Featured Creator: Laurie Calcaterra

Laurie Calcaterra

Laurie Calcaterra started her career in 2017 writing for the Detroit-based production company, Coattail Collective. She wrote and starred in the short film “Catfish-ing” and created the spy vs. spy web series titled “The Agency.” In 2018, Laurie began writing Path of the Pale Rider as a full-length movie, which she later adapted into a comic book series. Issue #1 of the series was successfully funded on Kickstarter in April 2022 and self-published in July 2022. Since then, Laurie has been picked up by publisher Charter Comics and writes freelance for other creator-owned projects including Psycho Sal issues 4, 5, and 6, and issues 3 and forward for the creator-owned project Incantesi by Rich Perotta. Path of the Pale Rider is currently on issue #4, which was funded on Kickstarter in October 2023.

Along with each issue of Path of the Pale Rider, Laurie creates an immersive fan experience, including riddles on the back cover and fan-interactive short films. When asked about all the components of the story, Calcaterra explained:

“The world of Path of the Pale Rider is so big, we planned from the beginning to tell the story in multiple mediums so the reader can choose their level of involvement. The comic is the meat and potatoes plot. It’s the twists, turns, and terrifying moments. However, the riddles and short films let people experience more of the story without adding fluff or filler. Not only that, the fans can see themselves on the screen of the short films if they want to participate! If you’re looking for a rabbit hole to fall into, this is for you.”

Path of the Pale Rider is a Western Apocalypse comic book series where death has been broken. The body can die, but the soul or energy does not leave the body upon death. The undead are not flesh-eating or brain-craving; instead, they are aware of their decay and can become forgetful, violent, or vegetative depending on how they rot. This is a problem not only for people, but also for animals, fish, and insects. All death has been broken, causing chaos and a plethora of ethical problems. The series follows Jude St. Clair, the last cowboy who gives a damn, ten years into the apocalypse where things have devolved back to the Wild West. Will Jude find the answer or succumb to an eternity of decay?

Issues 1-3 of Path of the Pale Rider are available at www.pathofthepalerider.com, with issue 4 available for pre-order, expected in January 2024. You can follow Laurie’s social media, watch the short films, and keep up to date with her weekly podcasts by searching her Linktree: linktr.ee/lauriecalcaterra.