"Just" Work for Hire

I went back and forth about whether or not I'd actually write this post, but I think it's pretty important. I've been lucky enough in my career in comics to meet a bunch of awesome and talented people, and I'm grateful for that. I read a comic today that made me pretty mad, though, and it made me decide to write a post about an experience I had with the writer of said book at this past New York Comic Con.

This writer is a really well-known creator of a bunch of wonderful indie books. Books I love. When NYCC rolled around, though, his latest release was the first issue of a series he'd written for a company owned property. I still respect and love the guy's work, so I won't give anymore than that. Anyway, I walked up to his booth, did the whole "nice to meet you" thing, and told him how much I loved his first issue of _________.

He looked at me as if I'd just said "Would you like a bite of this shit sandwich, good sir? I made it myself. Just now."

Nervous that I'd somehow walked up to the wrong table, I laughed and said, "You... you did write that book, right?"

He nodded and said, "Yeah, but it was just work for hire. Did it a while ago. I guess they're putting it out now."

Flabbergasted and a bit put off, I nodded, talked with him for a minute or two more, bought one of his other books, and left. Hoping he was just having an off day, I went online and searched to see if he had posted anything about having written this book. Annnd he did. He did an interview that talked about that book and another property he was writing (one that I love). In this interview, his response was dismissive of the interviewer's question and he even reiterated that both of these projects were work for hire, so that the devout fans shouldn't expect much.

...What.

I was let down that a creator I respect would say this about any work of his, much less work that I enjoyed. And as his just-work-for-hire series went on, I noticed the drop in quality every issue. As it went on, the levels of shits not given increased exponentially, climaxing in the final issue, which I got around to reading today.

And here's my thoughts. Some pretty cool blog recently described me as an "up-and-coming comics writer" so I'll go with that. My first gig was my dream gig... Angel. Working in a world that Joss Whedon, my writerly hero, created was more than I could have hoped for - but I only had two pages with which to tell my story. I made those two pages the best damn two pages I was capable of. And after that, did I fulfill my second dream of doing a Supergirl/Stephanie Brown/Stargirl team book? Naw, I got some work for hire. I've been writing comics for Zenescope ever since and, yeah, it's work for hire, but there is no "just" in the equation. I was offered a shot at writing a good portion of their 1000 Ways to Die graphic novel. I'd never seen the show, but you can bet I watched every episode I could before I went to script.

Point is this... if you, as a writer or artist or actor or whatever, can't find it in yourself to care about what you're writing, then don't write it. Just don't write it. I am the last person to say "never write for money" because, let's face it, that's an inherently flawed piece of advice to give to writers. If you're a Career Writer, what you're doing is attempting to make a living out of writing - you write for money. The dangerous thing is when you start looking at work for hire as a "just" instead of a privilege and a challenge to live up to. Thing is, there are hundreds of other hungry, talented writers out there who would love to get their hands on the book you are currently not giving a shit about.

And so help you if you give a fan a weird look for saying they like your work, even if it's something you just pulled out of your ass for a check. The day I do that is the day I stop writing.

Writing Grimm Fairy Tales for Zenescope

Hey all. Big news!

A while back, I teased that I got a big comics job. The covers came out yesterday, so it seems that I can talk about it. I'm writing the 2011 Holiday Special of Zenescope Entertainment's GRIMM FAIRY TALES comic. The series has been running for 60+ issues, and is one of the longest running comics not being published by Marvel or DC. I'm thrilled to have written for these wonderful characters.

The solicitation information hasn't been updated (the credits and the plot description are wrong), but just look at those covers below. I am so, so excited for this. It should be out in mid December this year. You can order from the site below site or pre-order at your local comic shop.

Two different versions of the comic will be released. One with this painted cover:

Which you can pre-order here.

And here's the other cover, which is a bit more playful.

Which you can pre-order here.

For those interested, GRIMM FAIRY TALES is a horror comic that began as a series of modern retellings of the classic fairy tales. However, the series ended up developing its own mythology, building its own world, and creating an long, epic story arc.

My story, told in this 42 page comic, tells a very modern version of "A Christmas Carol." It's super fun to riff off of Dickens' work, as I was an English major in college, but the best part was writing for the characters in this series. Sela, the lead character, is outright kick-ass.

Be sure to pre-order from TFAW. They have it discounted.

I love the universe and am eager to work on more of their books, so let's make this book a big hit!

I hope you guys dig this!

Writing Advice - Give A Shit

I've wanted to do this for a while, and reading Stephen King's excellent On Writing memoir/book-of-transformative-writing-advice has pushed me to finally give it a go. I posted two vlogs on this topic a while ago, but I think--as per the title of this blog--I might be better at actually writing said advice than going all John/Hank Green on YouTube. I'm going to steer clear of all the cliches good and bad that seem to encompass most writing books and just tell you what I think will improve your writing. Hell, this is the stuff that I personally struggle with the most, so maybe it'll help the both of us.

Let's go.

Writerly Advice #1

Give a Shit

This seems so simple that you're probably wondering if this post is even worth reading. Let me tell you, though... this little piece of obvious advice might be what I struggle with most as a writer. As I write this, I'm reaching the end of a first draft of a story that I, until a few moments ago, was planning on submitting to a small press anthology for publication. This is, as I'm nearing the end, I'm realizing that the story isn't really about anything. It's true that theme (which is really just meaning) can be added in the second draft, but sometimes it is that meaning, the message of the story, that makes you as a writer care enough to want to finish the story.

Your story doesn't have to be a comment on the state of politics or an examination of human nature. It doesn't have to make an overarching statement that will make academic types stroke their pretentious beards and go "Ah, yes, I see." The only important thing when you're writing is that you care. Unfortunately, sometimes, you'll end up writing something that you don't give a shit about. There are many ways to fix that, and most of them include examining what you have, cutting out the bullshit, and injecting some of yourself into the story. Hell, my story right now is a comedic piece about a group of supernatural who, while trying to be heroes, realize that sometimes they do have to play the part of the monster. I think the central concept is a pretty good idea, and the first few pages poured out of my fingers in a wave of inspiration. But as I'm coming to the end, I realized that while I was in love with the set-up, I didn't take the time to develop the characters enough to care what happens to them or, most importantly, for their realization at the end of the story to matter to me. And hey, if the story doesn't matter to the person who is writing it, you know the reader isn't going to give a shit.

So when you're wondering why you're having such a hard time with your story, ask yourself if you give a shit about where the characters are headed and what has happened with the story. And be honest. If the answer is "no," that's okay. You'll live, and your story might too. In the case of lack of shit giveage, just look at what you've got. Who are your characters? Do you care about them? If so, awesome... give them something to do that will make them make choices that will either shock you or reaffirm your love for them. If not... ask yourself why, and see if you can add something to them that will make you care. Don't get me wrong--you don't have to like them. You just have to care. You have to be interested, because only then can you be interesting.

Why are you writing this story?

I have to go work on this story because right now, I couldn't give the tiniest shit. Let's see if I can fix that.