Image Credit: CFJC Today
LIFE: THE NECROPOLIS

Kamloops comic book artist releases second issue of self-published series

Apr 23, 2024 | 6:30 PM

KAMLOOPS — Almost a year after his debut offering dropped, local comic book artist Nick Klie released a follow-up book in his Life: The Necropolis series.

“This is another adventure for a character I created called Life,” Klie tells CFJC Today. “He’s a wandering mercenary; it’s a science-fiction story. And it’s a new story. It’s kind of like Indiana Jones, where you can follow the new adventures of the character.”

A lifelong comic book fan, Klie also manages High Octane Comics and Collectibles. Inspired by the fantasy and sci-fi offerings he grew up on, Klie says he drew on his favourite artists and writers to help him craft the world Life traverses through in the pages of this newest book.

“This is a story about a gang of losers who take on an evil necromancer on a planet,” Klie explains. “There’s a bunch of mutant warriors, robot horses, silly things like that because I love old science fiction comics and movies like Wizards and Heavy Metal that is just weird stuff. I wanted to write a comic that was like those old movies I used to watch as a kid.”

Most comics published by major producers have a team of people working on them, ensuring every detail gets noticed. As an indie comic book artist, all that work falls on Klie’s shoulders.

“I write the comic, I draw it, I ink it,” Klie says. “I colour it, I edit, I have to produce it, I have to finish the pages, I have to go talk to the printer. I’ve got to do everything myself. It’s a lot of work, so it’s much slower paced.”

However, once that final product comes back from the printer and is displayed for the whole world, all that hard work is worth it.

Image Credit: CFJC Today

“I’ve had people offer me help, and I’m really grateful for that offer, but it’s personal. I want to do it all myself. Maybe that’s just being controlling, but I don’t know. It’s my love letter to comics, I guess.”

And while it might be the first love letter to feature exploding heads…

“You’ve got to have an exploding head in there,” Klie says

It’s a labour of love for this local artist.