DWIGHT MacPHERSON ON THE SURREAL ADVENTURES OF EDGAR ALLAN POO

[MattBrady]

by Ryan McLelland

Dwight MacPherson is one happy man these days.

The creator of The Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo has seen huge success with his webcomic available at DrunkDuck.com. Word recently reached the web that MacPherson’s Poo will also be collected into a graphic novel this August from Shadowline & Image Comics.

It’s great news for everyone. The comic has thrilled fans since its first appearance and the comic never feels like a webcomic at all. It feels like a comic book you get to read for free on the web. However a print version will surely bring out Thomas Boatwright’s incredible eerie artwork while allowing the reader to sit down in one sitting and take the entire first volume in. I’m not sure about you, but I know that reading a print version is sometimes leagues easier then reading something via the web. However for those up on the fence about trying something new, simply going to Drunk Duck and reading some of the comic is a surefire way to figure out if you’ll love Poo or not. Chances are however that you are going to love it.

When audiences first meet Edgar Allan Poe he’s getting flushed (yeah…) down an outhouse. Ewwww. He meets up with creatures below who call him Poo and the adventure begins. When I sat down with MacPherson the very first thing I asked him was if this is exactly what happened because, well, that is nasty.

“Absolutely not,” MacPherson says. “The first page of the book is a clever way of getting readers interested in the book. As the story progresses, what truly happened in that outhouse will be revealed.”

The other funny thing about the book is when Poo ‘falls’ into the land of Terra Somnium a la Alice In Wonderland, he’s just as confused as we are by what is going on. I wasn’t sure if this was on purpose or by accident by MacPherson wanted to make it that way from the start, “My intention is for readers to experience this strange new world as Poo experiences it. We feel his confusion, and hopefully his fear, as we plunge deeper into the land of Terra Somnium. I hope my decision to thrust Poo (and the reader) into the surreal land of dreams engages readers and makes them feel as if they are adventuring with our hero.

The Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allen Poo occurs in 1849 – the same of year of Poe’s death. “By that time, his mind was filled with mythology and fantasy--a rich dreamworld in which to place our hero,” MacPherson says. “As well, he had already written his great works and I am sure that they would be a part of his psyche by the time the events of our story take place.”

MacPherson’s idea for the strip actually came from school when he read James Russell Lowell's poem: A Fable For Critics. “What really struck me was Lowell's assessment of Poe,” notes MacPherson. ‘There comes Poe, with his raven, like Barnaby Rudge, Three-fifths of him genius and two-fifths sheer fudge.’ This passage is what started the wheels turning. ‘What if that fudge was what accounted for his genius?’ One thing led to another, and here we are.”

As one thing lead to another Poo debuted on Drunk Duck with amazing success. The comic was ‘featured’ twice on the company’s homepage and would see well over 50,000 hits to the comic over just five months. Publishing the comic in print form was always in MacPherson’s mind even before that first page hit the web. However self-publishing the book wasn’t needed, “A friend suggested submitting to Shadowline, I did so, and (Shadowline president) Jim (Valentino) and Kris (Simon – Shadowline’s uber-editor) were blown away. And I must say that I have no doubt that I am with the right publisher.”



With the book seeing print a few questions pop into mind. If you have a successful webcomic that becomes a very successful print series, does the webcomic come to an end? “I will continue (the webcomic) whether the graphic novel is super successful or not. I've gained many faithful new readers as a result of posting the webcomic and I feel it would be a great disservice to them if I simply quit posting weekly pages. Having said that, I can't see into the future. As the immortal Rabbie Burns would say "The best laid plans o' Mice and Men gang aft agley." That last bit means "often go awry" from those who are unfamiliar with Burns' work.”

So if the webcomic would never go away, does MacPherson foresee the book ever moving from a trade to a monthly format? “I would not be opposed to doing an Edgar Allan Poo monthly, but I don't believe (Poo’s artist) Thomas Boatwright would want anything to do with it. Unless I find an artist willing to move to a monthly format, the plan is to publish a series of graphic novels.”

