Richard: What is the basic story of "Inanna's Tears"?

Rob Vollmar: Inanna’s Tears is the story of a woman named Entika in ancient Sumer who inherits a mantle of leadership traditionally held by men even as outlanders are plotting to dismantle the old regime and take over the city for themselves and their people.

Richard: Why would this be considered a political tragedy?

Rob: Much of the story revolves around the idea of power and who is holding it. While there are important sub-plots, the primary focus of the story is exploring the idea of political power and how it effects those who come under its rule.

Richard: Who exactly is Inanna?

Rob: Inanna is one of the chief deities in the Sumerian pantheon. She has many titles (Daughter of the Moon, Queen of Heaven, etc) and was the archetype for a variety of goddesses who came after. In the context of this story, she is also the patron goddess of the city of Birith as she was to many cities in this particular era and for long after.

Richard: Is this story based on actual myth?

Rob: Not exactly. I studied a variety of Inanna myths in the course of writing it but many, if not most, of those myths were written millennia after the period we’re looking at here. To try and arrive at a clearer picture of how these earlier Inanna devotees might have perceived their goddess, I used comparative mythology techniques and anthropological evidence to reverse engineer what form that more undiluted form might have taken.

Richard: How did this comic go from a web comic to a printed one?

Rob: As with most of my works, we didn’t start Inanna’s Tears until we had a fairly clear idea of how we would bring it to press and, thus, to an audience. We decided to serialize online first for a number of reasons, but the most compelling one was “Why not?” If we were able to reach and, possibly, intrigue even 500 readers before the print version reached the stands then that seemed like a pretty sum positive result.

That said, it is my conviction that Archaia Studio Press has one of the strongest rosters in mainstream comics today and the timbre of that publishing slate fit right in with what we had in mind. We pitched it. They liked it and the race was on.

Richard: Who is En? What part do they play in the story?

Rob: The En is a title given to the consort to the Goddess. The Goddess is represented and worshipped in the form of a large wooden statue or idol known as a dinghir. The En then is treated as the mortal consort to a divine Queen and, as the interpreter of her wishes, is essentially the ruler of the city. Because of the connubial (if symbolic) nature of their relationship, the En was traditionally a man though historical deviances from this standard can be found in the centuries to follow in social climates much less friendly to woman than this one.

Richard: What time period does the story take place in?

Rob: The story is set right about 3000 BCE. This is after the advent of Sumerian wedge writing in clay, known as cuneiform, but before the rise of the kingship normally associated with Mesopotamian history. The writing being done in this period is closer to accounting than what we think of as writing today which accounts for the nearly complete lack of an historical record associated with it.

Richard: What do you read when you have time?

Rob: I always make time to read. I manage a direct market comics shop in Norman, Oklahoma so I’m usually current on the various sectors of comics from all the world that we carry. My comics reading then is pretty EC lectic ranging from genre comics to manga to more literary graphic novels. I also enjoy reading collections of older comic strips like Popeye and Krazy Kat.

In prose, I read a lot more non-fiction than fiction, usually under the guise of “doing research”. The last book I finished was The Birth of Christianity by John Crossan and I’ve got another book of his, The Historical Jesus, on the nightstand that I’ll be starting just as soon as I finish the Showcase collection of Aquaman reprints from the Sixties.

Richard: What do you have planned next career wise?

Rob: Just to keep writing more and better comics. I’ve got my first work-for-hire piece coming out in the first issue of the new Tales from the Crypt from Papercutz, called “For Serious Collector’s Only.” I usually only develop one long project at a time and, now that Inanna’s Tears is done, I’m working with an artist to produce a biographical story about Frank Zappa as a teenager that I’m very excited about as well as a number of other projects in various stages of development.

Richard: Have you worked on any other comics?

Rob: I have two graphic novels available from NBM that were done in collaboration with artist Pablo G. Callejo, Bluesman and The Castaways.

Richard: What advice do you have for new writers?

Rob: Being a writer is about developing the habit of writing. If you aren’t regularly sitting down for a meaningful period of time to script or develop comics, then what you are is a thinker, or perhaps a dreamer, but not a writer. I spent nearly four years before my first writing gig literally inventing ways to practice scripting in the absence of a willing collaborator. I wrote imaginary work-for-hire stories that no one will ever see. I wrote synopses for series that I never shared with anyone. I took comics that already existed and reverse-scripted them to see how best to express visual ideas in the written word. And, perhaps most important, I studied the market, understood the publishers and the products they offered and, when the time was right, I turned my work in on time. I can’t help but believe that anyone serious about writing would be willing to invest at least that much time and energy into honing their craft before they would ask someone else to invest their time, and later, money into putting it out there for people to see.

Richard: If you could have one super power what would it be and why?

