Seth A. Romo
The genre of superheroes has always been about dual identities. As readers we cheer and root and support characters who balance two different lives. Why? Because it’s a struggle that is admirable and it creates stories worth exploring.
For many comic book fans, publishing companies like DC or Marvel are household names. After all, Batman and Spider-Man are almost universally recognized. Comics can inspire as word and art transport readers and it’s the wonder of the medium that has made it last for more than 100 years.
For Leonce Hall III, Lee Johnson, and Lynnesha Hamilton, dual identities and comic book storytelling aren’t just part of their fandom, it’s part of who they are. A teacher (Leonce), a designer (Lee), and an Outreach Specialist (Lynnesha), joined forces and created 50Fifty Comix in 2020 and ever since, they have helped diverse voices share stories and created their own universe.
50Fifty Comix is a Comic Book publishing company that produces indie comic books and has emerging comic book artists and comic book writers.
Recently, they took time for an interview with Comic Watch to talk about their inspiration and what they hope (and I suspect will achieve) for their future goals. (This interview was edited for clarity.)
On the Creation and Voice of 50Fifty Comix
Seth A. Romo: [On the creation and running of 50Fifty Comix] What motivated you all to start your own comic book publishing company?
Lee: Comics have been part of my entire life. We’re all interested in comics and we have started this path and journey to introduce the world and characters we’ve created.
Leonce: I ended up finding my half-brother (Lee) about four years ago, and after we realized his gift for art and my inclination to write, we decided to do something with it.
Lynnesha: I met Lee in college and then met Leonce later on. My love for comics started with the Sunday funnies and combined with my interest in theater, comics, and art, it came full circle to bring it all when we started 50Fifty Comix.
Can you walk through what voice 50Fifty Comix brings to this medium and what stories are paramount to it?
Lynnesha: We pride ourselves on diversity and the inclusion of characters we didn’t see much of growing up. Everybody comes with their dream and their voice and we ensure they keep that in addition to getting training on making their own comic.
We’ve released six issues that have all been written and voiced from a different person’s perspective. One character named “Trapper” has similar experience to Leonce who experienced a drive-by shooting, while “Hurricane Ida,” focuses on values of being Japanese American and protecting one’s family.
These are just a few examples of stories we release that are culturally and politically sensitive. They’re powerful topics but also put in a way where young readers (who may not fully grasp what is going on), can be presented with the themes and learn something.
We try to be realistic with what’s going on with the world and topics of social media, gun violence, drugs, and body image.
The founders of 50Fifty Comix have incorporated creators from different parts of the world and it’s part of the new and fresh storytelling they share with readers. The company may have begun with three founding members, but talent has grown in both the writing and artistic departments. Creators are in Texas, Cleveland, Louisiana, Canada, and even South America. Through social media and virtual calls, the 50Fifty Comix founders were able to bring in talent and kick off creating comics for the company all while in the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
There’s the storytelling side of your company, and then there is the business side with getting writers and artists to share their visions. What’s that process like?
Lee: We wear dual hats. Leonce brought the writing, I brought the art, but Lynnesha brought her entrepreneurial side and her ability to get things done. We may be newer creators at the moment, but we’ve put energy into what we’ve created.
For the creators we have brought in, sometimes I’m the artist for a comic, or an editor for other works that are being submitted.
Lynnesha: We currently have 12 creatives and with that means we have to be efficient. Yes, we are a publishing company, but want our creators to have a space where they can feel safe and work on their vision.
I also come from the point of women when it comes to voices in comics. There’s not too many of us in this operating level of an organization, so from that aspect of bringing that voice to whatever we do I try and make sure that there’s a gentler side that we get to see the human side of comics.
Lee: We have agents all over the country and through our sales from Amazon or Comic Cons we’ve been able to pay our creators. It may not be much–but we actually pay people.
Lynnesha: We don’t take paychecks ourselves but we put the effort in to make sure that contributors get paid when we can and always make sure their name is on the front cover. We believe in doing what we can to make a difference one voice at a time.
50Fifty Comix’ process to bring in new talent includes a full application process with writing or art samples and a pitch on what the voice is for the creator. This publishing company is all about new ideas and their model allows creators to bring something new to the world of comics—a big endeavor for the team.
So publishing and working full-time jobs. How do you all make it work?
