The editor, the author function, and the social function: a methodological survey

ABSTRACT

In order to better study comics as the product of collaborative creative efforts and commercial concerns, it is essential to recognise the role played by editors. However, this presents a number of challenges, as the nature of editors’ work can vary widely and the production process obscures their contributions. This article outlines the challenges of assessing the influence of editors and provides a methodological survey of existing approaches and best practices, establishing the theoretical groundwork for further research into the production culture surrounding the comic industry. Drawing upon the career of Karen Berger as a case study, this article argues that creative agency must be understood not just in terms of the authorial vision of creative staff, but also in terms of the social labour and coordinative efforts undertaken by production staff.

KEYWORDS:

• Comics
• comic studies
• editors
• authorship
• production culture
• creative labour
• Karen Berger

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Benjamin Woo and Jeremy Stoll for prompting this study and encouraging me to publish it, and to the membership of the Canadian Society for the Study of Comics for helping me test and develop my research.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Round’s findings will be discussed in greater detail in the concluding section of this article.

2. I will not go into detail discussing the creative innovations achieved by the many writers and artists that worked with Berger during this period. A comprehensive overview of the many achievements of these creators is beyond the scope of this article. Moreover, the works of these creators have already received significant critical attention from other scholars. For more exhaustive analysis of the subversive, experimental style of their comics, see Julia Round’s Gothic in Comics and Graphic Novels, Marc Singer’s Grant Morrison: Combining the World of Contemporary Comics, Tara Prescott’s anthology Neil Gaiman and the 21st Century, and Greg Carpenter’s The British Invasion: Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman, Grant Morrison and the Invention of the Modern Comics Book Writer.

3. The brevity of Duncan and Smith’s discussion of editors is understandable given the breadth of the topic and considering that their aim was to create a general textbook to serve as an introduction to comics studies.

4. Interview by Julia Round, 11 May 2008, transcript.

5. As a rough indication, there are currently no less than six book-length studies dedicated entirely to works by Grant Morrison, in addition to a substantial number of individual articles and book chapters.

6. In keeping with the previous section’s focus on the authorship of editorial work, I have chosen to limit this critical survey to studies that focus on the impact of a particular editor. There is also a substantial number of historical studies of major publishers and the industry as a whole that examine the impact of editorial policies.

7. When examining work from disparate disciplines, it is important to remember that scholars apply methodologies adapted to the particular objectives of their field. For the purposes of this study, I discuss those works whose focus most closely aligns with my own interest in measuring the influence of those who work in production.

8. As Carpenter is more qualified to describe this method of research and provides a thorough outline of ethnography in his article, my description provides only the minimum of required detail.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Keith Friedlander

Dr Keith Friedlander teaches communications at Olds College. His research focuses on both nineteenth-century print culture and the modern comic industry, examining the relationship between the market conditions of publishing and conceptions of authorship and identity.