Rob: I think the ability to make people get along through something other than the threat of violence would be awesome.

Richard: How can someone contact you?

Rob: I can be reached at robvollmar@yahoo.com

Richard: Any last words of advice?

Rob: Be excellent to each other.

MpMann: Oh, without a doubt! ASP did us right on The Lone and Level Sands, and they are first rate people on a personal level. In fact, I have a third project coming from Archaia after Inanna's Tears and as of this writing have a fourth before them. Apparently, I think quite highly of the good folk at ASP.

Richard: What characteristics do you try to give Inanna?

MpMann: Well, Innana doesn't appear as a character in the story. She is an invisible presence as gods and goddesses generally are. But there is a representation of Innana in the book, based on a Sumerian sculpture of the goddess. I just love it! She is seated on a pedestal...right on her fat, fertile hips. She is hoisting her breasts for our delectation, and smiling a broad, simple archaic grin!

Richard: Do you find it easy to use body language to convey emotions?

MpMann: Hopefully I succeed at this, as it’s such an important tool in a cartoonist's art...and I do think of myself as more cartoonist than illustrator. So I work quickly and rather directly; I value energy. As such, I lay my figures in briskly and with a bit of exaggeration...this can be toned down a little in inking. I guess the answer is, "Yes."

Richard: What did you enjoy the most about working on this comic?

MpMann: Er...the topless women? I'm such a cad. Well, Ok, I liked the human interactions that Rob wrote into the characters. I am much more interested in genuine relationships between people then I am in the details of costume or setting, and Rob gives us scene after scene of people being people. Plus exotic settings!

Richard: How did you and Rob Vollmar get together to create this comic?

MpMann: We hooked up via a thread at Warren Ellis's TheEngine.com

Richard: How did you first get into comics?

MpMann: My first work was inking Tim Hamilton on The Trouble With Girls for Malibu Graphics. I also did Ape City, Flesh Gordon, and various other projects. I left comics for the best part of a decade, but got the bug again after doing a 240-page silent comic strip as a sidebar for Pause and Effect: The Art of Interactive Narrative. I followed this up with several mini-comics and anthologies, and a year-plus stint on a web comic, and then my first graphic novel with A. David Lewis, The Lone and Level Sands.

Richard: How did you get the name mpMann?

MpMann: My name is Marvin Perry Mann. mpMann is what I came up with as something distinctive when I came back to comics. It’s an affectation, but it’s my affectation. What do you think? Is it too much?

Richard: Why did you leave working on comics for about a decade?

MpMann: Oy. I was pretty attached to Malibu at the time and when they went to color, they weren't so attached to me. Not that I blame them. What I did didn't fit the times. And what the comics industry was producing at the time (early 90s, early Image Comics) didn't fit my interests. It’s a different time now. There is as much diversity as I've ever seen in comics.

Richard: You worked on "The Trouble With Girls". What was that like?

MpMann: Well, it was a hilarious comic to read and just as much fun to work on. Tim's art fit the series beautifully, (and he's doing absolutely stunning work now). I had a chance to get to know Gerard Jones before he became the most prolific writer in comics, and I got to draw the funniest porn comic ever when I drew Lizard Lady. The Trouble With Girls was my BIG BREAK. I loved it!

Richard: How did you become involved with "The Girly Comic"?

MpMann: Through a solicitation at Sequential Tart. So much of my work over these last five years has come through Internet connections. It has been a godsend to me. Incidentally, if you haven't read The Girly Comic, you should. It’s one of the best ongoing anthologies around. http://www.factorfictionpress.co.uk/girly/index.html

Richard: What is "Arcana Jayne: Hair of the Dog"?

MpMann: Arcana Jayne is a young witch. She's a character created by Lisa Jonte, currently editor of Girlamatic.com. Hair of the Dog was a story about...werewolves. http://girlamatic.com/

Richard: What will be your next project?

MpMann: My next project is currently about 3/4 finished. Some New Kind of Slaughter ~or~ Lost in the Flood (and How We Found Home Again) Diluvian Myths from Around the World with A. David Lewis is coming from ASP in December. After that I'm doing The Grave Doug Freshley, written by Josh Hechinger. Think Sergio Leone meets Looney Tunes. After that I expect to be returning to the the ancient Canaan with BA'AL.

Richard: How can someone contact you?

MpMann: My website is http://cosmorynth.com/ You can e-mail me at marv@cosmorynth.com

Richard: Any final words of wisdom?

MpMann: Don't give up. Don't sell your soul, but you don't have to get too old to make comics. I'm 53 and my goal is to be in better shape then half the men half my age...and I think I'm there. Young of body can be young of mind. I'm doing the best work I've ever done, but it’s only the beginning. I promise you, the best is yet to come.