Creating a Graphic Novel : Art – Food – Photography

Tim Tyler is the inker and artist on several independent titles including Faust, Razor and the newly released Engine (full review of Engine coming soon!). Engine #1 is available now in Diamond Previews so hassle your local comic book store to order in a copy if you like his work.

I had the opportunity to look through a lot of his work but my favorite piece was this Invisible Woman commission that he did.  It has an interesting retro feel. Nice image especially the blurring effect where she turns “invisible”.

Tim was also nice enough to spend some time to answer a few questions for me. So Tim . . what got you into comics?

I have always loved comics, ever since I was a small child. I discovered the works of Jack Kirby, John Romita, Gil Kane and others, through Marvel’s reprint books in the 70’s. Kirby always stuck out in my mind, for his power and dramatic panel pacing. I have always loved film as well. Comics is basically film on paper, so maybe it is the fusion of the two that interests me.

I agree with that too! Comics and movies are similar but have one major difference. I can’t remember who coined the term “in between the panels” but a great comic tells more in the white space between panels by leaving it to the reader’s imagination while in film the director tends to show the entire scene. Anyway, who would you consider are your biggest influences?

The work of Kirby is one of my great loves. I also like Buscema, Kane, Trimpe, Ditko, Grell, Perez, Wrightson, classic Frank Miller, Classic Byrne, Cockrum, Ploog, Alan Davis, R. Crumb, Jim Lee (for the most part), Joe Maudriera, and probably lots of others. Timothy Truman had a great affect on me, when I was a teenager. We spoke alot, and he helped me through a bad time in my life….going as far as to helping me get into the Joe Kubert School of art in the early 80’s, where I attended for a year. Looking back on it, I should have stayed the complete 3 years, but I was young and stupid at the time. Independent comic work began to come and my desire to jump in and get to it, was stronger than my reasoning power to stay and learn the craft better.

My early Independent work, which began in 1986 with “Pyramid Comics” had a lot of heart, but the groundwork wasn’t quite there yet. I spent the rest of the 80’s and the beginning of the 90’s basically learning in the trenches. Looking back, I regret it, but also know it was a time in my life where the ideas were flowing freely. In a way, I felt I had to get them out of my system, and unto paper.

Even the one year at Joe Kubert school would have been amazing! By the way I’ve seen your comic writing and pencilling work on Engine. How would you describe your style?

My style nowadays is a mix of a few different things. Kirby’s dynamics and underlying feelings, Japanese anime action and detail, dark shadows and very detailed textures. I think I have just as much fun drawing rubble, or bark on a thousand year old tree, as I do illustrating people. I think of the background and environment in a page, as being a character in itself.

I try to pace panels like I would, if I were making or watching a film. In my mind, that is what I am doing. Simply replaying a film I created , in my mind, and transfering its visuals to paper.

My pencils tend to be extremely loose. Over the years, I have developed my inking to a degree, where I can put down a basic pencil image, then put most of the details in, during the inking process. I will do tighter pencils when asked, usually when I do commission work.

Appreciate you spending share some information about yourself. All the best with your graphic novel Engine and future endeavours.