They were really just in it for the money. A couple of them would pitch ideas and you could just tell their heart wasn't in it. I had a lot of friends who would come from alternative comics, and I would introduce them to editors and try to get them in. It was the easiest thing when I could call my relatives back in West Virginia and tell them, “Hey, I'm writing 'Batman.'“ Everyone knew the character and the stories. When you create alternative or independent comics, you always have to explain to your relatives what you are doing.

The idea of getting a job where I was going to get paid for every page that I wrote, and then I could write one of the most popular comic book characters with Batman, was an amazing turn of events. I was coming out of alternative comics where I had drawn and written small comics for friends of mine. I broke in during the late 1990s, early 2000s doing the DC and Marvel stuff. You take all of that and then just swing for the fences. What is interesting about Batman? What parts of 'Batman' as a mythology appeal to me, and what parts of Bruce Wayne or these characters around him are things that are reflective of me? I have the nostalgia for it. Batman's the world's greatest detective.” Then I started thinking about it. I thought, “What, like a superhero comic?' I write crime stories, more personal stuff, and the head editor at DC said, “Well, if you can write a mystery, you can write a Batman comic. I did some work at Vertigo, a DC imprint, which included a mystery comic called 'Scene of the Crime.' The head editor at the time read that and then he asked me about writing 'Batman.' When I started doing work for hire stuff, I was over at DC Comics. Our conversation has been edited for clarity and length.Īs someone who has written for DC Comics and Marvel, how did you find the confidence to write characters you did not create and to then put your mark on them?

In my recent conversation with Ed Brubaker, we discussed the origins of his love of comic books and graphic novels, advice for people trying to break into mainstream comics, the personal challenge of writing legendary characters such as Batman and Captain America, the obligation of the writer to speak personal truth and his thoughts on how American comic books and graphic novels have crossed over into the mainstream of Hollywood popular culture.īrubaker also reflects on the relationship between creativity and sobriety and how those tensions are present in his new work. Brubaker's newest project is 'My Heroes Have Always Been Junkies,' which is now available from Image Comics.

Ed brubaker sebastian stan