How did Living Steel Start
There was dirt. A lot of dirt. Of course we were in a greenhouse, so it makes sense. Growing up, Ryan and I spent a lot of our time working in the Peace River Greenhouses, a family business. Almost every holiday (except Christmas) and all of our summer vacations were spent there.
One of our most common tasks was to fill containers with a special mix of dirt that would then be planted with seeds or seedlings. We would often come up with games and make up stories to help make the work more fun (because we weren’t leaving till all of the pots or trays were filled).
From Earliest Conception
One such day, around 18 years ago, Ryan and I began talking about this new story idea. We wanted it to be like all of our favorite shows, with big mechs, sword fights, biological weapons, and a super cool and surprising plot twist at the end. Yup, those were the things of infinite value in a story to a 8 year old and a 14 year old.So very soon after that date, at Ryan’s house, we began planning our epic story. Both of us got to create one of the main characters. Ryan created Gan, with his awesome bio weapons and bright red hair. I created Axel, though that was not his name at the time. What was my inspiration for him? Two things. First: Cloud’s giant sword. When Ryan asked me about my character the first things I said was “give him a giant sword like Cloud” from Final Fantasy 7. The second thing was similar. A Nerf gun. Not just any Nerf gun either, it was the Manta Ray Nerf Gun. Ryan had this gun and I wanted my character to have it too.
The Earliest art
So thats how it all started. I’m happy to say our story has evolved beyond just cool fighting and crazy plot twists. Over the last 18 years we have spent many hours talking and drawing together as we try to make this story the very best that it can be.
For me Living Steel is as much a part of my childhood as Samurai Jack or Transformers is. This story has shaped who I am: my career, my interests, even some of my life goals. I have such a deep love for this story, and I am so excited to finally be able to share it with you.