'Mammon': Columbia Conway cousins release 2nd graphic teen novel at Maury County library

Heroes can be found in the most unlikely characters, cousins Kanye and Ryon Conway say of their second graphic novel, titled, “Mammon.”

The cousins are back with a first for Maury County Public Library and their second installment for The Magic Elf series.

According to marketing and public relations coordinator, Jennifer Russell Hidalgo, a local author has never released two consecutive books from the Maury County Public Library.

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“Nightman,” the Conway cousins’ first graphic novel release, was followed up with a second novel at the signing party at Maury County Public Library at the end of April.

As with the first novel in the planned trilogy, the cousins say there was a shared portion of the work between the both of them, from conceiving the character, creating the art and constructing the story.

The family got a front-row seat to the creative process, as the kitchen table gave them a place to spread their ingredients and compose the literary recipe.

“They began when they were eight years old,” Kanye’s mom, Kaliente Glenn said. “That is the uniqueness here.”

Kaliente said that making her son and nephew sit down and write was never a task she had to make them do.

“It was always the purpose to help them develop what they created,” Glenn said.

Kanye said often he will get an idea, pitch it to his cousin, and if he agrees to it, they work together on integrating it into the story.

There is a very specific and biblical concept in mind for the stories Kanye and Ryon are working to compile. some of the story contains Bible verses and characters are somewhat based on people discussed in the Bible.

“His name came from the seven deadly sins,” Kanye said. “Greed – and greed meaning mammon.”

Mammon (a Latin-derived English word) literally means wealth or riches, but is usually associated with its negative connotations.

“This is a twist on the narrative of his name,” Kanye said. “Mammon wants to protect the human race by himself."

Mammon, an antihero of sorts, can work with others, the young author said, but runs into issues with being a team player for long periods of time.

Ryon conceived of the “blue demon” aspect of the character.

“The whole time he is going to be trying to prove himself – that he’s a good person,” Ryon said.

When it came to picking the look of the character, the cousins shared a funny “kitchen table” creative moment that resulted in a decision.

“Ryon asked me, ‘what color is he? Is he white? Is he black?” Kanye said. “I said, ‘he’s blue … dude. Ryon was like, ‘I didn’t know!’”

This is the main difference about Mammon, the creative cousins agreeing, they wanted a demon who was not red.

“We want to bring something new to the table,” Kanye said. “Something familiar, but new.”

“We want it to be something that stands out, you know?” Ryon said.

Without horns or a pitchfork, Mammon is not your traditional demon, but one with a hope for a redemptive character arc, and their first two novels are only the start.

As for what they’re hoping to tell readers with their story?

“It’s ok to look after yourself,” Kanye said. “But it’s also good to look after others.”

And Mammon will be a character who will excel and do good despite what others think of him.

The larger picture for the story series will tie together stories the Conway Boyz are building for “Horizon Universe.”

Ryon said he draws inspiration from older Batman comics as one artistic inspiration. “The Long Halloween” and “Dark Knight Returns” are two of his favorite comic runs.

From the cover art and the story, the “Conway Boyz” seem to reflect a Manga-style of storytelling, or a Japanese styling of comics and graphic novels that lean more into the literary crafting than anime, which expresses more visual artistry.

Ryon enjoys the graphic novels of Frank Miller, while Kanye mentioned stories by Todd McFarlane and Stan Lee and the Batman stories of Tom King.

“With Todd McFarlane, I like his idea of how he did Spawn,” Kanye said. “He’s open minded to ideas, and Ryon knows this too – McFarlane didn’t make the skin a point. It didn’t matter what race he is. I like this.”

“We all know Spawn is black, but his suit [which is a part of the character] was not white, it was not black. … It is just a part of him,” Ryon said, with Kanye finishing his thought.

Kanye’s mother, Kaliente Glenn is extremely proud, along with the rest of the family that the boys are using their creativity in a positive way.

The family all agrees the weight of the topics the cousins are addressing are complex.

“They would always sit at that table at my mama’s house – their grandmother,” Kaliente said. “They would always whisper and talk there to come up with their ideas.

“Some kids like to play games, some do sports,” Kaliente said. “These boys sit down, and they write.”

“It’s beyond us, how proud we are,” Kanye’s father, Jeremy Glenn said.

“Though I don’t count it as a disability, for my son to work with that and overcome [Asperger’s], he’s his own person. He’s blossomed like a flower.”

“We’ve just been here to encourage what he likes doing,” Jeremy said. “They are the dynamic duo.”

This article originally appeared on The Daily Herald: Columbia cousins release 2nd graphic novel at Maury Co. Public library