Post★Boy

Pitching Comics 101 - Be Like Dwayne McDuffie

So my first tip on working in comics was going to be a basic, but I postponed it following the news of Dwayne McDuffie’s passing.

The first time I met Mr. McDuffie, I couldn’t have been more than sixteen or seventeen years old. Gangly and awkward, I’d decided long ago that I wanted to work in comics and had already tried submitting work to Marvel and DC to no avail. When word of McDuffie, Cowan & Co forming Milestone Media hit the news, I was even more motivated to break into comics.

I didn’t even know Black people made comics until then. Everyone I had seen at conventions were white guys. It didn’t make a difference honestly, but once I knew what he was doing, and why, well it was inspiring.

So I put together a far too large sample of my drawings and writings, mailed them to Milestone and waited…

And waited…

After a few weeks, I called their offices to ask if they’d received my work. Don’t ask me how, but instead I got a meeting with the man himself. I put on my best clothes, got my portfolio together and arrived at Milestone’s loft headquarters. As I was ushered to Dwayne’s office, the floor was abuzz with people of many colors, making comics. I was thrilled and shitting my pants.

Dwayne was a TALL brother and having not reached my full height, it only added to the intimidation. As he sat behind his desk thumbing through my sketches, reading my pitches, I fully expected him pick me up by my neck and toss me out the door, Jazz-style.

What I got instead, was a straight-forward and sincere explanation of how the comics industry worked. Dwayne didn’t discourage me, in fact he said I’d created characters and stories surprisingly within the vien to material Milestone was drafting. He said I had talent but needed more experience, especially considering I hadn’t even started college yet.

You’d expect to cue the Charlie Brown music for me, but I was so happy that someone had finally taken an interest, that a person like Dwayne had made it in comics, and still taken time out of his schedule to give some random kid his advice. Well, it was more than I’d gotten from just pitching cold. Dwayne was super cool and though he’d sent me on my way, it was with knowledge that I would keep and eventually use to get in this crazy industry.

The last time I saw Dwayne McDuffie was at San Diego Comicon last year, standing at the DC Booth, talking to someone. I was in the middle of a conversation myself and before I could excuse myself to go chat with him, he was gone.

It might seem silly, but I’d always wanted to remind him of that day, nearly 20 years ago. Tell him what an influence he and Milestone Comics were on me. That I’d stuck with it and became an editor at Marvel and now DC Comics. That because he was so cool to me, I didn’t give up, that I was working hard to be someone like him in the industry, that I was doing my best to create comics and pass on wisdoms like he did for me so many years ago.

I missed that chance, but I figure anyone reading this should know that Dwayne McDuffie is one of main reasons I am in comics. I am sure he didn’t know, but he was, so I will never forget that or him.

May he rest in peace.