stretchin' out them stories!

I think I first heard the phrase “uncompressed storytelling” via the great John Byrne, comic artist and writer, and man of very strong opinions. He was criticizing some other writer or comic series (I don't remember which one) about hinting at stories that wouldn't ...

The Walking Dead has been a successful comic-to-screen adaptation. Back when the show started, in 2010, the comics-on-film trend had not hit high gear.

High gear wasn't far off, though. Iron Man had already come out and was huge, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe was soon going to take ...

On our last Quackcast I had a realization about one of the recurring elements that shows up in a lot of horror I like.

It's the hidden nature of horror. When someone, or something, appears normal or even extra sweet or appealing, but hides nasty stuff beneath.

It's ...

I just started the Netflix series called “The Hanting of Bly Manor”.

It's hard to say how it's going to turn out in the end, since I'm just at the beginning. But overall so far, I'm enjoying the thing. There are many unanswered questions already, and ...

Now that's a little TOO scary!

Horror is perfect for metaphor and allegory. In fact, a horror story is often allegorical by default, what with its bizarre landscapes and freaky beasties.

Here are some categories of horror and some thoughts on what they symbolize:

Reality Bites


psycho killer! Qu ...

They talk about ‘writing what you know’ and we've talked about it around here, too.

Does that mean the characters you write and draw have to match all the surface details of your identity, sharing your gender, race, and hobbies?

Of course not.

The characters and stories you create ...