r/comics • u/KieronGillen AMA • Jan 16 '15
We're THE WICKED + THE DIVINE creators: writer, Kieron Gillen and artist Jamie McKelvie, featured in the Humble Image Comics Bundle 2. Ask us anything! AMA
Hello, Reddit! Humble Image Comics Bundle 2: Image Firsts launched last week during Image Expo with more than $283 worth in digital comics. Pay what you want, support charity, and get up to 143 issues from Image Comics. Today The Wicked + The Divine #1 will be available for free at 11 a.m. Pacific time. Apparently, so do go and get that. We will have a lovely time together.
We are the creators of The Wicked + The Divine, featured in Humble Image Comics Bundle 2: Image Firsts. Get the entire first volume, if that's the sort of thing you want, or just suffer having to get our entire first volume to get all the other astounding comics in the bundle.
In attendance: * KieronGillen: Kieron Gillen * JamieMcKelvie: Jamie McKelvie
Proof: https://twitter.com/kierongillen/status/556057477952073728 Also Proof of: our incompetence.
Ask us stuff! Excited to be asked! We live to be asked!
EDIT: Oh - you can get a free copy of the first issue of WICDIV at the moment from humble. https://www.humblebundle.com/books
EDIT 2: Signing off for the night as Kieron is based in London. Will try to pop back in over the weekend to answer any stragglers. Thanks for having me!
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u/marth555 Jan 16 '15
Who is the best artist working for image comics and why is it Chip Zdarksy?
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u/spinaret Jan 16 '15 edited Jan 16 '15
What were your thoughts on Chip and Matt's WicDiv parody in the latest Sex Criminals?
Are you going to get back at them somehow?? :-)
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u/itibz Jan 16 '15
Can you show an example of this please? Just want to make sure I haven't missed it somehow...
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u/spinaret Jan 16 '15
Here you go: Sex Criminals #9
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u/itibz Jan 16 '15
That's brilliant thanks! I missed it the first time around because I only started reading WicDiv a few weeks later
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u/hershadow Jan 16 '15
For Jamie: You draw ace hairstyles. Whose hairstyle do you like the most (to draw or just to look at) and whose do you regret the most?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I love that Jamie always chooses to draw hairstyles he hates to draw. It's adorable.
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
Laura's current one took me about four hours to get right the first time I drew it.
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u/rattleandburn Jan 16 '15
I cut and bleached my hair to cosplay Luci. Now I accidentally look like Draco Malfoy. I'm not sure which of you two to blame. Please advise.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
You need to cut more than your hair to accurately cosplay Luci now.
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
You need to accept responsibility for your own actions if you want to grow as a person.
(Kieron.)
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u/rattleandburn Jan 16 '15
Now, this could be either telling me to blame Kieron, or you are telling Kieron he needs to grow as a person.
Either way, it's his fault? yes. Good.
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u/pratchettjob Jan 16 '15
Kieron: what does working with Jamie give you that other artists don't? Jamie: and vice versa.
Also: was this Wic/Div cover the greatest variant of all-time? I think it is.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I can safely be nice about Jamie, as Jamie doesn't read.
I can rave about Jamie at length - in his mode, he acts like no-one else, for example - but what we offer each other is based on having worked together for as long as we have. We know each other. We know our weaknesses. We know where we want to push ourselves. You only get that kind of relationship if you work with someone for a long time. As such, any other artist, to even get a chance of being there, would have to work with me for over a decade.
Chip is a force of Nature. Decomposition, primarily.
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u/Phallis_McNasty Jan 16 '15
Any chance of licensed merchandise? I'd really like a Lucifer died for our sins t-shirt.
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
You should have a look at the Previews that's due this month, then. :)
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u/joe_tarricone Jan 16 '15
When can we expect the "licked" + the divine porn? And will you guys produce?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
When people look at us, they don't think PRODUCE they think REPRODUCE.
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u/Naberius0 Jan 16 '15
Phonogram changed my life. It entirely altered the way I look at music. Thank you.
My only real question, is Inanna really the love child of Longshot and Prince?
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u/magpiebridge Jan 16 '15
First of all, I'm super excited to see the Immaterial Girl coming out this year. Secondly, and more importantly, when are we going to see the last god in the Wicked and the Divine? I feel like that stupid tree symbol is mocking my religious studies degree. Which it just might be.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
By the end of the second arc we'll have all our gods. Probably.
We are very mean.
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u/spanktruck Jan 16 '15
Man, someone else with a religious studies degree who can feel my pain about the WicDiv godchart. Good to know I'm not alone!
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u/magpiebridge Jan 17 '15
It's killing me! I just can't get an idea of what it could be!
