Thursday, March 23, 2006
I don't really have any Earth-shattering revelations to reveal tonight but I want to keep my work on getting these things out in a more timely manner. So what's a poor writer to do? I thought I might review some of the trades I've read recently. Now I don't feel like knocking on anything I didn't like (which is why I would make a poor reviewer), so I'll just talk about the stuff I liked.
Sleeper--All False Moves (Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips)--The second trade of the series and one I enjoyed even better than the first (which I enjoyed quite a bit). Some nice character moments and plenty of action for the adrenalin crowd. I especially enjoyed Brubaker's exploration of the thin line between good and evil or at least the perception thereof. The writer in me always goes back and looks over the issues to see how Brubaker uses a nonlinear narrative to get the story across with just a little more tension. I still tend to write very linear so it's a technique I'm interested in to broaden my horizons. I also really enjoy Phillips' art and his inventive use of panel breakdowns.
Sandman Mystery Theatre--The Tarantula (Matt Wagner, Guy Davis)--The first trade of this series that (yes, I know, I know), I'm way behind in getting to. But please remember that I dropped out of comics for years and I'm having to slowly work my way through the best of what I missed. This certainly qualifies. I won't try to hide my bias--I'm a big fan of noir, the 20's and 30's era, and Matt Wagner so this was a no-brainer for me. Wagner does a great job with the script (I've got to start collecting some Grendel) and I liked his reinterpretation of Wesley Dodds. If I had read this when it first came out, I wouldn't have been hit so hard with how well Wagner is energizing an old Batman story in Batman and the Monster Men. My only suggestion is that Wesley should really work on his sneaking skills. He got caught quite a bit eaves-dropping in this one. Guy Davis did a good job on the art (it reminded me a little of O'Neil's work on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) although I would have liked to have seen some Wagner goodness on art as well.
Adam Strange--Planet Heist (Andy Diggle, Pascal Ferry)--Since I'm not even trying not to act as a fanboy, I'll go ahead and say I really like Diggle's writing too (plus he's all the time posting helpful stuff at The Engine). I was a little hesitant with this one because I've never been that big a fan of Adam Strange. I was a fan after this trade, however. Diggle succeeds in finding Adam's voice as a hero and committed family man and the voice works well. The series plays out like an old Saturday serial with lots of twists and turns and action. And, even though, this was a lead-in to the Rann/Thanagar mini, it read very easy as a stand-alone story. I usually read one issue of a trade and then read something else before coming back to it but this one I found myself reading through.
All right, here's some stuff I'm either reading or getting ready to read:
The Losers--Double Down
Fables--Storybook Love
JSA--Savage Times
Scars (Warren Ellis)
Plus I'm in book 2 of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan.
Hey, I just thought of a good post for next time. ;)
Sleeper--All False Moves (Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips)--The second trade of the series and one I enjoyed even better than the first (which I enjoyed quite a bit). Some nice character moments and plenty of action for the adrenalin crowd. I especially enjoyed Brubaker's exploration of the thin line between good and evil or at least the perception thereof. The writer in me always goes back and looks over the issues to see how Brubaker uses a nonlinear narrative to get the story across with just a little more tension. I still tend to write very linear so it's a technique I'm interested in to broaden my horizons. I also really enjoy Phillips' art and his inventive use of panel breakdowns.
Sandman Mystery Theatre--The Tarantula (Matt Wagner, Guy Davis)--The first trade of this series that (yes, I know, I know), I'm way behind in getting to. But please remember that I dropped out of comics for years and I'm having to slowly work my way through the best of what I missed. This certainly qualifies. I won't try to hide my bias--I'm a big fan of noir, the 20's and 30's era, and Matt Wagner so this was a no-brainer for me. Wagner does a great job with the script (I've got to start collecting some Grendel) and I liked his reinterpretation of Wesley Dodds. If I had read this when it first came out, I wouldn't have been hit so hard with how well Wagner is energizing an old Batman story in Batman and the Monster Men. My only suggestion is that Wesley should really work on his sneaking skills. He got caught quite a bit eaves-dropping in this one. Guy Davis did a good job on the art (it reminded me a little of O'Neil's work on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) although I would have liked to have seen some Wagner goodness on art as well.
