I have aspired to be a writer for years, and feel I do a fair job at it, although I have drawn royalties exactly once. My desire has always been to break into comics, but I have a sneaking suspicion I will have to write elsewhere before I can do that. Still, I have spent years developing a list of characters, adding notes here and there, and finding the writing and creativity that most appeals to me in comics. Here's the list of the top seven, and what I like about them:

Larsen is the first comic writer of my adulthood to excite me. Savage Dragon is one of the best rides in the comics amusement park. You never know which way it's going to go. Early on, Dragon comes face-to-face with his top foe, Overlord, and is utterly beaten. He fights him again, and a different foe breaks in on the fight, snatches Dragon and flies away, later sending him to hell. Two girlfriends and a wife have died, his daughter has been lost in another dimension, and his son stolen just after birth. As cops deal with one crisis in the department, a second crisis erupts as a group of supervillains bust in and start killing everyone.

I find this to be top notch writing. People age, change and die. Relationships come and go. The hero is not immune to tragedy. Sometimes, a few crises happen at the same time, rather than waiting their turn. Crossovers happen, and the events are held onto as part of the continuity. Currently, Dragon's not even the good guy. He's regained his memories from when he was the despotic tyrant of an alien race, and he is wreaking havoc. Larsen has said from the beginning that no one is safe in his book, including Dragon. He's always held that one day, Dragon will die and someone else will have to take over the starring role. I have my guesses, like anyone, of where things will go, but have never been disappointed to be wrong - and that's a frequent occurrence with this book.

One other thing that Larsen does: when he uses someone else's character, he tries to stay true to the character, and not write them badly to make his own character shine. He has crossed over with Superman, Madman, Hellboy, Wanted, the Amazing Joy Buzzards, Shadowhawk, 10th Muse, Spawn, Backlash, Invincible, and my personal favorite, Destroyer Duck. There are surely others that I have forgotten, and not once have I ever felt the guest character was out-of-character. Maybe I'm gushing, but I find this to be a true mark of professionalism, because he treats others' properties with as much or more respect than his own.

I think it's in one of the first Invincible trades that Kirkman remarks that he stole all of his writing techniques from Erik Larsen. To me, it shows. I've commented on the sudden changes that take place in Larsen's writing, and somehow, Kirkman's made the style his own. One thing about this style is that it tells a complex story, but in a somehow simple way. Things don't often seem convoluted or contrived - just "Of course, that had to happen." It may not be something I saw coming, but when it happens, I say, "Yeah, it was all there," and I marvel at how he's kept the story together all this time.

What amazes me about Kirkman is that he doesn't do it in just Invincible. Larsen's been content to just do Savage Dragon, with the occasional mini-series or one-shot. Kirkman, on the other hand, writes Invincible, Astounding Wolf-Man, Brit, Walking Dead, Youngblood, and probably more I don't know about. When I was first discovering his work, he was also writing Marvel Team-Up. I don't automatically like a story, because it has a favorite writer on it, but I have yet to read a bad one by Kirkman.

I know Faerber's writing through Noble Causes and Dynamo 5. I'm hoping D5 survives the poor economy, because I like this book almost as much as I liked New Teen Titans in the Eighties. Again, I find his writing similar to Larsen's and Kirkman's, but there's something faster about the pacing. I can breeze through a D5 trade in nothing flat, and almost be vexed that I spent the money on the thing, because it went so quickly. Only "almost" though, because I always enjoy the story. He does some nice things with characterization - characters actually stay true to their personalities, even when it might be more convenient for them not to. It kind of lent a soap opera quality to Noble Causes, and a family quality to the dysfunctional Dynamo 5. Also, you can't help but be intrigued in the "lecherous Superman" of Captain Dynamo, or what I wish Lois Lane was, in Maddie Warner. Nice stuff.

Mark Waid was probably one of the first writers whose name I started looking for in the credits. I loved his run on Flash where he defined Max Mercury as "the zen master of speed." Kingdom Come and Kingdom drove my imagination for months (and I highly recommend the Absolute edition that includes all the companion material for KC, including a listing of every single character appearing in the book). Empire should be required reading for any aspiring writer as they try to figure out why Golgoth's forces build a bridge in plain sight of the enemy. His current works, Irredeemable and Incorruptible, I don't know as well. I've read the first few issues of Irredeemable, and loved them, but haven't been able to keep up with them since (my wallet has not been inexhaustible). In a two partvideo interview with Babs of Comic Vine, Waid states that he'd like to teach writing to up-and-coming writers. Personally, I hope that happens at some point. I would sign up in a heartbeat if at all possible.

I don't have a ton to say about Kurt Busiek, because I think Astro City pretty well speaks for him. It includes one of my all time favorite stories, called "The Scoop" (Astro City #2, Sept. 1995). Busiek's mother gave him a real newspaper article, about shark remains found on a subway track, and he turned it into a reporter's epic superhero story. The problem is the reporter couldn't prove it, so he wrote a very short article about shark remains found on a subway track - the only evidence that anything had occurred there. Extrapolating such an extreme story from such a simple but odd article is pure creativity. The kind that takes me back to when I was a kid, coming up with outrageous ideas on the tiniest scraps of information. That almost gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.

