Words Without Pictures

by Steve Niles (Editor), Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman

Words Without Pictures is a collection of prose stories and poems written by people known primarily for writing or drawing comic books. With the exception of the introduction (by Matt Feazell of "Zot in Dimension 10 1/2" fame) which reverses the concept of the book by being pictures without words, and spot illustrations of the authors by John Bolton, there are no drawings.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Anthologies, Horror

180 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

STEVE NILES is one of the writers responsible for bringing horror comics back to prominence, and was recently named by Fangoria magazine as one of it's "13 rising talents who promise to keep us terrified for the next 25 years."

Niles is currently working for the four top American comic publishers - Marvel, DC, Image and Dark Horse. He got his start in the industry when he formed his own publishing company called Arcane Comix, where he published, edited and adapted several comics and anthologies for Eclipse Comics. His adaptations include works by Clive Barker, Richard Matheson and Harlan Ellison.

Steve resides in Los Angeles in his bachelor pad with one cat. While there's no crawlspace, there is a questionable closet in one corner and no one is quite sure what is hidden in there...but we have an idea.

--from the author's website

Reviews

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some really great prose in this collection. And widely varied as well. A bit of speculative, a dash of literary and a sprinkling of weird. All in all a great collection, shame some of these writers are writers I'd never had of. Will def be on the look out, especially for Ann Nocenti & Mark Evanier. My fav stories in the collection are Alan Moore's The Hypothetical Lizard, Neil Gaiman's Foreign Parts, Ann Nocenti's A Shot of Damns and a Pack of Hells.

[Theresa Marsala · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this short story among many others in his collection Smoke & Mirrors. I loved how Gaiman takes a seemingly simple idea of everyday life & turns it on its side towards the end so you smile & chuckle to yourself when you've finished reading his tale.

[D.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's probably not a good sign that I've had this book for 35 years and genuinely can't remember if I've read it before now.
The premise is pretty simple: gather up some of the biggest names in comics writing (as of its publication in 1990) and get them to write some short, unillustrated pieces. Unfortunately, for most of the writers included here, the lack of the comics form is to their detriment. Writers who have since gone on to great success as prose authors (most notably Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman) are the strongest contenders here, submitting some engaging storytelling and (in Moore's piece) stunningly lovely imagery. Some of the writers here were and are better known as illustrators (Charles Vess, Stephen Bissette and Jon J. Muth) so can perhaps be forgiven for their writing not being especially strong. But the entries from period mainstays Ann Nocenti and Mark Evanier read like comic-book grade writing, with heavy-handed allegory and paper-thin characterization.
Anthologies are always a mixed bag, and when we're lucky the balance leans toward the better. This time, though, the premise belies the weakness of the comics medium as a writer's form and this collection is better left to completists of the authors herein. (I'd also like to add that the proofreading for this volume is appalling.)
All the stories in this edition are printed here for the first time, save Vess' 'A Short Tale of a Young Man Who Would Have Been A Priest.' Each story has an accompanying caricature of its author by John Bolton. There is a one-page comic-strip 'introduction' by Matt Feazell and a final one-page listing of other offerings from this publisher.
This hardcover first edition has a gloss-on-matte dustjacket, and the inner cover is emblazoned with a silver sun.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an odd, compelling book! The stories are magnificent, there isn't a bad story among them. The stories have themes around sadness, grief, fear, change, love, and sex. I really enjoyed this book! Interesting that the first story, by Alan Moore, was the only one that didn't fully keep my interest, and I had the same experience with The Watchmen.

[Jenifer]

The only story I remember clearly is Alan Moore's "The Hypothetical Lizard". I would love to read that again, and compare it to the Pump Six collection...