Tim Green is the creator of a fantastic comic called “Vinnie the Vampire”. Vinnie is a typical teenager except he has a set of fangs. Tim came up with his characters back in 1993 but it was in July of 2011 that he launched “Vinnie” for the world to see. And what a delight it is to see his characters come to life. I had the privilege of speaking with Tim about his life and comic and here’s a little of that conversation with a truly remarkable and down to earth man.
David: Hey Tim, thank you so much for being featured at “Don’t Pick the Flowers”. You have a great web comic called “Vinnie the Vampire”. How did the concept for your comic come about?
Click on image to enlarge
Tim: I always loved horror movies and comics. I tried several family type strips at first but they just didn’t capture my imagination. I first developed “Vinnie ” in the mid nineties. It sat in a folder for years before I got it rolling about a year and a half ago.
David: What are the things that inspire your work and what character do you feel you identify most with in your comic strip?
Click on image to enlarge
Tim: I have a strange way of looking at mundane, everyday situations. I just twist the simple things in life into my twisted little imagination. I would say I am the most like Vinnie. He is a small boat lost in a sea of chaos, I feel like that most of the time. Most of the characters are bits and pieces of me. I wish I could be more like Sunny. We all wish we could act on our most devilish impulses! Vampa is just the irrational side of me that gets angry at the dumbest things. Mom is a total control freak, I never feel in control of anything! Bob is the deep thinker in me. Belfry is just the daydreamer who floats through life, that’s probably the part I like most about myself.
David: Who are some of your “cartooning” heroes?
Tim: Old school : Charles Shulz, Will Eisner, Walt Kelly
Click on image to enlarge
More contemporary: Jim Davis, Bill Watterson, Gary Larson, Mark Tatulli
David: What is your cartooning routine like, a “Day in the life of Tim Green”?
Tim: I have a day job so I can’t just cartoon at my leisure. I usually write the comic first and pencil it out a rough in my “idea” notebook. I hand draw my comic and ink it on 100lb. bristol board with a medium nib marker. All the lettering is done by hand also. I scan it in my computer and color it with a photo editing program. I usually work only three comics ahead so sometimes it can be pretty stressful when I get writers block!
Click on image to enlarge
David: What are some of your future plans and what can we expect to see from you and “Vinnie the Vampire”?
Tim: I would, someday, love to do “Vinnie the Vampire” full time, but what cartoonist wouldn’t? I guess my long term plans for Vinnie is just to spread the fan base and hope people will continue to love the comic as much as I do creating it.
Click on image to enlarge
David: Thank you Tim! Yes the life of a web cartoonist does seem like a lot of work and require another income. But I am happy to help spread the work about “Vinnie the Vampire”. You have a great comic and look forward to all that you have planned for the future.
Do check out more of Tom Green and his fantastic comic Vinnie the Vampire at”:
Twitter: twitter.com/#!/Vinnie_Vampire
