Interview- Sally of the Wasteland's Victor Gischler

Sally of the Wasteland #1, written by Victor Gischler, was released this week by Titan Comics. The series follows the sassy, silver-tongued Sally and the crew of the Mississippi Duchess on their quest to make it to New Orleans in order to save "Civilization itself." The debut issue gives readers a glimpse of just what's in store for this rag tag group: River Pirates, Mutant Cannibals, and the mysterious Strangers! It's a great set up by Gischler that will leave you wanting to know what happens next. We got to ask Gischler a few questions about his career and what readers can expect going forward.

Geek Hash: You are known for writing both novels and comics. How did you break into the comics industry?

Victor Gischler: My agent happens to handle some other comic book writers (Greg Rucka for example) so he has good industry contacts and got some of my work in front of Axel Alonso. This led to my scripting a Punisher Max one-shot. That was my first ever bit of comic book writing.

GH: Where did the inspiration for Sally of the Wasteland come from?

VG: I wrote a novel called Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse and wanted to do something again in the post-apocalypse vein.  I wanted it to be very B-movie and over the top.  I wanted violence but also irreverent humor.

GH: The first issue sets up the series perfectly. The world you've created, filled with pirates, Crawgators, and a whip-smart lead is very intriguing. Will we be seeing some back story on the event that created this post-apocalyptic world?

VG: You are actually the 3rd person to ask me that which I sort of did not predict.  Ha Ha.  I mean, yes, there will be hints, but really the focus is on the characters and what they are doing in the moment.  They live in a post-apocalyptic world, but how it got that way is not really so important.  Just picture your basic atomic holocaust and you're all set.

GH: What do you enjoy more, creating new characters and worlds like that of Sally and Clown Fatale or taking existing characters like The X-Men and The Punisher and putting your stamp on them?

VG: It's a bit like apples and oranges.  There is a big thrill to writing the characters you read as a kid.  How cool is that?!   But as a person that likes to create and invent, I think ultimately I'd pick creating my own characters if forced to just choose one.

GH: Do you have a character that you'd love to write?

VG: Dr. Strange would be awesome.  And I always wanted to do my own take on Challengers of the Unknown.