Interview: AC Stuart/Noob The Loser

Interview: AC Stuart/Noob The Loser

Tumblr can but a frightening yet magical place filled of artists, writers, indie videos, and every possible fan fic your mind could conjure up. I tend to find the best writing advice and fantasy artwork so I too am a slave to it’s mysterious ways.

On one fateful day, reblogging every post in my feed as I did every other day, I came across a D&D inspired comic called ‘Murder Brothers‘. It featured a by-the-books Noblemen who goes by Fendrick, an epic (And probably the only)mexican by the name of Fernando, and a naked orc named Grimtooth who has a sweet mohawk. The humor of the comic was amazing and matched up with my tastes(penis jokes, poop jokes, murder, derailing campaigns etc.) and the tastes of everyone I showed it too.

Later I discovered the master mind behind this majestic webcomic, AC Stuart or NoobtheLoser. I’ve followed him ever since and watched his rise to power. I was fortunate enough to send him an interview request and then refresh my inbox every five seconds until I saw a response and hoped Senpai would notice me.

Notice me he did! Without further ado, here is my interview with AC Stuart:

The Geek Lyfe: Although I have been a fan of yours for quite some time, there may be a few Geek Lyfers who have not seen your work before, would you be alright introducing yourself?

AC Stuart: No problem. I’m AC Stuart, otherwise known as Noob the Loser, otherwise known as Andy. I started out making D&D comics on Tumblr, but most of my recognition comes from Behind-the-GIF comics. Now I work at CollegeHumor, and recently I’ve been making Your D&D Stories. Hi!

TGL:  Not only is your artwork fantastic, but your comedic humor is captivating and can be quite addicting. What is your origin story when it comes to drawing webcomics?

AC: Oh stahp. #blush I’ve been drawing comics on and off since I was like, six? My dad’s an illustrator and my mom’s a writer, so I’m kinda like the fusion of their two creative sides. I went into sales and retail after high school and only did comics when I had an excess of free time or really hated my job, and it wasn’t until a couple years ago that I decided to quit my job and devote all of my time to cartooning. That it paid off is nothing short of a miracle. I’m exceedingly lucky and blessed to have a support network that allowed me to follow the dream. Basically, I learned what worked and didn’t work on social media, and my goal with every post was to hit the top of reddit and imgur, and to go viral on Tumblr. I did that for like a year and a half before I got enough traction to get a job with CollegeHumor. 

TGL:  What has been your favorite moment throughout your career as an artist?

AC: I’ve got a few, but if I have to narrow it down to one: The first Murder Brothers post I made on Tumblr got a LOT of notes for a blog that literally had one follower — my girlfriend at the time — when I posted it. That there was so much enthusiasm was the first time I’d ever gotten any affirmation that I actually had the chops to make it as a cartoonist. Everything that’s happened since has been built upon the confidence and high that I got from watching that get thousands of notes overnight.

TGL: Most frustrating?

AC: Any time I force myself to make something out of obligation, and I’m not inspired, and it turns out badly. Nothing feels worse than making something I know is bad and then watching it be poorly received. I mean, it’s kinda self-evident and silly, but I only want to make good things.

TGL: Your Tumblr page, ThoseDnDcomics, has grown exponentially since you started and it’s no surprise as to why with you behind the wheel. What was your personal favorite DnD story(besides crushing fairies into your arcane pistols.)?

AC: There are so many, man. A lot of them have already made it into Murder Brothers, warped to suit those characters. It’s probably gotta be the epic duel on top of a rain-slick tower in a thunderstorm between my paladin and a feral prehistoric gnome creature named Ojiwambabado, who happened to be played by my friend Logan. I let him off his leash for five minutes and he slaughters a family and hangs their mangled corpses from the rafters by their entrails. Sigh. What’re ya gonna do?

TGL: What geek medium(Video Games, Comic Books, Novels, Movies etc.) made the biggest impact on your life and why?

AC: Some combination of D&D and video games. D&D for obvious reasons — I consider myself a storyteller before anything else, and D&D has been really formative and inspirational in that regard. Video games because I made so many friends and spent so much time playing online games. Still addicted to League, god help me, and somehow my fanaticism has become part of my job. I’m very lucky.

TGL: Fernando and Grimtooth from your series, Murder Brothers, emerges from your monitor and enters the real world. You must choose one to be your BFF and the other rides off into the sunset. Which character do you choose for what?

AC: Fernando because Grimtooth is basically the embodiment of evil disguised as wacky and lovable.

TGL: Do you have any projects in the near future we should be excited to see?

AC: I’m very scatterbrained, and I’m always coming up with new ideas I get excited about. I’d love to get into more animations and live video content. For now, I need to stay disciplined and really deliver on the content for Your D&D Stories. When that’s really up and running, I’ll start thinking about how to expand into other areas of nerd culture. ‘Cause I’m a big ol’ nerd. 

TGL: What advice do you have for any aspiring artists out there?

AC: Two pieces of advice. One: I was inches away from giving up more times than I can count, and I sacrificed a lot of things I’ll never get back to lay foundations. If you love it and you know you’ll never be happy doing anything else, don’t stop. Two: If you can’t get an audience with your passion projects, then build the audience first, and once you have it, THEN make your passion projects. Move in the right direction, but compromise and be willing to recognize what works and what doesn’t. As an indie creator, you’re a brand and a business, not just the stories you want to tell.

TGL: How goes your League of Legends career? Reach Challenger status yet?

AC: I’ve barely played since I moved to New York AND IT’S KILLING ME. I’m so inherently competitive, I hate not being able to climb the ladder and feeling rusty when I do play. The best I ever got was in the top 10% of ranked players in Gold 1 at the end of Season 3. Since then, I’ve been floating around gold/silver, usually between top 30% and top 50%. When I get Challenger, I’ll let you know. In the mean time, as you may or may not know, I’m making a lot of content for the Coke eSports twitter page.

A super huge thank you to AC Stuart for taking the time to answer a humble fan’s questions! 😀 Check out all about AC Stuart at his Facebook page and give him all the likes! You won’t regret it!