| Whatever Knows Fear... The Chris Munn Interview! |
[Mar. 7th, 2007|06:48 pm] |
I forget exactly where or when I first met Chris Munn. Odds are it was in one of those massive Chats that we used to have on occasion with 10-20 odd folk carrying on an equal number of odd conversations. Like seeing a movie, not really the best choice for a first date. Of course I ran across his writing all over the community, and of course was impressed. He definitely had a leaning to Horror, spinning a great, if not chilling tale, which is not as easy as it might sound. Definitely someone I wanted to work with, and of course I got my chance…
Chris and I worked together on Avengers VS the JLA a couple years back now, what became a monster crossover between M2K and JLU 2001. Scheduling and coordinating aside, I learned just how sharp the man is, and got to experience his creative process and abilities first hand. I was not disappointed. And you won’t be either. If you haven’t read any of Chris’ work recently, go do so and soon. You’ll like it and learn just why we all call him… The Munn Thing!
To start, tell us a bit about yourself; family, job, things like that. Whatever you would like to comfortably share…
Well, I’m a 27 year old college grad working in a behavioral health hospital, which guarantees that my job is at least always interesting. Same old, same old I suspect.
What Sites are you currently writing for?
Oh, jaysis, let’s see here: Strange Tales, Marvel 2000, Avengers 2000, Marvel Omega, and DC Omega.
On top of all the writing I’m doing, I’m the executive EiC for Strange Tales. I’ve also taken over “editorial advisor” roles for M2K’s Avengers books and DC Omega’s Wildstorm imprint. Obviously, I am insane.
What Titles are you working on?
Everyone’s going to think I’m a madman when they see this list, ha!
Strange Tales: Werewolf by Night, Defenders (co-written with Mike Rasbury), Foolkiller, and the upcoming Son of Satan title.
Marvel 2000: Avengers Immortal and Thunderbolts.
Marvel Omega: Ghost Rider (co-written with Tom Deja), X-Men, and an upcoming arc on Iron Man.
DC Omega: Wildcats (co-written with Dino Pollard)
Avengers 2000: Ghost Rider for the Ignition imprint
You recently restarted Strange Tales. Tell us a bit about that...
As anyone who knows me can attest, Strange Tales is my baby. I’ve also been a huge fan of Marvel’s horror characters from the 1970s, and that site is my love letter to that era. As most know, the site fell onto hard times about a year ago – brought on by failing servers and a general malaise that had fallen on the writing staff (myself included).
And then came the site’s messiah, Mike Rasbury, who convinced me through many talks to resurrect the site and keep it going. And through his efforts, the site is now flourishing like never before. We’ve got some absolutely killer new titles in the roster (along with most of the old favorites), and we celebrated the site’s return to life with a special event this past October called Black Mass. The event was a great success for the site, and every writer involved just knocked things out of the park with each new story that came to me. I’m so proud of that site, and things just keep getting better about it!
Do you write for any Sites outside of Fanfic, or our group of Fanfic Sites, i.e. other types of Fanfic, Writing Clubs, etc.?
No, I haven’t stepped outside our community for many years. Why should I? I’m happy right here with all of the great company I get to keep!
How did you get into writing Fanfic? Through comic books, or some other media?
Blame the X-Files for starting my Fanfiction habit. Back in 1998, I started up an X-Files Fanfic site based around the idea of a “virtual season” of episodic stories. The site ran for a little over two years, and was pretty successful…though not due to MY OWN stories, which were terrible, lol.
I didn’t get into comic book Fanfic until around the time of the first X-Men movie. I’d been away from comics for a good number of years, and that film rekindled my love for the medium. When I was experiencing my comic rebirth, I stumbled (completely by accident) upon the dearly departed Mutant Underground: Revolution Fanfic site. It was there that I got my start in the community, and I still consider a few of the writers I met there as personal friends (cats like Ian Astheimer and Ryan Krupienski).
