"Pretty much everyone reading comics now wants to make them."

So says Matt Talbot, who, along with Rich Woodall, writes and draws "Johnny Raygun," one of the latest in a line of comic books that can claim the Granite State as their birthplace.

More than any other Business, the comics industry is almost entirely fan-driven. Comic companies market their books almost exclusively to fans; fans then go on to fill the ranks of writers and artists who produce the comics that are sold to the next generation of fans.

But even if they don't make into the mainstream or get a mention in the New York times, that doesn't stop fans from creating and publishing their own books. These independent, small-press books are locally produced and distributed. they rarely ever make it out of their immediate area-- "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," produced by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, being the notable exception--but quietly earn a circle of collectors in local comic shops scattered in strip malls across the country.

Here in New England, there is a small, tightly- knit comics scene. New creators like Woodall and Talbot have garnered attention from fans and industry professionals for "Johnny Raygun," which started in 2003. Other creators, like Somersworth writer Ron Fortier, have been working on comics for years. And on the other side of the state, a new school devoted exclusively to cartooning and graphic novels is set to open this fall.

In an ever-changing industry ruled by a handful of major publishers, comics creators are finding success and artistic satisfaction in keeping their books local and independent. However, some veterans of the scene believe the fan-creator-fan life cycle of the medium could be hurting more than helping.

a comic book primer

Since their appearance in the 1930s, comic books have had a fairly rocky history. Sales boomed in the '30s and '40s, with hundreds of publishers printing millions of copies of books like Action Comics, Captain America and Whiz Comics. But a hysterical crusade in the '50s charging comics with promoting juvenile delinquency and immoral behavior led to a crackdown on comics. The industry didn't pick up again until the late '60s, but this time, Marvel and DC Comics, known to fans as "The Big Two," dominated the industry and found success with characters like Spider-man and The X-Men.

In the 1980s, the industry experienced a growth spurt that hadn't been seen in nearly 40 years. Stores selling comics were popping up everywhere, replacing newsstands and grocery stores as the primary distribution spot. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' series "Watchmen" and Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns" brought a heightened level of maturity and sophistication to the field. Hardcore collectors and casual investors were snapping up any first issues or special editions they could find, in the hopes of finding a comic that, in a handful of years, would be worth thousands of dollars. Marvel and DC catered to this mentality, driving collectors into a frenzy with calculated stunt events like "The Death of Superman" and the Spider-man "Clone Saga." Amidst all this, a number of small-press publishers and self-published comics sprang up. Some never expanded beyond their local area; others, through a combination of luck, talent and business savvy, joined Marvel and DC at the big kids' table.

turtle power

From about 1988 to 1991, there was nothing bigger than the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. They set the stage for such wildly popular and shrewdly marketed children's entertainment as "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" and "Pokemon." But before the Turtles (or, TMNT as they were known to fans) were on TV captivating kids and sending parents scrambling to toy stores, their story began here on the Seacoast.

Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird created the amphibious quartet of Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michaelangelo in 1984. Based in Dover at the time, the pair used money from Eastman's tax refund check, along with a loan from his uncle, to print 3,000 copies of the comic under the banner of Mirage Studios, according to the studio's Web site.

TMNT #1 made its debut on May 5, 1984, at a comic convention in Portsmouth organized by Ralph DiBernardo, who would later go on to publish "Johnny Raygun." DiBernardo had 500 copies of the book, many of which he cut up to use in advertisements promoting the book and his comic store.

"I used to send them out to any area publication to try and drive more business into my store to get this local book," he said. "I ended up giving them all away or trading them to people."

The Turtles also made the cover of re:Ports., an arts and entertainment magazine published in the early 1980s by Bill Paarlberg and Phillip Augusta. Shortly after the first issue of TMNT came out, Paarlberg said one of the two creators (he doesn't remember who) came into the re:Ports. office and dropped off some artwork for the magazine to use on the cover.

"He showed us these wacky things and talked about their hopes and plans for them. They hadn't been discovered yet. They only had one issue out...and I remember looking it over and saw a frame...from their book that I liked and used it on the cover the next week," he said.

