Would This Piss You Off?

[Mister Mets]

I intend to write Spider-Man one day (hey, you never know) and these are two ideas I've had.

Idea #1- End my run with a stand-alone issue tying up all loose ends (that still need to be tied up) and end the issue with an incredible cliffhanger for the next writer to solve (I'll probably work with him, or her on getting a cliffhanger integral to their first story arc). This will be a homage to how Stan Lee left Amazing Spider-Man, and will hopefully force my fans (assuming I have any) to pick up the next few issues, and give the new writer a chance.

Idea #2- I want to do story arcs set in the past. For instance- a Doctor Octopus VS, Spider-Man story set between Amazing Spider-Man #20, and 21, or a Molten Man story set between Amazing Spider-Man #62, and 63. The stories would be written, and drawn in the current style (rather than attempting to imitate Lee, Ditko, and Romita), and use the status quo of the past. They may, or may not have any effect on the current stories, but would of course be as entertaining as I could make them.

Would you object to these decisions if you see them in say Amazing Spider-Man. Why? What would your objections make you do?

[Spider69]

Not really, it would be just like spider-man : Blue. i'd read it.

[cosmicspidey]

Nothing better than ending ona cliffhanger, as long as it's going to be resolved. But I don't see flashback tales as appropriate material for the core Spidey title, unless it's interwoven with a modern story, like Skin Deep was.

[Neolucifer]

As said above cliffhangers are great as long as they give a closure , and also as long as they dont abuse of it and cheapen its impacts . I think that there should be two core (or max 3) spidey book , one using alot arcs and those cliffhangers , and a lesser titles focusing upon those flashbacks but also single issues stories .

[Nightcrawler]

I believe that those flashback issues could be good, but the problem is that you couldn't do anything major. Fans would know that Spidey would win, they would know that the villian survives.

[Charagon]

That didn't stop Untold Tales of Spider-Man from being the best book of its time.

[Alan2099]

Now doing a core book with the classic elements and simple story ideas LIKE the flashback tales have is a great idea, if you ask me.

[HartyPotter]

I would have a problem with entire storylines being set in the past. I want to see what's new in Peter Parker's life when i read the core titles.

[onizuka]

I would have a problem with entire storylines being set in the past. I want to see what's new in Peter Parker's life when i read the core titles.

yeah, doing stories set back in the day is all good, just not in my main book. maybe a mini like Spidey/Human Torch or an ongoing like Untold Tales.

as for tying up loose ends, some nights i actually have dreams that someone will come round one day and write a couple of arcs tying up some loose ends.

back in the late 90's clone craze they used one-shots and minis to try tie things up. but after the reboot i think the dudes in charge thought better to just forget it all and move on.

good luck guy, hope one day i'm reading a book with your name on it. just don't let it suck okay.

[Geardaddy]

Not really, it would be just like spider-man : Blue. i'd read it.

I loved Spider-Man: Blue!

Cyberman, if your story was half as good as Blue, I'd definatley buy it!

Good luck! :)

[Michael P]

stand-alone issue tying up all loose ends (that still need to be tied up) and end the issue with an incredible cliffhanger for the next writer to solve (I'll probably work with him, or her on getting a cliffhanger integral to their first story arc). This will be a homage to how Stan Lee left Amazing Spider-Man, and will hopefully force my fans (assuming I have any) to pick up the next few issues, and give the new writer a chance.

As the writer following you, I would want to punch you in the face. I've got my own stories I want to tell, I don't want to have to tell 90% of one of yours. Just end your stuff, let me look at it and where it took the characters, and think for myself, "Okay, what happens next?"

As for your second idea, what you have is not Amazing Spider-Man, it's volume 2 of Untold Tales of Spider-Man. Which I wouldn't be averse to, but in the flagship book, I want new, modern-day stories.

[Mister Mets]

As the writer following you, I would want to punch you in the face. I've got my own stories I want to tell, I don't want to have to tell 90% of one of yours. Just end your stuff, let me look at it and where it took the characters, and think for myself, "Okay, what happens next?"

As for your second idea, what you have is not Amazing Spider-Man, it's volume 2 of Untold Tales of Spider-Man. Which I wouldn't be averse to, but in the flagship book, I want new, modern-day stories.

If you were the writer working after me, I'd co-ordinate with you to provide a cliffhanger that you want to start out strong (and I'm assuming I'd have several months, and maybe an editorial summit to do this).
If you're Mark Millar starting his run on Marvel Knights Spider-Man, I'd provide a cliffhanger with the Green Goblin going on a rampage, or something. If you're JMS starting his run on Spider-Man, I'd provide a cliffhanger with Exekiel's question (providing cowriting credits to JMS) "Which gave you your powers? The spider or the radiation?"
If you didn't want to start with a cliffhanger, and wanted to tell quieter stories instead, I don't care if you want to punch me in the face. :D

[cable guy]

If you were the writer working after me, I'd co-ordinate with you to provide a cliffhanger that you want to start out strong (and I'm assuming I'd have several months, and maybe an editorial summit to do this).
If you're Mark Millar starting his run on Marvel Knights Spider-Man, I'd provide a cliffhanger with the Green Goblin going on a rampage, or something. If you're JMS starting his run on Spider-Man, I'd provide a cliffhanger

Actually you might be on to something.

All these writers keep coming up with their own ideas and spin on how to write a character. New directions are cool, not all the time.

Who knows maybe if they worked together, thinngs would flow instead of bold new beginings every writer. Which happens to often these days.

Exclusive contracts are also a good idea.

[The Dosadi Experiment]

setting stories in the past is pointless for the reader, because they won't ever have a profound impact on the present.

Your story is set ten years ago, two established characters fight, we already know the ending of the tale, so getting them in mortal danger is redundant. The question who survives has already been answered.
We know those two characters will meet and fight eachother after this story is done, and neither one of them ever showed any interest in bringing up that encounter you've set in their past, if it mattered, then we would have seen the characters changed because of it.

It's fun if it's old-school fun, but you'll never be able to make any more of it than an encounter that happened without any real impact on the characters, not without losing credibility.
(Just look at Austen's work on Nightcrawler's origin, he created a new past, only because of a story he wanted to tell in the present, forcing the characters involved into it in an unnatural manner.)

Other than that... ending with a cliffhanger wouldn't piss me off, as long as the story continues.

Twin Peaks had ten cliffhangers, and that show just stopped, leaving us all behind with a burning "WHAT'S NEXT!" sensation, when we know that we'll never find out.

[olympichero62]

I think its great that you wanna right spider-man one day, hey someones gotta do it right?

As long as you don't mess with continuity

And as long as you get rid of sins past.

[Nick MB]

I can't see how ending on a cliffhanger would work for anyone... As someone else said, it would most likely annoy the hell out of the next writer, who could well choose to just toss your cliffhanger aside in two pages, which would in turn annoy you. Personally, I'd want to resolve my own story anyway. It makes you look unprofessional, IMHO, to put the character into some ridiculous situation then bolt.

Maybe it's just me, I just think creators should tie up their own plot threads. I like the fact that Ultimate Spidey, for example, is entirely Bendis's vision. Stuff always works better when one writer is in control of all of it. If a plot is shared between multiple writers, it always seems to get into a bit of a tangle. (The Hobgoblin 'mystery', Mad Jack, the clone saga...)