Name, Age, and State: Alec Stevens, 46, New Jersey

Job-title: Instructor at The Kubert School since 1992. Publisher (and contributing artist-writer) of Calvary Comics since 2006. Freelance illustrator since 1985 for clients such as The New York TimesBook Review, The New Yorker magazine, AT&T, Tower Records, Reader's Digest Corp., United Features Syndicate, DC Comics, Fantagraphics Books, Dark Horse Comics, etc. Professional musician in Christian bands and, more recently, as guitarist for Times Square Church's worship team on Sundays (10 am, 3 pm, and 6 pm services).

Web/blog site URL: www.calvarycomics.com

Give us your job description in 25 words or less. Instructor of college art students. Publisher of Christian books and graphic novels.

Describe a typical workday. Teaching from 8:30 am until 3 pm, then creating art in the evenings.

What led you to realize that you wanted to do this type of work? God-given talent evidenced in childhood, furthered by self-study and professional training, then on-the-job experience.

Did you have any heroes or mentors in your industry that you admired? In publishing: Jack Chick, Nate Butler. In illustration: E. J. Pace. In comics art: Frank Hampson, Nestor Redondo. In music: Jukka Tolonen, Jan Akkerman (guitarists).

What type of education or training was required to land your job? Professional quality, not a degree, will open the doors for such work.

What do you love most about your job? That I can pay the bills, remain debt free, and use my gifts to glorify my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and simultaneously edify others.

What one part of your job do you wish you could hire someone else to do? Filling bulk orders for hundreds of books at a time! Or lots of small orders from various parts of the world.

What advice would you give to teenagers wanting to get into your field of work? Pray until you hear the voice of God, not the voice of your own heart's desires, as to what He would have you do with your life. God's plans and man's are seldom the same, and His timing is often quite different from ours.

How does your job allow you to use your God-given gifts? Answered throughout the questions above.

Do you have any hobbies or off-hours pursuits that teenagers would find of interest? I'm a student of international films, from the silent era to the present (though very sparely in recent decades' films, as the moral tenor has fallen through the floor). Music of various genres (classical, jazz, gospel, etc.) and ethnicities (Brazilian bossa nova and samba, and Greek bouzouki music, for example) draws my attention. Fine art from the Renaissance to the (post-)moderns, the classic pen-and-ink illustrators and comic strip artists, and key golden, silver, and bronze age comic book artists interest me. On occasion I also enjoy ethnic food (Indian, Afghan, Thai, and Greek in particular). I love reading the King James Version Bible and digging into the original languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek) with the aid of Strong'sConcordance and much prayerful consideration, and God has continued to open His Word to me.