This Valentine's Day, Skybound invited readers to board a lycanthropic locomotive with their new one-shot comic book Creepshow: Joe Hill’s Wolverton Station, and to celebrate the new release, we recently caught up with writer Jason Ciaramella and artist Michael Walsh to discuss adapting Joe Hill's werewolf-centric short story, infusing their unique styles into the iconic world of The Creep, and working with Skybound to bring this nightmare to undead life!
You can read our full Q&A with Jason and Michael below, and we also have a look at the chilling cover art and perilous preview pages from Creepshow: Joe Hill’s Wolverton Station.
Thank you for taking the time to answer questions for us, Jason and Michael, and congratulations on Creepshow: Joe Hill’s Wolverton Station, a new one-shot comic book adaptation of Joe Hill’s acclaimed short story! Hill has written so many amazing stories throughout his career—what was it about this story in particular that made you want to adapt it as a comic book, and how did the opportunity to work on this project come about?
Jason Ciaramella: About a year ago, Joe reached out to me to ask if I’d be interested in adapting one of his stories for Creepshow. Being a fan of the franchise (and of paying work), I jumped at the chance. At the time, I’m not sure if "Wolverton Station" was definitely the story I’d be adapting, but when I found out it was, I knew this was going to be a fun project.
Michael Walsh: Having just finished writing and drawing the short story "The Man With No Eyes" for Creepshow Vol. 2, I was going through the schedule for upcoming Creepshow projects with editor extraordinaire Alex Antone. I noticed Joe and Jason’s name on an upcoming Creepshow project and told Alex they were writers I’d always wanted to collaborate with. The stars (schedules) aligned, and here we are.
Having played Billy in the original Creepshow film, Joe Hill has a special connection to this franchise, which makes it especially fitting that one of his stories has now been adapted as a Creepshow comic. What was it like working with Joe to adapt his story as a comic book? Did he give a lot of creative input as you worked on this adaptation?
Jason Ciaramella: I’ve worked with Joe a lot over the years, and he’s always been very generous with me when it comes to taking creative liberties with his stories. Once I finish writing, he’ll do a final read of the script and provide notes and suggestions, which are always spot-on and appreciated. He has an uncanny ability to tweak very small details that really impact the final product.
Michael Walsh: Joe was a constant source of support and encouragement as I sent in art. I really felt like he and Jason both had my back throughout the process.
Jason, while you were writing this adaptation (your second Joe Hill adaptation, as you also adapted his short story By the Silver Water of Lake Champlain for the Creepshow TV series), how did you decide what to spotlight and what to leave out? What was that adaptation process like compared to writing a story from scratch?
Jason Ciaramella: I start out by going through the source material and highlighting the scenes that absolutely must be included in the comic—all the action, fun, and major story beats. From there, it’s up to me to solve the puzzle of how to arrange everything into 22 pages of panels in a smooth and satisfying way. Figuring out that puzzle has always been one of my favorite parts of writing comics.
Michael, what was it like illustrating a story in the iconic Creepshow style when you brought this story to life on the paneled page? Were there any visual references you used while drawing this story, including the memorable appearances by The Creep?
Michael Walsh: Yes! I tried to give The Creep a classic feel but still make him uniquely my own. I played up the shadows and the rotting flesh of the cackling fiend and tried to modernize and ground him with texture and personality.
I’m always fascinated to see how werewolves are depicted in any medium. How did you creatively approach these lycanthropic creatures through prose and artwork?
Michael Walsh: I had a lot of fun playing up the sinewy musculature of the werewolves' faces. These wolves are full of personality, so I wanted to capture their acting and have fluid features that contort with their emotions. I studied a lot of real wolves and how their snouts and brows contort when snarling and howling.
Were you both longtime fans of Creepshow before working on this story? What are your earliest memories of the Creepshow franchise?
Jason Ciaramella: Totally. For me it would have been around 1987. My father had recently purchased a VHS player, and Creepshow was one of the earliest tapes we had. He passed away a few years ago, but I bet if I went and looked in his movie closet, that Creepshow VHS tape would still be there.
Michael Walsh: I have fond memories of renting the VHS with a bunch of giggling 12 year olds. We had got high on sugar (candy and cola) and watched horror movies from our local video rental. The original Creepshow was such a great movie for this and really cemented my burgeoning love for horror films.
What has it been like to work with the team at Skybound as you prepare to release Creepshow: Joe Hill’s Wolverton Station into the world?
Jason Ciaramella: I’m going to gush a little here. The experience was topnotch from start to finish. Our editor, Alex Antone, was such a pleasure to work with and offered great guidance through the entire creative process. After the work was done, the support and communication from the marketing team, and Nia Phillips in particular, was stellar. Skybound knows how to treat creators.
Michael Walsh: I’ve worked with Skybound several times and knew what to expect. They are an incredibly supportive team and have some of the industry's most insightful and helpful editorial groups. I can’t wait to do more with the publisher.
Ultimately, what do you hope readers take away from Creepshow: Joe Hill’s Wolverton Station?
Jason Ciaramella: I hope readers have a laugh and a little wince. If both those things happen, I think we’ve done our jobs.
Michael Walsh: I hope they laugh, shriek, and howl at the horrors within. This book was a blast to draw and I think it will be a blast to read.
What advice would you each give to comic book writers or artists who are just getting started?
Jason Ciaramella: For writers, the main thing is to FINISH THE WORK. It seems like a no-brainer, but nothing gets made until the script is finished. Also, network with comic book creators and editors whenever possible. Most of the people working in comics got their break because they knew someone already working in comics.
Michael Walsh: Draw, draw, draw! Pull in ideas from non-comic art and do your due diligence by studying the basics, such as perspective and anatomy. Try and start drawing short five-page stories, and once you feel prepared, bring those stories to conventions and show them off to editors and other artists. Put your art online and try to gain a following and attract attention. Because of the internet and the ubiquity of social media, it’s easier than ever to get eyes on your art. So do the work! Keep at it, make comics, focus on the craft and eventually, work will find you.
With Creepshow: Joe Hill’s Wolverton Station released on February 14th (making it the perfect Valentine’s Day gift), do you each have any other upcoming projects that you can tease for our readers? Do you have plans to adapt any other Joe Hill stories in the Creepshow comic book universe?
Jason Ciaramella: This year is the tenth anniversary of C is for Cthulhu, my line of children’s books and toys, so we have a lot planned there. As for more Joe Hill Creepshow adaptations… we’ll have to wait and see.
Michael Walsh: If you enjoy my work on Creepshow, you’ll enjoy my other horror anthology project, The Silver Coin. There are currently three volumes available, and I’m slowly but surely working away on the fourth. I also have a big announcement coming later this month. I can’t say much yet, but horror fans, new and old, will be very excited for this fresh take on a classic character. Stay tuned to my socials for the news.
Cover Art by Michael Walsh:
Cover Art by Gabriel Rodriguez:
Cover Art by Maria Wolf:
Raised on a steady diet of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Derek has been fascinated with fear since he first saw ForeverWare being used on an episode of Eerie, Indiana.
When he’s not writing about horror as the Senior News Reporter for Daily Dead, Derek can be found daydreaming about the Santa Carla Boardwalk from The Lost Boys or reading Stephen King and Brian Keene novels.
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