CARIBOU, Maine — Sometimes the proverbial “road less traveled” really does lead to the perfect spot.
That’s exactly what Ryan Tyler Palmer, a former Presque Isle resident now living in Caribou, has discovered. The writer and graphic novel artist followed a somewhat deviant path away from traditional publishing, but has found his niche — and intends to return to the very place where his journey began.
Palmer, author of “The Age of Armageddon: The Spirit of Krynn,” will be at the Mark and Emily Turner Memorial Library on Saturday, July 9, for a book signing with a creative twist: a chance for youth to explore coloring in the comic book genre.
Palmer credits the library with sparking his love for reading, which in turn unleashed his creative side. His upcoming appearance there seemed only natural to him.
“I took my first book out at the Mark and Emily Turner Memorial Library; I must have been 6 years old,” Palmer recalled. “They were dinosaur books. I love that library, and so to go back to where it all began really is important to me.”
For Palmer, everything began with books. He described himself as an avid reader of sci-fi novels and fantasy, then gaming led to a world of chatting with folks online and delving into the world of books online.
“I love to read,” he said. “I love to read other people’s thoughts and I love to talk with people. I love people and popular culture.”
His first forays into mainstream publishing were “discouraging and disappointing,” he said. He self-published his book and halved the cost. “I grew up in The County, so I wanted to make it available for people. I just want to make stories and share them with people.”
The book was published in 2013. “I would say it is a post-apocalyptic sci-fi fantasy that has undertones of horror,” Palmer said. “It’s a mix of genres because it’s all things I like.”
He is currently working on a sequel, which begins at the former Loring Air Force Base. “As kids, we heard all these rumors about these underground tunnels. I thought it was great to get into that at the beginning of the book, a place seemingly abandoned, but under the surface there is all this science going on.”
The independent writer works in his spare time for Cornerstone Creative Studios of Florida, a veritable internet community of artists and writers that turns out a collection of serial comics and graphic novels.
“These people are just the most imaginative, funny and good-hearted people. It was very supportive,” he said. “You’re not limited by distance. It’s a virtual studio where members all over the US, and the world, can collaborate.”
After seeing a television show about the making and marketing of comics, Palmer got on the phone with Walt Flanagan, an artist and manager of “Jay and Silent Bob’s Secret Stash” comic book store in New Jersey. Flanagan referred him to a studio for which he freelanced for a period of time. He saw an ad for Cornerstone Creative and submitted a story.
“I had an opportunity to submit a short story for ‘Power Block’ (a CCS serial). Just to take that and run with it was my mission, and they liked it,” he said.
Now, he both writes and manages projects he is assigned, creating stories and working on backgrounds, collaborating with what he calls a “humongous” team of artists with “incredible talent.”
“Most people don’t know that it takes a writer, a penciler, an inker and colorist, and a letterer, and costs between $6,000 and $14,000 to make a professional comic book,” he explained. “I manage the titles that I work on, ‘Power Block’ and ‘Kur of the Nexus,’ make sure the story makes sense and help critique artwork.”
Palmer said though CCS has been around for some 20 years, they jumped into the comics market about a year ago, marrying story ideas with artists and vice-versa. “They are a talent and art agency,” he said. “If someone is a writer that needs an artist, they will put them together. They’ve been working on other people’s dreams to help them create.”
That creative process is what Palmer enjoys — and he hopes to inspire others to pursue their own creative goals, no matter whether the road is traditional or a bit more obscure.
“We want to make people aware that anybody can do this. If you have a passion and you have something to create and share, you can do it,” he said. “We want to make people aware of local creativity and using the Internet to create. A lot of independent creators are using these means to self-publish, not under the parameters of the big publishing houses.”
During his book signing at the Turner Library, Palmer will offer a special activity which he hopes will inspire some youngsters to follow their own creative dreams.
“We will be doing a coloring activity for children, with images professionally drawn and inked, so kids can show what they can do with color,” he said.
“There’s a message therein with that as well: 30 years ago, if you told your parents you wanted to be a comic book artist, they’d have told you to get a ‘real’ job,” Palmer said. “Nowadays, creativity and ownership of intellectual property is so easy to achieve. We want to encourage kids to take their creativity and run with it. You can make a decent living with this — and it’s fun.”
Palmer credits his family with supporting his creative endeavors. “My fiancee, Buffy, has been a big support. She has backed me up the whole way,” he said. He also has two boys, Jacob, 12, and Charlie, 7.
For anyone interested in taking their own ideas to a higher level, Palmer ended with this advice: “I think the biggest thing to do is to harness your own creativity and just do what you like. Don’t keep it to yourself. Get it out there. ”