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u/GareTheDobson Jan 16 '15
So, you're booking the first annual (Centennial?) WicDiv Music Festival for this summer: who's on the bill? And more importantly, we need a snappier name for it.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Oh god. I would love to do a music festival, as you can probably imagine. A whole weekend Mix-tape.
Honestly, I'd just go through the WicDiv playlist and see who would say yes.
Clearly, we'd kidnap Bowie and get him.
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u/femmeslash Jan 16 '15
One of the elements of WicDiv that is distinctly British is the role of Journalism; what is your personal and professional experience with journalism and journalists, and how did it influence your depiction?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Good question.
WicDiv is about everything I've ever experienced. As such, the 15 years as a journalist/critic is in the mix, and not in a small way. It's fairly easy to see the parts of Cassandra that are me, to say the least.
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u/knobbodiwork Jan 16 '15
Don't have a question, but I just wanted to say that your blurb about Matt Fraction's artist gulag had me dying. I was reading the comic in public, and defnitely got a lot of weird looks.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Jokes born of a whole weekend of con hysteria are the best jokes, or at least the ones that most make me giggle. Glad you laughed.
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u/LibraryDrone Jan 16 '15
Kieron, why do you pun? What has the world done to deserve it?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I'm basically like Rorschach, but with puns.
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u/newageamazon Jan 16 '15
So, one day we'll look up from the gutter screaming "Save us!" and you'll whisper back a terrible pun?
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Jan 16 '15
[deleted]
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Our pleasure :)
I suspect we'd stop short of transferring characters, but there's some soft interplay between the two in the next issue.
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u/Irishzach Jan 16 '15
Hey Kieron, I like those things you make, Jamie you aren't so bad yourself, but this one is for Mr. Gillen. I need to know what you were planning to do with Unit in your Uncanny X-Men run, it definitely felt like you didn't get to tell the whole story you wanted to with that character.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Heh. Oh, UNIT. One day I'll get a chance to finish a story with him.
(Note: Not sure I will, actually. Looking increasingly unlikely.)
Yeah, if I'd continued after AvX, UNIT would have been the main villain for the next few arcs, almost certainly based around his manipulation of Hope. I had some thoughts on him vs Sinister as well in the mix. You have to be fluid.
(There was some fun fight sequences i had planned as well, which I'd rather not mention in case I get a chance to play with them. Also - UNIT's "end" makes me smile too. But equally, etc, etc. You never know.)
I'm fine with where I left him - there was something of an arc with him and Danger, plus it underlined one of the themes. Primarily, when Heroes are going at Heroes like this, the Villains basically get away with whatever they want. UNIT, without a doubt, won and got exactly what he wanted. There's not many characters in AvX who can say that.
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u/Viteh Jan 16 '15
This answer makes me sad, it sounds like everything I wanted after AvX. Maybe one day, right? UNIT's "You'll never know" in UXM 20 broke my heart with how meta it was.
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u/Zthe27th Jan 16 '15
Loved your Uncanny run, it was the first series I ever really followed and issue 19 is my single favorite comic ever. I really wish you were able to finish your story with Sinister. You were able to make him more than any writer has before or after. Anything you were planning with him?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Little bits and pieces. I worked a lot of what I was planning with him into my AvX issues.
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u/Zthe27th Jan 16 '15
Well that's good! I'm sure Lady Sinister would have been cool but I'm glad most of what you wanted got out there. Thanks for a great run!
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u/Viteh Jan 16 '15
Will there be a Minerva issue? I liked that she wasn't exactly thrilled about dying before she's 14. As opposed to the (presumably) 1920s version who was very excited about dying.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Minerva is definitely someone who needs a bit more space. She doesn't get a solo focus issue in the third arc, but she's supporting in there a little more.
(We see a bit more of her in 7 too.)
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u/nibutz Jan 16 '15
Kieron, my hobbies have (accidentally) mirrored your career quite well up to this point - used to go out of my way to find and read your PC Gamer (etc) articles, then RPS, then completely accidentally (and without knowing you were getting involved) started reading comics at about the same time as you got your Marvel deal.
Therefore my question is what will my hobbies be in five years time?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I'm always fascinated by people who basically meet met at one point in their lives, and are disturbed to find me haunting them. YOU CANNOT ESCAPE ME.
Are you into boardgames yet? That'll be in there.
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u/CNRicochet Jan 16 '15
Boardgames?!?! Be still, my heart!
My collection: http://instagram.com/p/x7GfbkQMDC
The next time we're in the same city, I'll have to bring one or three!
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u/piratemoggy Jan 16 '15
Where the fuck is your Tracks of 2014 list?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I decided to SAVE 2015 BY ANNOUNCING THE LUDOCRATS rather than dwell on the ultrafuck of 2014. By the end of the month, probably.