Adam Strange--Planet Heist (Andy Diggle, Pascal Ferry)--Since I'm not even trying not to act as a fanboy, I'll go ahead and say I really like Diggle's writing too (plus he's all the time posting helpful stuff at The Engine). I was a little hesitant with this one because I've never been that big a fan of Adam Strange. I was a fan after this trade, however. Diggle succeeds in finding Adam's voice as a hero and committed family man and the voice works well. The series plays out like an old Saturday serial with lots of twists and turns and action. And, even though, this was a lead-in to the Rann/Thanagar mini, it read very easy as a stand-alone story. I usually read one issue of a trade and then read something else before coming back to it but this one I found myself reading through.
All right, here's some stuff I'm either reading or getting ready to read:
The Losers--Double Down
Fables--Storybook Love
JSA--Savage Times
Scars (Warren Ellis)
Plus I'm in book 2 of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan.
Hey, I just thought of a good post for next time. ;)
Monday, March 13, 2006
Great Books
First a disclaimer: this essay probably won't answer any of the questions I bring up or, at least, not answer them well. It's more of an exercise to get me thinking. Maybe I'll come up with the answers later. Maybe there aren't any answers.
I was thinking a little today on what makes a great book or series. Now, naming great books or series isn't that hard a task. Most fans will point you to Watchmen, Dark Knight Returns, and Sandman as examples of the high-water mark this medium can achieve. But what makes these works the benchmark by which all else is measured? Why is DKR almost universally praised and Dark Knight Strikes Again not?
I've been thinking about this because (as Warren Ellis and other writers have said) one of the tricks an aspiring writer should do is to take the books you love and find out why you love them. Take these stories and rip out their guts, find out what makes them tick. Why does Watchmen work? How does Moore used the traditional 9 panel grid as opposed to Ellis' "widescreen" approach on The Authority? And, in addition to the more technical aspects, there's the more intangible components as well. What is it about the story that makes you finish a book, put it down, and think about it? What makes you keep thinking about it days after you've read it? What separates it from a comic you read, like, and then bag up never to think about it again?
I ask a question in my Scryptic interviews of what does the writer think is more important: character, theme, or plot. Most answer (and rightfully so, I think) that the three are intertwined so much that it's almost impossible to separate them. Almost impossible. I think that one at least somewhat dominates the other two in any given work. And I think that different readers respond to different things. For instance, I am often drawn to character. One of my favorite Justice League United episodes is pretty lean on plot (simple track down a bad guy plot) and I don't think that there are any deep themes. Unless, of course, I just missed them. But there are so many character moments that are just gold. Birds of Prey is one of my favorite books and, while Gail Simone doesn't skimp on plot or theme, its the character moments in the book that I admire the most.
On the other hand, take V for Vendetta for example. It has some nice character moments sure but wouldn't you say that it's the theme of that work that makes it stand out? I think Alan Moore might since in his On Writing Comics he talks about the importance of theme.
The three elements are intertwined though and, even supporting the premise that one element stands out in any given story, the other elements have to be there and be well done for a book to be a classic. Hence, why there are so few classics.
There, a nice circular, little argument that proved nothing. ;) Maybe I'll return to this topic when I know more clear on what I'm talking about.
____________________
Every thing is humming along with my projects right now (which scares me a little in a neurotic way). Roger Stroud is sending me some fantastic pages for Off the Grid. We're talking the old story where the art is better than what you had imagined when you wrote it, so I'm really excited about that. The coloring for Magic Bullet is moving along and the inking for Chimera is moving too. It's a really exciting time for me.
First a disclaimer: this essay probably won't answer any of the questions I bring up or, at least, not answer them well. It's more of an exercise to get me thinking. Maybe I'll come up with the answers later. Maybe there aren't any answers.
I was thinking a little today on what makes a great book or series. Now, naming great books or series isn't that hard a task. Most fans will point you to Watchmen, Dark Knight Returns, and Sandman as examples of the high-water mark this medium can achieve. But what makes these works the benchmark by which all else is measured? Why is DKR almost universally praised and Dark Knight Strikes Again not?
I've been thinking about this because (as Warren Ellis and other writers have said) one of the tricks an aspiring writer should do is to take the books you love and find out why you love them. Take these stories and rip out their guts, find out what makes them tick. Why does Watchmen work? How does Moore used the traditional 9 panel grid as opposed to Ellis' "widescreen" approach on The Authority? And, in addition to the more technical aspects, there's the more intangible components as well. What is it about the story that makes you finish a book, put it down, and think about it? What makes you keep thinking about it days after you've read it? What separates it from a comic you read, like, and then bag up never to think about it again?
