Samuel Beckett hit the nail on the head when he said: “The greatest part of a writer’s time is spent in reading.” Indeed, it’s only after we’ve studied the work of masters that we are able to amass a foundation from which we can create our best material. However, if you’re new to the world of comics, you may find some of the “classic masterpieces,” such as Watchmen or Maus, a bit advanced as teaching aids or references. I know I’ll get some hate mail for excluding these classics from the list, but hear me out. Though they are definitely ranked among the more important comic books, it takes time to really appreciate exactly what it is that makes these comics so important that they’re studied even in ivy-league colleges. For this reason I think it’s probably a good idea for newer readers and writers to begin their journey by sampling the best of a diverse array of genres. The goal is, of course, to saturate yourself with quality content by deconstructing the the comics themselves and finding out what makes them “tick.”

Adventure: Y The Last Man

Y The Last Man (Brian K. Vaughan, Pia Guerra) is filled to the brim with philosophy, action, and political intrigue. With protagonists and antagonists that stick with you far past the final pages, this comic book series is among the best. Y The Last Man’s wildly original execution stands among some of the greatest feminist texts to have been written in the last twenty years. That said, creators take heed: you’re going to definitely want to pay attention to the characters and how each of them develop – what seems to make them tick, their reasoning behind the choices they make, and most importantly, how they grow over time. Y The Last Man is prime character-study material.

Science Fiction: Saga

Saga (Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples) exists as a kind of Romeo and Juliet space journey. This comic book is a prime example of how you can go about creating intense, visceral settings that almost become characters themselves! While you’re reading, make sure to note how the variety of settings create feelings of “otherness” among the characters as well as how the characters react within those settings. Pay special attention to the color schemes that are used throughout the comic as well (the way in which the color choices within the various environments reflects the emotions of the characters while also reinforcing the emotions that the audience is supposed to experience in that moment).

Epic Gothic: The Walking Dead

When I say “epic,” I don’t mean the mainstreamed usage of the word. I’m talking about an expansive, seemingly endless journey undertaken by characters who face constant tragedy and hardship. The Walking Dead (Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, Charlie Adlard) puts the characters through so much trauma, even Odysseus would blanch. Yet the characters endure; Rick and his crew survive hordes of brutal zombies and, often worse, the savagery of regular humans. The Walking Dead is another prime example of character development, though in a very different way than Y The Last Man. Where Y The Last Man molds Yorick into a self-confident, conscientious person, The Walking Dead propels its cast in the opposite direction. One of the greatest things about The Walking Dead is that the characters are constantly evolving and changing based upon the events that take place. It’s a great example of perpetual character development that shows no signs of stopping.

Fantasy With Heart: Scott Pilgrim

Scott Pilgrim (Bryan Lee O’Malley) works awesomely as a deceptively simple comic, while possessing much deeper subtextual stories that mature audiences are able to quickly pick up on. It explores themes of loneliness, abandonment, and a prevailing sense of being without a rudder. We can’t help but feel for the characters as their lives take them down unknown roads, all while keeping the tone of the comic relatively light and upbeat. While you’re reading this (comic book writers, this one is for you!) take note of how O’Malley is able to pull references from pop culture and weave them into a subtextual storyline that becomes the basis for the story’s emotional core. In other words: how does Scott Pilgrim, despite its jokes and constant video game gags, still manage to pluck at your heartstrings?

Mystery & Supernatural: Chew

Chew (John Layman, Rob Guillory) is one of the funniest, most engaging comic books in circulation right now. Its main story follows a supernatural mystery surrounding chickens and people who have super powers related to food. It sounds silly, however Chew is able to create a world that really isn’t too dissimilar from our own. This is a world in which we are able to fully lose ourselves, one centered around charismatic main characters for whom we can’t help but cheer. Comic book writers and artists: make sure you pay attention to how Layman takes the world that we know and twists it into a place that, while fictional, isn’t entirely implausible. What kinds of things does he include in his world that make it feel like an alternate version of the one we know? Billboards, signs, televisions, human nature? Make a note of them if your own comic book vision has you traveling to a world not too far from home.

Superhero: The Ultimates Vol. 1

The Ultimates Volume 1 (Mark Millar, Bryan Hitch) features re-imagined versions of Marvel superheroes. It is an exemplary comic book series that take readers outside of established history and ongoing plot threads and thrusts them into an alternate universe- rewriting everything we thought we knew about some of the most iconic superheroes in the process. A key aspect of Ultimates is how it exists as a subversion of genre norms; it dispenses with the expectations we place on superhero comics and creates a compelling work that doesn’t rely solely on the powers of the heroes, but rather on the heroes as individuals. Think about the genre your dream comic might exist in. How would you subvert it? How would you take the expectations that we, your audience, have for your comic and flip them on their heads?

Horror: 30 Days of Night

30 Days of Night (Steve Niles, Ben Templesmith) is an incredible graphic novel that sets out to rewrite our expectations of what vampires should be – and does it with style. 30 Days of Night takes readers to a small town in the far north where the sun sets for thirty days at a time. This month of complete darkness creates a sense of pervasive isolation as the vampires descend upon the town, turning it into a giant buffet. Comic book artists should definitely pay attention to the strange, stylized, and chaotic techniques used by the artist, Ben Templesmith. His art is one of the reasons why this graphic novel works so well. His use of watercolors, digital painting and texturing, and non-anatomically correct drawings is what drives the feelings of madness within each page. Take special note of how each person is drawn based on their role in the story. The shapes he uses for their eyes, their teeth, their hands- it’s crazy stuff.

Crime Noir: Sin City

Sin City (Frank Miller) is a must read for any hard-boiled noir aficionados out there. The stories within Sin City focus on the hard men who make hard choices and let their steel do the talking. Revenge is largely the name of the game in these stories along with a healthy dose violent justice. Artists should pay attention to how Miller reinforces the starkness of the world through the use of solid black and white – no color. This visual starkness quite literally portrays the world as being morally divided between right and wrong. Writers: the language in this book is fantastic! The dialogue is quick, sharp, and almost springs off the page. As a genre piece, Sin City is among the finest in its marriage of art and language.

So there you have it- eight excellent genre pieces that mesh storytelling and art together in wonderful ways. When you’re reading these comics, do so not as a consumer, but as a comic creator. Study each page (each panel even) as though it were a unique piece of art that tells only a piece of a larger story. Don’t merely read these comics for pleasure – learn from them!.

And stay tuned for next month’s list when I’ll be highlighting some great comics that provide creators with awesome bonus material and behind the scenes glimpses into the scripting and paneling process.