CBG EXPRESS

But his anonymity may not last much longer for bookstore readers – and it’s not true at all in the comics field, which will see – in late summer – the almost-simultaneous release of three Gaiman comic-book projects: The Sandman: Endless Nights with art by P. Craig Russell, Milo Manara, Bill Sienkiewicz, Miguelanxo Prado, Barron Storey, Glenn Fabry, Frank Quitely, and Dave McKean for DC, The Wolves in the Walls, an all-ages graphic novel with McKean from HarperCollins, and the first issue of 1602 with Andy Kubert and Richard Isanove for Marvel. “It’s an interesting place of coming together,” Gaiman said.

In a general press conference June 27 Gaiman discussed how he came up with the idea for 1602, the story of the Marvel universe set in the same year as its title.

“1602 came about in part because I was plotting it the week after Sept. 11. The first week planes were flying, I had to go to Trieste in northern Italy. I ended up with a day in Venice just to plot what I was going to do. Whatever I did, it WASN’T going to have skyscrapers, bombs, guns, or planes in it. I said I don’t think this is stuff I want to put into my fiction right now. When the idea for 1602 fell into my head, I called Joe Quesada and asked if anyone had done this before and he said they hadn’t,” Gaiman said.

Gaiman commented on how impressed he has been with the art. “Andy Kubert’s art is really cool – and gets better and better with each issue. I keep throwing things at him I thought he’d find difficult, and he’s just nailed it. I’m looking forward to seeing what Richard Isanove does with it.”

His current, simultaneous stresses are a final reworking of an Endless Nights script to take into account Bill Sienkiewicz’ contribution to the story and, concerning 1602, “getting everything that has to happen in 66 pages with no room to wiggle.”