Colin Mulhern

I'm illustrating Buttercup Sunshine and the Deadly Undead Zombies of Dooooom! I'm very happy about this, but also a bit nervous. I had to pitch a load of doodles then rework Buttercup herself until I got something the editor thinks is heading in the right direction. The contract is still being finalised, so I can't say anything official just yet, but I have bought a new graphics tablet to illustrate directly onto my laptop. So just for fun, here's one of my early fine-liner sketches redrawn and coloured.

Originally, Buttercup Sunshine was just going to be a stand alone story in a series set in the same little town. I had an idea that something had happened to cause a degree of calamity to the town and thought it would be great to show that through different events. What I didn't expect was for Buttercup herself to become the star of the series. The publishing deal isn't signed as yet - contract negotiations take time, so while things got underway, I began thinking of what to write next. I had bounced a few ideas about, but they just didn't have the same edge. So, just for fun, I started a story with Buttercup walking back to town, having escaped from events that ended the first story. And the words began to flow. Around this time, Agent F asked if I had any ideas, or if possible, a detailed synopsis for a second book. Perfect timing - things were going well with Buttercup #2. A week later, I sent the full script. And then I sat waiting. Like I said, negotiating contra...