Billy Martin Talks Cover Art at New York Comic Con 2018

Описание: "Girls don't like boys, girls like cons and comic art." Or at least, that's how I think an updated version of Good Charlotte's song Girls & Boys should go. Why? Because guitarist Billy Martin is just as much an artist as he is a musician.

After making a name for himself in the early 2000s with Good Charlotte, Billy Martin delved into another one of his passions -- drawing. He even did artwork for the cover and liner notes of GC's 2004 album, THE CHRONICLES OF LIFE AND DEATH. So fans have always known that Martin had some serious skills with a pencil.

Now, Billy Martin's artwork is adorning the covers of some pretty awesome comic books. From TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES to X-MEN: GOLD to CABLE, he's had a lot of work available in comic shops.

He also makes a habit of doing conventions. As he told ComicsVerse at New York Comic Con 2018, he even made a makeshift tour for himself when the band wasn't active.

But how does a musician with a pretty large following go from playing on stage in front of a massive crowd to sitting in Artist Alley, face-to-face with fans? Billy Martin tells us that the transition for him wasn't actually that difficult. He loves getting to talk to fans in a more relaxed setting, which is why he does so many cons.

An Artist's Approach
During our chat, Martin explains his approach to cover art. He says that the pressure is on with covers. The sheer number that comes out each month is intimidating, and he tries to find a way to make his work stand out. This helps the book find its way into more readers' hands.

Aside from his cover work, Billy Martin likes doing commission pieces at cons. One of the characters he's asked to draw a lot is pretty personal to him -- Jack Skellington. I've always wondered if it's difficult for artists to draw characters that are close to their hearts.

To find out what Martin has to say about this, check out our conversation from NYCC 2018.