Christian graphic novels illustrate timeless truth

Posted: 8/04/06

Christian graphic novels illustrate timeless truth

By Angela Best

Communications Intern

Robert Luedke loved reading comic books and drawing when he was growing up. A few years ago, he fell in love with Jesus. Now, Luedke is bringing the loves of his life together.

Luedke, president of Head Press Publishing and author of Eye Witness—A Fictional Tale of Absolute Truth and Eye Witness Book Two—Acts of the Spirit, is pioneering a new literary genre—the Christian-themed graphic novel, or illustrated Christian fiction.

Robert Luedke’s Eye Witness graphic novels present New Testament stories in a comic-style format.

“A groundswell of creativity is occurring,” Luedke said. “Creative people from all walks of the entertainment industry are being drawn to be a witness through their artistic ability. The graphic novel offers a wonderfully effective tool for sharing God’s word and story with young readers.”

A graphic novel looks similar to a comic book, but it differs from a comic in that it is usually novel-length, tells a complete story, is written to appeal to an older audience and is bound similarly to text-only literature.

Even though Luedke has had a life-long love of comic books and art, his subjects have not always dealt with Christian themes, since he didn’t become a Christian until he was almost 40.

Always skeptical about religion, Luedke pursued a career in the secular comic book industry for 15 years. Despite his success, he still felt a sense of emptiness and a desire for something more.

It wasn’t until the deaths of his father, one of his closest friends and a co-worker—all within just six months—that Luedke considered that the void he felt in his own life could be filled by a relationship with Christ.

In 1999, Luedke attended Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, where he heard a presentation of the archeological and medical evidence of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. The evidence he heard solidified his faith.

“Someone needs to put this evidence into an illustrated form,” Luedke recalled thinking to himself. But he didn’t consider doing it himself until later.

The concept behind the Eye Witness novels—the first two of a trilogy—originated in 2000, but Luedke mulled over the idea two years before he began writing.

He released book one in 2004, and the second volume this summer. Luedke expects to complete the trilogy in 2008.

“I grew up as a lover of comic books and graphic novels,” Luedke said. “If I would have had access to something like Eye Witness when I was in my teens, I might not have waited until I was almost 40 to explore what Jesus was all about.”

While the first book of the trilogy focuses on the Passion of Christ, book two begins the morning of Christ’s resurrection. It follows the timeline through Saul’s conversion to Christianity in the New Testament book of Acts and the development of the early Christian church.

Luedke bases his storylines on Scripture, but he adds characterization, as well as a modern-day action/adventure story to make the novels unique and intriguing to readers regardless of whether they are familiar with the Bible.

On average, each graphic novel takes Luedke 18 months to complete, with the first three months dedicated to writing the story—similar to a screenplay—and the rest spent drawing the pictures by hand and then scanning them to a computer where color and special effects are added.

But all the time is worth it to Luedke, who desires not only to reach non-believers, but also open the door for other publishers to accept and produce this form of literature.

“I look at this project as a ministry,” he said. “The graphic novel is my method of reaching out to young people in a very culturally relevant way and to share God’s glory.”

For more information, visit www.head press.info.