Gail Simone's Blog, page 1123

Hi Gail! This is a question that may involve spoilers for future stories you might be planning to write, so if you don't want to go into detail I will absolutely understand and not mind. But I just wanted to ask, is there ANY chance at all of seeing any tr

There is an EXTREMELY good chance of seeing a trans character as a regular in one of my books, that's already in place. I would like to have a trans hero, it needs to happen, but I don't have any slots where I can really CREATE new heroes in the books I'm doing right now. It's on my mind a lot, I hope to get to it soon. But supporting characters, yes!

If I may ask a sensitive question.. What is your opinion on Geoff creating and writing a character based on his own departed sister? Personally, I find it inspiring. I'm a wanna-be writer myself and I lost my sister at a very young age due to something awf

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Well, it clearly meant a lot to Geoff, and the character herself was so joyful, I can only see it as a loving, positive tribute. I'm sorry to hear about your sister…I think most writers do honor their loved ones in some way in their work, whether it's as directly as Courtney or not.

If I may ask a sensitive question.. What is your opinion on Geoff creating and writing a character based on his own departed sister? Personally, I find it inspiring. I'm a wanna-be writer myself and I lost my sister at a very young age due to something awf

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Well, it clearly meant a lot to Geoff, and the character herself was so joyful, I can only see it as a loving, positive tribute. I'm sorry to hear about your sister…I think most writers do honor their loved ones in some way in their work, whether it's as directly as Courtney or not.

If I may ask a sensitive question.. What is your opinion on Geoff creating and writing a character based on his own departed sister? Personally, I find it inspiring. I'm a wanna-be writer myself and I lost my sister at a very young age due to something awf

******

Well, it clearly meant a lot to Geoff, and the character herself was so joyful, I can only see it as a loving, positive tribute. I'm sorry to hear about your sister…I think most writers do honor their loved ones in some way in their work, whether it's as directly as Courtney or not.

My husband and I both love The Atom. It was one of the comics he used to woo into comic book reading. My (our) question is, did you have any other storylines planned out for Ryan Choi, Head, and Panda?

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I loved writing the Atom, love Ryan Choi. I've always liked the IDEA of the Atom, and I like Ray Palmer, but I wanted to see an Atom that really touched the weird science vibe, someone youthful and fun, with superior acrobatic skills.

The book was great fun, and sold better than DC expected, but there were eventually other projects that beckoned and they wanted to turn it into less of a light-hearted book and I just didn't have any interest in that. The book always had dark elements, but Ryan was created to be a positive, joyous character and I didn't want to ruin that.

Fortunately, he's back. It's an interesting story…they did that hellaciously awful story where they killed Ryan, which I hated, I admit it, I thought it was awful. But it turns out a lot of people at DC and in the fanbase LIKED him. Some important people, like Dan DiDio, who liked Ryan a lot.

More importantly, in a way, the people doing the DC animated shows also liked Ryan, and when they used the Atom, they wanted Ryan. I think that that made a difference…I think it's part of why he's back, he got a good response in the animated shows.

It was nice to have an Asian lead who wasn't about martial arts, didn't fit the normal stereotypes. I loved the character, loved his setting…it was just great fun.

I had a couple aha moments about the character, actually. My son speaks Japanese and helps when Japanese exchange students come over from Japan from our town's sister city. And he told them I write comics, they asked what kind…I said Wonder Woman. None of them recognized that name at all. But they knew Ryan Choi, from the cartoons. That said something.

And when I was in Singapore (not trying to lump all Asians together here, by the way…obviously, these are very, very different cultures and countries), several people came up and actually cried because of Ryan's death. It meant something to them that an Asian had a fun, lead role in a superhero book at DC.

So I think bringing him back is lovely, he made an impact.

As for future stories, I had lots. I really wanted to do some time travel stuff with him, since that was a big part of the Ray Palmer series. I would have loved to have him meet some of the DC monsters. He's a great POV character since his background is so different.

Thank you for the kind words, I miss that guy, too!

Hi Ms. Simone! I have a quick question. Do you know anything about what editors do in the comics industry? And if so, how does one become an editor? I'm sorry if it's a weird question and it's alright if you can't answer it. Thank you for your time!

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Sure, editors are really the caretakers of a book in the strictest sense. They are the conduit between the creative team and publishing, for one thing. They oversee the flow of the creative work of the entire team, and make sure everything is running smoothly. They proofread every stage of the book, and they consult on plots and script and art and covers and colors, and they usually do the hiring of the creative teams. They often write or compile the solicit copy. They oversee the outlines for future issues of a book.

A great editor is a huge, huge help to a book. Guys like Ben Abernathy, Michael Marts, Joan Hilty,  Matt Idleson, those people really help make a book sing. A great editor hopefully also supports and encourages the creative team. A bad editor is a nightmare—I've had a few (thankfully few) editors where it was just very very difficult to get books out with the quality I hoped for. An insecure editor, or an editor who secretly wants to be a writer, that is absolute hell.

But there aren't that many like that, most are wonderful people who put up with a lot of nonsense from both publishers and the creative team without getting the credit they deserve. It is a tough, tough and often thankless job. I couldn't do it. Sometimes they have to be the bad guy and I'm sure that's no fun, either.

