Tangible Evidence by Jason Paulos from Ink Tales anthology
Emery: What has been a highlight for you so far in your time making and publishing comics?
Maccanti: A few things immediately come to mind. The first is getting my writing into the public eye. I spend a lot of my free time sitting in my small, dark office/spare bedroom hitting buttons on a keyboard. It's incredibly satisfying to finally see my work enter the physical world and have people pick it up. That's why I enjoy conventions so much, I get to speak to supporters of my work and thank them. It still blows my mind that people other than my friends and family like what I write, it's very humbling.
The other major highlight is publishing other artists work. It's not always easy to get your art out there and if I can make that more accessible, then I've done my job as a publisher.
Emery: I've heard mention that some Australian Comic creators believe Australia could support a "Comics Industry", what are your thoughts on that?
Maccanti: I personally would love to see that happen and it's definitely a possibility. A few key factors would be the Marvel and DC movies putting superheroes back on the map. The growth of pop culture conventions allowing Australian Comic creators to sell directly to our key demographic. The international market has also opened up with online platforms like Comixology Submit.
A long-term sustainable industry is still going to be difficult to achieve but we're moving in the right direction. The fact that Australian Comic creators believe it's possible means we'll be striving to achieve that very goal. And who knows what will happen once Paul Bedford's 'The List' is made into a movie. Hopefully it'll show the film industry that it isn't only Marvel and DC that have good stories to tell.
Emery: What do you have planned for White Cat Press in 2015?
Maccanti: 2015 is going to be twice as big for us! We're going to publish not one but TWO books. The Misadventures of Peter Pumpkinhead Volumes 2 and 3 are scheduled for the end of 2015 (hopefully at Comicpalooza 3). You'll get to see more exploits from the pumpkin-headed boy, along with the amazing artists of the webcomic over at the White Cat Press site.
Our other big announcement is that artist Trevor Wood will start penciling our first graphic novel After the Snow. The script has been in development for a couple of years and Trevor has been working hard on the art style and characters. We'll have plenty of previews for all of our upcoming projects over on the White Cat Press Facebook page.
You can also follow Trevor Wood's work at on his FB page.