We visited the Valiant Comics writers’ retreat to learn why in the age of superhero blockbusters, comics and creators still come first.
What Do I Need to Know About Valiant Comics or "Why Does That Goat Have Laser Vision?"
Valiant Comics is an American comic book publisher founded in 1989, by Jim Shooter (a former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief) and Bob Layton (a former Marvel artist).
During the early '90s boom in the comic book industry — the same one that gave birth to Spawn, The Death of Superman, and a record-shattering X-Men relaunch — Valiant introduced original properties like Harbinger (super-powered teens on the run), Rai (a samurai in the future), X-O Manowar (a fifth-century Visigoth in a stolen suit of alien armor), and Archer & Armstrong (it's complicated).
After fading away with much of the comics industry in the post-boom late '90s, Valiant returned with a vengeance in 2012. Under new leadership, it relaunched most of its flagship titles with a formidable team of fan-favorite comics creators, equally comfortable in the worlds of mainstream superhero punch-'em-ups and experimental indie work.
Long story short, two worlds collided and a new universe was born.
Valiant Comics
Inside a Comics Writers' Retreat: "Who's There, What Gets Done, and Why Haven't You Answered Our Question about the Goat?"
Like the shared writing room of a TV show, a writers' retreat allows comic creators to sit down face-to-face with rarely seen colleagues and make a blueprint of what's going to happen in their shared narrative universe in the coming year.
With superheroes constantly crossing over between different titles and creators, it's a good way of brainstorming character arcs for solo titles and plotting universe-wide changes in the status quo.
For instance, if Bloodshot (cybernetic killing-machine protagonist of Valiant's upcoming Bloodshot Reborn) was going to die (unlikely based on that title), and another writer was planning to use Bloodshot as a guest star in, say, Ninjak (a character who is basically James Bond crossed with Batman but also a ninja), the Ninjak editorial team might want to know about that in advance.
Valiant Comics / Via Twitter: @valiant
"What Are You Even Talking About, What Does This Have to Do With the Goat From Before?"
We're getting there. Comic companies also, pretty reliably, like to slate their production year with one or more universe-wide crossover events (often referred to as just crossovers, or just events). These are usually highly publicized mini-series that involve a lot of prominent characters and tie into their individual solo comics — famous examples include DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths and Marvel's Civil War.
With so many moving parts, and so many writers' long-term plans affected, it only makes sense to fly everyone in and brainstorm this kind of thing together in a room. "I'm just here to steal from other writers," jokes Jeff Lemire, a Valiant writer who has also written for DC and Marvel, and, like almost everyone in the room, got started publishing his own creator-owned work.
Which isn't to say that all this brainstorming means everything is written out in advance. "Editors work closely with the creators and make sure their voice comes through," says Valiant Editor-in-Chief Warren Simons, "and not that they just execute the vision that was handed to them."
Valiant Comics
The 2015 Valiant Retreat was held in New York City, where Valiant is headquartered and hosted its publishing and editorial team and writers from all over the country.
Including, but probably not limited to, Dinesh Shamdasani (chief creative officer), Warren Simons (editor-in-chief), Alejandro Arbona (editor), Josh Johns (digital sales), Fred Pierce (publisher), and writers Fred Van Lente (Archer & Armstrong, Ivar: Timewalker), Jeff Lemire (Bloodshot Reborn, The Valiant), Jen Van Meter (The Death-Defying Dr. Mirage), Matt Kindt (Ninjak, The Valiant), Robert Venditti (X-O Manowar, Armor Hunters), and Joshua Dysart (Harbinger, Imperium).
