The best lettering is often so subtle you don’t even notice it. Marshall Dillon certainly blends his lettering with the page to make one indistinguishable from the other, but he first caught my eye with his work on Skullkickers, a series that’s bombastic sound effects were a signature element. Since the end of Skullkickers Marshall […]
LETTERERS SPEAK! Pros talk craft and what it means to letter comics
“You need lettering to do a comic. You can do a black and white book and it is just as good as a color book. But you can’t read a book when there are no balloons.”
INTERVIEW: One-on-One with Letterer Marshall Dillon
by Deanna Destito Letterer Marshall Dillon (Vampirella, Hack/Slash, Beyonders) has been working in comics since the ‘90s, having been an editor and manager along with learning how to add the all-important words to each page. The veteran has dipped his toes in almost every aspect of comic creating, but his experience with lettering has made […]
RIP Gaspar Saladino, lettering legend
Gaspar Saladino, one of the greatest comic book letterers of all time, died yesterday at age 89, a few days short of his 90th birthday. Saladino was a mainstay of the Silver Age at DC, where he designed some of the best known logos ever, and at Bronze Age Marvel where his little stylized “G” […]
SDCC ’16: Comic Book Women Discuss Their Roles as Letterers and Colorists
By: Nicholas Eskey Often in the comic book industry we focus our admiration on the artist, shortly followed by the writer. But what about those unsung individuals that separate comic books from just fancy drawings? I’m talking about the colorists and the letterers. Yesterday in room 24D of the Convention Center, 5 people in those […]
Alex de Campi shows you how to letter and teases Mayday
Renaissance woman Alex De Campi is not only a writer and director…she also letters her own comics and now she’s shown you how you can too! I am one of those rare writers who letter their own comic books. It started off, as so many things do, because we couldn’t afford a decent letterer. Then […]
MATT CHATS: Skullkickers Word Artist Marshall Dillon on the Life of a Letterer
It’s widely acknowledged is that a great letterer is one that you don’t notice. Marshall Dillon is often an exception to that rule. He made a big splash with his work on Skullkickers, a series with explosive action and silly sound effects. Dillon has deepened his footprint in the comics industry on titles like Prince Valiant, the Thrilling Adventure Hour […]
Must read: Todd Klein’s history of lettering
Todd Klein is the dean of comics lettering in the US, with more awards than he can carry, and a portfolio of logos and classic lettering that would be hard to touch. And he’s put it all together for a seven part series on the history of comics lettering:
Learn the secrets of Todd Klein’s lettering lore with his new print
For 20 years, ace letterer Todd Klein has been releasing a series of prints showcasing his calligraphic skills. Many were done with writers supplying the text—Neil Gaiman and Bill Willingham among them—but his new one goes all meta with KLEIN’S COMPENDIUM OF CALLIGRAPHIC KNOWLEDGE and for anyone who knows what a Speedball is, it may […]
INTERVIEW: Joe Caramagna Letters The Marvel Universe
Among other similar triumphs, letterer Joe Caramagna has recently become the most prominent letterer in Amazing Spider-Man history, having now worked on over 100 issues of Marvel’s flagship title. Not just content with Spider-Man, however, Caramagna also works on Marvel titles as diverse as Avengers Academy, Daredevil, Captain Marvel, Uncanny X-Men and New Avengers. Simply […]