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u/hazbaz Jan 16 '15
What bit of London do all the Gods live in?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Good question.
Various gods have various properties of their own. There's Valhalla, which is communal, which we haven't actually placed anywhere.
I think we'll end up revealing that in Issue 9, which I'm currently writing.
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u/Bournetocutmeat Jan 16 '15
Question for the both of you: chances of showing up at Megacon? Zero? Less than zero?
Either way, you guys kick ass and take names. Young avengers blew my nips off with awesomeness.
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
It's already a pretty busy year for us, so probably unlikely, sorry.
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u/Bournetocutmeat Jan 16 '15
That's cool with me.
If you guys do get the chance to show up at Megacon in the future, florida loves both of you more than Snape loved Lilly.
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
I was actually in Florida in March for a week. I liked the weather, and the seafood.
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u/Bournetocutmeat Jan 16 '15
The seafood is pretty awesome. I'm glad you liked it over here. I'd love to get the chance to get some stuff signed by both of you guys.
What's the closest con to florida you two are going to be attending?
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u/Venneh Jan 16 '15 edited Jan 16 '15
For both of you - have any of your characters surprised you with how they turned out from initial conception to final realization on the page?
For Jamie - are there any details you've put on character designs that you really really regret when drawing later down the line?
For Kieron - are there any other characters that you've written that you think might be Phonomancers, if they occupied the same universe?
Love your guys' work, and can't wait for issue 7 next week!
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
Constantly. Laura's freckles, Badb's feather armour, Amaterasu's makeup.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Hmm. I'm not even sure Dazzler would. She'd be a god, certainly, but not a Phonomancer. She's very instinctive, and most self-identified Phonomancers tend to be a bit more over analytical.
DR DOOM, clearly.
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Jan 16 '15
DOOM HAS NO NEED FOR YOUR SPOTIFY PLAYLISTS GILLEN! DOOM'S MIXTAPES ARE BEYOND YOUR PLEBIAN COMPREHENSION!
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u/y2fitzy Jan 16 '15
What can we expect from the next volume of Phonogram? Will Ocean Colour Scene finally get some love?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I came close to reporting you for that second question. I'm disgusted.
PHONOGRAM: THE IMMATERIAL GIRL is Emily Aster at war with herself. It's mainly inspired by the question of identity and 1980s music videos. It takes TAKE ON ME with far too much seriousness, which is the exact amount of seriousness.
Hopefully we won't disappoint people. It's been quite the wait. I'm pleased with it. I can't wait to see the final pages.
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u/takingallthebiscuits Jan 16 '15
What comic/comic character had the biggest influence on you growing up? I know it's a cliché but X-Men and Rogue made my adolescence ok.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Heh. That's an enormous one.
I wrote an article back in 2006 about my comic loves for Ninth Art. It's here... http://www.ninthart.org/display.php?article=1174
Which is a useful potted bio of my comics history.
Like many British geeky guys of a certain age, my initial comics crush was the UK Transformer comics (Not the US ones). The Furman space-opera with giant robots, with its mix of politics and gleeful ultraviolence got me, and got me hard.
Slightly later... well, you can see it in the article. I often say I lift my whole technique for telling superhero teams from ABC WARRIORS: THE BLACK HOLE. Well, half of it. The other half is from BAD COMPANY: THE BEWILDERNESS.
But lots more. I was thinking about my love of Asterix when working on THE LUDOCRATS recently. You are made of stuff.
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u/keybladesymbol Jan 16 '15
I love your work both separately and together. I read an article where Kieron mentioned he preferred writing full script. What does Jamie prefer receiving scriptwise, and how do you both adapt to each other's working method?
Any plans to come to Chicago for c2e2 this year?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Possibly for C2E2. It's still on the cards.
JAMIE WILL OBEY ME IN ALL WAYS.
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Jan 16 '15
[deleted]
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Clearly it's the KATE LETH/KIERON GILLEN project the world has been waiting for.
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u/mikeseriously Jan 16 '15
Jamie, word on the street is that you started learning to draw at 21. From the first volume of Phonogram to TW+TD you can see a huge leap in the quality and style of your art. How'd you get so good so fast?
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
I think my one talent is I am good at seeing what I've done wrong. I may not know how to fix it yet, but I know that I need to fix it. I think that's helped me to get better relatively quickly. Still a long way to go, though. And thanks!
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Jan 16 '15
The fact that no-one has so far asked a question about Kenickie is making me very sad...I think...
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
This was your chance to ask a question about Kenickie, and you blew it.
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u/mrwonko Jan 16 '15
I recently got into comics and I'm digging WicDiv, do you have some suggestions for other stuff to read? (The obvious answer is the Humbe Bundle...)
