In my travels I have been fortunate and blessed enough to come face to face with many remarkable people. I have met and chatted with creators of all kinds. Comics, TV, Movies you name it. I feel pretty proud of what I accomplished in such a short time. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw and whom I met just a few short weeks ago at a Comic Con in Morristown, NJ on what was sure to not be just another Sunday in my books.

I was there to meet and interview the genius behind The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles himself, Kevin Eastman. Then in a few moments I found myself in the middle of something I’ve never seen before.

As I was setting up, this young boy walked in with his father. He was so unassuming that I already jumped to the conclusion that he must be a fan with VIP or something of that nature. I introduced myself and said how excited I was, because I was about to meet and interview one of my personal heroes (Kevin Eastman) in mere moments.

I was not prepared for the young man’s reply when he said “Me too.”

When I took a second look at him there it was, plain as day, he had a press pass! Surely he meant his dad was doing the interview and he would watch. Nope.

The gentleman introduced himself to me as Carl. Carl of Carl’s Comix.This young guy was doing the interview himself. I was impressed. How could I have not heard of this before? He cited to me his over 15,000 subscribers. He told me he has been doing this for over a year now and he has met and interviewed almost 25 creators. I was astonished. Here I am feeling accomplished and along come this person with a professional demeanor far beyond his years. It just goes to show you, at those times you feel like patting yourself on the back, God will give you a reason to lower that hand and shake someone else’s.

What he told me next, had me floored.

Carl started this simply because he was a fan. His favorite comic is The Amazing Spider-Man (mine too depending on what day it is). He loves it so much that he wanted to meet or talk to the man behind the hero. I instantly thought he meant Stan “The Man” Lee. Who wouldn’t? Nope again. He wanted to speak with legendary artist Steve Ditko the co-creator of Spider-Man. Surely he hasn’t had luck with that? Well wrong again!

It turns out that Carl did interview Steve Ditko. He did it by the oldest method possible, by mailed letter. He penned a letter and sent it off but thinking he wouldn’t get a response. Some time later, he got one. Reading this letter. I realized that it is such a rarity to hear that response. I knew what was in front of me was rare too.

I asked Carl if he’s ever been interviewed before? The answer to that was “no.” I felt that had to change. And, he was more than delighted to give me a few moments of his time.

Graphic Policy: So Carl, how long have you been in the journalism business?

Carl: Since I was 8 years old.

GP: Wow, 8 years old. Tell me what inspired you? What made you say “Hey I just want to go interview and talk to famous people?”

Carl: Well I was at this comic book camp about 2 summers ago and we had this Mini Comic Con, it was the end of the camp. So I made a business card and it said http://www.carlscomix.com. My dad looked at the card and asked if I would like to create this. I said “Sure.” So that’s what we did and we got to work on my website.

GP: Amazing. At just 8 years old, you are doing what I do and you make it look “old hat”.  Who is your favorite person you’ve interviewed and why?

Carl: Steve Ditko. Without question. Simply because he’s one of the rarest creators and I was hoping to get a nice letter back from him.

GP: And you did. You did it. What did it feel like when you got that letter, that nice reward back?

Carl: I just felt super lucky. What it did was make me even more excited for what could happen next.

GP: I bet. Did receiving the letter make you a bigger Spider-Man fan than you were before?

Carl: Oh yes.

GP: How could it not right? I have to ask you, what message do you have for all the aspiring six year old’s out there who might be looking to follow in your footsteps?

Carl: I would tell them to just keep up the hard work, and they can do it. Don’t be afraid to follow what you want.

GP: Well Carl, this has been great and you are about to interview Kevin Eastman. Who would be next to meet on your superhero bucket list?

Carl: We are trying, but for me next is Stan Lee.

GP: Great pick! That’s like the white whale of comics. 

Carl: I know.

GP: Lastly, can you tell us the name of your site?

Carl: www.carlscomix.com

GP: Why should people follow you?

Carl: Because I have fifteen thousand subscribers.

GP: Well hey, that’s good enough for me. Thank you very much for your time.

Carl: You’re welcome.

 

So that was quite the experience and a joy to do. I asked Carl what kind of questions was he going to ask Kevin Eastman? He said he couldn’t share that information with me right now. Spoken like a true professional. I want to thank Carl for all his time and work he’s doing. He is a shining example that the path to greatness can start at any age and you can be any size.

I will remember him forever. I hope we cross stars again in our trips across the comic book multiverse.

Check him out for yourself at www.carlscomix.com