Soon enough, the initial 3,000 copies of TMNT #1 were gone; in June, a second print run of 15,000 copies was produced. That, too, quickly sold out, and in February 1985, a third print run of 35,000 hit the stands. Two additional printings followed in September 1985 and in 1988.

The comic was a certified hit and remains one of the most successful black and white comics ever published. That was only the beginning, though. Soon, Eastman and Laird inked a deal with Playmates Toys, a small toy company that wanted to get into the highly lucrative boys' action figure market. Playmates agreed to produce a line of action figures only if there was a cartoon to tie the toy line into; a cartoon mini-series was produced soon after, and the Turtles phenomenon exploded. The half-shelled heroes were ubiquitous, appearing everywhere from ice cream bars to trash cans. Though there aren't any numbers detailing the exact monetary success of the Turtles, it was a global phenomenon that hasn't quite been matched since.

While the popularity of the Turtles has ebbed considerably, they can still be found. Though Eastman is no longer involved with Mirage Studios, Laird continues to write the Turtles' monthly comic adventures, and Cartoon Network currently broadcasts the latest cartoon incarnation of the characters.

Paarlberg said he was "a little bit" surprised when Eastman and Laird's creations became such a phenomenon.

"Their work was obviously good quality artwork, and it was an interesting subject, although it was a little wacky," he said.

While he didn't play up re:Ports.' early connection to the Turtles that much ("It's not like we promoted or discovered them or anything," he said), he still has his signed copy of TMNT #1 in his collection.

"Maybe it will pay for my retirement or something," he said.

By the mid-1990s, as the Turtle boom was losing steam, the comics industry as a whole was stumbling. Marvel and DC, as well as independent publishers like Image and Dark Horse, had flooded comic shops with a deluge of low-quality books, billing each one as the next big collector's item. The marketplace soon collapsed under its own weight; titles were cut, creators were laid off, and many stores closed their doors. It wasn't until 2001 or so that the industry began to show the first signs of recovery. Publishers pushed new comics with an eye more on quality than quantity. A string of successful movies, starting with X-Men and Spider-man stirred up renewed interest in the characters. Suddenly, comics are in vogue, at least for now. Mainstream outlets like The New York Times are spilling tremendous amounts of ink to write about the latest trends and the works of independent creators like James Sturm and Dan Clowes and small-press veterans like Dark Horse Comics and Oni Press are still going strong.

the ballad of Johnny Raygun

Johnny Raygun, the cocky, jetpack-clad hero who defends Earth on behalf of Raygun Agency, began his journey into comics 10 years ago when Rich Woodall, then 19, created the character for a seven-page back-up feature for the second issue of "Cygnus-X," a comic produced by a friend of Woodall in Manchester.

Except for an occasional comic on the Web, Johnny stayed grounded for seven years. In 2002, Woodall met Matt Talbot, a fellow comics fan and artist who was hosting a seminar on digital art at Paperback Bazaar in Somersworth. Woodall was the only person to show up, and soon the two struck up a friendship. Both read the same comics and were admirers of Jack Kirby, the artist who, along with writer Stan Lee, helped create many of Marvel Comics' heroes in the early 1960s. The Kirby influence is clear in "Johnny Raygun," an action-packed, pun-laden sci-fi romp full of goofily maniacal villains and square-jawed heroes.

Talbot had previously done freelance work for Image Comics and was familiar with Woodall's character. The two decided to collaborate on a Johnny Raygun comic. Their initial idea was to create an anthology with some friends; however, the other artists bowed out and Talbot and Woodall were left with a whole comic to devote to Johnny. Paperback Bazaar manager Ralph DiBernardo offered to publish the book and "Johnny Raygun: One Shot" made its debut at a comic convention in Boston in 2002.

Most small-press, self-published comics make their debut as ashcan editions, cheaply produced black and white mini-comics that serve as a test run for the title. However, DiBernardo and the Raygun boys opted to print a full-size comic with a glossy color cover. The high production values on the comic attracted the attention of pros like Adam Kubert and Tom Mandrake.

From there, "Matt and I knew we had to keep going," Woodall said.