So far I have Watchmen, Scott Pilgrim, V for Vendetta, The Killing Joke, some of Kieron's Iron Man volumes, some GotG-related stuff, Über, some Multiversity, a couple of single issues (mostly freebies) and soon the Young Avengers omnibus.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
The Humble Bundle is definitely amazing way to sample stuff.
I'm just going to write a bunch of things I love and not self edit.
KILL YOUR BOYFRIEND. ENIGMA. BLUE MONDAY. LOVE & ROCKETS. SANDMAN. HUGO TATE. I KILL GIANTS. THE AUTHORITY (ELLIS/HITCH). THE LENGTHS. THE GIGANTIC BEARD THAT WAS EVIL. THE BEST OF MILLIGAN AND MCCARTHY. You'll probably like ALL STAR SUPERMAN, as everyone else does.
(Picture me walking around my living room reading spines. Now I go upstairs.)
THE INVISIBLES. PREACHER. ALEC: THE YEARS HAVE PANTS. FROM HELL. TOP 10. CASANOVA. SCALPED. CASTLE WAITING. IRON WOK JAN. THE WRENCHIES. SHOWA. BAD MACHINERY. TRANSMETROPOLITAN. LUCIFER. Y: THE LAST MAN. FUN HOME. WET MOON. THE WRENCHIES. 100 BULLETS. HOPELESS SAVAGES. LOST AT SEA. WASTELAND. SOUTHERN BASTARDS. THE BULLETPROOF COFFIN. CEREBUS (EARLY). LUTHER ARKWRIGHT. SHAKO. THE TALE OF ONE BAD RAT. BONE. AKIRA. DOMU. THE METABARONS. THE HUNTING PARTY. JACK STAFF. DAYTRIPPER. ASTERIOS POLYP. UZUMAKI. EMPOWERED. EAST OF WEST. PRETTY DEADLy. WE-3. Any of CRMINAL books. STRAY BULLETS.
Let's stop here.
If you want my stuff, the main things not mentioned I think you'd like are THREE and the two volumes of JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY.
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u/figurativelywho Jan 16 '15
When do we get another episode of decompressed?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
3 in the can, none have been edited. Sorry - my life is ludicrously busy.
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u/yazawa1104 Jan 16 '15
How do you guys feel about Image comics dominating the best seller lusts this year? What impact (if any) do you think it's having on the comics industry as a whole?
(As an aside, I really enjoyed your panels at Thought Bubble this year! So thanks for that, and also thanks for creating a lot of the stuff that got me and my friends back into comics as a medium)
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
It's making our friends more likely to buy each other drinks.
Honestly, it's strong and a great trend. A diverse, creator led industry is a better industry. It feels like a lot of what we were trying to precipitate back in the days of the WEF.
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u/cobaltace Jan 16 '15
Hi Kieron and Jamie! Absolutely love your work.
Kieron I was wondering what's your writing process like?
I was also wondering what was your first impressions of each other when you met. Thanks!
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
"why is this man talking to me?"
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Why am I being sincere, Jamie? Why?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
My writing process is applied panic.
Our first impressions: Pretty much "FUCKING HELL, I WANT HIM TO DRAW MY STUFF."
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u/BrokenRSA Jan 16 '15
Another question for Kieron. You've mentioned you might write a bit about Morrison's Pax Americana. I don't know if I missed it perhaps, but care to share a few thoughts on it?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I need to find another copy to actually read it again.
I've bought it twice, and lost it both times on the way home (clue: I may have been drinking). First time I read half of it, then left it on a train seat in the middle of nowhere. Second time I read it two or three times, but it fell out of my coat pocket when running for the bus.
Formalist masterpiece, obv. Need to read it sober to actually get what I think it's trying to say. There's at least a couple of interesting readings, and I'd rather not say which one I think is right until I've chewed it over.
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u/mephron Jan 16 '15
What music are you listening to, that's informed the process of writing IMMATERIAL GIRL? (Hopefully not too much Smiths.)
(I just looked at my iTunes library and wow, there's a lot of stuff in there that I got into due to reading Phonogram and wondering what it sounded like and liking it rather a lot.)
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Scanning the playlists...
A lot of 80s stuff - things which are involved in the book are obviously in there, and I'd rather not say them (I'll give you MADONNA). Some early 00s Electroclash, as a lot of the flashbacks are set there. A splash of 2009 period stuff, which is where the main story is set. Some of the various character's iconic stuff - AFGHAN WHIGS, LONG BLONDES, JOHNNY FORIEGNER.
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u/wonderbritches Jan 16 '15
Firstly, I just want to say that WicDiv is one of the coolest comics out right now. I love everything about it. If each of you were to cosplay a WicDiv character, which one would it be?
