For today’s Artist August, we’re going to be chatting with one of my favorite rising stars in comics: Yale Stewart. We met Yale at NYCC via a mutual friend and read his mini-comic, the highly enjoyable “Gifted,” and I personally kept in touch with Yale since. Soon, Yale put his brand new comic online entitled “Little League,” and it took the web by storm. Featuring younger versions of classic DC characters, “Little League” quickly found its audience and with it Yale’s star begin to rise — and we couldn’t be happier for him.
So today, we sit down with Yale to talk the origins of “Little League” and more. Read on!
Can you look back on your life and recall the single moment that made you want to work in comics? Or was it more of a natural progression that led you here?
Yale Stewart: Probably the first time I saw an actual comic book, or whenever the time was that I realized it was something you could do for a living.
Who or what has influenced the development of your art the most?
YS: That’s a pretty good question, and a tough one to answer. My immediate response would’ve been John Romita, Jr., and he still is a huge influence on my stuff, but animation period has been incredibly influential. Especially since I ended up majoring in it in college.
Most people would probably recognize your name from the popular webcomic “Little League.” However, speaking as someone who knew you before that, I can remember when Li’l Batman and Li’l Superman were just something you doodled for fun. At what point did you decide to take the comic more seriously and develop it as a full blown series?
YS: Well…I think I know what you’re talking about, with the doodles, but those were always sort of building towards a series. It just seems like I’ve begun to take it more seriously because it’s gotten so big. I don’t really like to say that, but most people would describe it as such. The “big” thing, I mean.
The comic relies on DC characters, albeit not with any direct ties to their continuity — sort of like a mini New 52 on a smaller scale. Given this angle, how has most of the reaction been that you’ve heard of from DC Comics?
Generally, and I won’t name names, but the editors and creators that work at DC have all been really positive about it. And so has almost everyone else. I’ve not really heard any negativity over it, which is nice, I suppose, but at the same time makes me a little nervous, haha.
Speaking more towards the designs of the characters, they all have a Watterson-esque vibe to them. When you were first playing with the concept, what was it that helped you to explore this specific angle, both visually and in terms of the overall execution?
YS: I feel like they lean more towards Toriyama, personally. Either way, they’re children. The only way to properly convey kids (as far as I know), is generally in the simplest way possible. Avoid extraneous detail and lifework, because that will automatically age the characters, more often than not. So I was looking at all kinds of stuff. Jeff Smith, Shane Glines, Charles Schulz, Bill Watterson, Alex Toth, Marc Brown, Milt Kahl, Edmund Kiraz…the list goes on and on.
A lot of modern mainstream comics have a grim/dark demeanor to them, but so far “Little League” has been entirely optimistic. Obviously there’s a humorous nature to the strip that you focus on, but was there anything specific you were hoping to bring light to when making a decidedly all-ages comic?
YS: I suppose that comics can be fun and quality at the same time. I don’t know if I’m accomplishing either of those things with “Little League,” but people seem to be enjoying it.
Can you walk us through what your process is like? What’s an average day for Yale Stewart when putting together a new page?
YS: Well, plotting, for starters. But that usually happens weeks in advance. in terms of the day a new strip goes up, it’s pretty basic and rather anticlimactic. I start by writing the script and thumbing out roughs for how I want the strip to look. If I need to, I’ll do some rough designs for a new character or location, if the strip contains one. Then I hit the drawing table. I layout all my panels on bristol, and ink the borders. Then I’ll do the lettering. Once that’s out of the way, I’ll begin roughing in pencils, tightening pencils, then onto inking, spot blacks, any white work that needs to be done, like Bruce’s eyebrows and what have you. Then I’ll head to the library, scan it, color it, post it. Finally, I sit around and read the comments to see if people liked it, haha.
Continued belowI know you do all of your work the “old fashioned way,” but in today’s day and age with digital tools available, have you considered exploring any other options in terms for your work?
YS: I have thought about doing my layouts digitally. I’m not very good at scale, and also have trouble composing shots in relation to panel borders. For example, I may draw a character too far to the left, or something. If I did all that stuff digitally, it would save me a lot of time erasing, and wouldn’t prevent me from still having traditional pencils and inks to hold in my hand.
Given the implicit web-based nature of the strip, obviously fan interaction is key. Do you feel that feedback via social media, both positive and negative, pushes you as an artist? Does that have any effect on you whatsoever?
YS: I imagine it does, but I don’t know if it does so consciously. I’d be lying if I said it had no effect on me. When people take issues with a certain storyline or something, it can be a little frustrating, admittedly. In the end, I just remember that as much as I love my fans and everyone that supports the strip, I’m still doing this for me. If people think it sucks all of a sudden, that would be a huge bummer, but I know what stories I want to tell, and what stories I think will work, and I refuse to let popular opinion sway me from that. Unless I decide they’re right, of course.
Outside of having “Little League” picked up as a full-time DC gig, what would a dream project be for you?
YS: Let me get back to you on that.
When we first met at NYCC, you were handing out copies of a comic called “Gifted,” which was/is going to be your big book some day. Can you tell us about it at all and what your plans are for it, or would you rather keep the majority of details close to your chest?
YS: Well, I actually posted the first 32 pages on my “fan page” on Facebook; the one dedicated to my art, as opposed to the “Little League” one. Surprisingly, it’s gotten pretty positive reactions from people. That being said, I may be returning to it sooner rather than later, but we’ll see. I’ve got a lot on my plate as it is.
Who are your favorite artists working in comics today?
YS: Tradd Moore, Stephen Green, Kevin Zeigler, Tyson Hesse, Coleman Engle, Brooke Allen, Kate Beaton, Ryan Pequin, Zac Gorman, Andrew MacLean, Darwyn Cooke, Olivier Coipel, James Harren, Jim Cheung, Rafael Grampa, Paul Pope, Stuart Immonen, Katie Shanahan, Joe Dellagata, Carla Speed McNeil, Mike Mignola, Sean Murphy, Becky Cloonan, Jarrett Williams, Ian McGinty, Marcos Martin, Paolo Rivera, Mike Allred, Frank Quitely, Travel Foreman, Sean “Cheeks” Galloway, Ben Caldwell, Chris Bachalo…the list really could go on forever. So much amazing stuff out there.
Desert Island final question: one book, one album, one film and one comic. What do you take with you?
YS: God, that’s difficult. Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s “One Hundred Years of Solitude,” Blink-182’s “Take Off Your Pants and Jacket,” Richard Linklater’s “Dazed and Confused” and Jeff Smith’s “Bone.” I’m a firm believer in that if you’re gonna take one thing with you, it better be optimistic, since you’re stranded on a desert island. Haha.
