INTERVIEW: Dream a little dream in ‘Tremor Dose’
Image courtesy of comiXology / Provided by Superfan Promotions with permission.
For some reason, the premise of Tremor Dose sounds completely terrifying. The new graphic novel from writer Michael Conrad and artist Noah Bailey imagines a world in which dreams can come and go from a person’s sleeping mind with little understanding of how they got there, who owns them and whether they are based on reality.
According to press notes, this dreamy story features the character of Ginn, a young college student who has had scary dreams of late, and a creepy man has been populating them — a man she does not know. The tale becomes even weirder when she sees the man’s likeness on a poster in town, and now she needs answers.
Tremor Dose comes courtesy of comiXology Originals, a major digital comic imprint, and is now available. Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Conrad and Bailey about the new graphic novel. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
How did the idea for Tremor Dose first come about?
Conrad: I wanted to write something that would allow me to fully exploit the abstract qualities of Noah’s art style while also telling a story that wasn’t so far flung that the character moments would be lost. Dreams have always interested me, so I took a chance and did the big writer’s no-no and wrote a story that is almost entirely told in dream sequences. I don’t regret that choice now, because it’s working with readers, but in hindsight I don’t think I would have been as bold.
How would you describe Ginn to people thinking about buying the book?
Conrad: Ginn is someone I would very much like to spend time with. She is stronger and more confident than she knows, so she is a badass masquerading as a self-effacing indie rock type. This story alludes to some serious baggage she is dealing with, but that baggage is similar to what we all carry.
Bailey: Yeah, I would say that she is a very multifaceted character. She seems to be somewhat docile and meek, but at her core is a kind of goth punk intellectual. I would imagine her to be the type of person that becomes regularly obsessed with researching esoteric topics and is very comfortable spending time alone.
Have you had some of these thoughts about dreams? Is your own curiosity within these pages?
Conrad: I’ve thought so much about dreams that this barely scratches the surface. To answer your question, yes, this book reflects my fascination with dreams and dreaming. I have a lot of ideas that were not appropriate for the story we told this time; I’m sure we’ll continue to explore those ideas elsewhere.
Bailey: I’ve always been really fascinated by dreams, especially the idea of precognitive dreaming. I used to keep a dream journal similar to the one that Ginn keeps in Tremor Dose, and I would read through old dreams every once in a while, just to see if there was some kind of cryptic warning of future events.
How did you two work together as a team?
Conrad: Noah and I are very collaborative. There is little to be found in Tremor Dose that wasn’t the product of a lot of discussion. That said I know when to shut my mouth and let Noah take the wheel, and I think he trusts me in the same way.
Bailey: We talk everything through quite a bit, but once we know that we are on the same page conceptually, I think we both really enjoy surprising each other. There were times when I would be reading the script, and I’d have a little grin on my face from something that he hid in there for me. And similarly, when I would send him my finished pages, I couldn’t wait to hear back about the things I threw in there to surprise him.
When did you first fall in love with comics and graphic novels?
Conrad: I grew up quite poor, so I really valued the comics that I had. I can’t remember how I got them; they simply existed, and I protected them the best I could. I read countless times. I had a brief spell when I thought I should only be reading fine literature, but I was lying to myself. Comics have always had my heart, and comics can be [the] finest literature one might come across. We live during a time when comics are finally being taken seriously, and I’m glad to be a small part of it:
Bailey: When I was really young, my dad took me to an arcade at the mall, and, at the prize counter, I picked out what would be my first comic book, an issue of Infinity Inc., ‘Saga of Solomon Grundy.’ I remember flipping through it over and over again. It was violent and colorful, and from then on I was hooked. I spent all my time reading and drawing comics. I decided right away that that was what I wanted to do. My interest in artwork and stories has changed a lot over time, but the goal has always been the same.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Tremor Dose, written by Michael Conrad and with art by Noah Bailey, is now available from comiXology Originals. Click here for more information.