As for getting a job as an editor, first, you absolutely have to live near the offices. For DC, that means New York or their West Coast offices. Close enough to commute. Second, usually you have to work your way up…start as a staffer, go to assistant or associate editor, to editor, to group editor. It's hard, and like I say, they don't really get the credit they deserve, and there is a LOT of stress from spoiled and irresponsible creators and sometimes baffling publishers. So it's not something to be taken lightly. But some editors do love being part of the process of making great comics, so there's that!

Bread Makes You FAT?!: If You Write Fanfic...

Bread Makes You FAT?!: If You Write Fanfic...:

clownyprincess:

pivitor:

Also, some writers are come across as very entitled.  They'll demand that they get a certain amount of reviews before writing the next chapter, or someone will leave them a review with some constructive criticism and they'll get mad and delete the story, etc. etc.

Finishing stories is a very big problem in fan fic, and I admit, I'm guilty of it myself.  Becoming invested in any story is a gamble, because you never know when the writer will just decide to abandon it and never update again.  That's part of why fan-fiction isn't a great place to receive constructive criticism; many reviewers are scared to leave any, because they don't want to scare away the writers before they finish their story.

These are things I totally forgot to mention but are very, very true of my experience also. There's simply nothing worse than becoming devoted to an awesome fanfiction only for the author to abandon it… devastating!

I hate the review-entitlement attitude too… I LOVE getting reviews, like any fanfic author, but I don't make it a proviso of writing. That's ridiculous. If you write fanfic just to be popular or get glory, then you're writing it for the wrong reasons. Also, nowhere near as many people leave reviews as those who read… I accept that and am grateful for every review I get (and I know I get way more than some people ever do) and I love concrit. I try to leave reviews as much as possible too - cos I know how meaningful it is. If a fic is really terrible, I just tend to not bother - I don't want to tear someone down. I tend to leave concrit for fanfic that is otherwise awesome and that I believe in its potential.  I think the review system is one of the things that fuel the fanfic community - but yeah, you totally cannot force people to do it and it's just bratty to get entitled about it. Though I would like to see it become more established in the culture as par for the course. I have seen some fandoms attempt this with initiatives such as review-a-thons and such. 

Reblogging because this conversation got kind of fascinating.

Thanks for answering questions. Are there any characters that you would absolutely not want to write? Any characters that just don't interest you, and why?

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I used to think so…but there's a weird thing about writing in the DC and Marvel universes. You end up finding something to love about the characters after you get to write them. I wasn't a HUGE Bane fan, not really, until I got to sit down and reread some stuff, and see another side of him. Same with J'onn, I was just never a fan. Then you write them, you eventually see why people dig them.

I'm not a big fan of Metamorpho, or Iron Man, I don't care for Ant Man, there are a few like that, but now I know if I DID write them, likely I would gain an appreciation for them, it's just what happens time and again.

I talked with Matt Fraction about this—he said he was asked to do Thor and turned it down, he just didn't have a take. Then he saw a Jack Kirby illustration (I think it was Kirby) and the whole Thor myth hit him right in the face, suddenly. He got it. That's what happens…if you DON'T experience that at some point, you're in trouble!

You have never shied away from the sexuality of the characters you have written and I was wondering if you ever had an opportunity or interest in writing erotica? I know there have been some great erotic comics like Small Favors, XXXenophile and Omaha the

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That's an interesting question. Hmm.

I must say, I don't know that I have any huge interest in writing erotica for its own sake…but a narrative that was more explicit, I'd be fine with that. There was a little while where some of my favorite artists were doing very explicit erotica, and I  bought them, but I often found myself wishing they would go back to their previous projects. For me, some of the comics erotica I've seen seemed to be 90% sex and 10% characterization. 

With something like Omaha, I think that was more successful because it not only had the excellent character work, it was conceived to be what it was, an adult book with sexual theme. I did read a few XXXophiles, that was Phil Foglio, right?  I haven't read small favors.

I'm sure there are a billion people who would do that sort of book better than I would. But I would have no problems with a longer fiction that had characters doing stuff upon each other.

Also, I should add, my experience in this regard is a little limited, I haven't read that many comics that I would call erotica, as opposed to just, like, say the underground comics that had sex in them but would likely not get that label, "erotica." So there may be a ton of lovely stuff out there I just haven't seen.

You have never shied away from the sexuality of the characters you have written and I was wondering if you ever had an opportunity or interest in writing erotica? I know there have been some great erotic comics like Small Favors, XXXenophile and Omaha the

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That's an interesting question. Hmm.

I must say, I don't know that I have any huge interest in writing erotica for its own sake…but a narrative that was more explicit, I'd be fine with that. There was a little while where some of my favorite artists were doing very explicit erotica, and I  bought them, but I often found myself wishing they would go back to their previous projects. For me, some of the comics erotica I've seen seemed to be 90% sex and 10% characterization. 

With something like Omaha, I think that was more successful because it not only had the excellent character work, it was conceived to be what it was, an adult book with sexual theme. I did read a few XXXophiles, that was Phil Foglio, right?  I haven't read small favors.

I'm sure there are a billion people who would do that sort of book better than I would. But I would have no problems with a longer fiction that had characters doing stuff upon each other.

Also, I should add, my experience in this regard is a little limited, I haven't read that many comics that I would call erotica, as opposed to just, like, say the underground comics that had sex in them but would likely not get that label, "erotica." So there may be a ton of lovely stuff out there I just haven't seen.