2004 should prove to be a big year for comics creator and editor David Kelly, who has been publishing gay-themed strips since the mid-1990s. Kelly's work includes two collections of STEVEN'S COMICS ('We Are Family' and 'New Best Friend'), a gently funny and bittersweet chronicle of a boy growing up in the late 1970s, which Kelly both writes and draws. He's also co-editor of BOY TROUBLE, a gay comics anthology. This year marks a decade of BOY TROUBLE, and the occasion will be commemorated with a special anniversary issue. Kelly also hopes to release a new issue of STEVEN'S COMICS in the fall.

BOY TROUBLE, begun by Robert Kirby (creator of the comic strip CURBSIDE), was intended as "an alternative to the gay 'thrust and squirt' comics of the time," says Kelly, referring to erotic anthologies like MEATMEN. "The stories are personal and many are autobiographical. I never really related to gay comics that depicted 'the scene'. It was the depictions in BOY TROUBLE that grabbed me and I knew that I wanted to be involved in it. I joined Rob as co-editor with issue number two. It's very gratifying that we are still publishing issues; I think BOY TROUBLE filled a void in gay comics."

Like the stories in BOY TROUBLE, those in STEVEN'S COMICS are highly personal, and one could easily assume that they're autobiographical, but Kelly insists that this isn't the case. "The feelings behind the stories are truly real, but the stories are fictional, for the most part. Inspiration for the stories is drawn from various sources. I usually combine situations I have heard or read about. I do think there is an isolation in growing up gay, which I definitely felt as a boy in the 1970s and 1980s. That part of STEVEN'S COMICS is autobiographical."

For the 80-page anniversary edition of BOY TROUBLE, Kelly and Kirby have brought together previous contributors such as Michael Fahy, C Bard Cole and 'Anonymous Boy', alongside first-timers such as Craig Bostick, Tim Fish, Steve MacIsaac and Ivan Velez Jr. It's also the first time that female creators have been invited to participate, with stories from LILIANE's Leanne Franson and SUBGURLZ's Jen Camper, among others. The book debuted to a great response at the Alternative Press Expo in San Francisco in February, and will be available to retailers through Top Shelf in June, though Kelly is already selling copies via his own website. "Folks were very excited to see it and it sold very well," says Kelly.

Kelly began drawing as a child, and his interest in comics came about around the same time. "I drew comics when I was very young, when I was in grade school," he says. "The most memorable would be a super-heroine named Star Woman. I later revived for her for three episodes of STEVEN'S COMICS when I was doing it as a strip. It was a Wonder Woman rip-off. I also had characters like Star Girl and Star Baby. It was fun to delve into a character that I had created almost 20 years prior."

Kelly's comics intake during his childhood was similar to that of many American kids in 1970s. "I read many of the DC superhero comics," he admits. "You name it, I read it. I don't read them anymore but I'm still addicted to the old DC stuff. We always had comics lying around our house, so I also loved all ARCHIE comics, and MAD, too. I was never a big Harvey comics fan until recently. I am also a big PEANUTS fan, and loved reading the strip when I was a kid." Today, he reads comics by Lynda Barry, Alison Bechdel, Tim Fish, Paige Braddock, and Leanne Franson. "Unfortunately, I don't make it to the comics store so much anymore, so I am usually a year or so behind in comics reading."

Though he studied art in college, Kelly says the experience wasn't ideal, because it didn't give him the opportunity to do exactly what he really wanted to do. "I have a BA in illustration, but comics were really frowned upon as art projects when I was in college! I remember getting criticized for my style in life drawing class. I never was very good at drawing realism." That hasn't curbed his artistic ambitions, though. "I want to learn animation, and would love to experiment in the medium," he says. "I take on illustration projects once in a while, and would like to do more of that as well."

He's not done with comics, though. After ten years of BOY TROUBLE, gay comics are still under-represented in the industry, and like most minority creators looking to contribute to the greater diversity in the industry, Kelly has had to turn himself into a one man production line. Even so, he's encouraged to see that the number of creators who have taken that route is on the rise.

"I seem to notice more gay titles now than even a few years ago, probably because groups like Prism Comics promote the visibility of gay creators," he says. "When Rob and I were putting together BOY TROUBLE #4 in 2000, we were hard-pressed to identify many current gay-themed comics. Most are self-published, and for creators to get them out periodically requires a lot of time, organization, and financial investment.

"I think this probably accounts for why gay-oriented comics do not appear as often as they might; they do not have the support of comic book publishers. Self-publishers like Tim Fish and Paige Braddock are to be commended for getting quality issues of their respective comic books out on a regular basis."

Those looking to fill the gap between comics can always pick up back issues, of course. Kelly still has old issues available through his website. "I still have plenty of STEVEN'S COMICS," he says, "but almost all past issues of BOY TROUBLE are running low, and I probably won't reprint the comic in its current format." But ten years' hard work hopefully won't be lost, according to Kelly; "I am considering putting together a best of BOY TROUBLE volume if this latest issue does well."

Tom Moore is editor, writer, and photographer for a monthly newspaper in Texas.

This article is Ideological Freeware. The author grants permission for its reproduction and redistribution by private individuals on condition that the author and source of the article are clearly shown, no charge is made, and the whole article is reproduced intact, including this notice.