We all read and collect comic books, but how many of us dare to live the dream? What dream you ask...?... Creating and publishing your very own comic book. Think of the thrill to see a comic book you've written or illustrated, in the hands of a child, teen or adult? Imagine the rush when you discover a fellow collector submitting your comic book on a CGC invoice? And what delirious heights of euphoria will you reach when your comic book is encapsulated and immortalized in a brand spanking new CGC protective holder? Do you dream of such a day, to behold your very own comic book creation, graded a 9.8, with your name credited in a Universal Blue or Yellow Label? I know I do! With vision, passion, and dedication, living the dream can become a reality.

In my quest to "live the dream", I have sought out the advice of an individual who's doing just that, Bradley Potts. Bradley Potts is the owner of Gateway Comics: a web based comic book publisher and the creative force behind Sunday Superheroes, which features several ongoing titles published weekly, as you guessed, every Sunday.

We're privileged today to get a sneak peek at Gateway Comics latest publication: Stalker: Donning the Mask; a graphic novel written by Potts with artwork by comic legend Trevor von Eeden. In addition, Potts shares his comic book wisdom and gives us keen insights on the in's and out's of publishing your very own comic book.

SW3D: I understand you have a background in RPG gaming. In the 80's growing up as a adolescent, I never gravitated towards RPG's that were all the rave like Dungeons and Dragons... however... in the mid to late 90's, I discovered RPG games on PC platforms, but at least for me, it never translated to sparking my own story or character development. I would guess the roll-of-the-dice game board RPG's emphasizes imagination and creativity... How have you parlayed that experience into comic book publishing?

Bradley Potts: It's safe to say that without RPG's there would be no Stalker today. My early writing was born out of wanting to tell stories in my RPG worlds that were not being explored by the players' characters. I have two unpublished fantasy novels and a number of short stories from those worlds.

Stalker began life in late 1990 as an RPG character, in the HERO System game, Champions. Stalker, Eric Dorian, Revolver, Argent, Black Fury, Eclipse, Sidekick and September can trace their origins to that same RPG campaign. Oddly enough, Public Defender, perhaps the most important hero of my comic universe, has no analog in the old RPG game.

SW3D: Has any comic book professional... living or dead... given you any words of advice that still resonate with you today?

Bradley Potts: I've had the privileged to work with Jamal Igle and Trevor Von Eeden, but in both cases, they were contractors working for me. For the most part, I've had to find my own way, and it has been a matter of trial and error; fortunately usually forward. I have taken a certain amount of inspiration from various comic professionals. I began reading comics during the Chris Claremont X-Men days, which gave me a certain love for that style of storytelling. My own writing style, pacing of stories and fights, owes a lot to the Silver Age production of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. You can see that change in my writing style if you compare the Stalker: Donning the Mask pages to the older First Night story. The books have a very different pacing and storytelling style.

SW3D: Can you walk us through a typical day in the life a comic book writer?

Bradley Potts: I am not a professional writer. I have a day job in IT, so I don't really know what the life of a professional writer looks like. Maybe someday, Gateway Comics will reach the point where it can be my profession; that would be nice. My writing process, however, I can tell you about. My comics typically start as an idea about a scene or a villain the hero will face. Slowly, I let the ideas build around that idea until I have enough to write down a plot outline. The plot outline becomes the core of the story, and I let it sit for a while. Ideas come to me, and I add them to the notes of the story. Eventually, perhaps after a few days or weeks, the plot reaches a point in my head where it demands to be written. Then, and perhaps this is the oddest part, I set those notes aside and start writing. The --script for such a story often comes together quickly, four or five hours, usually with no reference to the notes. It's at this point that I've become so heavily invested in the story and characters, that the notes are no longer needed. Some stories never reach this point; they don't inspire me... they are set aside. If I still need to complete that story, for a deadline or something, the writing is then very difficult.

SW3D: As an unknown writer looking to get published, it's reassuring and encouraging to know that you have a day job and yet manage to balance and keep a steady schedule writing and publishing comics. Your writing process also speaks to me on so many levels, and I'm sure it also echoes with novice and veteran writers alike.

So who is Stalker? What are her powers and what's her motivation?

Bradley Potts: Powers? What are those? Carrie Stane was a young athlete, training for the Olympics, when her parents were murdered. In the aftermath, she discovered that her mother had a secret. She had been the masked crime fighter: Stalker. Carrie doesn't want to see her mother die, and decides to preserve her legacy by becoming the new Stalker and bring justice to her parents' killers. Stalker seeks out her mother's former partner, Public Defender, and he agrees to train and equip her to be the new Stalker; so as for powers, she has none... she's a masked crime fighter, more on the lines of Batman. Some heroes punish the bad guys, and at the outset, that was Carrie's goal: find the people who killed her parents and see they pay for it. But in the years since, Carrie's outlook has mellowed; she's changed, become less angry... her focus has really shifted to protecting the innocent.

SW3D: Can you offer a glimpse into the current Stalker storyline?

Bradley Potts: What we're seeing in "Donning the Mask" is a Stalker who's been betrayed by her friend and mentor, Public Defender. Carrie's angry and tired of his, "I know best" attitude. Stalker's looking back at events in her life that have brought her to this point... so it's an origin story... each chapter is a stand alone story that looks at one of those key moments in her life that led her to this day.

SW3D: What real life sources do you utilize to draw inspiration for Stalker's trials and tribulations?

Bradley Potts: Chapter 3 digs into a very real problem in the world and in America: sex trafficking. Slavery is alive and well in this country with young girls forced against their will to work as prostitutes. Through drugs, coercion and violence, these girls are unlawfully held captive for years, forced to have sex several times a day. They're prisoners, moved secretly from brothel to brothel; tortured victims who suffer under horrible conditions. In Issue 3, Stalker goes undercover to save a girl abducted by sex traffickers.

SW3D: I've had the opportunity to preview Chapter 3 of the graphic novel... originally published in Stalker #3... which is a gritty and shocking depiction of the seedy underbelly of sex trafficking, and Stalker's caught right in the middle of it. You explored mature themes rarely seen in comics. It's bold and impressive. What's around the corner for Stalker?

Bradley Potts: Stalker's alone now; she's no longer part of Public Defender's organization. Carrie has to find her way, all on her own... How is she going to operate? What is she going to do? She'll face new dangers and villains and find new friends and allies.

SW3D: Legendary comic book artist Trevor Von Eeden is the main illustrator on Stalker. What dynamic does Trevor bring to Stalker?

Bradley

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