A chat with Brandon Carstens
Last month a crime graphic novel hit the bookshelves – Project H by Brandon Carstens – a first in the local krimi genre. As graphic novels are increasingly taking on a ‘respectable’ position in the book world, it is disappointing to learn that Carstens had to self publish as no local publisher is thinking along these lines yet. Let’s hope that is set to change. But until then here’s a glimpse into the world of Brandon Carstens.
Crime Beat: As the new kid on the block tell us a bit about yourself? Are out a Capie by birth or by inclination?
Brandon Carstens: Born and bred on the Cape Flats, the quiet kid who always kept to himself while drawing to pass the time. Films also become the comfort for me that was denied by my lack of suitable friends, but even as I gained friends growing up I was always drawn to the magic of movies to get me through lonely times. It was most likely all of this that sparked my imagination to tell stories, although one can never really know for sure where these things come from. After graduating with a graphic design diploma I decided perhaps I wasn’t up for that kind of thing quite yet because my head was full of these crazy dreams, so I did odd jobs while I worked on converting said dreams into said book.
Crime Beat: Your work is saturated in the emotions of the Cape Flats, the drug problems, the gang problems and, of course, as in all lives, the quiet moments of reprieve. As angry as your social critique is, you are at pains to give both sides of the community.
Brandon Carstens: I think because I live on the Cape Flats myself I am able to provide the perspective of both sides, but also I need for people to understand that of all the negativity the Flats produces, it is also able to create the kind of optimism that shines through all the gloom and give hope and encouragement, and I’m hoping as a result of the work I’ve created I can encourage a different opinion of the Cape Flats. Yes, there are people living there that are lazy and unmotivated and look for excuses to commit crime, but there are also people who desire to move beyond their circumstances, and there are people that have so much more to offer than what people expect, and I think Project H is an expression of that. But having said that, Project H also has its cautionary moments to reflect on that goes beyond crime and poverty, so there’s more to the story than meets the eye.
Crime Beat: Now before we go any further let’s look at the form you’ve used. The graphic novel has not yet gained much popularity among local writers and illustrators despite Bitterkomix and a host of graphic novel workshops. What made you venture into the genre?
Brandon Carstens: It was definitely a risk on my part because of the huge lack of awareness of the format in South Africa, and it weighed greatly on my mind introducing my first book into a market place that has yet to grasp the concept of the modern graphic novel and how it’s slowly losing its juvenile stigma globally. So I knew the odds were stacked against me, but it’s the only way I knew how to tell this story. I would not have done a prose novel justice as I don’t consider myself capable in that area, but drawing is something I’ve been capable of since childhood, and it seemed the perfect solution to use illustrations as a vehicle to express these ideas and stories that was yearning to come out. With Project H I’m hoping to ignite the notion that graphic novels are great for telling any kind of story, and I was excited by the opportunity to tell a genre story that is accessible to a lot of people, a story that is hopefully intriguing for readers and will have them itching to unravel the mystery as they would in any other mainstream thriller or mystery.
Crime Beat: Did you try to get Project H published through a conventional publisher? If you did what was your experience? I’m assuming that Wonjoolaai Studios is your own business.
Brandon Carstens: Before I started writing Project H I did some research as to how many publishers there are that deal with graphic novels, and found to my disappointment that none exist. That’s when I started seriously considering the possibility of self publishing because at the time the new technology of print on demand was beginning to emerge and presented a real and viable possibility to have my book published. But even after I completed the book several years later, I still considered submitting my book to a publisher, and after searching the PASA website for graphic novel publishers I was once again disappointed. I nevertheless queried several of those publishers to see if they perhaps were interested in taking on a graphic novel, and either got no reply or rejections. So the only option available to me was to self-publish, which allowed me the exciting possibility to create my own imprint, Wonjoolaai Studios. But I’m still open to the possibility of going with a traditional publisher if an opportunity presents itself. I also think Project H has huge overseas potential and I would relish the opportunity to have it picked up by foreign publishers.
Crime Beat: It’s a great pity that local publishers are slow on the uptake for what is an acceptable and flourishing genre elsewhere in the world. Let’s take a look at graphic novels in general. It seems they are often populated by super heroes – the men (and women) in capes and tights – although it is also an ideal form for crime fiction which is the genre you’ve chosen. Was it the reality of the Cape Flats or the opportunities offered by the graphic novel that drew you to crime fiction?
