Len Wein Quotes
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I've never had to work out of the arts. I've always either been a writer or an editor, or something where I've made my living from doing what I love. You can't get any better than that.
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Unfortunately, there are writers whose only concern is how good they could make themselves look on a title.
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If a story isn't working, I'm simply unable to finish it. That's what usually tells me something is wrong.
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I'm a neurotic New York Jew by birth. Creating characters is second nature to me.
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I'm still a fanboy geek. I always will be. In many ways, if my work still resonates with the audience, it's because I'm still writing from the point of view of the fan, so I'm geeked out constantly.
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I try not to violate what came before me and to leave lots of wiggle room for those who will follow.
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A true friend is someone who is there for you when he'd rather be anywhere else.
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The most unrealistic thing I've ever read in comics is when some group of characters calls themselves the Brotherhood of Evil or the Masters of Evil. I don't believe any character believes their goals to be truly evil.
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I try to find what makes even the worst, most despicable character sympathetic at his or her core.
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The bottom line always remains the same: What is the basic humanity of the character? How do I make them resonate with the reader?
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Were there stories I wrote along the way that were terrible clinkers? God, yes. But they were all a product of their time, and I did the best I could.
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In these litigious times, if you're a beginner, it's becoming harder and harder to get your work to the people who might actually be able to hire you.
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When I'm my own editor, there's very little difference between the first draft and the final. I write what feels right to begin with. I rarely make any major changes.
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When someone writes to tell me something I've written made them laugh or cry, I've done my job and done it well. The rest is all semantics.
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People who were more concerned with themselves and looking good to their readers then they were with the characters sacrificed a series for the sake of a story.
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These days, it seems that if you're not already in place, you can't get there from here.
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Never be embarrassed by the things you cannot do. Be embarrassed by the things you can do and don't do well.
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In general, shorter is better. If you can encapsulate your idea into a single captivating sentence, you're halfway home.
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I've always been the audience that I wanted to reach, so I write for myself.
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I consider myself the luckiest man in the world. I have spent a lifetime doing what I love.
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Lord of the Rings, I think, is far and away the most brilliantly done stuff.
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Sometimes you're not even sure which of your stories were failures. There are things I've written that I thought were complete catastrophes when I finished with them that have gone on to generate some of my most positive feedback.
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I think jazz and comic books are probably the two uniquely American art forms.
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A writer writes. Period. No matter if someone is buying your work or not.