Alan Lynch spoke with the multi-talented team of writer and creator Greg Anderson Elysée and artist David Brame.  Both bring a growing body of powerful, visionary work to the indie comics scene.

Greg is known for standout titles like Is’nana the Were-Spider, Marassa, Hammer, and more. With his unique voice, deep cultural roots, and genre versatility, he’s become a respected name in Black speculative fiction.

David’s artwork commands attention with its raw energy and dreamlike motion. A multi-award-winning illustrator and designer, known for titles like the Eisner-nominated After the Rain and the GLAAD Award-winning Young Men in Love, his style not only jumps off the page but also redefines how we see comic art.

Let’s dive into their creative processes, and their exciting new Kickstarter project, Hammer.

The Journey So Far

“Greg, you’ve had a consistent output of fantastic work. What would you say have been some of the most important keys to your success as a comic book writer up to this point?”

GREG: [Laughs] I don’t know if I would call myself successful… A negro still broke and wondering why these big editors ain’t giving me a shot. [Laughs] Aside from that, I think when it comes to my work and why I have a bit of a fanbase, I like to challenge myself as a writer and put out consistent work. Since I’ve gotten in the business, there hasn’t been a year where I didn’t have something released. I’ve always been consistent but also, most of my works are different from each other. While I tend to focus on Black themes, cultures, and characters… The stories are always different, from the presentation to the plots and of course genre. That also makes it fun when I hear from different people which of my works are their favorites.

“And David, for you, what do you feel have been some of the biggest factors in your success as a comic book artist?”

DAVID: Finding collaborators you vibe with, having a strong sense of media literacy and cultural history, Saying YES to things that challenge you, Knowing when to say NO when someone is giving you some bullshit, taking weird gigs to evolve your style, Finish your work and try to meet deadlines as best you can and when you can’t ALWAYS COMMUNICATE YOUR NEEDS. And lastly–endless Charisma.

Personal Resonance in Your Art

“Gentlemen, how important is it for you to infuse your own identity and culture into your work? How much of yourselves actually finds its way onto the page, and is that always a deliberate choice?”

DAVID: Making a comic requires vulnerability. And if you’re doing it right the vulnerability comes out on the page. I feel and emote and laugh with the characters I develop–both to be able to “show it on the page” and to make it feel real (or surreal). I’m not an actor, but being able to build characters that look and act and feel unique requires a certain level of acting. I’ve gotten bored with a lot of comic art and stories that just feel dead. The art may be well done and high quality, the writing is correctly paced–but it all just feels lifeless like they are all just going through the motions of putting together a product and not making art. So yeah it is very intentional for me to be vulnerable when making artwork because I want there to be fullblooded life pumped into every inch of what I’m doing. As for identity and culture, I just enjoy doing art and building narratives I’m already connected to. I’ve worked with publishers that don’t have my same identity or cultural background and I’m constantly having to explain why I’m doing what I’m doing artistically. It’s easier–instead of wasting time explaining you get to spend more time dealing with nuanced deep storytelling.

GREG: Yeah, David is right about the vulnerability thing. I find with a lot of my writing, a lot of me is placed there. Sometimes it’s a personality trait, an interest or hobby I have, or simply it’s just an idea that I truly believe in and it will be a part of that story. A culture that I am fascinated by. A type of person that intrigues me. The list goes on. A lot of the most authentic writing comes from when you add something meaningful from you into the page. It brings it to life. I’ve also put in some life experiences in some of my work and sometimes it’s an emotional process but one that brings truth to the audience as I’ve been reached out by some readers who told me they’ve related or experienced similar stuff before and the story meant a lot to them because of it. A lot of truth is in fiction and it’s why a lot of us keep going to it. Is it escapism, yes. But within that escapism is authenticity, real emotions and experiences… That’s why we came back.

The Power of Collaboration

“As indie creators, how incredibly vital is collaboration for both of you? I’m not just talking about the writer-artist dynamic, but also working with editors, designers, marketers, and everyone else involved.”

DAVID: It’s an indelible part of the creative process. I’m actually not sure how anyone does it all by themselves. I’ve met a few creatives who are their own in-house creative team, but I honestly think it’s a hard row to hoe. Collaboration for me is absolutely everything. I truly think ideas get better, bigger, more extreme in collaborative circles. But, and this is a huge BUT, it’s gotta be the correct collaborators. Otherwise you spend more time dealing with the problems of a faulty team and not building beautiful comics. I’ve been blessed with excellent collaborators for the most part. I’ve also been taken advantage of, dismissed, forgotten, or micro-managed. There’s magic in collaboration when you get it right, I would hope the few faulty teams you might end up on don’t take away your ability to love making collabos.

GREG: I’m a writer who can’t draw, so collaboration is a must and everything to me [Laughs]. And like David said, it has to be the correct collaborator. David is one of those correct ones for me. We have a lot of love and respect for each other, we have similar – extremely similar – tastes and interests, life experiences, and so on. We have a lot of fun working together and he’s become one of my go tos. And we create some wonderful things. I think at some point, we’re gonna need to collect all the shorts we’ve done together because many haven’t seen them.