Brandon Carstens: I think at the moment the polarisation of the graphic novel market is a big problem, with superhero comics on one side and the arty/political/anti-establishment type of comics on the other. There’s no real middle ground with stories that are entertaining and accessible to a wide range of people yet also smart and thought provoking. I think authors like Stephen King(The Dark Tower graphic novels), Dean Koontz (In Odd We Trust) and soon Ian Rankin are beginning to make in-roads into that area but I think a lot more needs to be done, and if more esteemed authors can come on board and put their names behind graphic novels then we’ll have a more substantial mainstream market.
The story I wanted to tell happened to be crime fiction, so I’m not sure I’m necessarily drawn to the genre, but I was fortunate that the graphic novel format is excellent at bringing to life the visual and visceral aspects of crime fiction, as well as depicting life on the Cape Flats in a very direct, immediate way that is accessible to virtually anyone. I think for me authenticity plus accessibility to a wide audience was very important, and I think graphic novels are perfect for that, but people just need to take a chance on it.
Crime Beat: The story of Project H is about a police investigator Sam Hart and his battle with the dark forces in society and himself. We see him as a teenager and witness the attack on his mother which kills her. It is largely this and his father’s indifference to him that propel him into a life of crime fighting. His is a story of retribution and, ultimately, a story about his battle with the devil – ‘Satan in the flesh’. It is also about the triumph of ‘faith, hope and love’. Or so it seems. The final panel is of his father’s church dwarfed by huge buildings and a grader demolishing the old to make way for the new. In the foreground a newspaper billboard proclaims the ‘devil’ for president. Sam Hart’s battle it appears is not over.
Brandon Carstens: You’re right, his battle is definitely not over. I have mapped out Project H as a possible trilogy, and I would love to have the opportunity to continue Sam’s journey as I think this story holds many interesting and exciting possibilities with scenarios and ideas that I don’t think we’ve yet explored in South African fiction before and it would add something new and fresh to the current landscape. But that obviously depends on an audience willing (and large) enough to support this first outing, because if significant support for Project H fails to materialise it wouldn’t be worth my while to continue, which would be quite sad really.
Crime Beat: There is a very strong Christian element in your story and at the end of the book father and son are united through their faith to tackle the ‘devil’. Was the story in anyway inspired by your own beliefs? For instance, your name does not appear on the cover – or anywhere – as the author, instead you quote from Mark 8:34: ‘…Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me…’ Is this book about fighting the good fight?
Brandon Carstens: I think a large part of crime fiction today, movies and such, is mired in cynicism and hopelessness – the evil seems to be so pervasive and dark and ugly that it even affects the protagonists in a negative way. One of my favourite movies of all time, David Fincher’s Se7en, is like that, and as much as I applaud and admire the disturbing creativity in that movie, the way it punches you in the gut, it ends very cynically. And one can argue that real life is like that, that the bad guys win and the good guys are tainted, and a lot of those elements come through in Project H too, but I don’t want to give the impression that we necessarily need to submit to it, that perhaps there is hope, however small it may be. So in terms of the Christian element it’s not a goody-goody or preachy kind of thing, I think it’s still quite dark and disturbing, so it will satisfy people looking for that, but depending on your point of view you could also find something positive in there.
Crime Beat: Will you be doing any more graphic novels, either in the crime or thriller genres, or in any other genre for that matter?
Brandon Carstens: Man, let me tell you, creating a graphic novel is not easy by a long shot! It’s damn hard, which means for me a story must be worth telling if I’m to embark on that gruelling journey again. And I think the Project H story is worth telling, so if I’m given the opportunity to continue this story, I’ll just have to grin and bear it because for me the greatest satisfaction will be in presenting a completed story to the public, a story that I have worked hard on and a story that I’m eager to share with people who truly appreciate what I’m doing. If nothing comes of Project H, then I’ll be moving forward with the story that I’m currently working on, which I’m writing as either a screenplay for a possible movie, or another graphic novel, I haven’t decided. But this story is exciting and so completely different to Project H. It’s kind of like a pop-culture take on right-wing extremism in this country. It will be from the perspective of a white Afrikaner henchman in a boeremag-type organisation that’s trying to overthrow the government, and the story follows this quite unusual man and his very unusual journey to redemption. It will have action and adventure but will ultimately be about the characters and how the events of the story has a life-changing affect on them. So that’s what’s getting me quite excited at the moment.
Crime Beat: Do you think Sam Hart will return?
Brandon Carstens: Yes, and with support of readers out there his journey will continue.
Check out Brandon Carstens’ blog.