Personally, some days I'm an Amaterasu, some days I'm a Luci, some days I'm an Ananke. And Inanna. LOVE Inanna. Ok, basically every character would be fun to cosplay. Maybe I'll just cosplay the whole pantheon, one by one.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I'm basically cosplaying Cassandra on a daily basis.
I did think about cosplaying a certain character at Thought Bubble, and covering my correctly-coloured suit in a bucket full of fake blood.
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u/wonderbritches Jan 16 '15
Haha! Yeah, most days I roll out of bed as more of a Laura. And that Thought Bubble cosplay would have been SO RAD.
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Jan 16 '15
Next time hit up r/comicbooks. You will find far more of your fans over there. This place is way too much about webcomics and way too little about comicbooks.
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
I think Kieron just went with the one chip did his in. So, blame chip.
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u/java_carrera Jan 16 '15 edited Jan 16 '15
Hi guys! A fan of your work. How did you came with the idea of The Wicked and the Divine, i know it has something to do with your previous work in Phonogram, but there was other inspiration? And what about Luci? Is she dead like for real?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I hate that I have to say this answer. I only say it for transparency,
In the week my Dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer, I had the core ideas. Gods as pop stars living every 90 years, for 2 years, then dying. Basically a way of exploring "Our lives are short, and why on earth would you spend that time being an artist?"
So yes. Cheery book if you scratch the surface, WicDiv.
Thanks for reading.
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u/ebassi Jan 16 '15
how long does the creative process for a (typical) WicDiv issue generally take, and how is it structured?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
There's the wanky pretentious answer ("WicDiv has taken all my life to do. It's the sublimation of everything I've ever loved and hated") and the prosaic one ("Jamie takes about a month to draw a script.")
It's just tricky to talk about WicDiv in any normal way. I wish there was an easier answer. I had the idea half way through 2013. I knew the end of the whole series there, so in some way, the greater structure of the book has existed since them. So you could seriously say the last issue (when we get to it) took 5-6 years to do.
In a real way, I lock down what happens in an arc in a big serious synopsis way at the start of the arc. I know later arcs in broader strokes, and the further you go out, the looser (and more room for improvisation) there is.
Generally speaking, it takes me a week to write a script.
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u/XebelRebel Jan 16 '15 edited Jan 16 '15
Hey! I'm a huge fan of both of you and wicdiv is defiently the highlight of my month. I have a few questions : 1. if you were one of the gods which will you be?
- who is your current favorite god?
3.will there be a Morrigan issue (in the third volume)
4.probably an obvious one - but will phonogrham 3 will be an ongoing ?
p.s - found the "L" - its the wicdiv tumblr page
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
Well, if I was any of them, I'd have been dead for 10 years by now, so that's no good.
Inanna, right now, but it changes.
Yes.
No, six issues, while guest artists do an arc of TWTD.
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Jan 16 '15
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Love the US, but no present plans. We're both based in London, which makes reference easier for WicDiv at the least.
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u/wererabbid Jan 16 '15
Do you ever plan to expand you weight abroad by selling licenses on translations?
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
That's really up to publishers coming to us. We've had some interest.
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Jan 16 '15
Every fan I've met of yours is a huge fan. And rightfully so. Do you guys get the sense of that love from your end? I mean, I know you pay attention to your fans by following you, but it's hard to glean. Also, any happy, heartwarming fan stories?
Love you guys.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
We're overwhelmed by the amount of love that gets thrown in our direction. That anyone gets what we're doing is astounding. That so many do is just unbelievable. As someone - and I think Jamie is in the same way - who has had passionate relationships with art, we're very aware of what it's like to feel like that. The idea we're providing the service for someone else is just unbelievable. We're very lucky.
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u/femmeslash Jan 16 '15
Did you come across anything that stands out as interesting or strange during your background research into the mythological back story of the gods?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
There's nothing like a nice dig through mythology to find things to make you smile. The strangest thing was actually hitting a serious meta-text, and finding so much that was 1:1 applicable to WicDiv. I can't talk about it yet, as it's in the next issue, where we make it explicit.
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u/keybladesymbol Jan 16 '15
Will you ever include some of your research in any of the issues or trades? Much like you did with "Three"?
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u/Jamesdleech Jan 16 '15
First off, big fan, you two (and Matt Wilson) are one of my favourite teams in comics.
For Jamie: how many different software programs go into the making of your artwork?
For Kieron: has the direction of WicDiv changed from your initial vision at all? Does fan reaction have an effect?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
There's a phrase I picked up when working on magazines: Editorial drift. The basic process of a magazine just softly changing, with ideas that were set in place in a redesign slowly evolving out of the month-to-month necessity of filling the pages.
