, I’m told, too much of the same thing to draw, so I promised the art team that after the first 2 arcs, we were moving on, and I’m very pleased with the 3 arc and how it turned out and advanced the story along.
1st: Which prisoners stand out the most in “Interstellar Dust?”
C.J.: Alcee and Lake! I also love Fayette. I think the girls are the best for some reason. They just don’t take any shit off anyone and are really strong characters. The boys are great fun too, but there’s just something about the girls that draws me in more. Alcee is particularly fun to write just because she has a horrid background, but she always finds humor in everything. For the boys, Cael is my favorite because I get to write him as someone who doesn’t know he’s great. He’s just trying to figure out life, and that vulnerability makes him very engaging. Mitchel is wonderful, too, because he’s sort of a scumbag, but he grows on you over time.
1st: What comic are you working on next?
CJ: I’m working through more issues of Granite and Interstellar Dust (along with a few ID spinoffs, too), and then I always have more things cooking on the side. I have a few delayed projects that I am working hard to wrap up too (I.E., Hunters). I don’t do many anthologies anymore unless I’m asked, but short stories can be very fun and a good palate cleanser, too. I’m just choosing to focus on more long-form content at the moment.
1st: What is your process for writing each comic book issue?
CJ: I do a rough synopsis and outline of the issue (page-by-page breakdown with the key points). I think start scripting it. Everything is subject to change, though, as I typically think of something better along the way, as most writers do. I then wrote the script and tried to get it done within a certain time frame, but I forgive myself if I go slower, as proficiency over speed is always preferred.
1st: What would you do if you had Granite’s powers?
CJ: Super strength and rock-hard skin?! Oh man…what wouldn’t I do? I would probably fight crime too, because honestly, that’s typically why we write superheroes anyway. We have a power fantasy that enveloped us in our youth that comes out through fiction. If I had those powers, I would be living the dream I still hold onto to this day. I would probably still write too, though.
1st: Any final words for the fans of your work?
CJ: I truly appreciate each and every one of you and can’t wait to get more comics out into the world.
About Author
