INTERVIEW: 73-year-old former boxer looks back at his life in ‘Night at the Belfry’
Image courtesy of Comixology / Provided with permission.
Writer and illustrator Xavier Saxon has crafted a unique story for his debut graphic novel, Night at the Belfry. The Comixlogy Originals publication, which was released in October, follows James Ransom, a 73-year-old former boxer who has become increasingly frustrated by old age, according to press notes. Taking up his mental time are memories from the early 1980s when he was a recreational boxer, and he decides to continue down this rabbit hole of nostalgia after he reconnects with a former trainer. What transpires is a life-affirming, emotional journey.
Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Saxon about Night at the Belfry. He lives in Canada, according to his biography, with his partner and a family of rats in his floor (an update on the rats is below). Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
How did the idea for Night at the Belfry come to you?
I’ve heard a lot of writers talk about how they get ideas all the time, every day, and it’s all about sorting through them and finding the right one to develop. But I’ve never really had that experience. It tends to be pretty obvious to me when I’ve found a good idea to develop because it’s usually the only idea I have, so I’ve got to make it work.
For Night at the Belfry, the idea was an image of a boxing match occurring in the church bell-tower across the street from my apartment. I thought it was a striking image, and it had a weirdness that I liked. At that point I decided to come up with a character to place in this scene, and I drew some quick sketches of James. Everything else really came while I was writing the script. Before then I didn’t have much of an idea of how the story would go, and I wasn’t all too worried about themes or anything like that.
I don’t personally place much importance on having a complex or unique initial idea for a story because I don’t think it tends to matter that much in the end. Some stories have ideas that sound pretty generic or uninteresting when you first hear them, but then when you read the finished product it ends up being really good. For me, it’s all about finding an image or mood that I like enough to keep me engaged in the creative process.
How would you describe James Ransom as a character?
I think James could be described as a nostalgist. He’s someone who is so preoccupied with the past that he’s unable to appreciate the present. He’s elevated the past into something that it never was and now misses a moment in time that he’s largely invented. I think that’s definitely a part of myself that I’ve put into the character. I love playing old video games and watching old movies that I liked when I was younger. But the thing is, they’ll never be quite as good as you remember them because they were never that good in the first place. That’s sort of the realization that James is going through in this story, and his struggle to hold onto something that was never real is a major driver for his actions.
What do you think the graphic novel says about age and growing older?
I’m not entirely sure. I don’t think I personally have a lot to say about that yet, just a lot of questions. Getting older is something that feels so abstract for the first 20 or so years of your life, but then you start to really notice it. People you’ve known your whole life who have always seemed like they stayed the same age start to get noticeably older. That can be pretty jarring and can instill some panic and sadness. I guess this book kind of asks what would happen if you kept those feelings with you, and let them lead you to the worst places. If this book has anything concrete to say about aging, I guess it’s just acceptance. You need to make the best of it, and you shouldn’t tie your self-worth to something that you know will go away.
Overall, what was your first graphic novel experience like? Would you do it again?
I certainly hope to! My first experience was great. I really could not have asked for a better company or editor to work with. The amount of freedom Comixology gave me was astounding given that I still hadn’t proven myself as a creator. Once they accepted the project, they basically just said, “OK, now go do it!” and left me and editor Allison O’Toole to make the book. I think there was a deadline, but they let me decide how much time I wanted to give myself and gave me an advance to cover all that time so I wouldn’t have to work another job. There are so many different genres and formats I want to try, so hopefully I will have more chances to make those books in the future.
Do you have more freedom as both the writer and illustrator?
Definitely! But it’s a lot more work as well, and it gets a bit lonely not having the same level of collaboration that exists in a writer/artist partnership. The only reason I started wanting to write comics as well as draw them is just so I had something to draw. In the early stages of a comic career it can be difficult to find a collaborator that is on the same wavelength as you, since most people at that point have vastly different situations when it comes to stuff like day-jobs and free time. So it’s easier to just do it all yourself. Also that way if you decide to give up on a project or change directions, you know you aren’t letting anybody down. At this point, however, I would definitely be open to more collaboration, whether that be with a writer or an artist, I really just want to try all different ways of making comics to see what I like best.
Do you really have a family of rats in the floor?
I don’t anymore, as I have moved since writing that bio. But, yes, at my old apartment there were some rats living in the floors and walls. I saw one on only two occasions. It was about the size of a sweet potato, but I heard them constantly. Often I would wake up in the middle of the night to the sounds of thrashing and squealing in the wall just behind my head, so they must have gotten in a lot of fights with each other. I’m happy to have no more rats living in my current apartment, but I wish them the best.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Night at the Belfry, written and illustrated by Xavier Saxon, is now available from Comixology Originals. Click here for more information.
