Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jerome Gagnon. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jerome, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

Amongst all the comics I’ve lettered over the years there are four that holds a very special place un my heart.

The first one is a comic book named Granite State Punk. My friend, writer Travis Gibb, started to talk to me about this project and explain the back story behind it, I knew how personal it was and how much it meant to him. When I started to receive the pages from artist Patrick Buermeyer, I felt I needed to elevate my game to be in par with the art. The book was well received and I got to be nominated for my lettering work at Baltimore ComiCon’s Ringo Awards in 2023.

The second is actually an anthology series called Cthulhu Invades. Travis had the idea to have Lovecraft’s creatures invades other beloved character’s worlds such as Oz, Wonderland and Neverland. For each of these books we reach out to over 50 creators to develop short stories. These books are a lot of work, but it’s so much fun to do because I get the chance to work with so many different talented writers and artists.

What makes the third project special is that it’s a book that I developed myself. I’m not a writer or an artist, but I wanted to create something by myself. Working on the Cthulhu Invades series gave me the idea of creating an anthology. It was a few days after Christmas that I got the idea of doing a book with horror stories for the holiday season. I called it Holiday Spirits. I’ve contacted writers and artists that I knew and everyone jumped in. As of now, we have made three volumes, three spin-offs (Holiday Spirits: Christmas in July) and we are working on more.

Lastly, I’m very glad to have had the opportunity to letter a mini-series for Assassin’s Creed. Although I love working on indie comics, working on a big franchise like this was a great opportunity. I’ve got the chance to work on pages from artists that I admire and have my name next to theirs.

Jerome, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I have been working as a graphic designer for a successful magazine for over 20 years. Even though I had a good job, well paid that allowed me to take care of my family, I was feeling unfulfilled. I was looking for a new job, but nothing came through. I needed something to make me proud of myself.

So I started to think. What business would I love to be part of? It brought me back to my long time passion: Comic Books. But what can I bring to the table? I can’t draw well enough. So that was out of the way fast. I tried coloring. I was good a it, but not great. So I moved to lettering. That felt way more natural for me. Formatting text on a page to guide the eye of the reader from one panel to the other was, in a way, very similar to what I was used to do in magazines. So I started to read every book available on the subject at the time, both of them! (Ha ha ha!) Yeah, ressources on the subject were limited. I watched a few videos online as well. I started connecting with people online through forums and social medias.

Then, Covid happened. Lots of new creators, who suddenly had more time on their hands, turned to crowdfunding to realize their long time dream of creating comics. At some point, the Kubert School of Comics open up online classes for aspiring comic creators. I took the lettering class to complete my learning. I’ve met new collaborators and made new friends along the way.

I’m still working full time as a graphic designer in the magazine business and lettering is a second career for me. Since 2018, I’ve lettered pages in over a hundred books, from single issues to big anthologies and I’ve been part of over 50 crowdfunding campaigns. In 2023, I was nominated for a Ringo Award for Best Letterer for my work on a comic named Granite State Punk.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I think that the main reason why my clients are coming back, besides the quality of my work, is the fact that I always deliver. If a project is schedule to go to print on a specific date, I will do everything in my power to make it happen. Even if it means to do an all-nighter. If I have to prioritize a project over another, I will make sure to minimize the impact as best as I can.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

As selfish as it may sound, the main is reason is to create something that makes me proud of myself. Comic books are a very collaborative medium. Helping other creators make their dream project come to life is very rewarding. Even though it’s a though business to break through, I really enjoy being part of this community. The other aspect that I feel very rewarding is when I sell a comic at a convention and seeing that customer at the next convention coming back for more… That gives me the energy I need to go back and do more.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @jeromeletterscomics
• Facebook: Jerome Gagnon
• Twitter: @jayboy495
• Other: Bluesky: @jayboy495.bsky.social

Image Credits

Photos are from my personnal collection and owned by me.

Photo captions if necessary:

Image 4044:
With Travis Gibb and his wife Heather from Orange Cone Productions, at MegaCon Orlando 2023.

Image 4066:
At MegaCon Orlando 2023, with the Granite State Punk crew. Artist Patrick Buermeyer, Writer Travis Gibb, Editor Heather Gibb and myself.

Image 4604:
At Baltimorre ComicCon’s Ringo Awards, September 2023.

Image 5239:
Table setup at Montreal ComicCon.