Karl-Heinz Schradt quietly released his 148 page graphic novel Rena's Journey in New Zealand during May of this year. Rena's Journey is one of the few long form comics I'm aware of that incorporates Maori culture and mythology alongside New Zealand's distinctive landscapes.
From the book description:
Rena works as a respected ornithologist at Auckland Museum, but has a sense that there is something missing in her life - is it the answer to the mystery of the moa? Or the dreams of a lost artifact that haunt her? After growing up in a foster family, she rediscovers her roots when her childhood friend Rangi comes to visit, with the news that her last blood relative has died. Rena returns to her childhood tribe and the 'Hinemoa', a trawler she has inherited. She sets out on a journey to answer her questions about the moa, but instead discovers an ancient and magical tiki (pendant). After humankind kills the last moa, the wrath of a forgotten monster is unleashed. Suddenly Rena finds herself in a race against time to uncover the past and stop Papamanu, a fearsome taniwha.
I asked Karl a few questions via email about Rena's Journey and his comics background.
Where did your interest in comics come from?
I have always been a ‘visual’ person. School was about a lot of words and numbers, Therefore, when it came to reading for entertainment; comics seemed more accessible to me. I remember trying to read ‘The Hobbit’ as a child and I remember being frustrated at all characters names trying to keep track of them! I think this was because I remember faces, not so much names.
I didn’t read many comics (apart from Asterix and Tintin) at first - mostly because my schools saw them as being not ‘proper’ books. We read Peter Gossage’s ‘How Maui slowed the sun’ and I loved it – but even that wasn’t really a comic. It was as a teenager, when my second cousins cleared their garage that I got a pile of old Judge Dredd and Superman comics; that I got properly introduced to comics.
Have you had any art education/training? How long have you been making comics?
Though I took a short course in oil painting, I never had any formal arts training; I don’t know if high school counts? I’ve always drawn, sketched and I loved Photoshop ever since a flat mate showed me it. I had hours of fun playing with it!
Over the years, I have skimmed many books and graphic design magazines, watched youtube tutorials and experimented and experimented. I started making short (one-pager) cartoons at high school. I’ve written many unpublished novels and screenplays; and when I had the idea for Rena’s Journey I realized that readers wouldn’t ‘get’ the ideas in screenplay form. I decided to make it into a comic book instead. Writing a screenplay is much easier I think! If Rena’s Journey was ever made into a movie there is another 30 minutes (or 40 pages) of stuff that didn’t make the graphic novel because of the work a graphic novel entails!
What inspired your use of Māori legend and folklore in Rena's Journey and what research did it entail?
I came up with the idea for Rena’s Journey in NZ, but lacked the will to make it much more than three dog-eared pages of the Taniwha character, the character Rangi and the design for the tiki in the story. Then I stayed in Australia and the United Kingdom For six years for an overseas experience. While there, I began to miss New Zealand’s landscapes and the unique culture. But it was a trip to the British museum that rekindled my interest in Māori sculpture and art.
With this newfound inspiration, I further developed the ideas for the story of Rena’s Journey. I was intrigued by the ‘what if’ idea that the long extinct Moa and mythological Taniwha existed in today’s modern world. I think this was because I heard so many great Māori myths and legends as I grew up. Peter Gossage’s books were a staple for NZ kids back then, and I read A.W Reed’s ‘Māori Mythology and Legends’ at some point too. I came to feel that these stories were part of me too, as a kiwi kid.
The research was mainly about getting the many icons of Māori and kiwi culture that were in my mind into actual drawings: locations, places, creatures and believable designs. I scanned books, the internet and re-read A.W Reed’s ‘Māori Mythology and Legends’. Once I had the black and white pages done, I was back in NZ. I contacted a lecturer who had taught me much about Māori culture when I was a student in AUT’s health science facility. She reviewed the content of Rena’s Journey and gave me valuable feedback on making it more accurate. In fact, many people have helped me in this way.
Living overseas had a couple of effects. As a half German / half Malaysian-Chinese person who moved to NZ at age two; I wasn’t really sure that I was a ‘normal’ Kiwi! Going to Malaysia and Germany helped me see that I am a Kiwi through and through, the German and Asian cultures are great; but are a part of my own ‘Kiwi’ self. Secondly Being overseas helped me see the ‘Kiwi’ culture more clearly – I had a comparison point now. I could see how we are unique in New Zealand.
How has travel influenced my work? It taught me how to appreciate everything more. Before I was in Italy, it was just a ‘concept’ in my head; now it’s place of colour, sound, tastes and feelings! My approach to stories and art widened. Rena’s Journey became about merging great Māori myth with a traditional American or European adventure story. Rena’s Journey has a moral imperative too (a western tradition); the moral is ‘go on a journey’ to find where you belong in your world.
Until Rena’s Journey’s recent sales, none of my creative projects have been very ‘successful’. My music, novels and screenplays never got picked up by publishers or agents as hard as I tried! My art never quite made it to a solo show in a gallery either…
Easily 30 NZ publishers declined Rena’s Journey. Really, I think I tried them all! I’ll be honest, it was all kinda depressing! I got some positive feedback, but it came down to money – comics aren’t money spinners for NZ publishers (and fair enough I guess). So I stalled finishing the book, because I was like, ‘What’s the point?’. It took five years before I finished it. I really must thank Ian Watt, the editor of the book, he kept telling me the book was worth printing and that made all the difference.
Eventually I’ve had to see creativity as its own reward; and not a meal ticket, a competition, or ‘success’ versus ‘failure’ thing. I am happy with that philosophy now.. And now I can create, and not care about publishing and all that jazz! If I feel excited about my work, that’s all that matters!
In the end I self-published, mainly because I wanted to try to inspire like Maurice Gee and Peter Gossage inspired me… I wanted my book in libraries, I wanted it borrowed by young kiwis! I wanted to inspire day dreams in boring maths classes! Self publishing was really a slow and difficult process, I had to learn design, small business, marketing and distribution!
Are you involved in any comics communities?
Not really, I joined New Zealand comic creators (NZCC) and NZ comics on Facebook; but that’s about it. I have had some good talks with some other comic makers and graphic designers; but then I’ve had some awkward talks too! One guy told me how ‘naïve’ my work was, I was quite surprised at his ‘no bars banned’ approach. Therefore, I prefer to pick when I release myself for critique by my peers.
There does seem to be a clique at the events I’ve attended, I’m not sure I fit it. I’ve found that I’m not as into the ‘comics culture’ as some other creators are – they seem to know the names of all the great comics geniuses; the styles, the genres, the context of ‘the work’. Me, I look for a good yarn. I don’t care so much about the look of the work, it’s place in history, or even who wrote / drew it. I actually don’t care about that; I like what I like and I don’t need to know why.
What are you currently working on?
A cracking yarn about a solar system in which the animals became the dominant life forms, principally Cats, Horses, Lizards and weird creatures called ‘Anugians’. The main character is a Cat called ‘Spacecat Bob’ who is trying to stop a mysterious robot invasion from killing off his people, The Catesians. Despite the main character’s isolative nature, the theme of the story is about working together - caring about each other; and what happens when we take our humanity for granted. It’s called ‘Daneona: The Legend of Spacecat Bob and you can get more information at www.daneona.com
Where can people get a physical copy of Rena's Journey from?
As of right now: Unity Books, The Women’s Bookshop, Time Out, Jabbawocky Childrens books, University Bookshop and Wheelers Bookshop (online orders). E-copies for android (PDF) tablets are available at www.renasjourney.com
Previews and ebook versions of Rena's Journey available here.
Rena's Journey on facebook.
