First comic you read that made you want to work in comics?

I think it was part four or five of the Miller/Mazzuchelli 'Born Again' DAREDEVIL arc; I can distinctly remember the first-person narrative of Ben Urich, and I can just as distinctly remember thinking, "Oh my God, this is so unbelievably cool!" I'd read other comics before, but none of them had zapped me the way this did. That's when I saw the possibilities, and that's what opened the door for me.

Last person you spoke to on the phone?

Oni Press Editor James Lucas Jones. He left his mobile phone over at our house, when he and his wife and baby daughter joined us for dinner two nights back. I wanted to know when he was coming to retrieve it.

First time you met one of your heroes?

I was fourteen or fifteen, and as a card-carrying geek, a die-hard fan of THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY. SO LONG AND THANKS FOR ALL THE FISH had just come out, and Douglas Adams was touring to support it. He was signing at a bookstore in a mall some sixty miles from my hometown, and I couldn't yet drive. School day, too. My mother allowed me to cut school, drove me to the mall in question, and I was stunned to find that there was no one waiting in line to have their book signed by Douglas Adams. I got to talk to him for some twenty tongue-tied minutes before he politely sent me on my way.

Last time you cooked a meal?

Dinner last night, grilled salmon.

First crush?

The first crush I remember is probably Lee Ann Pingle (yes, that's her real name). I think I'd have been maybe five.

Last time you spent $100 on clothes?

Single article or total purchase? Total purchase, probably about three months ago. Single article? Might have to go back a couple years to the last nice jacket I purchased.

First thing you do when you book into a hotel?

Open the drapes and find out what the view is like - both for myself and for anyone trying to peer inside.

Then I unpack. Yes, in the drawers.

Last time you cried?

Six weeks or so, I think. My father has been going through an exceptionally rough period with his work, and he and I had a fight. It was a big fight. It was an ugly fight. I reduced him to tears. Hence my own.

First teacher to make a difference to you?

Miss Johnston, sixth grade. Made all the difference in the world. She let me read whatever I wanted, and for a ten year old, I was reading some pretty wild stuff. She encouraged me in theater, encouraged me in writing, and didn't let me neglect my math homework.

Last time you told a lie?

Last night. I played poker. I lied a lot.

First time you feared for your life?

Eight years old, had a gun pointed at me. Don't much want to talk about that.

Last comic you read that reminded you why you love comics?

BLACKSAD Volume 1. The actual writing suffered in translation, I think, and even with that caveat, it wasn't really anything new as far as noir stories go. But combined with some truly stunning art, it worked beautifully. I'm not a fan of anthropomorphic stories for the most part, and the usage of animals as characters isn't as refined or deliberate as, say, Spiegelman's in MAUS; but as a whole, it's one of the most enjoyable books I've read in a very long time.

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