Today we’d like to introduce you to Allen Carter.
Allen, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I am an independent comic creator born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, but currently residing in North Hollywood, California. I grew up with a love of both art and storytelling thanks to Saturday morning cartoons, and a writing workshop I took at six years old. At eight years old, I wrote and illustrated my first ten comic books made from typing and construction paper. It was a method I refined as I grew older from computer paper hand-drawn books to professional print-on-demand publications that I create today.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
My work is primarily self-published comic books that I both write and illustrate. Each story starts with a basic outline of the episode, what each of the characters will be doing, and also how the story will be broken down by pages. From there all my writing gets transformed into illustrated panels by pencil and pen on 11 X 17 comic art boards, then reduced to 8.5 X 11 size paper in order for me to scan the pages into Adobe Illustrator to smooth the rough ink lines, and later into Photoshop for coloring and dialogue. The final step is organizing the files to send to a print-on-demand online service I use that will print multiple copies of the book I just finished. Why do I do it? Well, in addition to my love of storytelling and art, I also loved (and love) to embrace things that are different. Growing up in Hawaii was a very unique experience, one that at the time was never captured in a comic book. Since most storytellers write about what they know, all of my stories are based in the 50th state, using historical landmarks and slang unique to the islands. Through my “Damn Tourists” and “Cosmic Force” series, I want to show people the side of Hawaii that’s beyond just Waikiki, the North Shore, and Pearl Harbor. I want them to see that the islands have their own economic, political, and social struggles.
What responsibility, if any, do you think artists have to use their art to help alleviate problems faced by others? Has your art been affected by issues you’ve concerned about?
I think that the social and political climate has affected art just as much as any other form of entertainment. Since we are unfortunately in a time where quick judgments are made at almost any subject, artists can feel (and have felt) creatively handcuffed. While this is less of a problem for independent artists as opposed to artists working for large media companies, the issue still remains for us as a whole.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
The best way to see and support my work is by attending the various big comic book conventions such as Wondercon and LA Comic Con, and some other smaller local shows and comic book shops in and around LA County. If you can’t make it out to these events, I have an online store (indyplanet.us/carter-comics) where I have my books for sale via digital download or physical copy order.
Contact Info:
- Website: allen-carter.squarespace.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @cartercomics1
- Facebook: facebook.com/cartercomics
- Twitter: @cartercomics1
Image Credit:
Wondercon 2018 Small Press Table
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