Brian K. Vaughan his made his name as one of the best comics writers of the Twenty-first century. He created two long running series, the science fiction fable YThe Last Man and the political superhero tale Ex Machina. Vaughan also created the series Runaways for Marvel and wrote the series best issues, wrote the graphic novel Pride of Baghdad based on the true story of lions who escaped from the Baghdad zoo and wrote a story arc for the Ninth Season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for Dark Horse Comics and Joss Whedon that featured Faith. Outside of comics, hes been known for joining the writing staff of Lost during the third season. He worked on the show through the fifth season and is currently adapting Stephen Kings novel Under the Dome for Showtime.
His new project is Saga, an ongoing series coming out from Image Comics. Illustrated by Fiona Staples, the book is about a Romeo and Juliet-esque couple from opposite sides of an interstellar war. A blend of fantasy and science fiction elements, there are creatures with wings, horned aliens, ray guns and swords, spaceships and childbirth, bounty hunters, rocketship forests, cats that can tell if youre lying and a healthy dose of sex and violence. We reached Vaughan by e-mail.
ALEX DUEBEN: Just to start, what is Saga?
BRIAN K. VAUGHAN: Saga is a brand-new ongoing series for "mature readers" co-created with artist Fiona Staples for Image Comics.It's a sci-fi/fantasy epic about Marko and Alana, soldiers on opposite sides of a brutal galactic war who nevertheless fall in love and have a baby, even though the rest of the universe thinks that's a pretty shitty idea. First chapter is out on March 14.
AD: So where did the story begin?
BKV: I've been building and refining this crazy universe in my head ever since I was a little kid, but I never thought to tell a story set there until I had a kid of my own.After that, everything just kind of fell into place.
AD: Was the combination of science fiction and elements in there from the beginning?
BKV: Yep.It's always been a big suicide cocktail of different genres.
AD: In recent years you worked on Lost, you wrote some screenplays, youre adapting Stephen Kings Under the Dome for Showtime, what brought you back to comics?
BKV: It's the best visual storytelling medium ever created.I've been dying to get back to comics ever since I wrote the final issue of Ex Machina.I just needed the right idea and the perfect collaborator.
AD: You wrote multiple books at Vertigo for years. You could have gone anywhere with this book. Why did you take the book to Image?
BKV: Without getting into too much detail about behind-the-scenes nonsense, I'll just say that Image is the only publisher I know of that's still able to offer writers and artists what I would consider a truly creator-owned contract.
AD: How did you connect with Fiona Staples and what made her a good choice to draw the book?
BKV: I'd been a fan of her work for a while now, but it was writer Steve Niles who suggested Fiona when I said I was looking for someone who could draw a sexy, violent, politically subversive space opera for the 21st century.Her artwork is incredible, unlike any comic art I've ever seen.Fiona's perfect for Saga because she can make even the most far-out daydream feel emotionally relatable.
AD: To what degree did you know what the characters would look like before Fiona came on board and how much of their looks came from her?
BKV: I would write her only the barest visual suggestions noble dad with sword, badass mom with raygun and Fiona would come back with fully fleshed out human beings. She takes my weird alien characters and transforms them into people you care about, and she does that with every corner of every new planet we visit. I'm very luck to be working with her!
AD: What was your thinking behind the narration and having it appear handwritten on the page like that?
BKV: I've been reading a ton of children's books since my kids were born, and I love the way that the text sometimes interacts with the images in fun ways. Felt like a cool device I could steal for my dirty comic, especially because of our narrator's unique relation to the story.
AD: This is clearly a long form project, something youve done before. Do you always need to have it planned it from the beginning and to what degree is the story set in stone?
BKV: I always work from a super detailed roadmap, but I also allow myself the freedom to occasionally follow characters down unexpected detours.There's no right way to write.
