Welcome to Pageturners, a book I’m writing in which I share what I’ve learnt – and am still learning – about comic writing, film writing, novel writing and how new writers can sell their stories. I’ll publish a chapter or a section per week, available for free here on Iconoblast. And I welcome your feedback or questions, so do leave a comment below!
Missed the Pageturners intro? Read it here.
GRAPHIC NOVELS
Graphic novels can be published as print on demand, so I’ll linger on them here. They can range from young adult fiction – like Manga Assassination Classroom – to harrowing autobiographies like Black by Tobias Taitt and Anthony Smith. I have no personal experience of customised graphic novels except as a consumer. Thus Marshal Law and Charley’s War were originally collections of comics, even though they are often described as graphic novels today.
But I’m a great admirer of Black, which features a black, working-class kid growing up in London. And Chartwell Manor by Eric Reynolds, published by Fantagraphics.
My Muse doesn’t seem interested in me following that path. If your definition of a graphic novel is an autobiography, or a serious tome with a certain gravitas. It’s surprising because I’ve certainly got plenty of material that would fit this definition. My appalling school, for example. Rather, my Muse is only interested in mainstream, accessible popular culture, and graphic novels that might fit that category.
So when a leading comic professional once asked me, ‘Where are you going to write a graphic novel?’ I told him I wasn’t, but excitedly explained my then involvement in a down-market Bovril Brigade comic. His look of incomprehension probably matches your own. You can find out more about the project in this Daily Mail article, or in this piece from Down The Tubes.
But that’s because said Bovril comic would have enabled me to reach a wide working class audience of kids, ordinary readers as opposed to hobbyists. It would have encouraged them to tell their personal stories of courage. Modern day genuine heroes, as opposed to idiots in capes who have shamefully debased the word ‘hero’. That was the plan, but it didn’t go beyond Issue One, which was a pity because it had enormous potential. Its lack of ‘prestige’ didn’t bother me in the slightest. It is snobbery and elitism that has taken comics out of the hands of kids and into the hands of middle-class and middle-aged adults with a consequent drop in sales of about 80%. Sometimes I think I’m the only one in the business who finds this appalling. Most of my peers seem quite happy about it or even claim it’s progress. But it’s the newsstand audience I – or rather my Muse – is interested in: kids of all ages, as I’ve said many times.
NEWSSTAND ANTHOLOGIES
Anthologies are complex beasts. They come from a British tradition of weekly and monthly comics like Warrior in the UK, Metal Hurlant and Pilote in France and Heavy Metal in the USA.
It’s unlikely that most reading Pageturners will be in a position to originate an anthology, but it’s still worth knowing the ins and outs of them. Just in case. Not least because of the newsstand factor. There’s no reason why a single story shouldn’t sell on the newsstand, but it’s rarely considered, which I find baffling. Creators often don’t think beyond comic shops, which is limiting their market potential.
So let’s start with adult anthologies. They are hugely dependant on top talent – such as fondly remembered Warrior – although I understand even that talent wasn’t enough. Other later anthologies attempting to be another Warrior have not really worked in any significant way, despite being endlessly feted by fandom. Something similar happened to Metal Hurlant which – in my view – was the stronger title and inspired much of my thinking on 2000AD. As a point of interest, Pilote eventually shut down because some serialised stories were in black and white, and fans would wait for the colour album collection. The same problem emerged on 2000AD with fans waiting for the album versions. Those days are largely gone because Rebellion are not collecting stories as they once did – simply cherry picking sure-fire bets from the past. It’s a sign of a declining or ageing market, in my opinion.
So why go through all the grief that an anthology involves? Six artists and maybe six writers to deal with?
Firstly, there’s huge affection for anthologies in Britain. It’s why 2000AD is still out there. Parents endlessly talk about wanting to see girls comics and sports comics as they had in their youth. Secondly, it reduces the risk if a creator screws up. They can be replaced without affecting the rest of the stories. And thirdly, there’s an immediacy and an excitement about an anthology.
The comics industry has a mantra, which goes along the lines of, ‘Nothing works. Everything fails. Let’s just sit around and talk about the good old days when comics were great.’ That’s exactly the same defeatism John Wagner and I encountered when we first entered comics in the 1970s and – together with Gerry Finley-Day – brought about change and revival.
But people outside the comic industry are not weighed down with this negative mindset. Hence the success of Viz and the original Eagle – both produced by outsiders, and both hated by industry professionals.
So with this in mind, let’s look at some of the possibilities for a newsstand anthology comic today. Bear in mind, a single story could emerge from any of them and may be a preferred option.