Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá's blog

The Challenge

The first time we went to an Eisner Award, Frank Miller was the keynote speaker. He opened the ceremony saying that we, the artists, should be always facing the challenge that is doing comics in a time when it's much easier doing anything else.

I can say I only draw for a living. I do a lot of illustration work for magazines and newspapers, I do story-boards for films, advertising and music videos, I even did caricatures for a while (but that time is long gone now). I know it's possible for anybody to earn decent money as an illustrator. In time, if you're good enough, you don't even have to work yourself to death, choosing only the better jobs (or being chosen by better people).

So why comics? Independent comics, to be accurate, where it will take a while for you to make money (money? what money?)

Let's go back to the challenge. You do comics because of this chalenge you must face, because you just can't take the easy road. There's only one road for you, and it's the road of a thousand comic book pages. For you, comics is not what you do, it's what you are.

Let me tell you now, you are in trouble.

Aren't we all?

And isn't it great?