ON ANITA BLAKE IN COMICS: TALKING TO LAURELL K. HAMILTON

**MattBrady** · 03-13-2006, 12:31 PM

Last month, Dabel Brothers Production announced that they would be bringing the adventures of Laurell K. Hamilton's vampire Hunter Anita Blake to comic book form with a two-part adaptation of Hamilton's first Anita Blake novel, Guilty Pleasures.

We spoke with the author about the move to comics, and her part in it.

Newsarama: Starting with probably the biggest question - why bring Anita to comics in the first place?

Laurell K. Hamilton: First, I am very visually oriented, so seeing my world in pictures is very attractive to me. I can’t draw, so I’m obviously not going to be able to draw this story myself! Second, we are hoping to reach an audience that is not aware of the books. A lot of the fans of the books have asked if we were ever going to do a graphic novel.

NRAMA: Are you a comics fan yourself?

LKH: I am not particularly a comics fan, at least not in the way that I know what is coming out from who and when. My husband is, though, and through him I have come to appreciate today’s comics, and especially how varied they are from the past. Comics have changed over the last ten years -- it is a more diverse field and there are so many choices out there now. It is a very exciting time to walk into a comic book store.

NRAMA: Who initiated this project then?

LKH: The Dabel Brothers approached us for this project. They sent examples of the work they had done previously.

NRAMA: Was there anything for you, that cinched the deal?

LKH: They they sent some samples of what they could do with Anita's world and characters. That and the deal itself is what cinched it for me.

NRAMA: Primarily, how do you see this project working, in regards to readers? That is, do you see it as offering an alternate form of Anita for your existing fans to experience, or reaching out to a new audience via a new form?

LKH: Both. I am trying to give the long-time fans a chance to see Anita in another medium. I’m also trying to reach new people who will come in from the comic books.

NRAMA: Let’s focus on those newcomers. For those who’ve never encountered Anita or your stories, how would you describe her? Some reviews have called her “an R-rated Buffy,” but that seems to be a rather simplistic way of looking at her…

LKH: Right. That's a hard one. Anita can raise zombies from the dead. If you had two wills, Anita could raise you from the dead and ask which was the right one. If you want to have that last confrontation with an abusive, deceased parent and your therapist agrees, Anita will raise them. But she really hates those cases. They are emotionally trying.

In Micah, the latest book, she is raising a federal witness who died of natural causes before he could testify. The court has agreed to raise him and get his testimony. Of course there are those who don't want him to testify under any circumstances.

Anita is also a legal vampire executioner. Because vampires have proven themselves too dangerous to hold over till trial, there really is only one punishment for a vampire who transgresses and causes death. There is no trial, just a court order of execution. Anita's job is to hunt them down and kill them. They are legal citizens but they do not have all the rights of a human citizen. That issue is still being fought out in court in Anita's world.

>

In Guilty Pleasures, Anita still sees them as monsters. It will take several books before she sees them as anything else. The world is still very black and white for Anita. She is very much a hard-boiled detective. She is the first to use guns instead of a stake to execute vampires --- in her world, you can stand back at a nice safe distance and use silver shot to take them out.

NRAMA: Silver shot works on vampires?

LKH: Yes, I know traditionally that is reserved for lycanthropes, but since that is a Hollywood invention that is based on a Scottish myth that witches that turn in to rabbits can be harmed by silver, I figured I was okay to expand on it a bit more.

NRAMA: Going back, you said she was a “legal vampire executioner.” That’s pretty much a clear indication that Anita’s world is not our world, right?

LKH: Right. If you woke up tomorrow and everything from folklore and mythology that goes bump in the night were real, and everyone knows they are real and society has to deal with it, you’d be in Anita’s world. It really is our world if the monsters were real and made legal.

NRAMA: Can you give the briefest of glimpses into Guilty Pleasures? Anita is approached by powerful vampire to investigate…?

LKH: From the back of Guilty Pleasures:

My name is Anita Blake. Vampires call me The Executioner. What I call them isn't repeatable. Ever since the Supreme Court granted the undead equal rights, most people think vampires are just ordinary folks with fangs. I know better. I've seen their victims. I carry the scars...

But now a serial killer is murdering vampires -- and the most powerful bloodsucker in town wants me to find the killer...

There you go.

NRAMA: Speaking of the comic, what kind of control and input do you have over the project?

LKH: I have veto over all aspects of the project - including the art and scripts, which is one of the reasons I said yes to the project. I have to have that level of control.