The August release of The Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo will fill 96 over-sized pages of story with, as MacPherson states, “No filler.” It will also feature a new story titled ‘The 8 Lost Pages of Poo’ which will not be available on the webcomic site. “These pages chronicle events which take place between pages 2 and 3 of the webcomic,” MacPherson states. The graphic novel will also feature a painting by Grant Bond, who recently did some wonderful work on Arcana Studio's Clockwork Girl.

It’s a true delight to have such a wonderful series finding its way to comic stores and book shelves everywhere. MacPherson feels lucky but remains truly humble about the entire experience, “My hope is that by being a real person and communicating with fans with grace and professionalism will be enough to encourage them to support this project. I guess we'll see how that works out for me. I do have a specific end in mind, but how long we take to get there is entirely up to sales. If I have my way, I'll be telling tales of Edgar Allan Poo's adventures for years to come.”

[mikey_danger]

These pages are GORGEOUS! I cant wait to pick it up!

[Manny]

Cheerio, my good man.

Webcomics FTW!!!



Congrats, Dwight. I've said it before and i'll say it again. I am looking forward to this.

[KyleCowstar]

I'll be buying this. I'm a sucker for anything involving Poo. I mean Poe. But this is Poo. But I want it anyways because this Poo is really Poe even though it's Poo, but I mean it IS Poe.

[MDeVito]

The art is this book is fantastic. Boatwright really has outdone himself.

[NICKD]

Very nicely done.

[c_andrew_s]

I am really excited about this book. A great group of creators and an awesome concept.

It has excitement, suspense and mystery... just the type of book that is perfect for the Summer... a blockbuster waiting to happen (hopefully you have pre-ordered it, because this book is going to sell-out)

_

[DavidWRyan]

This book, as with all of Dwight's material is the SH_T or should I say Poo?

[JimmyKitty]

We are indeed living in good times for the industry when titles like Poo can reach the masses. Looking forward to this... and MORE from Dwight.

However, I don't know about the humble and lucky part of McPherson's success.
That boy pimps hard and works for it. I wish more creators had his resolve.

[H.W.]

Congrat Dwight on getting your Poo out there.

[ChristopherLong]

Looking forward to it!

[Thomas Mauer]

This book is one of my proudest collaborations.

[Kris Simon]

Dwight and his crew were a delight to work with! The whole process of putting together The Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo was so smooth, it was almost unbelievable.

The creative team on this book deserves success for this gorgeous collaboration. I can't wait to hold this sucker in my hands!

[MCavallaro]

Looks great!
Good luck Dwight, Thomas and Shadowline.

[Egg]

As always with Dwight's work, I'm looking forward to an innovative tale. Featuring poo. And incredible art. Featuring poo. Easy shots cause Dwight's my pal. But, I've also edited him and this promises to be Dwight's greatest creation to-date!

[ozzyzak]

I've got this one pre-ordered. Can't wait to get it, looks freakin' sweet!

[ssava]

Just can't get enough POO!

Looking forward to reading this!

[Blackbeard]

Thank you for all the wonderful comments and praise. I sincerely appreciate each of you who took the time to post in this thread.

Truth be told, this is my most personal work to date--and I sincerely hope you will recognize this fact. A lot of blood, sweat and tears went into it and the entire creative team has sacrificed much to see this dream come to fruition--and I believe it shows. I could not possibly be any happier with the way the book turned out.

And, next month, I look forward to sharing this experience with you!

[Bobby Nash]

Way to go, Dwight. Looking forward to picking up my copy.

Bobby

[J O R Z A C]

Damn, to think I could've worked on this!!! Thank God for Dwight's keen sense, an his great collaborators, this looks awesome.
Congrats!!!

[robzass]

The title of this book is soooo clever. Poo. Get it? it's slang for fecal matter.

[Blackbeard]

Thanks, Bobby and Jorzac!

robzass: My kids thought so, too.

[Jason Copland]

It looks alright... I guess....

Naw, I'm just pulling your chain, Dwight. You know I dig this to the nth degree!

[Blackbeard]

Thanks, brother!

[CBeranek]

You guys worked hard on this and deserve all the success in the world. You have my support!