Talking ‘The Ghost Of Wreckers Cove’ With Liniers And Angelica Del Campo

The last thing Cristina wants is to spend her summer at a lighthouse with bad wi-fi. When it turns out the lighthouse has a ghost, though, it’s up to Cristina and her sister to solve the mystery in Liniers and Angelica Del Campo‘s graphic novel, The Ghost of Wreckers Cove. With colors by Christian Argiz, here’s what Del Campo and Liniers had to share about researching lighthouses and portraying sisters:

Rachel Bellwoar: Why do you think lighthouses pair so well with spooky stories?

Liniers: The lighthouse is the loneliest building. You never see a lighthouse next to another lighthouse-.

Del Campo: Lighthouses are often in remote spots, inhabited by very isolated people and surrounded by the sound of the sea. It is the perfect set up for spooky.

Bellwoar: For your lighthouse, what features did you want to highlight the most and what was it like to design?

Liniers: I draw a lot of lighthouses in my daily strip, so I’ve alway[s] been playing with different designs. I love the way they are painted, the patterns that aren’t the same on any two.

Del Campo: We wanted a very classic look. After visiting many lighthouses in Maine, we settled on the iconic. Stripes and tower.

Bellwoar: True to its title, The Ghost of Wreckers Cove involves a ghost that sisters, Cristina and Martha, meet over the summer. How did you come up with the rules for how your ghost would appear and behave?

Del Campo: It was tricky because the idea was that she would seem to be a regular girl like them because she doesn’t know she is a ghost. But there had to be subtle signs that the girls could pick up on.

Liniers: I wanted her to have no feet sometimes. And this would be seen by the younger sister and not the older, creating a conflict between them. That was my contribution to the rules.

Bellwoar: What interested you the most about telling a story about siblings?

Liniers: It wasn’t my idea but I think that childhood memories, playing on the beach with your brother and sister are the best kind of memories

Del Campo: We have young daughters and I was alway fascinated by the way that they interact and react so differently to most situations.

Bellwoar: Cristina and Martha are also grieving the loss of their mother, whose absense is felt throughout this graphic novel. What was it like working out how much to talk about her, and did this effect your approach to ghosts as well and not presenting them as a threat?

Del Campo: We wanted the adventure to be prevalent in the story, but we also wanted moments that reminded us that these girls are helping each other to navigate a very sad situation. Because Ida doesn’t know that she’s a ghost, I think the threatening aspect was easier to avoid.

Liniers: The design of the girl was always meant to be non threatening. I meant her to come across as just an odd girl you might meet on the beach while building a sand castle. The undertones of grief we wanted to be subtle and not the main focus of the story.

Bellwoar: In the backmatter you talk about what it was like collaborating together. Specially, Angelica, you talk about not having to be as detailed with your descriptions and giving Liniers space to fill in the blanks. Did this result in any happy surprises and, if so, can you give an example?

Del Campo: It really did. The forests and the walks to town are beautiful and I hadn’t imagined them to be quite so magical. I also love the design of the ghost, who in my head looked like Ida Lewis. It is nice to just think about the story and not have to describe every single detail.

Liniers: I liked not having to come up with ideas and just drawing what I was told to. It was very liberating. This project was born during covid and when we decided to embark on it I said “This either ends in divorce or a book.” and it ended happily with a book.

Bellwoar: The perfect kind of ending. Thanks for agreeing to this interview, Liniers and Angelica!

The Ghost of Wreckers Cove goes on sale September 16th from Papercutz.