We assume that you enjoy the writing and Fanfic, but are there things you would like to see done differently or changed in Fanfic?
Well, there are two things that I’d like to see changed, but really don’t see happening. First, I’d love to see a stop put to all of the mindless bickering and arguing that creeps around and in the various groups…arguments that, 9 times out of 10, spring out of cases of inflated egos. I mean, I’ve had a few knock-down, drag-out fights with people in the past, but all they do is serve to hinder relationships in what should be a supportive, collaborative venture between ALL of us.
Secondly, I’d like to see more writers branch out with projects that you wouldn’t see in mainstream comics. Sure, every site is bound to have its X-Men and Avengers staples, but what really excites ME is stuff like Super-Villain War at Avengers 2000 or the upcoming Conspiracy at Marvel Omega. Yowzers!
What’s your favorite color?
As stereotypical as it sounds, I’ll go with good ol’ black. Because it’s EVIL!
Outside of Fanfic, what are your reading habits? Who’s your favorite author or series, or book?
I enjoy the classics – anything by H.G. Wells, especially my favorite book The Time Machine; Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein; Lord of the Flies – more so than anything written in the past several decades. I am quite a bit fan of both Neil Gaiman and Chuck Palahniuk, though, both of whom are incredible idea men.
What’s your favorite comic book story, or storyline? How about in Fanfic?
My favorite comic storylines come from a lot of different genres: Preacher by Ennis & Dillon; Avengers Forever by Busiek & Pacheco; Ghost Rider by Stern, DeMatteis, & Budiansky; X-Men by Claremont & Smith. As for fan-fiction, that can be narrowed down to one: Ghost Rider 1957 by Mike McGee, which originally went up at MV1 a hundred years ago but is now being re-posted in serial format at Strange Tales.
What’s your favorite movie?
I actually have a “holy trinity” of favorite movies: Se7en, Memento, and Fight Club. I call them the “Mind Fuck 3”.
Where do you get your inspiration?
I get inspired by almost anything in a given day, believe it or not. There have been times when just seeing a man walk down the street is enough to get ideas rolling. Inspiration for ideas is the easy part for me – it’s actually writing the darn stuff that’s the tricky part!
Do you have a Blog or LJ? Any other Internet activity you would like to share?
I have an LJ that can be found at…
http://www.livejournal.com/users/ixnaybynight/
I also run a Ghost Rider comic review site called Vengeance Unbound, that can be found at…
http://ghostrider.omegacen.com
That site’s my baby, even more so than Strange Tales, I think.
What book are you reading now?
Ha ha, don’t laugh at me for this…I’m reading the novelization of the Ghost Rider movie, written by some guy who’s name I can’t remember.
What Title/ Site was your first in Fanfic?
That would be Generation X from the dearly departed Mutant Underground: Revolution site, where I met some of the guys that kind of “grew up” with me in the community – Ian Astheimer and Ryan Krupienski. After that I branched out to Marvel X – where I wrote a horrible book called Midnight Son and first met Mike Franzoni – and Marvel Dark Lore – where I wrote Darkhold and encountered Josh Reynolds for the first time.
Where about do you live? Be as specific as you like or as vague: town, state, time zone, continent, etc.
I live in Kentucky, one of several armpits of America.
What’s your favorite Title to read currently in Fanfic?
I love Meriades Rai’s Super-Villain War at Avengers 2000! It’s such a neat little concept, and I’m a big fan of all the underused and obscure villains he’s pulled out of the woodwork. Plus, he’s a helluva writer, which doesn’t hurt things either.
If you feel like it, write a closing note - anything you'd like to say or share. Plug your own upcoming events!
Curt, you’re the bee’s knees for doing these interviews, and I’m sorry it took so long for me to get the thing done for you! Now everyone do something productive and go read some Strange Tales stuff!
Thanks Chris. A GREAT Interview and well worth the wait! Keep up the fantastic work. |
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