Talbot and Woodall have similar artistic styles, so it's hard to tell where one's work ends an the other's begins in "Johnny Raygun." They create the book using the Marvel style of scripting-coming up with a basic plot and action scenes first, penciling the pages and filling in the dialogue later. They routinely swap artistic and writing duties back and forth.

"Between Rich and I, we make up a pretty decent comic creator," Talbot said. "When the book comes out, we really can't remember who came up with what."

While possessing an array of artistic gifts and understanding of how comics work, the two were lacking the one element to succeeding in the industry: business acumen.

"They went to go get a book printed, and they spent $3.50 (each) for a book they were selling for $2.95," DiBernardo joked.

"It was very apparent from the beginning that we didn't know how to make money," Woodall said.

That's where DiBernardo stepped in. In addition to his duties at Paperback Bazaar, DiBernardo handles the publishing and distribution of the book under the Jetpack Press label.

"I've been in comics for more than 25 years, so I'm very familiar with the channels to go through, so it wasn't a blind venture," he said.

Following the success of the one shot, in 2003 the team put out "Johnny Raygun Special Edition," a reprint of the one-shot along with a new story. This was quickly followed by the ongoing series "Johnny Raygun Quarterly," the fifth issue of which was recently sent to the printer. Though this will actually be the seventh "Johnny Raygun" comic to hit the stands, Talbot said they didn't start numbering from the "first issue" because they weren't sure if they would make it beyond the one-shot.

The positive reception the one-shot received prompted DiBernardo to have 3,000 copies of the special edition printed. This allowed the comic to be listed in Previews, a combination magazine/catalogue that pretty much every comic book store across the country orders their comics from. Orders for the fifth issue of "Johnny Raygun," which will be offered to coincide with the national "Free Comic Book Day" in May, are around 17,000 now, according to Talbot.

The comic has also offered the pair the chance to work with some of their idols in the industry. Image Comics publisher Erik Larsen, creator of the "Savage Dragon" series, penciled the cover for the second issue of "Johnny Raygun." Other industry notables like Ed McGuinness and Michael Avon Oeming have also contributed covers.

"It's just so much fun," Woodall said. "At one point, we were on the other side of the table as fanboys, and we still are, but now we can walk around to the other side." According to Woodall, the two can walk through a convention and get noticed by pros and fans alike as the "Johnny Raygun" guys.

"We're not fooling ourselves, we're still little fish in a big pond," Talbot said.

"It's just cool to be swimming in a larger pond," Woodall said.

"It's just cool to have a book out," Talbot added.

other denizens of the local scene

Since the breakout success of TMNT and Mirage Studios nearly 20 years ago, there haven't been a lot of small-press comics publishers in New England. However, that doesn't mean the region has been entirely quiet. Ron Fortier, Craig Rousseau, Sean Wang and other local creators have been writing and drawing comics for both big and little publishers for a number of years.

Fortier has been writing comics for 28 years. A lifelong comics fan, he started out in the mid-1970s writing articles for fanzines, self-produced fan magazines. Through the 'zines, he met one of his first collaborators, Hawaiian artist Gary Kato; the two submitted a short horror comic to Charlton Comics. Fortier continued submitting stories to Charlton and worked on two independent books, "Mr. Jigsaw: Man of a 1,000 Pieces" and "Street Fighter." The work landed him an agent in California and a job with Now Comics, one of the number of mid-level independent publishers that sprang up in the 1980s.

Fortier began his tenure at Now writing a comic series based on "The Terminator." From there, he moved on to updating and reinventing the Green Hornet for Now. Fortier turned the story of the Green Hornet, formerly the star of radio serials in the 1930s and a TV show in the 1960s, into the multi-generational saga of a family of masked crime-fighters.

"The series did amazingly well; when I go to conventions, one of the things that most fans bring to me to autograph are these issues of 'The Green Hornet' that I wrote," he said.

Fortier said he's heard rumors that director Kevin Smith will use his take on the character in the upcoming "Green Hornet" film.

"If you get involved with an iconic character and you add your stamp to him and do it in such a way that it seems natural and normal, people coming down the pike won't differentiate," he said. "If he's taken elements of things I've created, I'm flattered to no end."