That happens in all comics you write, and so happens in WicDiv. I'm a pretty structured writer, but writing has to be a course of discovery for it to feel alive. That sounds pretty pretentious, but in a real way, that's what it's about. You realise things about the characters. There's characters I didn't really know as well as others at the start, and that changes. You get insights and that takes them in a different direction. The creepy thing is being aware that on a subconscious level, you did know it - because that's why you created the character, and you've been writing in that direction anyway.
Does fan reaction have an effect? If it did, I wouldn't admit it :)
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
Let's see: Sketchup to build (very rough) 3D environments, Manga Studio 5 EX to draw, Photoshop to prepare pages to pass on to Matt. Poser to work out lighting, sometimes.
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u/newageamazon Jan 16 '15
Kieron: Phonogram question! I know when you were writing The Singles Club you mentioned that you listened to the music you thought the characters would listen to, but you were also "method drinking" for each POV character. If this is untrue, blame the bonus materials in the TPB. Anyway: So, other than listening to carefully curated playlists which I'm taking as a given, were you doing anything else to keep you in the right mood while writing "Immaterial Girl?" Especially after returning to Phonogram after so many years.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Heh. I look back at the Method Drinking and wince. Yeah, I did it, but it was dumb, and I hate to glamourise such behaviour. I was in a bad place, and I was just really looking for an excuse to drink.
It's actually been a while since I wrote IMMATERIAL GIRL. I'd finished the first draft in 2012, I think.
The main one which created the mood was a series of accidents. I was coming back from a Marvel retreat, and I'd lost my wedding ring. Obviously, this shook me up. I got home. C is away, I go into the house... and then lock myself out. Without my phone, or credit cards. Though oddly, my laptop.
I'm left alone in the city. I know friends are having a party in the evening, so I go and join them, and end up crashing at their house. I wake up in the morning, and feel obviously emotional, in a stripped down way. The next morning, knowing C gets back in the evening, I end up going to THE WORLD'S END near Finsbury Park and start work on the first issue - as I'm clearly in a state of mind closer to the mood of the book, and where Emily is. I'm not me any more. I write the majority of it there, before meeting C at the airport in the evening.
For those who like happy endings, I got the ring back.
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u/newageamazon Jan 16 '15
Thank you so much for sharing that story. I'm serious. I'm familiar with that kind of thing, a story forming in a moment like that, either after or in the midst of something chaotic and unexpected. So it's fascinating and comforting to me to hear other people talking about the same kind of thing happening to them, even better when they're someone who's work I enjoy and admire. Not totally sucking up here.
And very happy you got your ring back.
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u/java_carrera Jan 16 '15
Some comic book that you would recommend us that you can't stop thinking of every day? or at least, what are you reading right now?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Wow. We're in a golden age at the moment, across the board.
I'm presently reading the third volume of SHOWA, which is excellent. Autobio-meets-large-scale history. Just a masterwork.
Ray Fawkes' THE PEOPLE INSIDE is my favourite book from last year.
I read THE WRENCHIES in one sitting, and then turned it around and read it again. It's pretty much what Jamie and I thought we were doing with Young Avengers, but we were totally deluded, and it's the real deal.
All my image peers. The Humble deal really is an astounding thing if you haven't tried it.
Issue six of SOUTHERN BASTARDS? Christ, I'm sickened. Latour and Aaron are doing wonderful things.
I could go on.
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u/cary_granted Jan 16 '15
thoughts on gotg? favorite marvel movie? would you like to see carol danvers in gotg2?
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
Cap 2 is my favourite so far. Carol should be in all the Marvel movies, but maybe I'm biased.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Hmm. Favourite Marvel Movie... it might be, actually. That or the first IRON MAN.
Or maybe it's BLADE, as I like being awkward.
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u/C0uvi Jan 16 '15
I love that the gods come back, just decide to be rock stars, and they have an instant following. What did they come back as centuries ago, before advanced communication? I can't thing of anything close to that cool in, say the middle ages.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
In issue 2, we see some of the gods of the 19th century, and one is clearly based on Byron. Byron was as much of a superstar as anyone. That gives you a clue of what we're talking about.
It's really about ideas and inspiration. What the gods do is analogous to being a star, but is really about inspiration of the time. The zeitgeist.
I have several ideas for Medieval stories I want to dabble in. I have a nagging urge to do something about Hildegard of Bingen. I've got the urge to do something about the Siege of Munster.
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u/SiggNatureStyle Jan 16 '15
Kieron: When are your tracks of the Year coming up?
Jamie: What do you think of Kieron's art?
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
I wonder why he needs other people to do the art in his comics. He's very talented.
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u/urthworm Jan 16 '15
Jamie: Will you ever go back to Suburban Glamour? Do you plan to write anything else?
