by Matt Osterberg
CC: Jeff, what got you into comics (Ex. reading as a kid, having family members who worked on it, etc...) and how long have you been working in the industry?
JM: I read comics as a very young boy, and continued to through my college years, when I worked for a while at a comic store. For a brief period, in junior high, I made little comics with my friends, but never really considered doing it professionally. I didn't get into the industry until I was in my late 30s, and doing some writing. I knew Jim Lee's wife Angie, and she had read some of the work I'd written. When Jim was looking for a writer for a particular project, he read some of my work, and called me up.
CC: You said you did made some comics when you were younger...do you still have them? Did you take any ideas from them and use them in your current comics and also...have you ever considered doing them up nicer and publishing them now?
JM: No, I don't have any of the stuff I created when I was young. My 6th grade teacher might -- she confiscated plenty. Much of it was obscene, too...
CC: I realize you own a bookstore in San Diego called Mysterious Galaxy. I was wondering what influenced you to open your own bookstore and how the business is going? As well as you hoped it would?
JM: I've been in the retail book business since 1980. I've managed stores for other people, but always had to work for someone else and deal with books that weren't particularly interesting to me. When I had an opportunity, I, partnered with my wife and another friend, opened Mysterious Galaxy so we could have a store that just sold mystery, science fiction & fantasy, and horror fiction. There was nothing like that in San Diego, and we thought there was a market for it. Turned out we were right. The store has been a lot of fun, and while you never get rich selling books, we figure that as long as we don't lose too much money, we're doing well.
CC: You also wrote Defcon 4, who approached you with this idea? Why did you decide to do it?
JM: DefCon 4 was a 4-issue miniseries that I wrote with Mat Broome a year ago. The idea for the series was Mat's. He worked out some stuff with Brandon Choi, who didn't have time to work on the mini. Mat came to me, we started over almost from scratch, and wrote the series. It's been over for ages, though -- I'd much rather talk about Hazard, my considerably more recent series, or Desperadoes, my next series.
CC: How long have you been working on Hazard and when is Desperado's supposed to come out? Can you give us the basic plotline to us for anyone who may not know? Also...what other comics have you worked on in the past besides DefCon 4?
JM: Hazard was a 7 issue series -- it would have been longer, except that retailers weren't buying enough copies to keep it going. That may or may not mean that fans weren't buying enough copies. Desperadoes premieres in Sept., 1997, from Homage Comics. The artist is a guy named John Cassaday, who's just signed on to do Excalibur for Marvel, as well as doing Desperadoes. Fortunately, he's fast. He's also really good -- amazingly good. He's done some Ghost stuff for Dark Horse, and Ka-Zar # -1 for Marvel, and he has something coming this summer from DC. The one-line description is: The Wild Wild West meets the X-Files... in other words, it's kind of a team book, set in the old west, in which four interesting characters face all kinds of supernatural menace. Scary and fun. I've also written Gen13 #2 (miniseries), Union #2 (miniseries), WildC.A.T.S #9 (backup story), Deadly Duo #2 (second series), StormWatch #27-29, Deathblow #24, Backlash #1-11, WildC.A.T.S Adventures #1-7, 9 & 10, WildStorm's Chamber of Horrors, and the forthcoming (July) WetWorks/Vampirella crossover.
CC: I'm sorry to hear about Hazard, good luck with Desperadoes though. Why did you decide to print the title though Homage, and going over some of the work you've done in the past I noticed you didn't stay on any one title for very long, is there a reason for this?
JM: Homage is our creator-owned line of books. The books in that line don't fit into the regular Wildtorm universe and they're not necessarily superhero books. Desperadoes, being a supernaturl western, is a lot of things but it's definately NOT a superhero bookk and it doesn't fit the WS universe, so Homage seemed like the best place for it. As far as not sticking around, I haven't purposly jumped from titles, but a lot of the work I have done has been fill-in stuff. I'm fast and can come in when regular writers need a hand -- that's how I worked on Union, Gen13, Deathblow, and Stormwatch. I was with Backlash for almost a year then left when Brett decided he wanted to try co-scripting with Sean Ruffner. Since Backlash is basically Brett's baby, I was happy to move over to give him room to try a new experience. He seems to like it. I was on WildC.A.T.S. Adventures for the whole run, minus one issue, when a particular artist wanted to work with a particular writer. I was on Hazard, which was my creation, for the whole run -- it just wasn't a terribly long run, but you just never know in today's market place.
