FF / GINA: We are talking with GC Houle who has just finished their hugely popular Shakespearean comic series, Starcross’d, here at Filthy Figments! The series clocks in at just over 400 pages, so first off congrats on this epic achievement! How does it feel to have finished this project?
GC HOULE: Thank you, it still feels surreal! Starcross’d has been such a big part of my life for several years now, adjusting to its absence will be odd… This is my first time completing such a large scale project, so I’m not sure what to expect. But I do feel a great sense of satisfaction – I set out to do something challenging, and saw it through to the end. I’m proud!
FF: Can you tell us a little bit about the inspiration behind creating Starcross’d.
GC HOULE: I really like rom-coms and romantic dramas, and a favourite of mine is Shakespeare in Love. Long time readers will also know that I usually write historical fiction, and the Medieval era has been my current point of interest. Anyway, I thought an Elizabethan era could be fun for a short story! When my editor suggested I try my hand at something more long form, spinning out themes of gender and performativity from the theatre setting just came very naturally.
I did study some Shakespeare in my ESL classes, and while I don’t understand the language well, I always thought it was very cool that his writings were so bawdy and popular and subversive, yet came to be considered high art.
FF: Can you describe your drawing routine: how often you draw, how many hours per day, how you break up the day with drawing?
GC HOULE: I wish I could say that I’m very disciplined and study all the time, but truthfully just making sure I don’t get burned out is my number one priority! That means taking plenty of breaks, and doing stuff that has nothing to do with art – exercise, spending time with family, pursuing other hobbies. With that in mind, I usually draw later in the day, after I’ve done other activities.
I do draw almost every day, because it’s my full time job. Some days are devoted to doing research or preparatory work though. I also do lots of different kinds of illustration work, which helps break things up. When I draw, I like to concentrate for long stretches – I’m impatient, so I don’t like to ‘peck’ at a piece over several days or weeks. I think that’s a bad habit though!
FF: How much revision/editing do you do in your work?
GC HOULE: I find a lot of my editing happens simply through the process of creating a page. I usually start with a very rough script for an entire scene, then I break that up into pages and refine it as I go. Things shift and crystallize as I do thumbnails, and even as I’m writing speech bubbles. After completing a few pages, I often go back and revise the script to make sure it gels with any changes I’ve made, or to add in new ideas. This is a very ‘serialized story’ way to approach things, I would say.
FF: What was your favorite part about creating this series?
GC HOULE: Sharing my work with others is always my favourite part – after all, why make stories if not to get them out of your head and into someone else’s? I can’t get enough of seeing people react to story beats and speculate about what will happen next. There was certainly enough drama in Starcross’d to keep people guessing!
FF: What was your goal in creating Starcross’d and for the characters? Do you feel that you achieved that through the course of the series?
GC HOULE: I think I set out to write a typical romance story with unusual protagonists, in both appearance and character. The main characters being fat and desirable was a very deliberate choice. Leo and Oliver were respective attempts at subverting how Black men and trans men are sometimes designed.
Each character was meant to struggle with their ‘role’. Hugh and Leo initially seem like straightforward male protagonists, but neither is comfortable in that. Oliver is kind of a swashbuckling rogue, but he doesn’t look the part and he’s more sensitive than he thinks he should be.
Elinor is your heroine, and was particularly important for me to get just right. I wanted her to feel like someone who was falling in love, but still had a personality and concerns outside of Oliver. I also wanted her to be smart and capable, without eschewing her femininity. It really bothers me when women are stripped of their femininity in stories to convey competence.
Whether I achieved any of that is up to the readers!
FF: Can you pick out one part that you found especially interesting or profound?
GC HOULE: Leo’s epiphany on the wedding night will always be a special scene to me, it’s very similar to my own early gender experience. I was initially unsure about their arc, but I’m glad that their denial and questioning provides contrast to Cecily and Oliver’s self-certainty. It’s frustrating when queer narratives feel prescriptive or pat – open ended and unsure is okay, it’s how many of us feel a lot of the time!
FF: Who in the series would you like to meet? What would you ask or say?
GC HOULE: Maybe an unexpected answer, but I’d love to meet Giles. He’s kind of our Shakespeare stand-in, and I’d love to know what it was really like to be a playwright back then! I’d also be really curious to know more about the lives of Black Elizabethans firsthand.
FF: If you were a character in this story, what would your role be?
GC HOULE: No one special, I try to stay out of people’s drama! Maybe the maid who’s always running around delivering secret notes.
FF: It has been an absolute pleasure and honor to watch Starcross’d develop over the years. Thank you for sharing this tale with Filthy Figments. Your characters touched the hearts of our readers and I’m sure many are wondering what you will do next. Can you give us a glimpse of what might be down the road for your work with Filthy Figments?
GC HOULE: I’ve learned immensely from working on Starcross’d, and I’m excited to put that experience to use in new ways. I’m going to catch my breath and concentrate on shorter stories for a bit. I’m actually working on a rare modern day piece right now, though it has a fun twist. I have no doubt I’ll eventually return to long form down the line, I just love the opportunities for character exploration it affords.
Oh, and I’ve heard the calls for a printed version of Starcross’d – getting that ready is certainly in the cards!
