Meet Akira Brown: Comic Publisher, Freelance Editor, Comic Creator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Akira Brown and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Akira, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I started WildStar Press because indie publishing is a vast ocean of untapped potential. Being surrounded by friends with great stories and great art that couldn’t get published into the more “mainstream” publishing companies pushed me into wanting to help them. Even in my own experience, when I pitched to publishers, only to be rejected didn’t discourage me. Instead, it motivated me to do it myself. Not to mention with the lack of genuine diversity in so many large companies, it was just time to step up and be one of the ones to make that change. If someone else could make a successful comic book publisher, what was stopping me from making one too?

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
WildStar Press indie comics publishing company to uplift the voices of diverse creatives. WildStar Press is a small, but growing press here to keep the fun in the creative process of building these stories. The importance of quality triumphs over quantity, so the press will continue taking its time to grow, in order to put care into each story that gets published. I don’t always think too hard about “what sets me apart from others” because I like to think of it as yet another publisher in the market that wants to uplift the voices of those that aren’t heard (the underrepresented marginalized groups), In a sense, the more there are, the more creators there’ll be to tell their stories. But this is no easy feat! Being a one man band publisher is a lot of work and it’s a learning progress as I go. I definitely make mistakes, but instead of being defeated by it I learn and attempt to do better the next time. In the process of doing all of this I’ve quickly learned that it’s okay to ask friends for help, whether it’s to help create a website or simply help me set up graphics so I can have them ready to post to social media. While it’s okay to want to build something from the ground up, having help (no matter how small) is fundamental for growth. Some people are just better at things than you are and it’s okay. Everyone has their own strengths and when you work together, you can make something great. WildStar Press isn’t about “besting” the next company or “being better” than another. At the core of it, the press is about being able to cultivate indie stories from those that would otherwise be brushed aside. It’s no surprise that companies are majority white and majority male dominated so being able to change that at the core and being able to set the standard for what and who gets published is what really matters to me.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This is tough since I’m still learning about a lot of places! The three places I’d take a friend to for sure are: The Georgia Aquarium, Olympic Park, and the High Museum. These are real nice and scenic places to go to while also capturing the essence of the city.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Seth Smith – https://sethsmithart.carrd.co/ Without Seth a lot of my design and branding would have fallen flat and progress would have been much slower for WildStar Press. He’s been super helpful and super supportive from day one and I can’t thank him enough for it. Not only is he a talented artist, he’s fantastic at web & graphic design. Kanon Daniel – https://vkdaniel20.wixsite.com/vkdaniel/comic-artwork Without Kanon being the first to jump on and actively pitch her comic with my company people today might not see WildStar Press as an ‘official company’. It started with one story to really kickstart my publishing company off the ground, and now so many others have found out about it and so many others have also submitted with the desire to publish.

Website: https://www.wildstarpress.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildstarpress/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/wildstarpress

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wildstarpress

Image Credits
The Curse of Clan Blackwood by River Kero Plastic Crown by Kanon Daniel Tales of the Unknown Cover Art by Zabrina Rodriguez High Hopes Written by VonBryant All published under WildStar Press