STAPLE! Community Blog: Interview with Jeremy Holt,

Jeremy Holt will be returning to Texas from Vermont for this years Staple! A talented writer, Jeremy's bibliography includes Skip to the End and Skinned (Insight Comics), Southern Dog (Action Lab) Pulp (Comixology), which IGN has called, “…one of the best one-shot comics of the year,” and will be debuting After Hodini (Insight Comics) latter this year. Jeremy was kind enough to take the time to do this interview.

Jeremy will be participating the the LGBTQIA Comics Panel at STAPLE!

MH - In preparing for this interview, I got the chance to read Southern Dog and Skinned. I feel that each book plays around seeming. Characters are not physically as they seem to appear. At the same time, they’re not emotional and/or ethical as they seem to project. Is this something you see in your work, and if so why?

JH - That’s an interesting take on those two books. For me, it’s less about seeming and more about the exploration of one’s identity. For Skinned, I aimed to tackle the topic of gender identity, and for Southern Dog, more of a focus on ethnic identity. As an adopted, Korean-American, non-binary writer, I cannot help but incorporate my own experiences (both positive and negative) with identity into my stories.

MH - What titles are you bringing to Staple?

JH - I will have copies of Skip to the End, Skinned, and Southern Dog available for purchase. A little something for everyone!

MH - Your latest and upcoming books Skip to the End and After Houdini draw from historical figures that were also public performers. Do you see this as a creative shift for you? Is there a connection between appearance, performance, and writing?

JH - I’d definitely agree with that assessment. While developing, writing, and producing those books, I wanted to stretch my creative muscles by writing outside of my wheelhouse. Of the two books, Skip to the End was a massive departure from the types of stories that I tend to gravitates towards. Also, the fact that these both are works of historical-fiction, there was a considerable amount of research that needed to be done. I’m a stickler for details, and wanted to be sure to appease fans of either Nirvana or Harry Houdini, while also providing an accessible story for everyone.

MH - A lot of Staple guest are creators themselves. Do you have any advice on how you balanced writing with a personal life, day job, and networking?

JH - Tough question! Mainly because what works for me may not work for someone else. However, I will say that you must love what you do. Before you ever show any of your work to a friend, collaborator, or hopefully an editor, the act of creating should feel more like a reflex than a conscious decision. That has provided the foundation I’ve needed to forge on and build up my imaginary worlds. As for balancing everything outside of that? Well, that’s the real challenge in my opinion. I believe having a separate space, like an office, to do the work greatly helps in disengaging from it when Life comes roaring back in around you, after hours upon hours of isolated writing time. I also prefer structure, so I definitely designate blocks of time for just writing, others for just admin stuff like emails, and sprinkling in social media networking when I have a free moment at my day job.