Episode 661 - Josh Neufeld

Comics journalist Josh Neufeld joins the show to talk about the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and the legacy of his fantastic graphic reporting of the lives upended by that catastrophe, A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge (Pantheon). We talk about his new 'zine followup, Beyond A.D., how the storm inspired him to become an emergency response volunteer and what he learned when he was stationed in Biloxi, what it was like to learn journalism and reporting on the fly and integrate those with his comics storytelling skills, and why his goal with A.D. was to make a people's history. We get into how he viewed the anniversary, whether he's gone back to New Orleans since reporting on it, and how he stayed connected with his subjects after the project and what it was like putting the anniversary 'zine together. We also discuss his comics upbringing, what it was like drawing for Harvey Pekar after years of American Splendor fandom, how constraints can lead to greater creativity, how neither of us have the lying gene necessary for fiction, his interest in graphic medicine and how that shapes his recent comics, the difference between journalism and nonfiction, a couple of my Small Press Expo anecdotes, how Michael Jordan's minor league baseball experience helps explain why comics people (usually) treat newbies well, and more. Follow Josh on Bluesky, Facebook and Instagram • More info at our site • Support The Virtual Memories Show via Stripe, Patreon, or Paypal, and subscribe to our e-newsletter