'Runaway To The Stars' Kickstarter: Jay Eaton Interview

Jay Eaton has been consistently delivering for fans with their webcomic Runaway to the Stars. Now, the sweeping, character‑driven sci‑fi epic is lighting up Kickstarter through Spike Trotman’s Iron Circus Comics. Eaton’s work has always stood out for its meticulous worldbuilding and expressive, deeply human storytelling. However, their Runaway to the Stars pushes all of that into a new orbit. In this universe, interstellar travel is messy, personal, and shaped by the people just trying to survive it. We recently caught up with Eaton to talk about crafting this lived‑in future, the emotional core driving the series, and why Kickstarter and Iron Circus are the perfect launchpad for a story this bold and beautifully strange. So, let’s welcome Jay Eaton to GVN Talking Comics.

GVN: Thanks for sharing a bit of your busy day, Jay. Since this is our first opportunity to chat, let’s start with a bit about your creative beginnings before we jump right into Runaway to the Stars. When did you first take an interest in art, and whose work inspired that ambition?

JAY: My first inspirations are a bit foggy, since I’ve been drawing ever since I could hold a marker in my chubby toddler fist. But I’ve loved comics and biology for as long as I can remember, which has led to me designing lots of strange misfit creatures and writing stories about them. And I guess I still am, since Runaway to the Stars is about a 3 meter tall hexapodal alien who was raised by humans. I also grew up on the early internet, and one of my most formative creative experiences as an older kid was reading loads of eccentric one-person passion project webcomics. I’m very happy to have grown up now and contributed my own work back to that ecosystem.

GVN: So, let’s get to it. What was the spark that first ignited Runaway to the Stars? Was there a moment or an idea that set everything in motion for you?

JAY: Oh, this is kind of funny. At the time, I was working on mostly fantasy settings, and I made Runaway to the Stars as an excuse to design some aliens on the side. A decade later and it’s the one getting a graphic novel. Which is probably for the best, I feel like my worldbuilding for fantasy was always overworked, I would end up with magic systems that just felt like the sequel to physics. Hard science fiction really satisfies my urge to know how everything I’m drawing functions.

GVN: You’ve described the story as “hard sci‑fi with heart.” How do you balance scientific plausibility with emotional storytelling?

JAY: I think the two support each other. The science feeling real makes the setting feel real makes the lives of the characters feel real. It’s my strong opinion that worldbuilding is not a separate entity from narrative, and it’s a disservice to deliver it all in dry exposition dumps like homework to finish reading in between parts where the story happens. You can create tension and intrigue by withholding information about the setting, letting readers put the dots together, and revealing details when they will make the strongest emotional impact.

GVN: The cast of Runaway to the Stars is diverse, layered, and deeply human—even when they’re not human. What drives your approach to character creation?

JAY: I think you can learn a lot about a culture by looking at the people who fail to fit into it neatly. The cast of Runaway to the Stars all have something that alienates them from the people around them, and in that shared loneliness, they find they have many experiences in common. Whether they’re a sapient quantum computer on the run from the law, an alien raised by humans, an off-model GMO catgirl, or a biracial lesbian; they know what it’s like to struggle to connect and communicate with the people in their lives.

GVN: As a follow-up, was there a character you found particularly challenging—or surprisingly easy—to write, and were there any sequences or pages that pushed you creatively in unexpected ways?

JAY: The hardest part of making Runaway to the Stars wasn’t writing, it was drawing. Prose scifi authors don’t know how easy they’ve got it… they can describe speculative technology as vaguely as they want, but I have to know what EVERYTHING looks like. In perspective! I learned how to use 3D modelling software to get this book done, and commissioned help from friends for parts that were too far out of my skill level. Doug Kehrly created the model of the Runaway spacecraft for me, and it’s so slick that it looks pretty funny put next to the rudimentary blocky reference models I make… not that you can tell from the finished artwork. The vast majority of the linework in the book is hand drawn, with or without 3D reference helping.

GVN: So, let’s talk about your partnership with Iron Circus Comics. How did your collaboration with Iron Circus come about, and what made them the right home for this project?

JAY: The founder, Spike had found me through my blog where I had been posting worldbuilding art for fun, and she emailed me to ask if I wanted to pitch a book. At the time I was still in college, so I said thank you, that’s incredibly kind, I will be back when I’m not trying to pass my classes. Then they rejected my first book proposal, haha. Runaway to the Stars was proposed next and approved. Which is an insanely good acceptance rate for a first time author, to be clear. I’m very lucky Spike reached out, since Iron Circus would have been my first pick for proposing a book to anyways; they publish more niche and queer titles with an older audience, which I usually write for.

GVN: You are bringing this project to Kickstarter through the auspices of Iron Circus (who CERTAINLY know how to run a crowd-funding campaign). What can backers expect from the Kickstarter edition—any special features, extras, or behind‑the‑scenes material?

JAY: The book itself will include over a hundred little comics I drew of the characters responding to questions the readers submitted to me for them to answer. I think those are a very fun way to learn more about the characters and their world. I would like to include some of the developmental sketches as well, the protagonist’s appearance changed a lot. She’s gone from a stick bug to an anxious buff nerd.

GVN: As many creators know (or find out), crowdfunding can be an emotional roller coaster. What part of the campaign are you most excited about?

JAY: I am most excited to hold the book in my hands. It’s gonna be several years of effort condensed into a solid brick of ink and wood pulp. That’s cool.

GVN: Thank you once again, Jay. Before I let you go, what do you hope readers take away from this book once they’ve turned the final page?

JAY: Many readers have told me that the protagonist’s appearance was strange and offputting to them at first, but by the middle of the book, her face and personality had become as familiar as a friend’s. That always delights me to hear. So, I hope even more people see themselves reflected in the lives of characters stranger than they ever thought they could relate to.

Talking with Jay Eaton makes one thing unmistakably clear: Runaway to the Stars isn’t just a sci‑fi comic — it’s a fully lived‑in universe shaped by empathy, curiosity, and the messy, beautiful ways people collide. Eaton’s commitment to grounded character work and meticulous worldbuilding gives this series a unique pulse that’s rare in the genre. Because of that, the Kickstarter launch feels less like a campaign and more like a ticket to step aboard. If this project is the beginning of a larger journey, then readers are in for something special — a story that proves the future doesn’t have to be sleek or sterile to be extraordinary. It just has to feel human….even if it’s NOT! And Eaton delivers that in every panel.

Jay Eaton’s Runaway to the Stars comes to Kickstarter through the capable hands of Iron Circus Comics. You can check out the campaign here.