Fabrice Sapolsky first had the idea for Spider-Man Noir in 2006 while he was still living in France. He partnered with another European comic creator by the name of Dave Hine with a strategy to pitch Marvel the idea, and it worked. Spider-Man Noir has garnered a cult following and the mainstream success of Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse thrust Spider-Man Noir into the spotlight.
Nicolas Cage’s amazing work voice acting the character helped new fans around the world discover the characters awesome eccentricities. None of that would have been possible if Fabrice wasn’t a stubborn comic obsessed immigrant bent on living his childhood dreams as comic book creator in America.
French Licensed Beginnings
Fabrice started reading comics when he was just six years old. He would peruse the newsstands for the latest French licensed comics like Conan The Barbarian and black and white versions of The Green Lantern. However, when he was in his teens, he started to realize the French licenses were bastardizing the stories and dialogues, so he sought out the original American versions. There happened to be shops in Paris that carried American comics. Fabrice became an “X-Men guy” and fell in love with Marvel comics. But the DC Universe is still home to one of his most influential comic stories. “Teen Titans was like a revelation and to this day is one of my favorite comic books.”
Open The Comic Box
It was 1998 and Fabrice was 27-years-old and still heavily invested into comic books when he had what he calls a “revelation.” “Why isn’t there a news-magazine about comics?” After some market research, he realized his revelation was conceivable and Comic Box was born. Comic Box was a low-key hit in the comic book world, lasting 19 years with over 110 printed issues and two resurrections. “Because in comics, nobody dies,” Fabrice said with a laugh.
Be Like David Bowie
Fabrice turned his eye towards creating his own stories and left Comic Box in 2011. In 2006 he came up with the idea for a rawer Spider-Man story based in 1930’s New York City. Spider-Man Noir would be a gritty story of a web-slinger who rids the city of organized crime. This story had heavy political and socially driven undertones and was drastically different than other Spider-Man spin-offs.
Fabrice had a strategy to get his story green lit and it involved partnering with Dave Hine, another European comic book creator that he met during his Comic Box days. Fabrice was afraid that his French background would foil his chances in the American comic book industry, even though he’s been consuming and studying the industry for over 20 years. “Dave is a class act,” Fabrice said. “He’s one of the best people I’ve ever met, he’s really a good person.”
His plan was to have Hine pitch the story to Marvel. Hine had been working in the industry since Fabrice was a teenager and was a fixture in the industry. “After initially rejecting Spider-Man Noir, Hine eventually came around and agreed to help get the story published.
“It’s better being the co-creator of something rather than the creator of nothing.”
In a roundabout way, Spider-Man Noir also helped Fabrice achieve another benchmark in his life, getting his American visa. Computer-based lettering pioneer Richard Starkings told him that getting his character published in the American market would ensure his successful immigration to America. In 2004, Starkings told Fabrice “if you want to come [to the United States,] you have to be like David Bowie.” Starkings said that immigration authorities would have no choice but to award him a visa if he had a successfully published American character.
Spider-Man Noir was published four years after Starkings gave him that advice. And in 2015 Fabrice moved to Brooklyn, New York to stake his claim in the industry he’s been studying since he was a young boy. “I’m deeply rooted in this market, this is my market,” Fabrice stated with the confidence of Spider-Man himself.
Noir Blows Up
Spider-Man Noir had a following long before Fabrice moved to America. Not only was this his first major success as a creator,
Spider-Man Noir was a bonified smash hit for Marvel and after completing the second series, Fabrice couldn’t create anything for the next year. He was filled with anxiety and dread about his next creation because even if it was good, it would never be another Spider-Man Noir.
“How do you top that?” Fabrice asked himself. “You take a minute, pause, get your shit together, and you do something else.” This led Fabrice to create other popular series such as One Hit Wonder and his newest kung-fu noir story called Intertwined. Intertwined spawned out the frustration of not being able to create anymore more Spider-Man Noir at the time and noir comic fans rejoiced! Fabrice sold all of his Intertwined books before Emerald City Comic Con ended.
Late To The Game, But Never Too Late To Learn
Once Fabrice started touring comic conventions, he realized he didn’t have the skills necessary to turn the comic con tours into a sustainable hustle. Artists make most of their money at conventions by taking submissions for custom artwork on top of selling merchandise and published works. At age 44, Fabrice self-taught himself how to draw. This would make his appearances at conventions more worthwhile for his fans and his bank account. While he wasn’t good at first, he now has the skills to confidently ask for people’s money in exchange for custom art.
Protect The Throne
Fabrice’s urge to draw late in life is spawned from the same drive that got him in the comic book industry. “In this industry, nobody is waiting for you.”
He’s aware that creating a beloved character and having success still doesn’t guarantee his tenure as a comic book creator. This forces him to wear many different hats in the industry to stay on top of his game. On top of being a comic writer and artist, he’s a senior editor of Humanoids Publishing.
His success in this industry came from an overall knowledge of its inner workings and the tenacious pursuit of his dreams. “You always have to prove yourself,” Fabrice stated. “I’ve been in this business 20 years and still have to prove myself.” If you leave a void, someone else will always be there to fill it, and Fabrice is making sure he sticks around like Spider-Man on
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