This guy's been picking up some hatred lately, but I think that's just because his name is on so much stuff that people are sick of seeing it. I don't have that problem. I wish I was as prolific in writing as this man. When asked how he can write so much, his answer is simple: he does the work. Or as he puts it in his letter columns for Powers, he has "no life." Comics aren't just a job for him, he enjoys them, so he spends his time writing. He's not wasting work time on playing video games or whatever other stuff tends to distract guys that mostly make their own schedule.

The thing that inspires me the most about Bendis is that he isn't just throwing stuff at the wall and hoping something sticks. He's actually researching. Articles I read about Secret Invasion said that when he pitched the series, he went through the entire Marvel history of the Skrulls, and laid out how everything connected and culminated in this invasion. I think that's basically what we got in Secret Invasion Saga.

This probably comes as a shock to most, because Liefeld is probably the most popular whipping boy in comics, but he truly is one of my favorite writers in comics. NOT because I necessarily think he's a great writer, but because of the sheer amount of books and characters he has put out. I ran across an interview with Crazy Cat Com Comics, posted on Comic Vine, where Liefeld said, "About twenty years ago, it's like my head exploded," and all of these characters came out. Entire teams - Youngblood (in two or three versions of the team), Bloodstrike, New Men, and Brigade - as well as solid solo characters Supreme and Glory. Nevermind stuff he did at Maximum, like Avengelyne. And lest we forget, he created Cable and Deadpool for Marvel - characters that, love 'em or hate 'em - have carried at least five titles each.

I don't care about "tiny feet" and whatever else might be said about his art. As I have trouble drawing better than a twelve year old, I think his art is teriffic. The thing with Liefeld is that he seems to have trouble getting books out on time, if at all. Still, when Marvel tried to sue him over Agent America, he managed to get the rights to Fighting American, effectively thumbing his nose at Marvel, and with a nice bit of historical symmetry. If you don't admire him for that, you have no soul.

What probably draws me to all of these guys is that they've created a large amount of characters for their books, and I always love seeing new characters. Their enthusiasm for comics is infectious, and their creativity seems to know no bounds. To me, these are the guys that have learned their lessons from Kirby, Lee and other predecessors. Like them, these seven throw even the craziest ideas on the page, and make them work.

Also, more often than not, these are the guys who cause me to have to strike a name from my list of characters, and that just challenges me to come up with something else. While it always gives me chagrin to one degree or another, I enjoy it too. It makes me feel like, "Yes, this idea was good enough for someone else to use in comics, so I must be on the right track." Then I try to come up with the next thing.

There are other writers I like, sure - Chuck Dixon, Bill Willingham, Geoff Johns, et.al. - but these seven always give me something to smile about, even if it's a sly smirk of "Man, they beat me to it again." You have to find your inspirations as a writer though, and these are a few of mine. I hope you enjoyed it.

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U no like Geoff Johns???

All these guys have a lot of great super hero stuff floating around, I dig on Kirkman and Mark Waid a ton, and there's nothing wrong with the capes crowd, but do you dig on any non-super hero comic book writers?  Just curious. 

Liefield is good at creating characters because he rips other's creation off. Ha ha ha. But you have to respect the man. He put himself out there helped build an entire comic company from the ground up... and then robbed it blind but who's cares about that right?

Did I read No7 right???? 
 
I think my head just exploded

"Did I read No7 right????  I think my head just exploded "

Grant Morrison's Doom Patrol changed my life. 
 
"The door flew open, in he ran, the great red long-legged Scissorman"
 
Brilliant. 
 
Interesting list, I don't necessarily agree with all of it, but it's certainly interesting.

@Abnormally Warm Guy said:

" @cbishop:  I guess my major gripe with Liefield is that he is really REALLY ( I can't stress this enough) full of himself. You knwo he takes full credit for creating deadpool. He has a whole backstory of how he created it. And you knwo what that back story is? A BUNCH OF LIES.  His story: "I was jealous of  Todd Mcfarlane, always getting to draw Spider-man. It easy, because he wears a mask. So I created a Deadpool a wise cracking mercenary who who wears a mask. That's why he captures cable with a net in the first appearance. It an homage!"  What actually happened:  Rob was a big Teen Titans fan. He really liked Deathstroke so he drew up Deadpool as a nameless serious character mercenary and brought to Fabian Nicezia (his editor and co writer)  who said "looks like Deathstroke (yep he saw right through it), let's make him a parody. That'd be fun. And he made himt he wise crackin' mercenary we all know and love.  But Liefield never acknowledges Fabian's contribution, the important contribution that made Deadpool what he is.  Don't get me wrong. Deadpool's design is cool and all but it's not why I like him. "

 
I agree that he seems to be full of himself sometimes, but meh, that doesn't really bother me.  It takes all kinds, y'know?  I've heard that story you're mentioning, and I think that's word-for-word from an interview I've seen linked to CV from another site.  In that same interview though, he mentions something else - Deadpool's costume hasn't changed for over 20 years - that is impressive, with a character coming out of the Eighties. 
 
