Interview: Janine Frederick, Creator of Aleksander Christov: Assassin (Zuda Competitor)
Posted By Papa Llama on March 4, 2010
We love talking to competitors in each monthly Zuda Comics competition, webcomic creators who are competing for votes, views, and 5-star ratings that will earn 1 of the 10 creators (or creative teams) a contract to keep producing that comic for DC Comics’ online Zuda division. Every month’s competition is a different story in and of itself. This month features a variety of great art and some of the comics demonstrate particularly strong storytelling skill. We spoke with the writer of a comic that shows strength in both areas, Aleksander Christov: Assassin.
Aleksander Christov: Assassin
by Janine Frederick (script) and Ken Frederick (art)
http://zudacomics.com/node/1680
Llama: So how did you wind up writing a webcomic?
Janine: A little over a year ago, I started tinkering with this story. At the time, my husband was returning to his artwork for the first time in ten years. At one point, Ken and I were discussing what I could possibly do with the story I was writing. We both thought that maybe it could make a good comic book and I thought maybe Ken could draw it for me. About a month later, Ken decided he wanted to turn part of chapter 1 into our submission for Zuda. So, I got to work on converting chapter 1 to comic script format. A few weeks later, we had the finished 8 pages, ready to send off to Zuda. The whole decision was really per chance, in a way.
Llama: Where did this lead character come from?
Janine: In many ways, Aleksander (Alek, for short) is me. (No, I never killed my father and don’t plan to – he’s my hero.) I think all of the characters I write have a little bit of “me” in them, even Alek’s father. I know I’ve had my moments of defeat in life, stewing in self pity, and lashing out at those around me… it’s human. I’m also willing to bet that every single one of us has been Alek at some point in their lives, weather we were being mistreated, fighting for self-preservation, alone, taking HUGE risks, being involved in something bigger than ourselves, or given an opportunity to change our lives completely. In all honesty, this lead character came from my heart and my soul, not my head.
Llama: You’ve shown us an 8-page origin story. Will page 9 leap forward in time?
Janine: Yes, it has to. The story is about an assassin’s life, so page 9 will definitely get you into who Alek has become. I intend on flashing back, at various scenes, to events that happened between page 8 and 9 and before page 1, to get the reader acclimated to an emotion or the importance of a situation. The reader isn’t just going to be shown gory pictures of Alek killing people with lackluster plot that’s loaded with convenience – that’s not what this story is about, at all. The rest of this story, as in pages 1 – 8, will allow the reader to have the same adrenalin rush and emotional connection to Alek. Even though, he is a fictional character, he feels real enough for people to root for him when he’s running from guard dogs, stealing a dossier, or planting a bomb. In this story, people can also feel his pain and anguish when he finds disappointment, fails at certain tasks, or realized that he has no control over certain situations. Basically, the reader is in for a wild ride.
Llama: How far ahead do you have the story planned? How detailed are your plans?
Janine: I actually have it about 3/4 completed, in story form. I write the story first and then break it out into script format. My process is extremely detailed. I like to write back-story for every single character that the reader will encounter – I find that it adds life to each one. There are no “red shirts” in Aleksander Christov: Assassin. I even have a map of all the characters and their relationships on one of the walls in my house. It looks like a serial killer lives here.
Llama: You’re doing a lot of research for the comic. What kind of research?
Janine: Well, considering this story takes place in Russia, during the cold war era of the 1960’s, I’ve been scouring the internet, libraries, and talking to people who were have an insight on the goings on at the time. I was born in 1979, so, I can’t say I experienced the same fear, sitting in front of a little black and white TV watching the Cuban Missile Crisis play out. Most of the information I’ve been coming across has actually come from the CIA website’s database.
Llama: I’m actually familiar with that website. I’ve had to use it for research too.
Janine: I’ve been on that thing so many times I’m surprised they haven’t come to my house.
Llama: And how well did you research Zuda itself?
Janine: I researched the crap out of Zuda. Basically, I’ve watched and participated in several competitions in the past 6 months, keeping my eye on how the competitions themselves play out from start to finish. I’ve followed Kwanzer, Perazza, and Niksterr on twitter – and I always pay attention to the “Making Comics” advice that they give. I hope all of my research pays off!

One's Janine. One's Ken. Figure it out.
Llama: How much did you and your artist confer on what look the comic would go for?
I pretty much let my husband decide how he wanted to draw it, based on the feeling it gave him. As you can see, it’s a bit grittier than most, which we both felt added to draw the reader in. The penciling, inks, and coloring are almost like a characters in the story, similar to how a movie soundtrack would be. The viewer doesn’t realize it at the time, but the coloring and weight of the inking, weather bright or muted, thick or thin, involves a reader on a subconscious level. We both felt that these were items to consider when deciding on what look is the best for any comic.
Llama: You’re off to a strong start in the competition, and I must say I love your energy.
Janine: Thanks! I, and my husband, are just so thrilled, humbled, excited, and honored to be a part of this. This is absolutely amazing!!! I can’t express to you in words what this opportunity means to us.
Llama: What can you tell us about Aleksander’s future?
Janine: Aleksander’s future is one that most people dream about, but would not want for themselves. However, Alek’s future is a lot like everyone else’s life now… filled with challenges & opportunities.
Llama: And about your own future?
Janine: My future, hopefully, will include me writing comics professionally – on the side of working my regular day job. I do my best writing at night anyway. I’m definitely hoping that Ken’s future includes more drawing comics. It’s what he loves!
Check out her assassin’s origin at http://zudacomics.com/node/1680.
If you like what you see, you should register, rate it, and vote.
Visit Janine Frederick online:
http://twitter.com/J9Naimoli
http://www.facebook.com/j9frederick
also http://twitter.com/prontocomics

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