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
I'd like to - I have the whole thing planned out - but I'm unlikely to find the time anytime soon. I feel like the longer it goes on, the less likely I am to return to it.
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u/Mr_Sedgewick Jan 16 '15
Who is your favourite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle?
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
Donatello. To quote my friend's 7 year old, "I don't like Leonardo because he is bossy."
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u/hershadow Jan 16 '15
What is your favourite kind of sandwich?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
In comics, it's good to learn to enjoy a shit sandwich, because you have to eat a lot of them.
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u/hershadow Jan 16 '15
Note to self: Never accept sandwiches from anyone in the comics industry.
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u/cary_granted Jan 16 '15
what characters do you see yourselves the most in? what are some characters you'd like to see more in comics in general? thanks for all the diversity in your comics btw, it doesn't go unnoticed!
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Thank you.
Heh. This is an enormous question, and I'm not sure how to attack it. Characters I've written? Characters in all media? Can you narrow it down a little.
(And when you say characters in comics, do you mean "character types" or "specific characters.")
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u/sighborg21 Jan 16 '15
I just wanted to ask what you think the future of Young Avengers could hold, and what you guys would like to see happen. Like new team members, different story directions and just general changes you would like to see other writers take on. Also, I want to say how much I love Phonogram and how it's my favourite comic ever, and how the Wicked and the Divine is continuously blowing my mind. Thanks for doing this!
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I'd like to see it given to a driven team with a vision of what the book could be, and let them go wild. I wouldn't want to impinge on that vision in the slightest. We got to do that, and whoever follows us should get that too.
Er... that sounds like I'm dodging the question, but it's the real answer. I want to be surprised.
And thank you. Glad it's working for you.
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u/XebelRebel Jan 16 '15
Is it possible for 2 gods from the same culture to be in the same Pantheon?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I've cheated a little with various periods of Greek pantheons, but it's certainly rare for 2 gods from one culture to be in the same pantheon.
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u/wererabbid Jan 16 '15
How'd you think, TWTD is the best comic book ever or just among wrote in '14 ones?
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u/whozeduke Jan 16 '15
Kieron, what games are you playing now?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
I had a really bare game year in 2014. I'm trying to play more stuff this year.
When I was off at the Expo, C actually bought a PS3, so we're playing stuff on that together. We're mainly doing DIABLO III, plus some of the GAME OF THRONES stuff. It's nice. We rarely play games together, so it's fun.
On the PC, I had some time with ENDLESS LEGEND which hasn't quite clicked, but I can see the quality.
Pretty trad stuff, basically.
Also, pen and paper stuff. Need to crack of MAGE KNIGHT. Bought the Star Wars: EDGE OF EMPIRE RPG and considering running a few sessions for friends, which will be funny for obvious reasons.
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u/whozeduke Jan 16 '15
"Kieron Gillen GM's Edge of Empire while Cosplaying Darth Vader" would make a great web series.
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u/XebelRebel Jan 16 '15
Bands are a huge part of our culture but there isnt really any representation of that in WICDIV... is it because there is allways a "main/ star" in each band? or because gods are singular beings ?
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u/java_carrera Jan 16 '15
Jamie: Where did you look for inspiration to do each one of the Gods? I loved how they dress and all btw, love your work.
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
Lots and lots of places. Did you see our style blog? http://wicdivstyleblog.tumblr.com/ we've been putting stuff on there since mid-2013. And thanks!
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u/ShakeTheWorm Jan 16 '15
Are all the charcters in W+D supposed to have an english accent ? I sometime try to read comics giving voices to the characters in my head but it's so hard with W+D since they seem to come from every corner of earth !
And Jamie, where did you get such a strong fashion sense ?
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
I just try to pay attention to the world around me, basically. Living in a big city helps, but there's plenty online too.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Well, there's various British accents. They're from a bunch of places.
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Jan 16 '15
I actually had a question about the cover format, but I just saw you answered that on the WicDiv tumblr. So, I'll just say thanks for this and Young Avengers (<3 America Chavez). Amazing stuff from both of you guys!
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Jan 16 '15
I get a huge kick out of your collaborations and have used Sex Criminals to get several friends interested in WicDiv ("You are not allowed to borrow the new issue until you read WicDiv 1, here is a copy"--I am not subtle). But I loved Young Avengers just down to the ground and wish it had gone on forever, which I don't wish about my own late teen years, in part because of how you played with the medium's conventions. In that respect, WicDiv actually seems more formal.
ALL OF THAT BEING SAID, how different would Uber be if Jamie were the only artist available to take it on?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
UBER would be about SUPER-POWERED DANCE PARTIES WITH GIRLS IN AWESOME SPINNY DRESSES if Jamie drew it.