NRAMA: But still - do you find it difficult in any way to release some level of control over Anita, in that someone else will be putting words in her mouth?

LKH: I am very much a control freak. I don't really release control of Anita – I’ve been writing about her for over 10 years. I don't know how other authors feel about their characters, but these are my friends. To give away control would be like offering to give my best friend to strangers and asking them to bring her back when they are done. I just cannot do that.

NRAMA: Looking at the art - how much input did you have in showing how she looked? In the end, how closely does the comic version of Anita match with the version of Anita that’s been in your head for over ten years?

LKH: It is the closest I have ever seen to what is in my head. And unless I learn to draw, which is unlikely, this may be the closest anyone gets!

NRAMA: Are you and the Dabel’s discussing plans after Guilty Pleasures? An adaptation of the Laughing Corpse perhaps, and on from there?

LKH: The Dabel Brothers have contracted for the first three: Guilty Pleasures, The Laughing Corpse and Circus of The Damned.

NRAMA: Finally, any thoughts to writing a comic story of Anita’s yourself?

LKH: I find it difficult to take the existing writing and whittle it down. We have an excellent adapter in Stacie Ritchie. As for the possibility of doing an original Anita script for comics, the answer is “not right now.” I have two book series going and just don't have the time.

Remjer · 03-13-2006, 01:11 PM

Awesome I can't wait

that fact the author has complete veto power over the book insures that I'm probably going to enjoy this

June cannot come fast enough

stvnhthr · 03-13-2006, 01:24 PM

That art looks great!

sequart · 03-13-2006, 01:32 PM

DBPro DOES NOT SKIP A BEAT. As long as these guys keep their company going, I have a feeling that they'll be getting a nice chunk of the pie for decades.

Once again, good show guys!

Violent Gorilla · 03-13-2006, 01:34 PM

Cool that she has power of veto, but really, since she's already proven that she doesn't mind crapping up her own books and characters with ridiculous nonsense, I'll pass.

sloria13 · 03-13-2006, 01:37 PM

Should be interesting. Glad to see more and more novels are getting adapted to this medium. Imagine the possibilities....

Derek Ruiz · 03-13-2006, 03:35 PM

Laurell K. Hamilton's most recent book Micah is currently #1 on USA Today, Publisher's Weekly, and New York Times. (Login required for some of the link, I believe)

USA Today:
http://asp.usatoday.com/life/books/b...e/default.aspx

Publisher's Weekly (Mass Market Paperback):
http://www.publishersweekly.com/best...03%2F13%2F2006

New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/19/bo...=1&oref=slogin

Derek Ruiz · 03-13-2006, 03:48 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Violent Gorilla
Cool that she has power of veto, but really, since she's already proven that she doesn't mind crapping up her own books and characters with ridiculous nonsense, I'll pass.

Hey man Give us a chance...you seem like you were a fan of the books, so I'm almost sure you loved the first three books which is all we have the rights to right now...I hope you give us the chance to show you that this project is going to be great.

Also all our authors get final say on everything we do. We feel its the only way to make sure the books are done 100% correctly.

Derek

sloria13 · 03-13-2006, 03:53 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Derek Ruiz
Hey man Give us a chance...you seen like you Were a fan of the books so I'm almost sure you loved the first three books which is all we have the rights to right now...I hope you give us the chance to show you that this project is going to be great.

Also all our authors get final say on everything we do. We feel its the only to make sure the books are done 100% correctly.

Derek

Good policy to have. I've already added this to my pull list. Good luck with it.

HannibalKing · 03-13-2006, 05:27 PM

I really enjoyed the first eight books and have got the more recent ones but haven't had chance to read them yet though. I'm intrigued to see how they translate to comics.
This may give me the push I need to reread the books.

Scavenger · 03-13-2006, 05:57 PM

This is really gonna depend on the art. I dig the sample art..but it's just that..sample art.

Yendi · 03-13-2006, 06:29 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Derek Ruiz
Hey man Give us a chance...you seem like you were a fan of the books, so I'm almost sure you loved the first three books which is all we have the rights to right now...I hope you give us the chance to show you that this project is going to be great.

Also all our authors get final say on everything we do. We feel its the only to make sure the books are done 100% correctly.

Derek

Derek, that's exactly my feeling. Like others here, I've certainly felt that the series has turned to crap in recent years, but the early books are damned fun, and I'm looking forward to seeing the adaptations.
--Adam

Derek Ruiz · 03-13-2006, 06:36 PM

I thank you for that. All I ever ask is for you guys to give us a chance...

