We recently connected with Scout Underhill and have shared our conversation below.
Scout, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
Always ask Why and What If about everything. While at sculpture gardens recently, I gazed upon the strange structures and asked myself “what if my characters stumbled upon this in the middle of an open field? Who put it here? Why?” I love watching cartoons, too, and find great inspiration in them. Recently I’ve loved rewatching Hilda, and Scavengers Reign has become my all-time favorite sci-fi media. Keep your creative well full in whatever ways bring you the most joy.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
Comics have followed me my entire life. There was a portion of time where I didn’t want to make comics -who wants to draw all those panels? But they’ve been a thread through the fabric of my life, and the past few years I’ve discovered how integral comics are to my being. I started DnDoggos as a webcomic in the summer of 2017, and at the time I didn’t know it would become my career. It was just a silly comic about my real-life dogs waking me up too early one morning, and I thought it’d be fun as a Dungeons and Dragons scenario to share with friends. With the encouragement of my friend Guy Kopsombut, I kept up DnDoggos weekly for five years.
Selling DnDoggos Get The Party Started as a graphic novel came at the time I needed it most, and has been one of the best parts of my life since. It has opened the door to a lot of new and exciting opportunities and has reached beyond the internet to touch people’s lives in ways I couldn’t before.
DnDoggos Get the Party Started debuted this February and since then I’ve been able to attend ECCC to play DnD live with other fantasy authors, visit schools to talk with kids about comics and draw characters with them, and soon I’ll be a panelist at Killer Nash, BacktoBackBooks, a special guest at NCAF (Nashville Comics Arts Festival) in its inaugural year, and Southern Festival of Books, among other exciting things!
I couldn’t be where I am now without the support of a lot of folks, especially my patrons. I have run a Patreon to support me and the real doggos since 2018 and it has been the biggest help to keep the bills paid while navigating the world of comics. I owe so much to them, and to my local SCBWI friends, my far-away comics friends, and everyone in between. Creativity is a community event. I could never do this alone. And I would never want to.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Stay Curious. Do What You Love. Just Make The Thing.
Stay Curious – I talked earlier about always asking Why and What If, and in addition to that, I encourage people to stay curious about our world. It is strange to me that things such as zoos, aquariums, science centers, etc are meant only for kids. At some unspoken time, suddenly those things aren’t meant for adults anymore. But why? Our world is full of so many wonderful things. There’s always more to know!
Do What You Love – An author-illustrator friend of mine would talk about getting into publishing and encouraged people to “do what you love and your work will find a home” and it’s very true. I made DnDoggos because it made me happy. It was fun to make a comic about my real-life dogs and to imagine the silly DnD scenarios they’d find themselves in. It has still remained fun and something that I love. Don’t try to follow trends or to write something that doesn’t feel like you. Go be you. No one else is!
Just Make The Thing – If you want to do it, you’re already prepared. I often hear from folks that they don’t feel ready to make a comic or graphic novel. Maybe their skill level isn’t there yet, or the story isn’t formed well enough, or whatever else. But there is truly no better practice to make comics than to make comics. If you look at the very first DnDoggos webcomic compared to the graphic novel, you will see a level up in both art and storytelling. I do not abide by “draw every day”, but I think drawing consistently – whatever that looks like for you – is what is important. And, really, what’s the worst that will happen if you shoot your shot? If you query someone and you get a rejection, that doesn’t always mean your work wasn’t ready, just that it wasn’t a fit for that person. Publishing is incredibly subjective, and the only thing that truly matters is staying true to yourself. So go make the thing! Put it out in the world! You never know what will happen.
Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?
There is not a single person, but a multitude. My local SCBWI illustrator friends have been by my side since 2016, and my online community of KidLitArt friends were paramount in surviving the pandemic. My agency siblings and other comics friends have been so supportive through the ups and downs of publishing. From feedback and critique, to being a shoulder to cry on, or simply a place to speak our woes, we all want to make comics and stories to share with the world. And I especially would not have made it this far without my colorist, Liana Sposto. Find your community, support them in return, and hold them close. We’re all in this together to try to make this world a brighter place.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dndoggos.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dndoggos
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dndoggos/
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/dndoggos
- Other: https://www.patreon.com/dndoggos
https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250834348/dndoggosgetthepartystarted
Image Credits
Emily April Allen Photography
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
