2015, beating the likes of The Amazing
Spider-Man, Justice League, Walking Dead
and Marvel’s Princess Leia. Yet the huge
popularity that Fiona experienced hasn’t
ended up going to her head. Growing up in
Calgary and attending the Alberta School
of Art and Design, the Eisner award is
something she dreamed of winning. Now
that she has one, she points to other artists
who she thinks have more skill. She loves
James Harren, Sean Murphy and Daniel
Warren Johnson, for instance.
“I know that it’s kind of ‘my moment’
right now, and the temptation is to strike
while the iron is hot and put my name on
as many projects as possible,” she says.
“But it was Saga that got me here, and I’m
not going to jeopardise that series by taking
other jobs, Archie being the exception. So
that’s what it’s like: exercising will power
and saying no to a lot more things!”TEN YEARS IN THE MAKING
The huge respect she’s receiving at the
moment hasn’t come out of the blue, and
she’s been working hard for a decade. Her
first comic was Done To Death, which
appeared in 2006 and featured a nerdy
vampire and a homicidal book editor. She
took it on when she was still studying,
drawing on acetate with a crow quill.
Another of her highlights is North 40,
written by Aaron Williams, which featured
monsters in small town America. By then
she was 100 per cent digital, emulating
watercolour and using textures for a mixed
media feel. It’s got some of the hallmarksI’m hoping
creator-owned
books become
a viable option
might just be why every issue is so
eye-catching, with her watercolour-esque
digital art on the cover.
Saga’s success has spelled bigger things- if it’s possible to get bigger than Saga
itself. Fiona also drew the revival of Archie,
with its all-American retro hero Archie
Andrews and his friends Betty and
Veronica. Dating back to 1939, the title has
huge resonance in the US and its publisher
revived it with Mark Waid writing.
For Fiona, the process is a little different
to Saga. She explains: “I do full-colour work
for Saga, and Archie is coloured by Andre
Szymanowicz. This was meant to save me
time, but it still takes me longer to draw
Archie because everything has to look
somewhat realistic. A car has to look like
a real car and a school has to look like a
school. In Saga I’d just draw some stupid
dome thing or f lying fruit.”
Archie was the seventh best-selling comic
when the new issue 1 came out in July
GIVING A TOOTHY GRIN
Fiona Staples refers to her first comic, Done To Death,
with its dark humour, as Mile One in her career.GOING INDIE BUT REAPING THE BENEFITS
While DC owned 100 per cent of North 40, moving to Mystery Society Fiona was able
to retain a 25 per cent royalty on the artwork – vital for the up-and-coming artist.
MYSTERY SOCIETY
Working with Steve Niles and Ashley
Wood on Mystery Society was a
dream come true for Fiona.