The PCU Ten: Erik Larsen
If you have read Comics in the last 30 years, Erik Larsen is a name you know. Despite a successful career as an artist at Marvel, Erik and other like minded young creators such as Rob Liefeld and Jim Lee banded together to form their own company, Image Comics in 1992. One year later, he started his book Savage Dragon, which he has continued to write and draw for the last 22 years, an incredible feat in the world of comics, where creators jump books after several issues, not several hundred. Along with Todd Mcfarlane, Larsen is one of the two remaining founders at Image, and even served as Publisher from 2004 to 2008. Despite such a busy schedule keeping Dragon coming out regularly, Erik took a few moments to answer 10 questions from Pop Culture Uncovered.
PCU- 1. Having written and drawn Savage Dragon for over 200 issues and nearly 25 years is an incredible achievement and nearly unheard of in the comics industry. Do you have a planned ending point, or will you keep creating until you decide it’s time?
EL- The latter. I expect it will slowly wind down and become less frequent with an occasional miniseries to check in on old friends but as long as I’m living I’d like to keep going.
PCU- 2. Obviously doing all the writing and pencilling on Dragon takes up much of your time. Have you had many ideas for other series that you can’t start because of time commitment issues, or are you solely concerned with continuing Dragon?
EL- Sure I have other ideas and finding the time is no easy task. At the point where the book can no longer sustain an audience large enough to support the book I’m more likely to try other stuff but I am committed to keeping Savage Dragon characters going even if it’s less frequent. We’ll see how things go.
PCU- 3. You have been drawing and creating comics since childhood. Was there one specific creator or title that sparked your passion and set you on the track to going pro?
EL- Jack Kirby was a big one but Herb Trimpe’s run on the Hulk started me going. I really liked having a title I could count on with a committed creator onboard. As a kid, that meant the Hulk and Herb Trimpe. When Herb moved on I was pretty bummed.
PCU- 4. Having written Dragon since its inception, do you have any regrets or story lines that looking back now, don’t please you?
EL- Frequently. I destroyed the earth and had the characters move to an alternate earth with #76 and I regret that a bit. But then every faze of the book had something to offer so inevitably it was all worthwhile. I do get things out of it.
PCU- 5. You operated as Image’s publisher for several years until 2008. Are there any aspects of that job that you feel helped you become a better creator?
EL- Not really, no. It was fun being part of an office and going to work and seeing people–but in terms of becoming a better creator–it really didn’t make a huge difference. By that point I had a pretty good idea of what I was doing.
PCU- 6. Some creators try to stick to a 9 to 5 schedule, some work when they want. Do you have any type of regiment, or is it a looser process? Take me through a typical day creating Savage Dragon.
EL- I work as close to 9 to 5 as I can. I also try to get out some. On Monday I’ll go draw at a nearby coffee shop in the morning just to get out of the house and see other human beings. On Tuesday I take my son to school in the East Bay and I work in a burger joint for a few hours while he’s at school. I actually find that I’m more productive outside my home office. The rest of the week I’m at my house in San Francisco. I’ll sometime have lunch with various pals in town but I try to keep pretty regular working hours. I try to get to the gym every other day and it generally winds up being three times a week. When I’m scripting that can be a late night but most often I try to get to bed at a reasonable hour. I’ll sneak in a few hours here and there when I can on my down time. If my wife runs off to buy groceries, I head for the board. I can usually find a few extra hours here and there but primary work hours are the standard 9 to 5.
PCU- 7. Working on Dragon takes up a lot of your time, do you make it a point to keep up on books, comics, TV or films? If so, what have you enjoyed lately?
EL- TV doesn’t really exist in my life. I have tons of reading that I do. I read a lot of comics and collections of strips–I’ll read a fair number of nonfiction books and watch movies in theaters or play them at home. I go out to the movies maybe once a month. Last book I read was John Cleese’s “So, Anyway…”, last movie Avengers: Age of Ultron, and I recently watched the complete Seinfeld series. I’ll sometimes play podcasts while inking. The Nerdist is a favorite.
PCU- 8. In the early Image days, you were young and starting a company with a bunch of other young guys. At what point did you realize that this was going to truly last long-term? Was there a point where you considered bailing?
EL- At no point did I consider bailing although I think all of us came in thinking it may or may not work. Few of us committed to ongoing books right out of the gate. We were mostly a bit hesitant. We didn’t know for sure if it would fly but those early numbers made it pretty clear that it was going pretty well. I started up the ongoing Savage Dragon book when we broke off from Malibu and we were completely on our own as a show of faith.
PCU- 9. Do you still get offered work for hire jobs, and if so, is it a consideration at this point or are you not interested anymore?
EL- It doesn’t happen much and really, it never really happened. I’ve chased down and fought for most jobs that I’ve gotten in the industry. I wrote pitches and cold called editors, scrambling to get a job. If something tickles my fancy I’ll sometimes do it. I drew a CD cover for a bluegrass singer and a T-shirt for a professional wrestler and I’ve done a few alternate covers for folks but for the most part I stick close to home and work on my regular book. Some years ago I did a spat of writing at Marvel and DC, taking on Aquaman, Wolverine and Nova. A bit later I drew an issue of Spider-Woman and did short runs on Spider-Man, Thor, the Defenders and a FF maxi-series called Fantastic Four: the World’s Greatest Comic Magazine and I ended up getting pretty sick from overextending myself. It seems penciling two books a month in addition to Savage Dragon was overdoing things. I’m not vehemently opposed to the idea but I don’t seek it out. At this point it would really need to be something I’d want to do and I’ve pretty much exhausted my wish list. I don’t have many itches left to scratch.
10. Finally, what would you like your legacy to be in the comics world, what do you hope you are remembered for and what advice would you give young upstarts?
EL- My lifework is really Savage Dragon and I’d hope to be remembered for that. But honestly–once I’m gone I stop caring. As for advice for young upstarts–find the joy in whatever tasks you tackle. Find a way to make it fun. You may not always end up on the book you most want to work on–few people do–so find a way to make the work you’re doing fun for you. I’ve said it before but it’s worth repeating: if you’re not working on your favorite comic book–you’re doing it wrong.
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