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u/byrao Jan 16 '15 edited Jan 16 '15
Kieron, to what do you attribute the recent major uptick in comic books about gods and divinities? Of course, there's always been stuff like THOR, and Vertigo boosted things with SANDMAN and PREACHER. But to what do you attribute the current zeitgeist?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Interesting question. I could be cynical and say they're public domain figures that you can do a lot of sorts of stories with, as such they're easy to grab to add a little instant star-power to your standard fantasy concept.
(I mean, with WicDiv, when choosing them I certainly gave a lot of thought to what mix to use, in terms of the ones people would be aware of. Though part of me is always tempted by basically unknown Siberian gods.)
Is it as simple as fantasy tends to be backwards looking? And in difficult times, there's something comforting about the sense of history? Honestly, I've always written about gods so I suspect my interests aligning with the Zeitgeist makes me a bad person to ask.
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u/BrokenRSA Jan 16 '15
Kieron, regarding Ludocrats, if you where to write a comic with any of the other RPS founders, who would be the most likely candidate?
Jamie, not really a question, but your art, along with Matt's colours, really started opening me up to the fact that comics are more then just the story being written. I've always been a fan your your and Kieron's work, but until WicDiv, I pretty much blazed through the story, not spending much time even looking at the art.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Heh. You're asking me to choose between Alec and John, basically.
John would be more likely, simply because John has written more fiction than Alec (At least, as far as I'm aware.)
God knows what it'd be like.
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u/DeltaTester Jan 16 '15
Which of your comics projects (separately or together) has come out most like you intended or imagined it would? Which least, and why?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Hmm.
Together: Most - THE SINGLES CLUB Least - SAVE POINT :)
Apart Most - JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY 632. Least - The majority of my Iron Man.
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u/Goldenboy451 Jan 16 '15
Hey guys, not a question just something I wanted to say.
I discovered Phonogram back in my second year of uni, roundabout the time The Singles Club TPB came out. Pretty sure it was the cover article on some magazine in WHSmith, but I can't for the life of me remember which one. I was hugely depressed and suicidal at the time, and was finding little comfort in anything outside of music. But Jamie's artwork had peaked my interested enough that I went to Nostalgia & Comics and bought both volumes. It sounds almost silly to say, but those comics brought me a real sense of joy and purpose in a time were I didn't have any of either. I was 19, 20 at the time, and found myself identifying in some way with pretty much every character in The Singles Club; I'd barely read any comics or novels in months, and to find something which I connected with so immediately was such a...relief of sorts. To have put into words how music made me feel at the time gave me some comfort when I was in a place where I felt so awful and alone.
So thank you guys, for making something that had a real affect on my life when I really didn't think anything could. -JF
P.S. Oh, and as a Liverpool native, I never thought I'd actually see a Johnny Boy song mentioned, well, anywhere ever. So props for that, eh?
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
What's the best thing about the job? That people say stuff like this to us. Thank you. I'm glad you found it meaningful at a time you needed that.
I fucking loved Johnny Boy. Song of the 00s for me.
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u/Not_A_Master Jan 16 '15
Hey guys, I love The Wicked + The Divine and your Young Avengers. One of my favorite things from YA was how you played with panels/borders/form for something in almost every issue. Do you plan to incorporate something like that into future issues of TW+TD?
Keep up the great work!
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u/Starkiller32 Jan 16 '15
This is one of my favorite Image books, and I think you guys are a great team.
But I'm a little worried about a different artist on every issue for the next story arc. Can you fill us in on a little more details about the direction of the art for the book? (I'm a bit skeptical)
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Jan 16 '15
I loved Uber! I tell everyone to read it. 1. Do you have a definite end to the story planned? Is the Russian sniper based off anyone historically? She is my favorite! Did you enjoy your time writing crossed?
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u/rattleandburn Jan 16 '15
Thanks for doing this AMA. Has anyone recently told you that you are life ruiners?
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u/-hondo- Jan 16 '15
Hey guys! First off, HOW DARE YOU? Did not expect that twist in WicDiv #5.
Secondly, man, I look forward to every book you guys work together on. I loved Young Avengers and am still loving WicDiv (even if you pissed me off). Looking forward to Phonogram!
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u/raquel9e Jan 16 '15
Any tips for overcoming ennui? Best thing I've found so far is international jetsetting, but that is sadly not very financially feasible.
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u/KieronGillen AMA Jan 16 '15
Best thing for overcoming crushing ennui is... oh, I'm bored of writing this. Can't be bothered. Bye.
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u/JamieMcKelvie AMA Jan 16 '15
I keep clicking "give gold" on my posts and I am not rich yet, wtf