Although I created Crime the graphic novel in 1994 the story has been re-written and evolved from a short story I wrote and Illustrated when I was 15 years old in The High school of Music and Art. It was an English homework assignment, I had a weekend to do it but it change everything.
How did it all start? I remember one of my first super hero, his name was Kid cobra. A typical white superhero powerful invincible can fly and all that. He was fashioned after my favorite artists of the time like Gene Colan and Neal Adams.
High was a major shift for me especially geographical I lived in east Flatbush Brooklyn and my high school was in 135th street in central Harlem. The environment was very stimulating all of the gutted out tenements looked like a post apocalypse sci-fi set and other areas had beautiful brownstones and townhouses. But aside from that there was a entirely new energy all of it’s own the way they dressed spoke danced and this was around the birth of hip-hop so it was an exciting time.
 
When I entered the High school that was the end of my kid cobra character RIP 1970-1975 I experimented with a lot of techniques with him from ball point pen and crayons to India ink and watercolors.
 
My friend Andreé told me about the book 1984 by George Orwell I found it very interesting. although I never actually read the book I used my imagination from Andreé telling of it.
 
My High School English teacher Mr. Howard gave the class a project and that project will change everything., it was to create a journal he said you have full control of the format. It can be a poem, a written text or an illustrated story like a comic book. I was like great!, a comic that i can do.