But yes, a successful comic thrives off of collaboration. There are a lot of things I write that get even better because a solid and talented artist visualizes it in such a way where it doesn’t redirect what I’m writing but advances it. Brings it whole and it’s one of my favorite things to see. With good collaboration, there has to be trust. I’ve definitely been in David’s shoes where I’ve been fucked over and taken advantage of and it leaves you bitter. But then you find comfort in people who just want to do great work without any bullshit.

Unveiling Hammer

“Let’s dive into your new book, Hammer, which is currently funding on Kickstarter. Could you both tell us what it’s all about, and what readers can truly expect from this exciting new project?”

DAVID: I’ll let Greg handle the synopsis and history of the book. As for what readers can expect artwise–BRUTALITY!!! Straight up brutal post-apocalyptic BLACKITY BLACK BLACK savagery. A touch of heart, some cool ass characters, breathtaking vistas, lot’s of noodly small details if that’s your bag, some unique robot designs, tension–so much tension, a pan-african panoply of beauty, some wicked children, and a Hammer–you’ll know it when you see it.

GREG: [Laughs] Is my synopsis even needed after all of that? Aight, fine. It’s thousands of years in the future and human kind is being ruled over by evil Machines and A.I. Humans are used as fuel, entertainment, and labor. While there is resistance, most humans have lost hope. Their literal blood, sweat, and tears have been absorbed into the earth, and Mother Nature Asase Afua uses them to help bring back John Henry, the steel driving man. He’s now made of the Earth and brought back to become the savior against the Robot Apocalypse. There’s a lot of Black history, cultural, and mythological subtext mixed with some sci-fi/Afrofuturism, some Mad Max, Terminator, and Dune, some Swamp Thing, Number 13, and Kyle Baker’s Nat Turner. There’s a lot in the gumbo pot. 

Diving Deeper into Hammer’s Craft

Greg, can you explain how you use language and dialect in telling the story of Hammer? What kind of research went into this?

GREG: I love this question because y’all review got on me about the language and dialogue calling it awkward and was a negative to the book [Laughs] [Editor’s note:  Imani Lateef did indeed mention dialogue in his review.  You can read the full review HERE]. But the dialogue being weird and clunky was all very, very intentional on my part and it was my biggest concern as I was writing it. But as a creative, you have to take risks with your works and I’m proud of taking it.
A few things inspired the dialect… A big one is Cloud Atlas. One part of the story takes place in the far distant future and English has gotten so broken that it practically became a new language in a sense. It was hard to always follow but you get the general sense of what was being spoken. Also, I wanted to give a hint that the Machines and AI taking over leads to a “regression” of language and our communication. But is it truly a regression because we learn to adapt “slang” and “broken” English? Or does it become “human culture”? Because as our language shifts through time, it becomes broken and distant from traditional speech. But it doesn’t mean we’re regressing in intelligence. For folks who know “proper” language, it sounds foreign and a bit “primitive” for lack of a better term. I also wanted to have a subtextual commentary on how Black dialect becomes rooted in modern speak. So much of the English language now has incorporated African American and Black queer vernacular and terms and it’s almost commonplace. It starts off cringey but eventually becomes a part of our speech. There’s a weird, clunky feel of Ebonics in Hammer that practically all the humans speak and as I said… all intentional. Does it work? I suppose mileage varies.

David, what was your inspiration for the robots you designed in Hammer?

DAVID: Lot’s of inspiration. I didn’t want there to be a consistent design standard for how the robots looked. Some have a rounded look, others are more chunky, some very futuristic, and then again others feel very classic. I would say they were mostly inspired by a lot of 70s, 80s and 90’s manga and anime. Ghost In the Shell, Battle Angel, Iria: Zeiram the Animation, Robot Carnival, Guyver, Gundam 0080, Desert Punk, Legend of Galactic Heroes, Captain Tyler. And Paul Pope’s and Moebius’ take on robotics. The thing I like about all that stuff is it’s all magic–maybe it could work. But in reality mechs and cyborgs and robots all of it can be just as imaginative as fantasy.

What’s Next?

“Finally, what can fans look forward to from you two in the near future? Are there any new projects or exciting surprises on the horizon that you can tease?”

DAVID: I’ve spent the last year working on a bunch of new projects with John Jennings, we have a sequel to the legendary Blue Hand Mojo sort of a Cane and Abel send up, A cosmic horror project called Restoration, we’ve been revamping some public domain characters alongside Professor Michael Dando called THE UPSTARTS & NIGHTCROSS. I’ve started work on a 365 days of meditation visual journal where I’m going to document a year long journey with meditation and art.

GREG: Is’nana the Were-Spider, Vol 3 I’ve been trying to release since last year but there’s been some issues and delays, but looks like next year is the year after we finish with this Hammer Act 1 run. I’ve been working with True Fiktion and have a couple of books with them coming out which I’m pretty excited for, using historical moments in Black history to craft some fiction but educational tales. They’re a fun challenge to write. I have a Monkey King project coming out soon which will crossover with Is’nana soon after. This is for Caleb Palquist and his Modern Mythology franchise. And a couple of other things still in the works but not quite ready for verbal speak.

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