Comics Confidential

Book excerpt: A must-have collection for comics fans and creators everywhere, packed with interviews and original comics by today’s foremost graphic novelists. Respected anthologist Leonard S. Marcus turns his literary microscope to the world of comics, which has lately morphed and matured at a furious pace. Powerful influences from manga to the movies to underground comix have influenced the thirteen artists and writers interviewed in these pages to create their own word-and-picture narratives. Here are their moving, funny, inspirational stories: true tales from the crucible of creative struggles that led each to become a master of one of today’s most vibrant art forms. The book also contains an original graphic short on the common theme of “the city" from each of the artists, a mini-comic set in a cityscape of their choosing—present-day, historical, or imaginary. Featuring interviews with: Harry Bliss Catia Chien Geoffrey Hayes Kazu Kibuishi Hope Larson Danica Novgorodoff Matt Phelan Dave Roman Mark and Siena Cherson Siegel James Sturm Sara Varon Gene Luen Yang