The Comic Masters: Todd McFarlane, Neil Gaiman, Frank Miller and Others on Writing Comics

Review: Writers on Comics Scriptwriting By Mark Salisbury

Mark Salisbury tells a series of success stories in the world of comics in this page-turner.

"...Amongst the doom and gloom painted by comics industry analysts, there beats, ironically, the heart of a medium at the peak of its creative powers." So writes Mark Salisbury in his intro to Writers on Comics Scriptwriting. Writers on Comics Scriptwriting is crafted over a series of interviews with the leading comic writers of the day: Kurt Busiek, Peter David, Chuck Dixon, Warren Ellis, Garth Ennis, Neil Gaiman, Devin Grayson, Dan Jurgens, Joe Kelly, Jeph Loeb, Todd McFarlane, Frank Miller, Grant Morrison, and Mark Waid. Make no mistake this is a veritable who's who of comic book publishing, and while some names are missing (Alan Moore being the foremost) Salisbury works well with the talent at his disposal. Salisbury uses commentary to support the books main purpose-to help new writers break into the field-and follows through by offering the reader actual scripts from each writer.

The interviews are short, concise, and thorough. They are spread over an average of 17 pages per writer. A brief overview of each writer is given before the interview begins, along with the title of his or her first published work. The book is at times surprising (Grant Morrison's first hand accounts of mysterious beings) and at others tantalizing (every writer is asked his writing habits, what he reads, and what other professions he pursues). One on one discussions with writers has been done before, but Salisbury is able to get away with it by combining some of the best comic voices into one volume.