Exclusive Interview: Chad Dahlstrom (Comic: Anna Byrne)

Exclusive Interview:  Chad Dahlstrom (Comic: Anna Byrne)

What can you tell us about the story of Anna Bryne?

Anna Byrne has a connection to the world of the dead. This is something she is learning about and in future comics we will explore where that came from and how it has changed her. In our first issue she gets the first hint that something supernatural is not just in the world around her but also within her.

How did you come up with this story?

It was a collaboration with Mary Farstrom. We wanted to find some twists on the supernatural investigator genre. With Anna we have started working in modern technology ideas like the Dark Web, an unsuspecting character who is thrown into the world of the supernatural and explore having a female lead as the hero in this story.

Who is responsible for the amazing artwork in Anna Bryne?

Fleip Kroll is the artist. We have been working with him on Puzzle Box Horror content for over a year now. He does more than just art though. We collaborate on the storyline and content. He’s based out of Brazil and he is a dream to work with. We have several more pieces coming this year from him. We are even doing exclusive T-Shirts with him that will be available at our store on Horror Hub Marketplace.

How does Anna Bryne stand out among other horror comics?

Anna is a dark mysterious comic. It’s very well rooted in the supernatural genre and hopefully has a lead character that you will be rooting for as she progresses through the mystery. Our goal is to satisfy both mystery and horror lovers. We’ll see how we do over the next few issues. As far as other comics go I hope we have something unique and fascinating here. There are so many great comics out there we hope to find our place in the cross genre space we are shooting for.

Tell me three horror comics that inspire your creativity?

Revival is one of my favorites. It’s a unique twist on the Zombie genre. I think Locke and Key is brilliant. You have all sorts of supernatural elements and a great mystery underneath it all. I love the family history aspects and the art. Finally Wytches is fantastically dark. Again in the supernatural genre but this comic is beautiful and haunting.

Why Horror Hub Marketplace?

First off because f#$%k Amazon. That company does not care about artists, vendors or horror. Last time I sold something there I think they took like 20% of the sale and you spend so much time just trying to get a review etc.. Horror Hub is a horror only marketplace. It’s not a corporate giant and the business cares about the horror community. The fees are half that of Amazon and the platform gives me what I need and promotes my work. So for me it’s part principal and part just finding a better place to sell my horror creations.

What can readers find on your website, Puzzle Box Horror?

Puzzle Box Horror is all about supernatural horror and lore. We do a lot of articles on Urban Legends and the roots of horror. We’ve got a bunch of great writers who cover supernatural horror movies, books and dig up some pretty awesome urban legends. We’re working on an urban legend book right now with Felipe doing art. It’s been a ton of fun to work on and share with the horror community.

What was the best decade for horror? Why?

It’s right now! The ability to create and publish is easier than ever so we are getting so much more horror. I am obviously a fan of supernatural horror and that is definitely trending these days. The community is stronger than ever and more connected than ever from the Slasher App to Horror Hub Marketplace even. You would not guess it but the horror community are the nicest people you ever met even though they spend their time in the Macabre. It’s a very exciting time to be in horror creation.

What can we look forward to in Anna Bryne Issue #2?

Anna is heading North with more questions than answers. She is about to learn more about why she is drawn to these haunted places and who her convenient friend really is. We’re going to start tying together the first pieces of the mystery that is Anna.

What more can we expect from Chad Dahlstrom?

More books, art and horror articles. I’m having so much fun collaborating and creating with these great writers, artists and community members. We’ll be posting everything on Puzzle Box Horror and selling at Horror Hub Marketplace for the foreseeable future so hopefully we create something that the community embraces and either way we are going to keep trying.