Andy has loved fantasy fiction, especially epic tales, for as long as he can rememeber. But it wasn't until college that the inspiration for Light Children came during a road trip in Virginia. Since then, Andy has been tirelessly developing the Light Children story. Andy always envisioned Light Children as a graphic novel, but he was missing an artist.
Andy met Kyle in 2004, when searching for an illustrator to assist with a commercial design job. Andy found Kyle's portfolio online and was impressed with his work. When the two met to discuss the job, conversation quickly turned to their shared love of graphic novels. Andy described the Light Children project and Kyle was hooked - Andy would write it and Kyle would do the art.
Andy's day job is being a marketing consultant and creative director. When not working on Light Children and running the Vortiscope studio, he enjoys spending time with his wife and making up bedtime stories for his two young sons.
Kyle is a nationally-recognized commercial illustrator with clients such as The New Yorker , Los Angeles Times, and USA Today. Though Kyle has been recognized by publications including Communication Arts, Graphis, and PRINT Magazine, he has never realized his life goal of leading the art of a full-scale graphic novel—until now!
Light Children provides Kyle the opportunity to create the look of a whole new world and the bizarre characters and creatures that inhabit it from scratch.
A man for all seasons, Kyle’s diverse hobbies (including classical guitar, photography, art history, tennis, travel and origami) have furnished Kyle with an eclectic sensitivity that gives Light Children its universal appeal.
When not drawing, Kyle enjoys spending time with his family and friends, and seeing as much of the world as possible.
Ask a Question
Ask Kyle and Andy a question. We'll do our best to answer every question by email. If we think your question will interest others, we may publish it here.
Your Questions Answered...
- Jasmine from Virginia: "Does it hurt when Hortense pulls a globe out of her hair?”
- Andy: “They're not connected to her head. Rather, they're entangled in her hair. She just twists them right out."
- Tyler from North Carolina: "Have you guys ever thought of putting a fanart section on the website”
- Andy: “Yes! We plan to do that soon. Please feel free to email us Light Children art now and we'll consider it for the fan gallery when it's live."
- Ryan from North Carolina: “Are your characters modeled after anyone?”
- Andy: “Herschel and Bruno's relationship has roots in the complex bond with my brothers, who are twins and both a year older than I am. Growing up, we were terribly competitive, but our love for each other was even greater. The inspiration for Hortense and Sybil is plucked from my sisters and from several strong, nurturing, and feisty female college chums. Tisdale, both brilliant and mischievous, is a tribute to my dear childhood friend Kevin, who died way too young. Maud represents innocence and fragility. And Eli....well that would be saying too much.
The names for the children (Eli and Tisdale not included) are the names my father invented for my siblings' and my future spouses. Mine was to be Sybil and my father would say, "Andzo, when you're married someday, do you think Sybil is going to appreciate you leaving your dirty clothes all over the house?” - Ron from North Carolina: “Do you forsee an opportunity to produce a cinema movie as a result of this novel and if so who would you see playing the leading role of Eli?”
- Andy: “We'd love to see Light Children translated to a movie some day. Truth is, the readers will be the ones who decide that. Go readers go! As for who would play the part of Eli? How about a bald, 'Gilbert Grape' aged Leonardo?”
Kyle: “I am not sure, but perhaps Haley Joel Osment would make a good Eli some day. On the other hand, it might be best to cast somebody that nobody is familiar with, so the actor does not bring any previous character associations that audiences may identify him with to the project, a la Dan Radcliffe as 'Harry Potter.'” - Dan from Texas: “Where did you get the idea for Light Children?”
- Andy: “During college in the mid 90's, I was on a road trip in Virginia with some college mates. A bit tired of driving, we pulled off at a tourist stop. The specific nature of that place provided the inspiration for Light Children. The keel of the story popped into my head in that instant. That's as much as I can say without giving away story secrets.”
- Stewart from Prague: “What artists have inspired Kyle?”
- Kyle: “Edgar Degas, Bernie Wrightson, Heinrich Kley, Kent Williams, Gary Kelley, Mike Mignola, Paul Pope, Milton Glaser, Hergé, and David Mazzuchelli.”
- Jennifer from Virginia: “Andy, What are your favorite stories?”
- Andy: “As a kid - 'Star Wars', 'Thundercats', 'Transformers', and 'The Chronicles of Narnia'. When I was older (really just a bigger kid): 'Lord of the Rings', Norse Mythology, 'Ender's Game', and now, the TV show 'Lost'.”
- Joey from D.C.: “What's your favorite comic book of all time?”
- Andy: “The Maxx, by Sam Keith.”
Kyle: “It's a three way tie between 'Batman: Year One,' 'Ghost World,' and 'Bone.'” - Nancy from Ohio: “What is your development process like?
- Andy: “First, I work out the basic story line. Then I sketch out the scenes panel by panel for Kyle, adding thumbnail drawings and dialog. I email PDFs to Kyle a chapter at a time”
Kyle: “I read through Andy's story and work out loose sketches for each chapter. Andy and I review the sketches together. Then I create tight inked pages, add color, overlay texture, fine-tune the art, and drop in word bubbles. Andy will often do one last round of dialog edits and we're done.”