Lee: I was in the army for 14 years and now I work as an apparel brand designer, I coach full time and have kids. But I love storytelling so much and communicating with people. 50Fifty Comix has always been a dream to me.
Leonce: I’ve never felt so alive and I truly love being able to work on this brand and with this team. I’m a teacher, so my time is limited during the school year, but even on busy days where I am worn out, I review a script or piece of art and it brings me back.
Lynnesha: I’m an outreach specialist in Ohio for a local nonprofit, but I am also a mom of three boys, and the local PTA president for my school district. But what keeps me going is seeing how the faces of creators light up because their books are printed. [Through 50Fifty Comix] Creators don’t have to try to go through a large company or worry they missed their shot to tell a story. I love how this company gives the underdogs a win.
50Fifty Comix sells their comics on Amazon digitally or on demand shipping. Recently, they stocked their products into their first brick and mortar comic book shop located in Houston, Texas. Gulf Coast Cosmos, the first black owned comic book store in Houston, now keeps issues of 50Fifty Comix on its shelves for readers to check out.
In addition to getting individual stories published, the characters are part of a larger world building process for the company that has taken inspiration from DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Captain Planet, and Avatar the Last Airbender. Their comic “Genesis” revolves around earth, wind, fire, and water and pose the question: What if mankind had access to those elements as powers and what would the world look like?
Their current saga revolves around elementals in giant face off. It’s a unique approach—giving an explosive entrance at the beginning and telling smaller stories on the back end—but it’s been a successful move by the company. They have a host of characters such as Moses Black (the tech billionaire), Trapper (the blue collar every man), and Mars (the newer hero to the world of vigilantism).
Leonce: I remember reading Stan Lee discussing how as a writer he enjoyed putting his heroes in a corner where the odds seem impossible and then combing over his plot to find a way out. I personally utilize that strategy in my writing and it has made for a fun creative process.
Lee: We mixed all of these elements together [such as Stan Lee’s writing and elemental stories] and we are building our world that is also—in a way—a love letter to properties like Captain Planet.
Lynnesha: Readers get tossed into a world of superhero vigilantes with a giant fight to restore humanity.
Leonce: In the age we live in, we felt a story about reclaiming humanity, community, and harmony are important.
Now that the 50Fifty Comix has more than 6 comics published under their company, the founders are already thinking about the future possibilities for the world they’re creating.
Three years from now, how do you all want 50Fifty Comix to look?
Lynnesha: We love the writing platform but we recognize that words and art on pages can see times only go so far—especially in today’s environment. In the future we are thinking of animation or Audible stories to bring our story to a different medium. I can see that happening in the next few years, especially since we already have artists who dabble in animation.
Lee: The idea of 50Fifty Comix three years ago was just a possibility and look where we are today. I would love to open an actual film studio for animation or even live action versions of our stories.
The creators of 50Fifty Comix are true fans of comics and different types of storytelling. Collectively they’re fans of writers such as Neil Gaiman and Agatha Christie; and their inspiration for stories include science fiction properties such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Trek, and Lord of the Rings. It’s helped shape the world they’ve built and they have no indication of stopping any time soon.
Lynnesha: I love to meet people and ask: If you could have one elemental power, what would it be? It starts a deep conversation and before you know it, people are resonating with our stories and checking them out.
Comics are all about imagination and companies like 50Fifty Comix are doing their share to expand what currently exists and give opportunity to what could be. Below are the issues they have released so far. For more details on the company, be sure to visit their site at www.50fiftycomix.com.
The Natura 1: A disturbing presence on a West Coast beach brings four unlikely warriors together to face it.
The Natura 2: The story of how our universe came to exist, what power fuels our team, and what forces are working against them.
Lykos 0: A warlord on a distant continent comes face-to-face with a living weapon that has come to disrupt his nefarious plans.
Silas 1: A carefree surfer stumbles onto an extraordinary ability, and the unlikely friend tasked with teaching him how to use his new power.
Trapper 1: A single dad finds himself and his daughter in the middle of a gang war, even as the gangs battle within themselves.
Trapper 2: Gangland beef reaches a working man’s doorstep, and a top gangster finds out who’s really in charge.
Hurricane 1: A college student goes to enjoy a day with her family, but finds a fearsome threat from the ocean.
