REDemption - postapocalyptic webcomic

REDemption is an upcoming epic "throw-in-everything-INCLUDING-the-kitchen-sink" post-apocalyptic webcomic. Behind the project is Steve Grogan from Troy, NY and artist Johnny Carruba fro Saline, MI. We have conducted an interview with Steve.

How long have you been collaborating with your artist Johnny Carruba on this webcomic?

I started working with Johnny in December 2015. By that point, the comic had been written for about 3 and a half years. (I finished it in April 2012.) We met when I advertised for an artist on Fiverr.

Why did you choose the Zombie genre for your stories?

I have always loved the zombie genre, ever since seeing Romero's original Dead trilogy (Night, Dawn and Day). In October 2010 I watched the premier episode of WALKING DEAD, and I sent out a post on Facebook that said, "I've always wanted to write a zombie story, but they seem very limited so I never knew how to write." A friend of mine responded to the idea. We talked a little bit about it, but our ideas were too different to collaborate. However, it did inspire me to go on and write what we now know as REDemption.

Which character inspires you the most while creating this webcomic?

For the current section of the story, I drew inspiration from Ben in the original NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD for my main character Vincent. Later on in the story, we are introduced to a butt-kickin' zombie-killin' babe who was heavily influenced by the likes of Aeon Flux, Trinity from THE MATRIX, and Beatrix Kiddo, aka The Bride, from KILL BILL. There are a host of other characters...a team that follows Molly...who were influenced by the different character classes and races in Dungeons and Dragons.

Do you plan to have a sequel to this story?

A sequel? My God, no. The full story of this comic stretches over 2000 pages! It is my magnum opus. In fact, it took so much out of me that I haven't even written anything in the way of my own fiction since completing it! I've written some non-fiction, and I've got some good ideas brewing, but most of my effort has been geared toward making REDemption a reality. However, in the future, we do plan on opening the REDemption universe up to other creative teams. Let's say there is a character that you like, but who plays only a supporting role in our story. If you are the creative type, you can contact us about possibly creating a spin-off title.

What are the most challenging aspects of creating a webcomic like this?

I'd say the most challenging aspect is getting the word out about it. We aren't rich fellas and since the comic has no income, it's hard to have any advertising budget. Johnny and I have been doing our best at working around our budget limitations, and I think we get fairly decent traffic for 2 guys with NO advertising $$$, but at some point we will have to invest. After all, since it generates no revenue, the one thing that would keep us motivated to keep going is if we get an increase in traffic. That is the main goal right now.

What would you consider a success for this webcomic series?

As for success....well, I don't know how to gauge that in terms of "hit per day" or what have you. I do know that I would like the interest to rise up to the point where we can tell the story all the way to the end. If people started talking publicly about how cool it is...if we got to the point where we got fan mail...if people started asking to get physical copies of the comic, whether it was 20-page issues or graphic novel length...well, that would be awesome.

The story is written in 5 parts. Everything we post right now is part 1. They all vary in length. I think it would be cool if someday they could all be released in one massive box set, kind of like how they have collections for LORD OF THE RINGS, HARRY POTTER, and so on.

More info:

Website: https://redemptionwebcomic.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/REDemptionC2016
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/redemptionwebcomic2016
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCftk1uY39jHygTdsppcKhjg