My guest on this episode is Scott Chantler. Scott is the creator of multiple graphic novels for both adults and young readers, including Northwest Passage, Two Generals, which was voted by CBC's Canada Reads as one of the 40 best Canadian non-fiction books of all time, the Three Thieves series (winner of the Joe Shuster Award for Best Comic for Kids), and Bix. He has been the illustrator for many other graphic novels and comic books, and has served as Cartoonist-in-Residence at the University of Windsor, the first cartoonist to be appointed to such a position by a Canadian university. Scott’s most recent book is Squire & Knight, published by First Second in 2023. Kirkus Reviews said that Squire & Knight "subverts typical fairy-tale tropes with dry humour” and says the book is “compelling and full of adventure, with a plot as clever as its main character."

Scott and I talk about bringing Three Thieves back into print after falling out with that series’s original publisher, about how the upcoming sequel to Squire & Knight might be the end of that series, unless he changes his mind—he also talks about how he’s not great at longterm career planning—and about how he want to focus on work that is darker and more adult than what he is best known for.

Scott Chantler: scottchantler.com

Music: "simple-hearted thing" by Alex Lukashevsky. Used with permission.

Contact Nathan Whitlock at nathanwhitlock.ca/contact