I read someone today mention something about the Stephanie Meyer book that is from… Edward? Is that the name of the vampire guy? From his perspective. And how they felt that the book was disappointing because it painted him with a lot more flaws or something.
I haven’t read Twilight or seen any of the films. This isn’t me slamming them in any way. They just weren’t something I was interested in, based off of my tastes. I get their popularity, sure. Different audience though.
But in the same idea, there was the 50 Shades author, E.L. James, who recently I think did or was doing the same thing with her male lead, Christian Grey, where she was doing a book on his side of things.
This isn’t limited to these types of series or even this sort of thing. I mentioned not too far back about Stephen King doing Doctor Sleep, a sequel to his Shining book. And I know J.K Rowling (who has a lot of other issues going on right now, and probably shouldn’t be talked about in the same paragraph as King by her own actions) ended Harry Potter, but while she’s tried to branch out, even using a pseudonym, she came back to the world of Potter with her Fantastic Beasts and some other items like her play.
Today also I saw a post on Clive Barker’s Facebook page about a contest relating to the Books of Blood series coming out. And someone posted a reply about the third book of The Art. I replied that I would love to see that too (but also that I don’t want to dictate what Barker should be doing, creative-wise).
That’s in writing. But think about bands who get known for a hit song. Radiohead I think once said they never wanted to play Creep again. Axl wound up hating Sweet Child of Mine, which I’m sure paid the bills for the rest of his life. I could probably think of a dozen other bands or artists with similar issues.
It’s an odd thing being made beholden to your own art. And I mean that as one type of thing, maybe even one particular thing. And then, when you feel the desire to veer off into something new and exciting, people don’t respond well and ask you to go back to the thing they liked you for. But they also probably dwindle eventually because it all starts to feel the same after a while, and while they ultimately want something new, they don’t necessarily want you to be doing it. Because they think you’re supposed to be making THAT THING for if and when they want to come back to it.
Levi, as a for instance, got widely known for doing Levi’s World, and being his first project that he started and actually took to a (brilliant) conclusion with the “Insanity Is A Virtue” story, it’s what a lot of people still ask from him. Some people also know him for Baujahr, being more recent and having a sizable readership from being a part of Flint Comix a few years back. No secret that I’m a fan of Levi’s work, and I love and want to see more of both of those things too (and I have the added hook of having co-written some of Baujahr and miss him and Jeff and their world).
One thing that Levi was able to do was make Baujahr exist in the same “world” as Xavier, Glen, and Mikie Beople. But those were already dimension-hopping characters, so it was easy. Strobe, I believe, also exists in the same sort of amalgamous “space.” So it could (and did) happen that Levi’s World and Baujahr cross paths, as well as Baujahr and Strobe. It may be a bit of a cheat, but I don’t think so. Levi could have given his original audience more of Levi’s World proper, and that would’ve pleased a lot of people. But he wanted to do Baujahr instead. Introducing a connection was fine because it was fun for him and there was no rules saying it had to happen. It was all of four panels really. But if he hadn’t done Baujahr, then he would never had gotten the fans of those stories too.
Terry Moore, after Strangers in Paradise, went on into a couple different series. The first one was sci-fi based, the next was horror. But at some point he involved characters from SiP, and it became obvious that what he was creating was all interconnected. He just recently did a whole series of characters from all his different comic series coming together. I’m way behind on reading Terry’s stuff myself. But for me, SiP was a long, wonderful journey that had a very fit and as close to perfect ending as one could expect. In a way, sure, I’d love to see Fancine and Katchoo come back for more stories, because I miss spending time with them. In another, getting something that is wholly complete unto itself is fulfilling in a way that continuous stories don’t ever get to be. A beginning, middle, and end really hold a lot of value.
We’re at about eighteen years since Firefly came out. Fifteen since Serenity. There are very few TV shows or properties in general that I would want to return more than that one (after Twin Peaks which did, but we’ll talk about my feelings on it another time). I think the fandom has maybe finally quieted down on the show returning at this point, but it took a lot longer than I think anyone expected (especially Fox in their shortsightedness). This year is probably the first I can think of where I don’t still see people knitting and wearing Jayne hats or dressing as Browncoats. It just quietly faded at last. But get two or more of the actors from that show together, I’m sure the buzz will return. And I wouldn’t be incredibly surprised if, even years from now, it comes up again as a possible relaunch. Because when both the fans love something and the creators do too, it’s a little hard to not explore the path of “what if.”
But the fear of getting typecast or pigeon-holed or associated with one single thing is monstrous. Listening to the Monster Madness podcast this morning, they were talking about Psycho and how Anthony Perkins had a hard time getting other roles after the film because everyone just looked at him and saw Norman Bates. Adam West was only the 1966 Batman to a lot of people for decades until he managed to turn up the camp in other parts to find new success. Patrick Stewart is back as Jon-Luc Picard, there’s all this buzz about Cobra Kai, people are still clamoring for whatever is left of the original Ghostbusters even though Murray has shown little interest on top of so much more range as an actor than we ever could have expected.
There’s the infamous Shatner SNL sketch where he tells the Trek fans to “get a life.” Or Nimoy naming his book “I Am Not Spock” before going back twenty years later to write a second, “I Am Spock.” Alienating (forgive that pun) fans is never a good look. But standing up and saying, “Hey, I appreciate all you guys have done for me and your support over the years, but I am more than this one thing and would like to show you” really shouldn’t be seen as a betrayal to your fandom. And I think the fandoms are getting better. Maybe because we have shorter attention spans, maybe because we have a glimpse into the actors and creators lives that we see them more as people than just reflections of their artistry. But it’s still a fine line.
It’s also sometimes hard to find yourself doing something else. Familiarity is comfort. You come in, you speak the same voice, you work with the same people, you play or write the same part. That can vary by nature I guess. But as I’m trying to find my next stories, I do sometimes wonder if I’m limited because I’m writing what I already know how to write, or if I’ve found the niche that most appeals to me based on its own merits.
And don’t get me wrong. If I had the audience that was so die-hard about a series of stories or a comic I was doing that they pushed back on me if I tried to do something else… I would honestly treasure that level of success. But I’d also likely feel limited and stifled by that success. Not sure if I’d have the strength to still move onto what was my new interest like Levi does. Or my wife who is now going from drawing and painting to wanting to do nothing but make dolls.
Still a long way to go to get to that kind of “problem” though.