CC: What are the advantages and disadvantages of working in the comic book industry? Also, over the past few years do you think the media has been chnaging for the better, or wose...how so?
JM: Advantages -- it's a very creative field. You get to see results almost immediately, as opposed to fiction, where it can take 9 months to a year to publish your book, or film, where it takes even longer and so many other people get their hands on it that your work is barely recognizable as your own. Disadvantages -- you're creating stuff that is really only seen by a few people, and a very narrow segment of society. Most comic readers are males between 14-24. If you're not interested in the things they're interested in, your audience is severely limited. In the last few years, the market has contracted to the point that it's very hard to make money at it. This has resulted in a lot of titles being cancelled, and a lot of creative people scrambling hard for the remaining work, and other good people leaving the field altogether.
CC: Have you ever considered turning any of your comics into movies or novels for better publicity then?
JM: I'd love to, but it's not that easy. We talk to movie and TV people all the time, but it takes a combination of luck, contacts, timing and talent to make the right deal. Gen13 is coming as an animated feature and then as a live action feature, based on the miniseries that I wrote part of. I'm also about to start a Gen13 novel with a friend, Chris Golden, which will be published early in 1998.
CC: If you could work with any artist or writer CURRENTLY in comics, who would it be? How about in the past...also, are there any specific charcaters you'd like to get your hands on?
JM: This depends on how much I can stretch the definition of the word "currently." Neal Adams does occasional work in comics, and I'd love to work with him. Gene Colan is another one -- making a comeback of sorts, and a real hero of mine. I'm getting the opportunity this summer to work with Gil Kane on WetWorks/Vampirella -- he'll be inked by Richard Bennett -- and he'd be third on my list. One out of three ain't bad. Any specific characters? I'd love to write a Batman story or two, and I'd enjoy writing Daredevil.
CC: What are some of the titles you read right now? What was your all time favorite comic book ever?
JM: Kurt Busiek's Astro City, Strangers in Paradise, Leave it to Chance. I read most of the Batman books. Spectre, by John Ostrander and Tom Mandrake. StormWatch by Warren Ellis and Tom Raney. I'm looking forward to Mark Waid's Ka-Zar, but haven't been able to find a copy yet, because it's selling so fast. I don't think I have an all-time favorite comic -- I liked the Denny O'Neil & Neal Adams run on Green Lantern/Green Arrow, and their Batman stories. Barry Smith's Conan issues.
CC: Do you ever compare yourself to other writers in the industry? Why or why not?
JM: Not really. I think the most interesting writers in the business are the ones who are do things differently than anyone else. No one but Kurt Busiek could write Astro City and make it come out the same way, whereas any number of people can write the X-books at the level of quality they are. I'd rather read Astro City. On the other hand, I don't think Kurt Busiek could write Desperadoes in the same way that I am -- not that he's not a terrific writer, because he is. But I don't think he's steeped himself in the Old West, and in the supernatural, the way that I have, and that's what will make Desperadoes a cool book. So I don't compare my work to his, or anyone else's.
CC: Who were your heroes when you were growing up? How about today?
JM: Roy Rogers, when I was very young. Throughout my life, I have idolized at various points Roy Thomas, Denny O'Neil, Harlan Ellison, Stephen King, Wallace Stegner, Pat Conroy, Ross McDonald.
CC: Are you looking forward to going to the Seattle Convention on June 1st? Is this the first time you've been there? Do you go to conventions often? Did you go before you worked in the industry! Was it better before or after, why?
JM: I went to the Seattle Convention last year as well. It's a terrific show, and a lot of fun. I go to lots of conventions -- every year, I hit Chicago and San Diego, and then there are many others that I go to occasionally, including WonderCon, Heroes Con, Dragon Con, Mid-Ohio-Con, Motor City Con, Portland Comic Book Show, and more.I've been going to the San Diego Con for about the last 13 years or so, long before I was in the comics business, and in fact met my wife at one and married her during another one (not at the show, though!). My first convention was one in Berkeley at which I met and got a sketch from Frank Brunner, which I still have.
CC: Well...know that you went there...how was it? Also: I went to the Motor City Comic Con this year and I learned about the comic book legal defense fund, what do you think of this group?