I ask a question in my Scryptic interviews of what does the writer think is more important: character, theme, or plot. Most answer (and rightfully so, I think) that the three are intertwined so much that it's almost impossible to separate them. Almost impossible. I think that one at least somewhat dominates the other two in any given work. And I think that different readers respond to different things. For instance, I am often drawn to character. One of my favorite Justice League United episodes is pretty lean on plot (simple track down a bad guy plot) and I don't think that there are any deep themes. Unless, of course, I just missed them. But there are so many character moments that are just gold. Birds of Prey is one of my favorite books and, while Gail Simone doesn't skimp on plot or theme, its the character moments in the book that I admire the most.
On the other hand, take V for Vendetta for example. It has some nice character moments sure but wouldn't you say that it's the theme of that work that makes it stand out? I think Alan Moore might since in his On Writing Comics he talks about the importance of theme.
The three elements are intertwined though and, even supporting the premise that one element stands out in any given story, the other elements have to be there and be well done for a book to be a classic. Hence, why there are so few classics.
There, a nice circular, little argument that proved nothing. ;) Maybe I'll return to this topic when I know more clear on what I'm talking about.
____________________
Every thing is humming along with my projects right now (which scares me a little in a neurotic way). Roger Stroud is sending me some fantastic pages for Off the Grid. We're talking the old story where the art is better than what you had imagined when you wrote it, so I'm really excited about that. The coloring for Magic Bullet is moving along and the inking for Chimera is moving too. It's a really exciting time for me.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
NEVER ENOUGH TIME
Finally got around to watching an episode of House tonight (half an episode really) and really liked it. Nice, snappy banter. The problem is that I don't watch that much television other than the odd Simpsons, Doctor Who, or JLU (oh, and Family Guy too). Now many people might think that this is a good thing and, normally, I would tend to agree with them but a lot of the writers I respect talk about how they watch shows like Deadwood and enjoy the great dialogue and such. I wonder if watching these types of shows helps with dialogue, pacing, and other writer thingies. Plus there's great shows on PBS and the History channel with a whole gold mine of topics that can be plundered for possible story ideas. So, seeing that we're all of limited time, what are the absolute essential shows that we, as writers, should all be watching?
And then there's reading. So many things I want to read--comics, novels, nonfiction, magazines. But there's never enough time to get it all in. If only there was a job where I could get paid to read this stuff. And, always looming, but in a good way, is the approach of the Crumb Snatcher. I've resolved to always make enough time to practice my writing but I know that it'll be hard at times.
In the totally without segue department, try to find the Natalie Portman gangsta rap video from last Saturday's SNL if you can. Great stuff. Their new video productions are about the only bright spot lately.
_________________________
Work wise, the inker for Chimera had email problems so she's back on the case which is good. The artist interested in Off the Grid has been sending me some sketches and they look great. Plus the colored pages for Magic Bullet have started to come in. Hopefully, one (or, better yet, all of these things) will take off. You can't say I'm not trying.
Finally got around to watching an episode of House tonight (half an episode really) and really liked it. Nice, snappy banter. The problem is that I don't watch that much television other than the odd Simpsons, Doctor Who, or JLU (oh, and Family Guy too). Now many people might think that this is a good thing and, normally, I would tend to agree with them but a lot of the writers I respect talk about how they watch shows like Deadwood and enjoy the great dialogue and such. I wonder if watching these types of shows helps with dialogue, pacing, and other writer thingies. Plus there's great shows on PBS and the History channel with a whole gold mine of topics that can be plundered for possible story ideas. So, seeing that we're all of limited time, what are the absolute essential shows that we, as writers, should all be watching?
And then there's reading. So many things I want to read--comics, novels, nonfiction, magazines. But there's never enough time to get it all in. If only there was a job where I could get paid to read this stuff. And, always looming, but in a good way, is the approach of the Crumb Snatcher. I've resolved to always make enough time to practice my writing but I know that it'll be hard at times.
In the totally without segue department, try to find the Natalie Portman gangsta rap video from last Saturday's SNL if you can. Great stuff. Their new video productions are about the only bright spot lately.
_________________________
Work wise, the inker for Chimera had email problems so she's back on the case which is good. The artist interested in Off the Grid has been sending me some sketches and they look great. Plus the colored pages for Magic Bullet have started to come in. Hopefully, one (or, better yet, all of these things) will take off. You can't say I'm not trying.
