Tag Archives: Top Shelf 2.0

Caryn A. Tate on Red Plains Going Digital

Red Plains: Ranger War: Chapter 1 Avail. for free download

Back in 2009 I interviewed writer Caryn A. Tate about her webcomic, Red Plains. More recently she has decided to go the digital route with the Red Plains property. She was kind enough to recently do an email interview on the recent creative and logistical decisions she’s made regarding the series. My thanks for her time. Here is how the site is described: “Red Plains is more than a simple ‘shoot-em-up’. Influenced by film noir, the classic pulps, true crime, and, most importantly, the authentic Western lifestyle and history as lived and researched by its author, Red Plains is the real deal.”

Tim O’Shea: What was the final benefit to you that spurred your decision to explore digital distribution as an avenue for Red Plains?

Caryn A. Tate: The main reason I decided to go digital with Red Plains is simple. I love the book and I love its readers, and releasing Red Plains in a wide-spread, easy to access format like this was the best way to get these stories into people’s hands where they can read and enjoy it. The print publishing environment is filled with obstacles to independent work and the market just isn’t a healthy one right now for new titles or creators. I wanted to be sure that fans of the book can continue to read it no matter what device they prefer, and that we can attract new readers to it by offering it at an attractive price. Like, say, free for the first issue of each storyline!

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Caryn A. Tate on Red Plains

Caryn A. Tate's Red Plains
Caryn A. Tate's Red Plains

Since I joined Robot 6 earlier this year, my webcomics and overall sequential art interviews have run there, for the most part, rather than here. But given that Red Plains writer Caryn A. Tate was already interviewed by fellow great Robot Sixer Brigid Alverson recently (go read it, it’s a great interview [thanks to Alverson’s questions and Tate’s answers] as is this one [again, thanks to Tate’s answers]), I opted to give Tate a slot here at my home site to discuss her work at Top Shelf 2.0, Top Shelf’s online comics program. I’m always happy to support a Top Shelf creator, partially as I often say, because I consider the publisher to be my home team (both the publisher and myself are Georgia-based). As detailed in a recent Top Shelf press release: “Written by Red Plains series creator Caryn A. Tate and featuring beautifully and brutally rendered art by Larry Watts, ‘A Nice Place to Raise Your Kids Up’ focuses on the violence, corruption, and crime of the Old West that is seldom deeply explored. While other towns may have tried it, can guns really be outlawed in a place like Red Plains? Sheriff Doles, the recently appointed lawman in Red Plains, may find himself out of a job-if he doesn’t lose his life first. As a new family comes to Red Plains, meet the Escovido clan and find out what role to they have to play in all of this. Who will vie for the favor of the vivacious Lupe, and who will be scarred in the attempt? How many people will be calling on Doc DeGraff-and how many more on the undertaker?” My thanks to Tate for her time. Be sure to go back and visit Top Shelf 2.0 site frequently, as there will be new Red Plains chapters every two weeks.

Tim O’Shea: What attracts you to telling this tale in particular-why as a comic, as opposed to prose?

Caryn A. Tate: The tale of Red Plains is one that’s really dear to me. I grew up and lived in the West on working ranches and farms, being around Western people, and there’s a distinct beauty to the land, its lifestyles, its people. I’ve been passionate about telling our stories for a long time, and Red Plains is the culmination of all of that.

I love comics, and one of the reasons I think the medium is so satisfying as a creator is because the final result manifests faster than prose work. And I’m a very visual writer – I have a visual art background - so I tend to see things very clearly and I have a desire to see that on the page. But, that said, I do love prose too, so who knows?

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