AD: Reading the first issue a few times, I kept thinking that it was written by someone who had become a parent recently, but I kept coming back to the old saying, the golden age of science fiction is twelve. Its a little transgressive and not for all ages, but its also big and expansive and fun and scary and ambitious in a way we dont see much in comics. Is that pretty much what you were going for?
BKV: Well, I always like to let my work speak for itself but I love all of your adjectives. Especially transgressive!
Saga #1 is out from Image Comics March 14.
His new project is Saga, an ongoing series coming out from Image Comics. Illustrated by Fiona Staples, the book is about a Romeo and Juliet-esque couple from opposite sides of an interstellar war. A blend of fantasy and science fiction elements, there are creatures with wings, horned aliens, ray guns and swords, spaceships and childbirth, bounty hunters, rocketship forests, cats that can tell if youre lying and a healthy dose of sex and violence. We reached Vaughan by e-mail.
ALEX DUEBEN: Just to start, what is Saga?
BRIAN K. VAUGHAN: Saga is a brand-new ongoing series for "mature readers" co-created with artist Fiona Staples for Image Comics.It's a sci-fi/fantasy epic about Marko and Alana, soldiers on opposite sides of a brutal galactic war who nevertheless fall in love and have a baby, even though the rest of the universe thinks that's a pretty shitty idea. First chapter is out on March 14.
AD: So where did the story begin?
BKV: I've been building and refining this crazy universe in my head ever since I was a little kid, but I never thought to tell a story set there until I had a kid of my own.After that, everything just kind of fell into place.
AD: Was the combination of science fiction and elements in there from the beginning?
BKV: Yep.It's always been a big suicide cocktail of different genres.
AD: In recent years you worked on Lost, you wrote some screenplays, youre adapting Stephen Kings Under the Dome for Showtime, what brought you back to comics?
BKV: It's the best visual storytelling medium ever created.I've been dying to get back to comics ever since I wrote the final issue of Ex Machina.I just needed the right idea and the perfect collaborator.
AD: You wrote multiple books at Vertigo for years. You could have gone anywhere with this book. Why did you take the book to Image?
BKV: Without getting into too much detail about behind-the-scenes nonsense, I'll just say that Image is the only publisher I know of that's still able to offer writers and artists what I would consider a truly creator-owned contract.
AD: How did you connect with Fiona Staples and what made her a good choice to draw the book?
BKV: I'd been a fan of her work for a while now, but it was writer Steve Niles who suggested Fiona when I said I was looking for someone who could draw a sexy, violent, politically subversive space opera for the 21st century.Her artwork is incredible, unlike any comic art I've ever seen.Fiona's perfect for Saga because she can make even the most far-out daydream feel emotionally relatable.
AD: To what degree did you know what the characters would look like before Fiona came on board and how much of their looks came from her?
BKV: I would write her only the barest visual suggestions noble dad with sword, badass mom with raygun and Fiona would come back with fully fleshed out human beings. She takes my weird alien characters and transforms them into people you care about, and she does that with every corner of every new planet we visit. I'm very luck to be working with her!
AD: What was your thinking behind the narration and having it appear handwritten on the page like that?
BKV: I've been reading a ton of children's books since my kids were born, and I love the way that the text sometimes interacts with the images in fun ways. Felt like a cool device I could steal for my dirty comic, especially because of our narrator's unique relation to the story.
AD: This is clearly a long form project, something youve done before. Do you always need to have it planned it from the beginning and to what degree is the story set in stone?
BKV: I always work from a super detailed roadmap, but I also allow myself the freedom to occasionally follow characters down unexpected detours.There's no right way to write.
AD: Reading the first issue a few times, I kept thinking that it was written by someone who had become a parent recently, but I kept coming back to the old saying, the golden age of science fiction is twelve. Its a little transgressive and not for all ages, but its also big and expansive and fun and scary and ambitious in a way we dont see much in comics. Is that pretty much what you were going for?
BKV: Well, I always like to let my work speak for itself but I love all of your adjectives. Especially transgressive!
Saga #1 is out from Image Comics March 14.