Jetta was the first female character he ever drew.
He said that professors like Calvin Foster encouraged him andpushed him in a direction. The encouragement he received is thereason he finished his comic book that last semester. He rememberedFoster saying, " You got to make the comic book."
Comic books aren't just for kids if you ask University ofMemphis alumnus Martheus Wade.
Wade, a self-published comic book creator, illustrator andwriter, recently released "Jetta: Tales of Toshigawa: LastChances".
Wade completed his first comic book in his last semester at TheU of M where he graduated with a graphic arts degree in 1998.
Because Wade self-published the comic he had to find inexpensiveways package is work for mass sale.
"I printed the original pages myself and glued them toblackboard," Wade said. "We used shoestring to bind the copiestogether, it took forever"
Wade's graphic arts degree allowed him to do all the artwork andtext himself.
The comics were originally produced in black and white due tocost, Wade said. Hand coloring each comic would prove to be tootime consuming to release the comics in a reasonable time.
Although the comics are self-published, Wade takes all of hiswork to a printer to avoid having to deal with the glue andshoestring.
The comic book's action mainly deals with martial arts. Althoughthe story's concept dates back to the mid-80s, Wade said, his comicis about a future Japan torn by war and separated from the outsideworld.
Originally, Wade created short 25-page stories. Now, the comicshe produces are longer self-contained stories approximately 80pages in length. The longer length gives the book a much longershelf life in stores, Wade said.
In addition to Wade's design classes, his love of comics hasalso played a huge role in his motivation in getting the bookpublished.
Wade has a second-degree Black Belt in Shotokan karate, and saidhis martial arts background can be applied to his comic bookwriting.
Wade's comic combines American and Japanese cultures, and theanime style of animation. The characters in "Jetta," like the bustyscantily clad heroine, are created for mature audiences.
Wade said self-publishing is not hard. When he got his start,the hardest thing was to "suck it up and lose money." Like any newbusiness, Wade said, the important thing is to stick it out.
"You can't give up if you want to succeed," Wade said. "I'mdoing a lot better with this one because I stuck with it."
Memphis comic book store Comics and Collectibles sells Wadescomic books along with the other more widely known titles.
"I give him credit for publishing himself and sticking with it,"said Ron Crum, store owner.
"Jetta" is much like a family business, Wade said, adding hiswife Janet is a co-writer and helps with the editing.
Wade works at Redmond Design Services as a graphic designer. Healso does freelance graphics work, when he's not involved withJetta that is. Wade also teaches comic book illustration to inmatesat the federal prison in Millington.
Wade also attributes much of his success to his parents.
"My mom used to draw and my dad used to paint - I guess that'show I got into this."
