By Mike Luoma • 5/1/09

Declaration Of Independents: B. Alex Thompson

B. Alex Thompson has been writing and publishing Approbation Comics since 1992, when he put together his first xeroxed mini comics at his local Kinkos. The current incarnation of Approbation Comics has been around since the early part of this decade. Alex writes as Bart A. Thompson. Currently, his highest profile comic is Chaos Campus: Sorority Girls Vs. Zombies, a tongue-in-cheek take on pop culture and the Zombie story, where humankind's only hope are three remaining buxom members of the Epsilon Alpha Zeta Upsilon (EAZY) sorority. Other Approbation titles include Vampires Unlimited, with Korean Gangs and Neo Nazis; Lazarus Factor, where Veronica "Ronnie" Briggs is trapped where people are caged and experimented upon; Amour, a romance comic; The Evil Inside, an anthology of horror short stories; Myriad, another anthology title; Chi-Sai, the story of an 18 year girl bent on revenge; Blood Shells and Roses where a heavy Metal band of reformed monster hunters are left to take the fall after their fans are slaughtered by demons; and Lethal Instinct, the tales of a werewolf detective.

Find out more at http://www.ApprobationComics.com and buy issues of the comics at www.indyplanet.com. CosmicBookNews' Mike Luoma and Alex talked a bit about making independent comics for our ongoing Declaration of Independents.

CosmicBookNews: Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions about independent comic book publishing, Alex. Or do you prefer Bart?

B. Alex Thompson: Thanks for having me, Mike! Alex is what I seem to prefer at this stage in my life. It kinda works out with representing a new stage in my writing career's evolution, too.

CosmicBookNews: Were comics your “calling” as a writer? Did you want to be a writer first, or was it “comic book writer” from the start?

B. Alex Thompson: I stumbled into comics by sheer accident. I knew of comic characters via cartoons and TV shows – Spider-man and his Amazing Friends, “When Captain America spins his mighty shield...” Incredible Hulk, “You won't like me when I'm angry,” etc., but never really picked up an actual comic book. So I just wanted to be a writer. I mostly thought I'd write and do designs/story boards for TV and movies. I actually think in words and pictures- sometimes more words, sometimes more pictures, sometimes it's pretty even – so I used to take notes for my stories in a mixture of text and artwork. I used to sell anything in high school for extra cash and stumbled upon bulk comics, and that's where I was exposed to those. I was pretty much already doing comics without really knowing it, so I completed the process and streamlined my stories for that medium.

CosmicBookNews: As a creator and writer, your name is on most of the titles you publish. What lead to you starting Approbation Comics, your own publishing company? How does working as a “company” help you make a greater impact on the industry?

B. Alex Thompson: I don't even know if it does help make a greater impact. You know, I don't think I've really thought about it. I needed an overall name to house my projects and something for everything to be listed in the Previews under. [laughs] That's pretty much all it boiled down to.

CosmicBookNews: Your first Approbation Comcis back in 1992 were mini comics you created by yourself. Some of the titles like Vampires Unlimited later became actual comic books published by Approbation. How have the stories changed or stayed the same since those early days?

B. Alex Thompson: Those xerox copied mini comics served well as a first draft or sketches of sorts for those projects. It helped me figure out the characters and the stories that needed to be told. But over the years they've been greatly expanded as far as depth, scope, and details. So mostly all that's the same is the characters' names, their basic looks, and their general personalities. Everything else has been greatly refined. Hell, even the titles have or will be changing- What was The New York Creatures will soon be released as The Metamutoids and what was Vampires Unlimited will probably become The Lazarus Factor.

CosmicBookNews: Many Approbation titles are available on Wowio – how important are web comics to today's independent comic creators, and why?

B. Alex Thompson: For me personally it's just another promotional tool to get awareness out for the actual physical comic books. I'm not good at following web comics and it's hard to really relax and get into a story sitting in a chair looking at a bright screen. But some people dig that format, so I try to put a little out for them.

CosmicBookNews: Chaos Campus: Sorority Girls Vs. Zombies combines two pretty hot concepts. Zombies are popular right now, and T&A never goes out of favor with about half the population! Throw in the social commentary and horror/parody elements and it's a pretty potent brew. What's happening with the title right now?

B. Alex Thompson: I get bored and impatient really easy – writing and creating is one of my coping methods for this problem – so I tend to work on many projects at one time. I've been told for many years I need to find a project and focus on just that one, but I really couldn't no matter how hard I tried. Chaos Campus is currently the closest project I can stick to and devote most of my attention on. Right now I am putting out the regular full color series. The whole series is planned to be 60 issues, a three act story at 20 issues each. Season 1/Act 1 is called "Associate's," Season 2/Act 2 is "Bachelor's," and Season 3/Act 3 is "Master's." Right now the plan is to release the single issues via Indyplanet and every four issues collect them with a cover by Mike Lilly as a graphic novel to distribute through Diamond. Issue 11 features a crossover with Violet from Dogwitch and issue 18 has a crossover with Luxura from Vamperotica!

CosmicBookNews: What other Approbation titles will we be seeing in the near future?

B. Alex Thompson: The Evil Inside and Amour anthology mini series have concluded and will be released soon in TPB form. I'm really happy at how those experiments turned out. Production on Blood, Shells, and Roses is back on track and hopefully that will be solicited through Arcana Comics within the next few months. Hopefully Lynx Comics will be able to release the new Lethal Instinct series very soon. A few possible irons in the fire, but right now I'm pretty focused on Chaos Campus.

CosmicBookNews: You work with a few different artists. How do you figure out which artist will do which story?

B. Alex Thompson: When I create a story I usually have a rough idea in my head of how I want it to look. Then I go over artists with that style and see who is available. If they like the project and they have the time, we give it a go!

CosmicBookNews: What writers are you into? Who inspires you creatively? Music? Movies? TV?

B. Alex Thompson: So many, I couldn't even attempt to name them all. Ever since I began Chaos Campus I've had many Buffy the Vampire Slayer comparisons, but 6-ish years ago all I saw was the movie. So lately I've been on a hardcore Joss Whedon kick... I've poured through all seven Buffy seasons and in the middle of season 4 of Angel. Good stuff! Joss is the man! (mimics the Mutant Enemy show ending) Grrrr! Arg!!! (laughs).

CosmicBookNews: Looking ahead... What do you foresee in the future for independently created comics?

B. Alex Thompson: It's where the next champions of entertainment will be born!

CosmicBookNews: Okay, one last unrelated item. Over on Shadowline/Image editor Kris Simon's bulletin boards, you've been posting crazy photos for a long time (www.kris-korner.com/forum). Where the heck do you find those things [laughs]?

B. Alex Thompson: Hahaha, it's nice to have friends in virtual places!

CosmicBookNews: Thank you, Alex!

B. Alex Thompson: Thanks again for having me!

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