Essex-raised comic artist Jeff Lemire focus of book of interviews

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It’s no exaggeration to say Jeff Lemire is the most successful comic book creator to have come out of Essex County — and perhaps the region’s must successful author, period.

That’s why a new book compilation of dozens of interviews with Lemire tries to offer insight into his career to date — from his acclaimed trilogy of graphic novels named after his native Essex County, to his popular post-apocalyptic series Sweet Tooth.

“Jeff has become quite an important figure, both as an artist and as a writer,” explains Dale Jacobs, a professor in creative writing at the University of Windsor, and the editor of Jeff Lemire: Conversations.

“He deals with themes of being an outsider, small towns, and loneliness. Even in his genre work of him — in horror and science fiction — that comes through.”

Published by University Press of Mississippi, the book is part of a series devoted to comics studies, with each volume highlighting a leading name in the medium.

University of Windsor professor Dale Jacobs holds a copy of Jeff Lemire: Conversations - a collection of interviews with Lemire, published by University Press of Mississippi.
University of Windsor professor Dale Jacobs holds a copy of Jeff Lemire: Conversations—a collection of interviews with Lemire, published by University Press of Mississippi. Photo by Dan Janisse /Windsor Star

Jacobs collected and edited a total of 30 interviews from other sources for the book.

The earliest of the interviews dates back to 2007, while the most recent one is from late 2019.

“It’s all previous interviews, from different publications, websites, and podcasts,” Jacobs said.

Through his editing, Jacobs hopes to show how Lemire has straddled different lines in the world of comics—with Lemire being prolific not only in his independent work, but also with the mainstream comic book companies, DC and Marvel.

“He’s a really interesting figure. He’s still quite young (at 46), but he’s been very active for close to two decades. I just thought it was time to take a look back at his work from him.”

One thing that becomes apparent from the interviews is Lemire’s childhood love for comics—including the popular superhero books. “He was always a comics fan,” Jacobs said.

“I think the interviews really show his arc from being a fan of comics in Essex County to being a professional artist with the ability to work in different genres and collaborate with many different people.”

Fans of Lemire — and comics in general — may be particularly fascinated with how he has progressed from realizing his dream of working in commercial comics to developing a more intimate and personal body of work.

“At a certain point, the (major comics) industry becomes a grind. You can see (from the interviews) how hard it is to do that work,” Jacobs said.

These days, Lemire has been moving from success to success in terms of the reception to his own creative properties.

On the heels of last year’s adaptation of Sweet Tooth on Netflix, it’s been recently announced that Lemire’s Essex County trilogy will be adapted as a new CBC television drama, set to premiere in 2023.

The cover of an issue of Sweet Tooth, by Jeff Lemire.
The cover of an issue of Sweet Tooth, by Jeff Lemire. Photo by Vertigo /DC Comics

Jacobs believes much has changed regarding how seriously comic book creators are taken as artists.

“One of Jeff’s books was part of (the nationally publicized book debate) Canada Reads. Graphic novels have been long-listed for the Booker Prize. There are gallery shows and exhibitions for comics all over North America,” Jacobs said.

“Comics are art, and Jeff is an important artist who has a connection with Windsor-Essex.”

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