Also, in the sense of being diplomatically minded here, I think it's fair to say that Fabian's contribution doesn't necessarily negate Rob's story.  And it's likely that the inspiration for Deadpool was drawn from multiple sources - a little bit from Deathstroke, a little bit from Spidey.  While being derivative, there's really nothing wrong with that.  Would it be nice to hear him mention Fabian's part of the process in his story?  Yeah, but it's not really so unusual to hear people make the story all about themselves.  I just kind of shrug that off.

@Eyz said:

" ...Nice enough list! I see you're a man enough, brabe and bold to admit it and put Liefeld on your list! I seriously don't hate the guy too. It's kind of hypocrite how everyone's bashing the guy lately, while ~15 years ago they were probably mass buying every single book with his art or  othersimilar artists's style. One thing you can't deny is the sheer amount of work he did! "

 
I think fans are too quick to jump on the bandwagon, when it comes to bashing writers and artists.  It's like comic fans are generally so afraid of being nerds and outcasts, they'll agree with the first person who finds a voice in the fan world, so at least they're part of that "cool" clique.  It's kind of highschool.  Again, in fairness though: I recently went back and looked at some of Liefeld's earliest Image work, and there are some bad things in his art.  Things I didn't notice the first few times I looked at it, but there are obvious (well, obvious now) anatomy problems and impossible poses all throughout.  STILL, the guy draws better than me, so beyond observing that there are problems there, I have nothing bad to say about Liefeld. 

@Abnormally Warm Guy

" @Eyz: Deadpool does crack a few jokes in the first appearance.  And I have few gripes with Liefiled as an artist. When he tries his art is fun to look at and interesting but he gets lazy and when that happens boks bcome late, anatomy turns to s~ and costumes randonly change.  As a writer he's awful He should just stick to drawing. "

I do agree that Liefeld doesn't write well.  I think he gets great ideas, but he needs to hand those ideas over to a writer capable of executing them, and just handle the art... and actually handle it.  I recall reading another Image creator years ago, who basically said Liefeld spends a lot of time goofing off, and then rushes everything when it gets down to the deadline, and that's why his art looks bad sometimes.  Going back to that same interview we were talking about a minute ago, Rob even says the reason he was jealous of Todd drawing Spidey - with his full face mask - is because the full face mask is easier to draw when you're getting down to deadlines. 
 
Even if that's all true though, he still put out a tremendous amount of work in the late 80's/ early 90's, and people snatched it up, whether they say so or not.  I think that's why people bash Rob - they bought a lot of books that were ultimately disappointing.  It's frustrating to buy something that you can tell could have been better, and also tell that the work was phoned in.  I haven't had much fun money lately, so I haven't had the chance to check out the new Youngblood, that Robert Kirkman was supposedly writing.  I'd be really curious to see how that comes out, because Kirkman can squeeze every last drop of writery goodness out of a character or group of characters.  I'd really like to see that with more of Rob's characters, like how Alan Moore brought new life to Supreme (granted: as Superman, but still, it was better than the original).

Todd McFarlane inspires me.

Interesting. Savage Dragon actually sounds pretty cool. I read the first issue, and didn't think I'd like it.

"Todd McFarlane inspires me. "

"Interesting. Savage Dragon actually sounds pretty cool. I read the first issue, and didn't think I'd like it. "

" @Abnormally Warm Guy: I think the problem was that people took his art, in the 90s, like it was the most beautiful art ever done, super realistic and the perfect template for superhero books...but his style, as good or bad as it is, is just simply "stylized", and shouldn't have been copy/pasted by so many artists back then..  His feet are ugly, sure, but why would anyone think they're realistic. I don't take Smurfs hands/feet as realistic as well, doesn't mean I have to complain about it :/ "

You forgot Mike Mignola, this guy is a freaking genius his build up connecting stories, integration of mythology, he follows the Chekhov's gun rules and justifies each and every random thing in the book! and this read is so unpredictable! its exciting and his characters are superb! 
and Matt Fraction i think he is a good new age writer, Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon. they draw and are both fantastic writers. 
I don't know why the comic community is so up in Morrison's balls i mean he is a stellar writer but the praise is overkill people! mark Waid deserves alot! also Ron Marz! look at darknees and artifacts this guy is the glue 4 Top cow! 
I'm also an aspiring writer too! and whether u like it or not u have to be working somewhere else and get enough recogntion before a comic company can even trust u with their characters!

great to see another writer explaining why he loves the writers he loves. i like how instead of takin' a dump for stuff they done that hasn't been so successful you give great examples of the positive things they've done for the industry/books. great article, and good luck with your future writings!

@kid Apollo said:

great to see another writer explaining why he loves the writers he loves. i like how instead of takin' a dump for stuff they done that hasn't been so successful you give great examples of the positive things they've done for the industry/books. great article, and good luck with your future writings!

Well, the positives were the point of this blog, but they've got their downsides for sure - who doesn't? I'm sure I've mentioned downsides for some of them elsewhere. ;}