Meet the Frederators: Casey Gonzalez, Lead Writer at Frederator Digital
If someone had the perfect combination of passions and experience to be the Frederator Digital lead writer, it would be Casey Gonzalez. But since she only started several weeks ago, I know as little about her as you do. So, I asked Casey to introduce herself to us before she answered the 7 Questions.
“I was born and raised in Ohio and have been in New York since 2006.
“I started out in publishing working as an editor on graphic novels. I found my way into comics as a disgruntled college student–I didn’t have enough time for pleasure reading, so I started reading any comics I could get my hands on because I could devour an entire comic in an evening. When I’d read every graphic novel in my college’s library, I realized that I had more than a casual interest in comics. I’ve worked everywhere from the smallest of indie publishers to large, mainstream houses. I spent several years at First Second, where I launched the successful Science Comics series and worked with some really fantastic creators – Paul Pope, Jillian Tamaki, and James Kochalka, among them.
“I got my MFA in Fiction from Brooklyn College in 2016, where I was a Truman Capote Fellow and recipient of the Himan Brown Award. I continue to work on personal writing; I’m currently at work on a novel that I’d describe as a near-future dust bowl love story, among other creative projects.
“One reason I am so glad to be here is that I’ve always felt that literature, while powerful, has a significant barrier to entry–literacy. And it’s very important to me to tell stories in a way that is as accessible as possible, which is why it’s so exciting to be working in video now.”
1 What are you into right now?
It’s winter, which is when I get really into model building! I’m currently working on a model of Deep Space Nine. I got into building models a few years ago when I was craving mindless but detailed-oriented work. I do lots of arts and crafts, but model building has become a favorite because at the end of a project I’ve got a rad Klingon Warbird, or my very own Thousand Sunny! I find it very calming. It’s nice to turn off my brain, turn on some garbage television, and craft my own lil starship.
2 How did you meet Frederator?
I’m young enough to have been raised on Frederator, and old enough that Oh Yeah! Cartoons is my first Frederator touchstone. I’ve spent most of my adult life editing comic books, and I was looking to make a change while continuing to work on wacky, heartwarming content for weirdos.
Frederator is a perfect fit, and I’m so glad to be here, working with sweet nerds to make content for sweet nerds!
3 Describe your work. Is it what you expected to be doing with your life?
I’m Frederator Digital’s Lead Writer, which means that I touch just about every one of our scripts for Cartoon Hangover, Channel Frederator, and The Leaderboard. It’s certainly not what I expected to do with my life, but it is what I hoped I’d be doing.
I’m a writer, but I never dreamed I’d be able to find a full time writing job. At a base level, I’ve always wanted to do work that makes people feel less alone. To me, that means building connections between people based on shared experiences. And I think that’s what we’re doing at Frederator – building meaningful connections between creators, content, and fans.
4 Do you watch television? (Is that different to you than watching video through the internet?)
I watch way too much TV, mostly via streaming services on my computer. I’m always rewatching a Star Trek series and plugging through some anime. I also consume A TON of reality TV, like RuPaul’s Drag Race (one of the greatest shows of our time) and the Bachelor franchise (one of the worst?!).
5 What’s your favorite cartoon of all time?
Just to keep my brain from breaking, I’ll limit myself to Western cartoons!
King of the Hill resonates with me on a deep, deep level. It is so funny and so humane and so true to a certain American experience, one that I recognize from my own life. And I think that Bobby Hill is one of the best fictional characters ever created, across all media. I’ll die on that hill! He is hapless, yet wonderfully complex and sympathetic. An extremely well written child character–and that’s not easy to pull off! Overall, I think the show treats its characters with great tenderness that’s often missing from similar shows.
6 Where do you live? Will you live there forever?
I recently moved back to Lefferts Gardens in Brooklyn after an interlude in Gowanus. While I do hope to live in NYC forever, I like the experience of discovering a new neighborhood. Sunset Park, Kensington, or pretty much anywhere in Queens are next on my list! And for better or for worse, I see California glimmering on the horizon…
7 Answer a question of your own for us.
Which is better, Faulkner’s oeuvre or Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece?
THEY ARE OF EQUAL QUALITY, SCOPE, AND VISION AND BOTH SPEAK PROFOUND TRUTHS ABOUT HUMANITY!!! If I hadn’t died back on the Bobby Hill Is the Best Character Ever hill, you’d find my rotting corpse here.
*7 Questions is my irregular series of interviews with interesting people. Coming up soon, writers, artists, graphic designers, educators, tech founders, start up investors, music folks, and more Frederators.
