A couple month ago the great comicbook writer Peter David died.
He was one of THE best writing teachers I have ever learned from.
I used to study interviews he gave, a book I have of his (about how to write comicbooks), and especially the comicbook stories he wrote. He could do more characterization in a single page than most writers could do in an entire year of issues. And his 12-year run on The Incredible Hulk is still being grifted off of by lesser writers today in much the same way a lot of late night comedians grift off the late Johnny Carson.
Another true, and admittedly nerdy, story:
I bought all my comics via mail order as a teenager in the 90’s.
But I’d spend extra money to buy a 2nd copy of Peter David’s Incredible Hulk title each month at the comicbook store, because I could not wait for UPS to deliver the mail order bought issue to see what would happen next.
His pacing, use of cliffhangers, and characterization was second to none.
And his work has had a huge influence on my writing today.
Including copywriting, emails, content, books, fiction, all of it.
If you can find interviews he gave, and his book about creating comicbook stories, I highly suggest paying attention to his writing approach. He was one of the best. And if you want a world class lesson on how to do market research read X-Factor #87.
The entire issue is like a buyer psychology lesson in some ways.
But the Quicksilver character part is especially good.
And quite entertaining to boot.
For more on the paid Email Players newsletter go here:
Ben Settle
