Book review
Written by Judith Salavetz, Spencer Drate
Rockport paperback
Release date Out now

“47 master artists reveal the techniques and inspiration behind their comic genius…”

There are plenty of step-by-step, how-to-make-your-own-comic guides out there (some by famous artists, some by hacks), but Creating Comics! is more of a look at how different artists approach their craft.

It’s an interesting little book, not least because of the wide variety of contributors, and there is a pleasing emphasis on contemporary counter-culture artists. Sure, there are a few respected superhero-comic contributors here, such as Michael Golden and Mark Texeira; but there are also music-themed designers (including John Hollmstrom, creator of Punk magazine’s first ever cover and the Ramones’ Road to Ruin art), manga artists, newspaper-strip artists and satirical illustrators.

Many of the artists here are known for their offbeat (or just plain weird) work, including Molly Crabapple’s burlesque-influenced art and Justin Kavoussi’s psychedelic “societal therapy”, though the book layout itself could perhaps have reflected this alternative spirit and played around with the format a bit more (instead it’s a standard A-Z of artists, with text and illustrations).

All the artists, whether they work with inks, crayons, new media or a combination of everything, describe their influences, motivations and techniques, both in general and with regard to selected artworks. You’re left with a real sense of the scope and variety of the comic as an art form. James Skipp

VERDICT: 7/10
You might not be familiar with all the artists here (and you probably won’t be a fan of all), but this is an interesting and inspiring insight into the mind of comics talent. There’s a great selection of their art too.