Currently, Fortier is working on "Temple and Nash," a police procedural comic with Florida artist Johnny Atomic; an anthology series titled "Ron Fortier Presents"; and a story for "Digital Webbing Presents," an anthology series published by Digital Webbing in Haverhill, Mass.

But for every book that actually gets published, there are scores of other amateur artists and writers who've got projects in various stages of completion. For small-press publishers like Ralph DiBernardo, a finished product is the key to getting a book out there.

"There's probably six or seven guys who tell me they've got stuff coming," he said. "I'm not going to start something I can't finish because Jetpack Press has a reputation now."

What is DiBernardo looking for? Simply put, a finished product that appeals to him. Plenty of artists have pin-up pages to show, but what's lacking is the ability to tell a solid sequential story in a professional looking comic.

"There's always great ideas out there, but it's putting together the whole package that you rarely see," he said.

comic book university

For the most part, putting together your own comic is a trial-and-error process. But a new school in White River Junction is aiming to teach students not only the fundamentals of producing sequential art, but also how to package and self-publish books.

The Center for Cartoon Studies is slated to open its doors to students this fall, offering budding artists and writers the chance to learn the basics of producing a graphic novel from industry luminaries like Art Spiegelman and James Kolchaka. Artist/writer James Sturm, who wrote and illustrated the 2001 graphic novel "The Golem's Mighty Swing," founded CSS.

"We're a very focused cartooning school, and our curriculum is based around ... self-publishing, writing, researching and illustrating" graphic novels, according to Michelle Ollie, marketing director for CCS.

Already, the school has attracted plenty of attention from media outlets like the Boston Globe and the Washington Post as well as cartoonists across the country.

"Cartoonists are so excited about this, there's nothing like this out there," she said. "They're promoting the school just as much as we are."

The CSS isn't the first New England institution to devote itself to comics, though. In 1990, riding high off the success of TMNT, Kevin Eastman founded the Words and Pictures Museum of Fine Sequential Art in Northampton, Mass. According to www.wordsandpictures.org, the museum mounted almost 100 exhibits between 1992 and 1999, focusing on various genres of comic books and illustration. At the peak of the Turtles' popularity, Eastman was reportedly donating $1 million a year to the museum, according to an article published in Wired Magazine in 1997. However, as sales of Turtles' merchandise flagged, the museum had trouble covering operating expenses. In 1999, the Words and Pictures Museum closed its doors and moved its exhibits onto the Web.

Laird also used the Turtles' success to engage in philanthropy. In 1992, he established the Xeric Foundation, a private, nonprofit corporation that awards grants to amateur creators who want to self-publish their comic books. Individual grants are typically $5,000 and pay for the physical production and distribution of the book. Since its inception, Xeric has awarded more than $1 million to comic book creators and nonprofit groups. In 1996, CSS founder James Sturm was the recipient of a grant that allowed him to publish "The Revival," a chronicle of religious life in early America.

the future of local comics

To a casual observer, the business is thriving. Graphic novels are booming in bookstores ,and movies based on comic books are filling screens in the multiplex. But to DiBernardo, the industry is in trouble.

"Standing on the front lines, I can say it's a dying industry," he said.

The main problem is that comic companies are marketing strictly to fans and not reaching out to new readers, especially kids. The storylines in most mainstream books are often six- or seven-part epics, and new readers are forced to spend a lot of money just to get a complete story. And all the buzz generated by a successful comic movie like "Spider-man 2" does little to help sales when the actual comics don't resemble the movie.

"I think it's frustrating to people," DiBernardo said.

As readership declines and the marketplace shrinks, it becomes difficult for small publishers, who've already got the deck stacked against them, to succeed.

Woodall, who has two young children, said he and Talbot try to keep "Johnny Raygun" an all-ages type of book. After issue six comes out later this year, DiBernardo said the first six issues will be collected into a trade paperback and will hopefully make its way into bookstores and into the hands of new readers.

"It's tough to be a small-press guy now. People don't have any faith in you," Talbot said. "They don't have faith you'll come out regularly."

No matter what, Woodall and Talbot intend to keep pumping out "Johnny Raygun" comics, whether in print or on the Web.

"We have tons of stories banging around in our heads that we want to get to," Woodall said.