JM: The CBLDF is one of the best organizations in comics, and one which I donate money to when I have it. I also am a member of Friends of Lulu, an organization dedicated to getting more girls and women involved in comics. I think the goals of CBLDF and Lulu are noble ones.
CC: what do you have to do to become a member of Friends of Lulu or the CBLDF? Can anyone become a member or do you have to be working in the comic industry? What kind of work do you do to promote comics specifically for female readers?
JM: I'm not sure what the membership requirements are for either group. They have booths for all the larger comic conventions, so anyone who's interested should check them out when they're at a show. I personally do a lot of work to promote comics for women, as part of my job as Vice president of marketing for WildStorm/Homage. Leave it to Chance, for instance, has been a book that has a natural appeal to girls and women (my own daughter LOVES it!), and I've done things like helping to organize a give-away of free copies of the first issue to members of the Gril scouts.
CC: I read about something called SiP, can you explain this?
JM: SiP is Strangers In Paradise, published by our Homage Comics line. It's a terrific book, very human, very real, but with a great sense of humor and sense of mystery.
CC: Oh...alright...I've heard of Strangers in Paradise before...I read it: EXCELLENT book...I just never it referred to As SiP before. What is it that you like about the title so much?
JM: It's well written and -- my favorite part, I think -- Terry Moore, because he writes and draws it, is able to get the facial expressions EXACTLY right, to get across what he wants to. That's really hard to do in comics, especially when one person is writing and another is drawing -- the artist can't see into the writer's mind to see exactly what expression the writer wants. Terry can do that, and he does it well.
CC: How much has your work increased since you've become VP of marketing at Wildstorm and Homage? Do you enjoy the extra work?
JM: I'm a pretty busy guy, as basically the one-man marketing department. I have to create all the advertising, generate lots of press releases, maintain contacts with people at the various magazines and distributors and retail operations, etc. It's never boring...
CC: How do you think up the storylines of the comis you write? Do you use people you know in real life to influence it? What's the hardest part about writing a comic?
JM: The stories I write about come from everywhere -- sometimes things I read about in the news that upset me, for instance. If there's a situation in which it doesn't seem like justice is done, there's really nothing you can do about it in real life -- but you can write a story with the same kind of emotional weight, and have it work out the way that you'd prefer. I don't usually draw on real people for characterizations -- not specific people, anyway. More often I'll take certain aspects of various people I've known, combine them with other traits from other people, and make up the rest. The hardest part about writing a comic, I think, is keeping it short. I tend to want to go into a lot of depth, psychologically, and my plots tend to be fairly complex. It's hard for me to tell a story in 22 pages and feel like I've accomplished my goal.
CC: So (here I am bringing this up again but...) have you ever considered writing a long graphic novel? Or just a normal novel so you could write as much as you'd like? Or have you already DONE this?
JM: As I said above, I'm just getting started on a Gen13 novel. This will not be the first novel I've written, but it will be the first one published. I do plan to do more novels, including my own, non-comic book related work, next year, but the Gen13 one will take most of my time this year. I'd also like to do a big graphic novel, and may do something like that in the Homage line next year.
CC: Do you remember the first comic you ever read? How did it influence you?
JM: The first comic I can remember reading was a Roy Rogers comic. I think it helped to instill in me a love of the Old West, which has remained an important part of my life, and, with Desperadoes, will become an important part of my professional life as well.
CC: Did you ever find education playing an important part of your ending up at your current career and status?
JM: I have a BA degree in Radio/TV/Film. What is has to do with comics is fairly indirect -- basically, though, I learned how to write movies, which is also a means of visual storytelling, and I think that helps me in writing comics. It has very little to do with the marketing aspects of my job, though.
CC: So it would be easy for you to adapt one of your comics or even write out of the blue a movie script? If so...why hasn't it been done? I think that sounds like a GREAT idea.
JM: See above. I have written a couple of film scripts, and am currently working on another one - not about comic stuff.
CC: One final question: What advice would you give to any aspiring comic book writer out there now?
JM: Marry somebody with a lot of money. Or move to England -- all the English writers seem to be getting work lately. If you can't manage either of those, and you're still determined to write comics, read a lot -- outside of comics. Read books and magazines and newspapers and more books, and learn to write about things other than fight scenes.
And just like that *poof* he was gone!
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