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"30 Years To Become An Overnight Success" DC: My Secret Origin Or How I Got Into Comics Panel At SDCC

DCSecretOrigin

Anthony Desiato (@DesiWestside) writes,

The final day of SDCC programming included DC: My Secret Origin or How I Got Into Comics, moderated by DC Co-Publisher Dan DiDio and featuring DC creators Jimmy Palmiotti, Liam Sharp, Nicola Scott, Mark Russell, Tom King, and Rafael Albuquerque. What the panel wasn't was a how-to for aspiring creators; rather, it turned out to be a fun, loose, and slightly punchy end-of-con session where the panelists got to show some personality.

DiDio alternated between asking questions of the panelists and getting the audience involved. Topics included first comic books, early industry gigs, worst jobs in any field, strangest places to get comics, and why comics in the first place. Highlights from each of the panelists:

Palmiotti scored his first professional work in 10th grade, when an artist needed some help completing backgrounds on a project. The artist paid Palmiotti $5 and told him "you're no good." Palmiotti said his worst job was designing menus for a restaurant where the owner's wife would hit on him when they were alone.

Liam Sharp, who described his career trajectory as taking "30 years to become an overnight success," once drew a hamburger for a processed meat company called "Processed Meat Company" when he was 9.

Nicola Scott got into comics "ass backwards," as she knew of superheroes from other media but wasn't aware comic books even existed until she got older.

Mark Russell discussed growing up in a very small, rural, religious area, where his chores included baling hay, a task that motivated him to find a career "not involving hay." His debut novel, a "retelling of the Bible" called God is Disappointed in You, got him noticed, though he has retained his day job at Portland State University.

Former CIA member Tom King far and away had the most interesting pre-comics experience, which he has continued to draw inspiration from in his writing. He started as an intern for DC, then worked at the CIA in counterterrorism, and eventually returned to write espionage-tinged series like Grayson.

Lastly, Rafael Albuquerque started off at an Egyptian comic book company, where he worked for three years before scoring some small gigs stateside and eventually meeting Dan DiDio.

For their part, audience members shared some of the most unusual places they've found comic books for sale, from a church parking lot to a copy of Dark Knight Returns next to onions in a Mexico City grocery store.


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