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Home
Authors
Len Wein
American
Cartoonist
About the author
Art is always in the eyes of the beholder. Only posterity has the right to point out our mistakes.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Right
#Art
#Mistakes
#Eyes
#Posterity
I try not to violate what came before me and to leave lots of wiggle room for those who will follow.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Will
A true friend is someone who is there for you when he'd rather be anywhere else.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Friend
A writer writes. Period. No matter if someone is buying your work or not.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Work
#Writer
#Buying
I always wanted to fire rays out of my fingertips.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Fire
I became an art major, took every art class my school had to offer. In college, I majored in Advertising Art and Design.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Art
#School
#College
#Class
#Design
#Advertising
I had never really thought of myself as a writer; any writing I had done was just to give myself something to draw.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Thought
#Writing
#Writer
I hate the crazy, neurotic characters beyond a certain point.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Hate
I think there's something inherently dishonest in trying to go back and mess with the past.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Past
#Trying
I try to find what makes even the worst, most despicable character sympathetic at his or her core.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Character
I was a very sickly kid. While I was in the hospital at age 7, my Dad brought me a stack of comic books to keep me occupied. I was hooked.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Books
#Age
#Dad
I would like immortality.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Immortality
I'm a neurotic New York Jew by birth. Creating characters is second nature to me.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Nature
I've always thought of myself as an organic writer, rather than a cerebral one. I feel my way along as I go, hoping I'll get to the place I intend to reach.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Thought
#Writer
I've had editors over the years who couldn't find a clue if it was stapled to their butt.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Years
#Editors
I've never sat down and thought about the difference between plot and theme. To me, that's never been important.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Thought
#Difference
The bottom line always remains the same: What is the basic humanity of the character? How do I make them resonate with the reader?
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Character
#Humanity
I realized the only thing I owed my audience was my own judgment and my own best effort.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Judgment
#Effort
If a story isn't working, I'm simply unable to finish it. That's what usually tells me something is wrong.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Wrong
These days, it seems that if you're not already in place, you can't get there from here.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
The most unrealistic thing I've ever read in comics is when some group of characters calls themselves the Brotherhood of Evil or the Masters of Evil. I don't believe any character believes their goals to be truly evil.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Character
#Goals
#Evil
#Brotherhood
Unfortunately, there are writers whose only concern is how good they could make themselves look on a title.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Writers
#Concern
Sometimes you're not even sure which of your stories were failures. There are things I've written that I thought were complete catastrophes when I finished with them that have gone on to generate some of my most positive feedback.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Thought
#Positive
#Catastrophes
Were there stories I wrote along the way that were terrible clinkers? God, yes. But they were all a product of their time, and I did the best I could.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Time
#God
People who were more concerned with themselves and looking good to their readers then they were with the characters sacrificed a series for the sake of a story.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#People
Lord of the Rings, I think, is far and away the most brilliantly done stuff.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
It's all about who's where on the food chain. When I'm the story editor, I expect my writers to follow my vision. When I'm working for another editor, I'm obliged to follow their vision.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Food
#Vision
#Writers
It all depends on which side of the desk you're sitting on.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
In these litigious times, if you're a beginner, it's becoming harder and harder to get your work to the people who might actually be able to hire you.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#People
#Work
In general, shorter is better. If you can encapsulate your idea into a single captivating sentence, you're halfway home.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Home
#Idea
There is an ancient legend which warns that, should we ever learn our true origin, our universe will instantly be destroyed.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Will
#Universe
When someone writes to tell me something I've written made them laugh or cry, I've done my job and done it well. The rest is all semantics.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Rest
#Job
#Semantics
You can read a dozen different textbooks or how-to manuals that will tell you the basic rules of what makes a story - a beginning, a middle, and an end.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Will
#End
#Beginning
#Rules
When I got my first glimpse of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, my breath caught. In that single instant, he was Wolverine.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#First
What makes a story is how well it manages to connect with the reader, the visceral effect it has.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Effect
When I'm my own editor, there's very little difference between the first draft and the final. I write what feels right to begin with. I rarely make any major changes.
Len Wein,
American
Cartoonist
#Right
#First
#Draft
#Difference