white ninja comics


18 Questions with the Guys of White Ninja Text Philipp Lehner
First of all thanks for the interview. I really appreciate it! Scott: No problem, dude. How would you describe White Ninja Comics in one sentence? Kent: White Ninja Comics is a comic about a ninja, who is white, and who has many adventures, and saves the world over, and over, and over again, and gets the ladies, and is searching for a way to return to reunite with his father on Mount Olympus. How did you become interested in comics? Have you always been reading them? S: I became interested in Archie comics at a very young age. Archie is a role model for all young adults. I believe Veronica is hotter than Betty. K: I began reading comic books when my crazy great-uncle Bill left me his Zorro comic collection. Why and when did you decide to make your own comic? K: We wanted to combine the key style elements of Archie and Zorro comics into something that would make the world say, "Wow! This comic really does it for me." Were you nervous when your page went online? S: We had no expectations for our comic when we decided to put it on the Internet. We only put them on the World Wide Web for easy access. As Kent holds all 500+ White Ninja adventures in a box in his closet, it is easier to read our favourites by logging on to the internet rather than having Kent carry them all the way over to my house, or to school for me to read, or to... y’know, places and stuff. How did you get more visits at the beginning? K: We got a link from elftor.com early on that helped a lot. Still, most of our visitors seem to find the page by chance. I guess a lot of web surfers have ninja fetishes or something. Also, our loyal fans helped to keep White Ninja near the top of the topwebcomics.com while it was around. Why did you choose a white ninja as a main character? S: Because black ninjas take too long to colour in. He’s a ninja because he has to kick ass sometimes. How do you get your inspiration for your comic? K: I press my belly-button really hard. Rrrrrrrr! S: I hold my breath for dangerously long periods of time. If you hold your breath long enough your teeth get loose. It seems that each strip isn't depending on the previous strips. Do you think that you get more readers with this "tactic"? K: Serial strips take too long to read. Scott has attention deficit disorder, so it would never work. Anything beyond six panels is practically a novel. S: The doctor says I have a tiny brain. How do you draw your comics? S: With a ball-point pen and white paper (8.5 X 11). We start at the beginning, and work to the end. We try to put as many hilarious jokes in each panel as we possibly can. K: First we come up with a scenario. For example, "White Ninja smokes a corn-cob pipe." S: Then we think "If I was a crime-fighting super-hero, how would I use this corn-cob pipe to my advantage to defeat my enemies??" K: White Ninja’s enemies vary from week to week. In this episode his enemy might be a hillbilly or a something more internal, like arthritis.		S: Ta-da! No more arthritis… that is, if he plays his cards right. How long does it take to complete one strip approximately? K: Anywhere from 5 minutes to six months. The Unicorn one took about six months to finish. "White Ninja is content" only took about 5 minutes. S: As you can see, "funniness" is not directly proportional to the amount of time spent on a comic. How many visits do you have each day? S: Not enough to make us rich... yet. Do or did you have any server problems because of traffic? K: Server? How many percent of your readership have already used PayPal to donate money? S: Not enough to make us rich… yet. What do you think are advantages of online comics, and what are disadvantages? K: It allows anyone to experience the White Ninja. S: A disadvantage of online comics is, you have to have the Internet. Are you reading any other web comics? If yes, which ones? S: I like Toothpaste for Dinner currently. K: Ditto, as well as, the Dayfree Press comics. What are your future plans for White Ninja Comics? S: We will take it as far as our fans will let us. We depend on their support through encouragement and purchasing of Merchandise. K: We plan to give White Ninja a nose, long hair, and Nike sneakers. S: And creating a serial comic in which White Ninja will warn people of the dangers of cigarette smoking, and how it affects their ability to run far. K: Nothing is more important then the ability to run far. Are you currently working on any other projects? K: We are in the midst of developing a type of virtual reality head-gear which allows the wearer to feel that they are constantly being pursued by ghosts. S: In an unrelated field, I am developing an audio device called "Wolves in Your Pocket" which is carried in one’s pocket, and mimics the sound of wolves howling. Alright, that's it! Anything you want to add? S: 2 + 4 = 6, 9 + 11 = 19!! K: 12 + 3 = 15, 6 + 6 = 12!!! Thanks a lot! I wish you good luck for the future of the White Ninja. S: Thank you. K: Take care. (Printed on Personal Halfquake , December 26, 2003)