A Monstrous Case of the "Munchies" from Katie Longua

A year ago, cartoonist Katie Longua --- best known for her ongoing Viking comic Rök --- started making a gag comic, mainly for herself, called Munchies. It's fairly simple to start with: it follows a girl who gets high one afternoon, then gets hungry, and then.... gets into universe-endangering trouble as she turns into a giant wolf monster who can only be stopped through the judicious application of pizza rolls and/or Cheetos.

Vivid, vibrant and very funny, Longua's comic has now come to Kickstarter as she looks to fund a print run of the story. As huge fans of her work as a writer and as an artist --- take a look at her coloring in the preview pages below --- ComicsAlliance got in touch to find out more about her plans for Munchies as part of our regular crowdfunding Q&A, 'Back Pages'.

ComicsAlliance: What’s the basic premise of Munchies?

Katie Longua: Munchies has a pretty simple premise: it's the story of a girl with the most insatiable case of the munchies ever. It doesn't sound like a problem that could lead to much more than a tummy ache, but the magnitude of these munchies is quite shocking! No snack, no city, no galaxy is safe!

CA: How long have you wanted to get this comic up and running?

KL: I started thinking about Munchies almost exactly a year ago. Back then it was just a silly idea I tinkered with in my free time. Since it wasn't anything serious, I kept challenging myself to draw tough things I'd usually avoid, like a crazy detailed convenience store for instance. I added a page here and there until, suddenly, I realized I was making a full comic!

CA: What was it about this story which made you want to tell it?

KL: I wanted to make something way over the top and fun! I usually simplify my style for comics to save time, but in this case I really let myself go wild. Before Munchies, I completed four issues of my ongoing series, Rök, so it was really cathartic to work on something of vastly different scope and theme. Since it started just as a joke, I was thinking more about what I wanted to draw and less about what others would think about it. In the end this turned out to be much more fun for me, and I think it made Munchies some of my best work so far.

CA: Why take your story to Kickstarter? What led you to launch Munchies?

KL: I'm kind of a shy and reserved person, which can be tough when you're trying to get your work out there. Last year I made a resolution to reach out and interact with the comic book community more. This directly lead to working on two other currently running Kickstarters: Chainmail Bikini and Draw 'Em With the Pointy End. The amazing sense of community I felt working on these books really gave me the courage to go out on my own with Munchies.

I didn't exactly mean for all these projects to be running at once, but I felt like I needed to go for it while I was feeling brave! I've only been able to afford printing 100 comics at a time, so Kickstarter gives me the amazing opportunity to print five times that and reach so many more people!

CA: What stage are you at with the project? How much have you already completed and what can your backers expect, should you reach your target?

KL: The original 16-page story for Munchies was finished in October of last year. I did a print run of 100 to test out a new printing method, and was really pleased with the results! For the Kickstarter I wanted to add some extra goodies, so I'm working on an 8-page prequel to go along with it. I have a basic outline of the story, but I'm hoping to make one crazy, amazing, and generous backer an integral part of the comic, so I haven't finalized anything yet.

I like the idea of involving that person somewhat in the creation process; it sounds like a fun way to build a story. One of my favorite comic book people, Corey Lewis, is still working on the new cover too! I'm really excited for the final art!

CA: Should you achieve your goal, what's your estimated delivery on the final comic?

KL: Munchies has an estimated delivery date of September 2015. Hopefully I can make it even sooner, but I added a generous amount of wiggle room just in case any problems occur along the way. The thing that worries me most about running a Kickstarter is delivering on time, so I want to do everything in my power to make sure that happens!

Munchies is running on Kickstarter until April 18 2015, and is looking to reach a goal of $4500. You can find more of Katie's work here!