Interview: Chuck Dixon Talks Frankenstein

Posted in Comics, Interviews on June 4th, 2008

Dean Koontz is literally the dean of horror fiction these days, with an armload of books that consistently hit the bestseller list. That it took this long for his works to be adapted into comics is a bit of a surprise. But, this month the Dabel Brothers released the first issue of a six-part adaptation of Koontz’s Frankenstein: Prodigal Son, translated into comics form by Chuck Dixon and Brett Booth. Recently, Chuck spoke to us from his Florida home.

FM: So Chuck, you’re usually known for other genres, notably super-heroes and war. Horror and Chuck Dixon are not synonymous leading me to wonder, how’d this come about?

Chuck: I had done work previously for the Dabel Brothers, adapting Robert Jordan’s New Spring. So, they asked if I’d be interested in adapting some Dean Koontz. We settled on the Frankenstein books. And I’m not really a stranger to horror. Some of my earliest comics work was for Eclipse’s various horror anthologies as well as Seven Block with Jorge Zaffino for Epic. And I recently did an eight issue run of Nightmare on Elm Street for WildStorm and a werewolf mini for Platinum called Big Badz. So, I do the scary.

FM: How familiar were you with Dean Koontz’s work before beginning this assignment

Chuck: I read a few of his earlier novels many years ago.

FM: How does one adapt a novel to a comic book?

Chuck: In this case it was easy! Dean breaks this stuff down like a comic script. Fast paced and lots of juicy visuals.

The process is like this: I read the novel through and then go back and re-read with post-it notes and a highlighter pen in hand. I highlight significant dialogue and mark page breaks and put in post-its for the issue breaks. Like I said, it was real easy this time. Usually I have to hunt for strong visuals as most novels tend to be internal. But this book gave me option paralysis with all the cool and gruesome stuff.

FM: Does pacing the adaptation over six issues change knowing that it will also be collected in hardcover?

Chuck: There’s still a closer each issue that forms either a cliffhanger or high point. And, again, this was pretty simple as there are so many dramatic high points sprinkled throughout the book.

FM: Would you have preferred adapting it in a single unit as opposed to six issues?

Chuck: That would be nice. But the economics of single issues to trade collections don’t allow for that. Long form is always best always easiest.

FM: Could you go more graphic? Were there gaps to fill in?

Chuck: There were no gaps. It’s plotted really tight and everything gets coverage. And I was actually asked to pull back on some of the grue. So, while there’s plenty of gore, we imply the nastier stuff rather than laying it out under the lights. Some of the uglier stuff works fine in prose but goes way over the top when you start doing it up in comics form.

But it’s still stomach-churning!

FM: Did you and Koontz talk about the project at all?

Chuck: I had no contact with the author except through the publisher. And he made very few changes to the finished script. I think I like it better this way. I’m free to mangle and rework the prose into comic form without thinking I’m messing with the work of an actual human being. Sometimes it’s like making sausage and you don’t want the customer watching.

FM: Were you involved with Brett Booth becoming artist?

Chuck: Brett was brought on after me.

FM: What do you think of the way Brett interprets the script?

Chuck: He puts everything into it and gives the book a look different from what readers might expect. He pulls off the creepier parts in a big way.

FM: Prodigal Son is the first of a proposed trilogy from Koontz. Will you be adapting the next two books?

Chuck: That’s the plan. I stay with this till the wheels come off.

FM: The Dabel Brothers run a very different kind of operation compared with DC and Marvel. What are the differences and advantages?

Chuck: Well, I can talk to the top guys anytime I want. Also, I feel a kinship with these guys. We all see the potential of the book and library market in a way some comic publishers do not. And I stuck with them through some tough times as they started up and they’ve always expressed (and demonstrated) their appreciation for that. Loyalty like that is in short supply in this business.

FM: This was announced back in August so what took so long for this to be released?

Chuck: We wanted to give Brett plenty of time on the art.

FM: What scares you?

Chuck: I’m just paranoid enough never to reveal that. My enemies might use it against me! But when I was a kid I saw every monster movie that came out and never had a nightmare until I saw Fail Safe. That one scared the goobers out of me! I think because I realized that it could happen.

FM: Do you have a favorite monster from fiction, film or comics?

Chuck: Anything with werewolves.

FM: Are you doing any other horror-related work?

Chuck: Not at the moment, But that could change anytime.

FM: Chuck, thanks so much for your time.

Chuck: Thank you! And glad to see Famous Monsters back!

The six-issue miniseries will appear monthly and a hardcover collection from DelRey Books has already been announced.