Guest Article by Carlin Trammel
Bill asked me if I would be willing to write a guest article for him. It got me reflecting on our incredibly long collaborative friendship and just how neat of a relationship he and I have. Bill has talked about that already when he mentioned my blog hosting the Snipes comic and one of our early collaborations when I joined in on the Von Fange Brothers fun.
While our initial encounter took place in person, the majority of our friendship has unfolded in the digital realm. Despite this virtual connection, I regard Bill as one of my closest friends. He has consistently served as my confidant, offering invaluable insights and collaborating on creative endeavors for years. Together, we've successfully brought some exciting projects to fruition, yet there exists a large cache of innovative ideas that will likely never see the light of day.
As 2023 drew to a close, I found myself amidst the chaos of moving. While sifting through my files in preparation for packing, I stumbled upon a forgotten pitch for a comic project named "Impossible Girl." This creative endeavor was born from the imaginative sparks that flew between me and Bill during the summer of 2003.
The basic idea of this series would have been to do a look at classic 70s and 80s TV shows that Bill and I loved in our youth. It all would have been analogous, but we would have made a "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" with characters such as the Six Million Dollar Man, Charlie's Angels, and K.I.T.T. The main character of the series would be going around the country exploring the mystery of each of these characters and eventually combining them into one team for a larger opponent.
It was part X-Files, too, because the main character had a chip on her shoulder to prove these urban legends were real and not "impossible." Thus, she was nicknamed the "Impossible Girl." The original pitch had an over-arching mystery that would have tied into learning she is the daughter of the analogous John Steed and Emma Peel of the old Avengers TV show. I was also going to make the connection that Charlie from Charlie's Angels and John Steed were the same person. All that feels super fanfiction-y now, though.
In 2011, the website Comics Alliance posted an April Fool's story that pitched a similar concept. However, it focused on movie characters from the 80s instead of TV. Even though it was a joke, that would be a fascinating idea, too. And it validated my idea for this despite it being a joke.
Bill drew some concept art for the pitch, and had we gotten this going, he would have drawn it. Sadly, it didn't really come together, and the ship really has sailed on the viability for a project about 70s and 80s TV shows.
Bill and I revisited the idea a few more times with some tweaks, but eventually, Impossible Girl became a part of what Jessica Abel called "Idea Debt." In her book Growing Gills: How to Find Creative Focus When You're Drowning in Your Daily Life, Abel defines it this way:
Idea Debt describes a phase of the creative process where many people get stuck, sometimes permanently. It's what happens when you spend a ton of time picturing what a project is going to be like, and how awesome it's going to be to have this thing done and in the world, and how cool it (and therefore you) will look, and how in demand you'll be, and how much money you're going to make…and very little time actually making the thing.
Abel, Jessica. Growing Gills: How to Find Creative Focus When You're Drowning in Your Daily Life (p. 36). Kindle Edition.
Abel encourages her readers to cut losses on idea debt and actually move on with creating rather than imagining the creating. That's definitely where Impossible Girl found herself for me—right in the middle of my idea debt portfolio. And I eventually lost the passion for advancing the project despite some fun ideas.
It's worth revisiting these "tales never told" because it's a way to connect with who I was in the past and see how far I've come. I know a pitch that I would write for Impossible Girl would be so much better now. I also know that it's the type of thing that would suck me in a hole and prevent me from actually creating.
And that's what I'd rather do. I'd rather always be creating.
Carlin Trammel
Creative Media Producer and Communications Professional