Mooncatx · 03-13-2006, 09:51 PM

It's on my pull list *^_^*

I hope the regular art is as good as the sample art. I'm totally loving the sample art. Nice panarama shot, and we got all the major weres, Rat, Wolf, Leopard... *does a little dance*

mcx

Del Gorky · 03-14-2006, 01:54 AM

It's refreshing to see someone in the business be reasonable. I was wondering whether to pick these up or not but Derek Ruiz has convinced me to do so.

It looks like effort is being placed into getting these books right and the first 4 or 5 Anita Blake novels are really good. I encourage everyone to give them a read.

Sadly, as pretty much everyone else has acknowledged in this thread, the later books are crap despite being best sellers. The reason they are best sellers is that the large fanbase built up by the quality of the earlier novels hasn't died off yet. Many readers discovered these books after the first four books had been published and kind of came late to the party.

Now many keep buying out of hope of a "return to greatness" or out of sheer inertia. Does this sound like any other fanbase you are familiar with???

Best of Luck to DBP with this project

BradyKiller · 03-14-2006, 02:33 AM

Also good to get the visual going for potential movie/TV series...so many female vampire/vampire hunters in the media already - I know Anita was one of the first but a bit late out of the gate...but sure if there is a different hook that it will find an audience.

Does anyone know the selling numbers for the book?

boomboom · 03-14-2006, 04:23 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by MattBrady

looks awesome!!!

Who is the artist?

Looks like Brett Booth...

stvnhthr · 03-14-2006, 09:46 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by boomboom
looks awesome!!!

Who is the artist?

Looks like Brett Booth...

That's Brett alright. Expect an announcement soon on who is the artist for this series. If you like these promo samples you won't be disappointed.

Kingbobb · 03-14-2006, 12:58 PM

For at least the first 3 adaptions, this should be good. The tone and direction of the later books does change, and if this series succeeds and the entire range of books does get published, they're going to be facing a decision to either adapt the books for a more legit R rating, or face a NC-17 level story. While the book before Micah really wasn't to my liking, it was still decent, I guess.

With the success that RR Martin and now Robert Jordan and Ray Feist have been having with comic adaptions of their books, I'm glad to see more authors branching out. Why should films be the only place where books go after they generate a fan base? And at least LKH retains full veto authority, so we'll know she at least doesn't disagree with anything in the books.

Number37 · 03-14-2006, 06:54 PM

i read them and i thought the books dint get as much noir feel as i would like. in a comic i think the visual aspect could pull through were her descriptions didnt. i think this could be one of thise rare occasions were the adaptation is better than the original.

kimluvs2read · 03-14-2006, 08:16 PM

Can not wait for this! I will go to a comic book store as soon as I can. This is so cool! I love Laurell K Hamilton, she is so fabulous!

lisiecki2 · 03-14-2006, 10:31 PM

i read the frist two books and they were, well they were ok. one of the problems i see for my self is that i dont know if they can make the characters look the way i picture them. Also since the publishers seem to be reading this thread, let me just say while im not sure if ill read a book about Mrs Blake, a book about sonja blue i would snatch up in a heart beat

Mooncatx · 03-15-2006, 06:23 AM

I really like the sample art. I'm hoping the same artist gets the ongoing gig for the series.

I think adapting popular sf/fantasy series to comics is a fantastic idea. I am thrilled to see one of my favorite book universes get a comic book treatment. I'm enough of a fan of the series I went out of my way to collect not just the individual stories as they came out, but the different formats of paperback and hard back and book club editions and 'arcs' (advance reader copies) -- So a whole new depiction of the series is something that makes my happy list.

I'm hoping this will bring fans of the book series not familiar with comics into comic books, and comic book readers unfamiliar with LKH's work into her books. This has some serious win win potential to it *^_^*

mcx

boomboom · 03-15-2006, 06:36 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by stvnhthr
That's Brett alright. Expect an announcement soon on who is the artist for this series. If you like these promo samples you won't be disappointed.

Inside info? Thanx...

PS is the Meredith-book also going to be a (XXX)comic?

mrhelm · 03-15-2006, 01:07 PM

I'm still very interested in how they'll handle the later books which feature very, very, very adult situations regularly, but I got to say this is one of the Dabel's best novel to comic signings yet.