Gail Simone's Blog, page 302

It may be really weird, but I'm very interested in the sex lives of fictional characters. For instance, I've always wondered if Catman's junk was barbed or if he exudes feline-enhanced pheromones to attract a mate. Same with Animal Man. Like, what if th

Catman just exudes Catman, which is far better than pheromones.

Animal Man, if I remember correctly, doesn’t exhibit traits specific to a single animal, he borrows their natural abilities. It’s like he’s taking his powers from redheads, not a specific redhead. So I don’t see how the latter example fits. 

Been rereading the pre-New52 "Secret Six", and wanted to ask about something that's been bugging me for quite a while now. Is Catman REALLY a shark?

No.

LOOK.

It’s perfectly simple. King Shark is a SHARK.

Catman is a BUTT with a DUDE attached. 

SIMPLE!

Dear Ms. Simone. I am writing my first script for a comic book. And now i realized my main bad guy, a mob boss,is gay and in love with his right hand man. Is that offensive since the gay guy is also the main villain? Thank you for your time.

Okay. Two things.

First, I am not any kind of authority or expert on what is acceptable to LGBTQ people. I still get asked these questions all the time, even from other pros, and I have to say, I just don’t understand it. There are lovely LGBTQ people who are incredibly generous with their time who could answer your question with their own personal knowledge borne of life experience. If you want to know about gay people, I say ask gay people, it’s not like they don’t exist.

Second, all questions that start, ‘is this offensive?’ have the same answer, which is that it depends on execution. Are your characters stereotypes? Do they present as remotely human? Are they given agency and detail? Are they merely presented as salacious? 

One writer could make a story about a rock at the bottom of the ocean incredibly offensive and another might make a story about stereotypes uplifting and life-changing. EVERYTHING is in the execution. 

Random: not asking for any sort of specifics, but have you ever had a truly horrible con? Like, the whole thing was just a complete disaster from start to finish?

Yes, the Mighty Mini Con in upstate New York, I think the town was called Herkimer. It was one of the very first cons I went to, and the owner lied to us and to everyone else attending non-stop, and quite a few (including myself) were cheated and never fully reimbursed. For most, it was a total loss. 

I didn’t know any better, he had a pattern of deception—he would flatter the person he wanted something from endlessly, promise them everything, and then get them to give him whatever he wanted…comics, financial backing, whatever. In my case, he asked me to pay for my flight there, and he would reimburse me when I got there.

It was such a nasty, miserable experience, I almost stopped attending small cons entirely. And dozens more had the same experience or worse. He didn’t ever do the work necessary, he just wanted to be considered a big wheel in comics. He didn’t book a room for us, when we tried to check in, his card was declined, it just went on and on. 

It really soured me, I thought, holy crap, is this what cons are like?

It turns out they are NOT like that. I still to this day never attend a con without checking its reputation with friends, because of that horrid experience. But I have never, ever had a really bad con experience like that since. Most cons are run by lovely people, as well as hard working staff and volunteers. I have rarely been treated poorly at any con since, and many times, I have made good friends with the organizers (big and small) and think of them almost as family. 

I had a pretty bad time at a con in Toronto once, the con was freshly purchased and no one was in charge, but even in that case, it was more confusion than malice.

Cons are great. I have to attend fewer this year for a lot of reasons, but it still hurts to turn down earnest requests from lovely people all over the world. Last year I had to turn down well over a hundred, and this year it’s even more. But the MOST I can do is a con every six weeks or so on average, and I like to take the Winter off, where possible. 

Aspiring pros, ASK AROUND. I don’t think there are many con organizers like that any more, the market doesn’t seem to support them. But it’s good to know who you are dealing with, your well-being and career are temporarily in that person’s hands. Ask around. :)

A Question

Do you do any of the LootCrate, Horror Block, or Marvel Crate-type thingies?

As a geek who loves surprises, I find them really interesting, but I’ve never subscribed to one. If you have, do you like it? What do you like about it?

Would you be willing to behave like a jerk in a public forum for no reason but my to gratify my personal sense of superiority? No? Didn't think so.

Are you kidding?

I’ve done that for NO REASON AT ALL!  :)

So, I was writing some pages today, and I realized I was writing the two women in the Seven (my badass group of warriors) as best friends, and actually liking each other. Wait, is that allowed? ;)

It’s allowed, it’s just not that common!

Is there any, any possible method of getting one of your scripts if one can't attend ECCC? I didn't know how bad I needed a Batgirl: Futures End script until you mentioned them. :(

Hmmm.

I have put scripts up online before, but it’s kind of time-consuming and I am not able to do it right at the moment. 

If you are just looking for scripts in general to study, this is a great resource:  http://www.comicbookscriptarchive.com/archive/the-scripts/

But if you are looking for one of mine, if you guys remind me when I am back from ECCC, I will try to put one up!  Thanks!

Would you be willing to name some awful women who work in the comics business? Or just some not particularly talented ones? Didn't think so.

What the hell?

Who said I was talking about comics?

For the record, I absolutely wasn’t. 

So, talking about this thing at ECCC, the offer is still good, absolutely (sometimes you just need a...

So, talking about this thing at ECCC, the offer is still good, absolutely (sometimes you just need a smiling face and a safe place for a moment). I make this offer at any convention I am ever attending, any time I have a table.  It is not about ECCC at all. 

But it really also sounds very clear that ECCC is taking this stuff very, very seriously and they had a response here that I think is super helpful.

“We encourage anyone who has been harassed or witnessed such an instant to report it to us if they wish to do so. There will be a “Report An Incident” feature in our mobile app to do so, and you can also talk to us directly through our social media accounts, or talk to any ECCC staff member (identifiable by their green t-shirts and black polo shirts). You are also welcome to go to either of our Information Booths (WSCC fourth floor and sixth floor). We will help you. “

I’ve been hearing from cosplayers who attended ECCC who told me that they have an OUTSTANDING response program at ECCC. So my offer is not at all reflective of any lack of security on ECCC’s part. Cool?  :)

It’s just another place to sit for a moment if you feel the need, and we will make sure you are safe and help if additional steps need to be taken. 

ECCC is great, one of my favorite cons. And I am delighted to hear from cosplayers that they are taking this stuff seriously!