Alan Moore's Writing for Comics Review

Rating: 4/5

Synopsis: Alan Moore's Writing for Comics is a 2003 reprint of the titular author's 1985-86 essay along with an afterword reflecting upon the original essay.

My Thoughts: If you're looking for a guide to drawing comics, you will be sorely disappointed and should read Scott Mccloud's Making Comics or something else of the like. However, if you are more interested in learning about the theoretical storytelling aspect of the medium, then this would be an almost perfect fit. While certain parts felt a tad dated since comics, in general, have immensely evolved since the mid-80s both in terms of distribution methods, subject matter, and public opinion, the rudimentary literary elements to crafting a story and taking advantage of the medium in ways that cannot be emulated otherwise very much hold up for the most part. As he waxes eloquently in the essay, he also provides many relevant examples from both his and other artists' work. The afterword was a surprisingly humble (for Alan Moore at least) acknowledgment of some of his faults when he originally wrote it without being too dismissive and scathing as he is with some of his older work (The Killing Joke first coming to mind).

Final Thoughts: I'd recommend this to anyone interested in the art of writing comics as both a historical reference and a guide (just be wary of the time this was written). With that being said, my first recommendation on how to make comics will still be Making Comics which offers a wider scope of information in the theoretical and artistic aspects.