by Mike Favila, Senior Editor

ComicsOnline: How did you two meet? What had you both been working on before?

Cameron: Our editor Whitney Leopard introduced us. She thought Amanda and I would work well together and as is often the case, Whitney was right. Previously I worked in editorial, editing comics and graphic novels. Mapmakers is my first published work as a writer.

Amanda: I actually met Cam when MAPMAKERS was already on board with Random House Graphic, when I was contacted to be the artist on the series. I knew our editor Whitney from a previous freelance comic job I worked under her a couple years prior to the start of this project, so I wasn’t surrounded by entirely new faces! At the start of this project, I was actually entering my final year of college. I had done a couple small comics jobs over the school breaks, but this was my first long format job.

CO: Where did the idea of the map as a magic item come about?

Cameron: Initially it came from a love of fantasy stories and the maps that accompany them. That grew into a story of its own when I realized the maps could be a way to write about how places with special significance shape us. Plus as someone who gets lost pretty frequently, maps have always seemed just a little magical.

CO: I like the little process statement at the start of the book, where you talk about how everything was created. It’s not often I see MS Word namechecked in a graphic novel! Was it important for you to tell your readers that those methods were still viable, or was it more to document it for yourself?

Cameron: I’d seen notes in books before about an artist’s process but I’ll admit I was a little surprised when Whitney wanted to include a line about mine because it seems so boring in comparison. But it’s probably not a bad thing to pull back the curtain on writing comics. You don’t need any special software or equipment to write a comic script. I write my first drafts in a composition notebook and then type everything into Word as I go through revisions. That’s it!

Amanda: I think that part was something the publisher wanted to include, but personally I always think knowing/explaining the process of making is super fun, so I enjoy sharing about that.

CO: I love the anime inflected artwork in the book. Who are your most direct influences?
• Amanda: Haha, thanks so much! Manga was really my first huge exposure to comics in a longer format, so the first artists whose works I read I realized fairly recently had a bigger influence on my work than I thought. This is like, Kiyohiko Azuma (Yotsuba&!), Shiro Amano (Kingdom Hearts manga series), and Gosho Aoyama (Detective Conan/Case Closed). More recently, influences include Kamome Shirahama (Witch Hat Atelier), Yuuki Kamatani (Our Dreams at Dusk), Daisuke Igarashi (Children of the Sea), and Taiyo Matsumoto (Tekkonkinkreet). Wow, that’s a lot, haha! But I feel like it’s that way because influence for me is found more in the way that artists handle expression, energy, and emotion in facial expressions, paneling, and acting.

CO: What inspired the little guidebook in the back?

Cameron: We tried to find clever ways to use bonus material to flesh out the world and characters. Alidade’s journal felt like a perfect opportunity for that and it was fun writing her from a different perspective.

Amanda: For the look, I was really trying to tap into Alidade as a character, thinking about how she would approach research/journaling because, even though she lives in a different world than us, she’s still a kid. One thing that stuck was thinking back to middle school and how it was a big thing to make your notes look as pretty as possible, and that’s the vibe I wanted to get across. After all, she’s such a spunky and expressive kid, it would make sense for her notes to also be an outlet of that energy!

CO: How many books are planned to continue the story? Do you have a little story bible of all the main plot points already set?

Cameron: The series is a trilogy, with each book telling a self-contained story while building towards something bigger. I’m actually wrapping up the third and final script now, but the best part of looking back at my original outlines is seeing how things have changed during the writing process. It’s great to have a map of where you’re going (forgive the pun), but new ideas always spring to life during scripting and take the stories in new directions. This is also where Amanda and Whitney haven been such amazing collaborators. They bring so many great ideas to the table and help me find solutions when I (quite frequently) write myself into a corner.

Amanda: There’s two more books on the way, completing the series as a trilogy. I know currently, the biggest plot points have been laid out already, as the second and third books’ art and writing respectively are in progress. I’m personally excited about the direction the story goes, so I hope the readers are as well!

CO: Where is the best place for your readers to reach you online? FB? Instagram?

Cameron: Readers can find me at www.cameronwtchittock.com and with the rare appearance on Twitter @CameronChittock.

Amanda: You can find me on both Instagram and Twitter (although I’m more active on the latter) at @mandallin!