En Guard: Mouse Guard's David Petersen

This story originally appeared in PW Comics Week on March 6, 2007 Sign up now!

by Laura Hudson, PW Comics Week -- Publishers Weekly, 3/6/2007

In February 2006, Archaia Studios Press released an all-ages comic called Mouse Guard, about the medieval adventures of an order of noble but adorable mice. Published in an unusual square, 8"x8" format, Mouse Guard was a surprise hit, generating several reprints and selling between 10,000 and 18,000 copies per issue.

With a hardcover collection containing 20 new pages of material due out in April, and a line of Diamond Select toys and collectibles on the way, artist and writer David Petersen takes a look at the path that brought him here and the future of the comic that IGN.com named the best independent book of 2006.

PW Comics Week: You considered becoming an illustrator of children's books before you published Mouse Guard. What made you turn your attention to comics?

David Petersen: I had always wanted to do comics, but didn't think I could. I knew that a tremendous amount of work went into them and that they had to be produced on a very fast schedule. I also knew what I saw on the comic racks didn't look like my artwork. I could force myself to draw like the popular artists, but it was always an imitation of their work. I loved children's books as well, and thought that my work suited itself more to that arena. Both are about storytelling; one does it with lots of little pictures, and the other uses fewer pictures, but often larger ones.

I sent off a batch of submissions to book publishers and after getting no response, I began making a new portfolio of work. It was in this time that I set up at a local comic convention for fun. I showed off paintings, drawings, and pen and ink work of everything from superheroes and mythic fantasy to Mouse Guard. After the positive response at this convention, I began taking Mouse Guard from an idea in my head and making it into a published comic book.

PWCW: Who was your intended audience when you began working on Mouse Guard?

DP: Anyone who likes adventure. I didn't want to discriminate. I'm a fan of classic children's literature that doesn't talk down to children. The Lord of the Rings is an example of books that can be enjoyed by young and old. Archaia Studios Press, the publisher of Mouse Guard, recommends an audience of 10 or older. I have seen parents of children younger than that who enjoy the book and share it with their kids. I think that is an important step, for the parents to take a look at it and get involved to see if it's something their kids should be looking at. It's also a good opportunity for parents to help their kids, if there is a word or concept they don't understand. I never write or draw things that are overly gory or violent, and there are no adult themes or language in Mouse Guard, but it is certainly more than a children's comic.

PWCW: How did the sales compare to your expectations? Were you—and Archaia—surprised by the response to the book?

DP: I was very surprised. I knew it would do fairly well. I think our initial printing was 8,000, and I figured we could sell that amount. We did, but in only a week! I was floored. After the first issue was on its fourth printing, I think we understood how well-received Mouse Guard had become, and both Archaia and I were very happy.

PWCW: Are you planning to reach a wider audience with the first hardcover release? Where will it be available?

DP: The hardcover will be available both through comic stores and hopefully major booksellers. It is already available on Amazon.com as a preorder item. I know there are comic buyers who wait for the collected edition, so I know there will be people who have been waiting to get it. I also hope that new readers will find it as well. At conventions, men tell me that Mouse Guard is the only comic their wives or girlfriends read. I am very flattered by that. As the husband of a wife who was very reluctant to read comics, I know what a feat that can be. Hopefully we can get new readers who have never read a comic or haven't touched comics since they cost a dime.

PWCW: Will there be a softcover trade as well?

DP: Yes! We just announced that Villard, a division of Random House, will be publishing the softcover edition of Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 in February of next year.

PWCW: What are your thoughts on Michael Oeming's upcoming Mice Templar, a fantasy series about sword-wielding mice on an epic journey?

DP: I first saw Mike's Templar work when Mouse Guard #1 had been solicited in Diamond Previews. To be honest, I was pretty upset. I was worried that his project, along with his more notable name in the comics arena, would end up being the death of Mouse Guard. It was a realistic fear, because it was well done. However, Mike and the writer of Mice Templar, Brian Glass, and I have corresponded by e-mail and wish each other nothing but continued success.

PWCW: What's next for Mouse Guard? Is there another miniseries on the way?

DP: The next miniseries, Winter 1152, will be starting in July and running bimonthly for six issues. It will pick up right where the first series ended.

PWCW: In the first miniseries, you wrote, penciled, inked and colored all your own work. Do you plan to delegate any of those roles in the future?

DP: No. I like wearing all the different hats. Each one of the jobs on the book comes with its own set of enjoyably challenging parts and tough burdens. I don't know if I would get the same satisfaction if my hand weren't in every bit of it.

PWCW: Mouse Guard was published in a very unusual format: 8"x8" square. Do you think the atypical size had any impact on sales? Will you be using those dimensions again?

DP: At first I was worried the size was going to hurt sales. In some stores the books were too short to be seen on the racks because the comic in front of it on the lower shelf was taller than Mouse Guard. There were also the comic buyers who wanted to put the book in a vinyl bag with a cardboard backing, and Mouse Guard didn't fit the standard bag. So while it was unique and people liked its look, I think it had its drawbacks as well.

Future Mouse Guard series will have the 8" x 8" format. I really like what it does to horizontal panels. In a traditionally sized book, the horizontal panels are so thin and they lose their impact on the page. I like panoramic images and found the square orientation gave me the space to leave an impact.

PWCW: There is currently a line of toys and collectibles on the way from Diamond Select Toys. Do you have any other merchandising plans in the works?

DP: I am very happy with the sculptures and plushies that Diamond Select Toys has come up with. They have done a phenomenal job. I have a few other plans cooking where we are in the initial stages of talking to people about things like board games and role-playing games.

PWCW: How long would you like to continue Mouse Guard, as a series?

DP: Right now I have the story lines for three additional arcs after Winter 1152. I plan on continuing Mouse Guard as long as I'm happy with the ideas I have for it and people enjoy those ideas as well.

PWCW: Could you envision your stories moving to other media, such as animated films?

DP: Sure! I would really enjoy seeing a Mouse Guard animated feature film. I would want it to retain the style of storytelling and not become a children's movie with potty humor and sing-along songs. We have had some interest from Hollywood, and we are in the process now of looking further into that area for Mouse Guard.

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