Antony Johnston

Antony Johnston
Born	25 August 1972 (1972-08-25) (age 37) Birmingham, England, United Kingdom
Nationality	British
Area(s)	Writer
Notable works	Wasteland Stormbreaker: The Graphic Novel Alan Moore's The Courtyard Three Days in Europe
Awards	"Best Horror" American Independent Publishing Award

Antony Johnston (born August 25, 1972) is an award-winning British writer. He is better known for the post apocalyptic comic series Wasteland, his graphic novel adaptations of Anthony Horowitz' Alex Rider novels, and his work with Alan Moore.

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Oni and Avatar 1.1.1 Oni 1.1.2 Avatar 1.2 Other publishers 2 Films 3 Awards 3.1 Nominations 4 Bibliography 4.1 Comics and graphic novels 4.2 Prose 4.2.1 Novels 4.2.2 Essays 5 Notes 6 References 7 External links 7.1 Interviews

Biography

Despite an early interest in comics and role-playing games, Johnston started his career as a graphic designer. He began his writing career with work for role-playing magazines before the Mark Salisbury-edited Writers on Comic Scriptwriting (Titan Books, 1999) rekindled his interest in comics^[1]. Drawing on his design skills, he now designs many of his own comics and graphic novels.^[2] In May 2001, Johnston was one of the three founding editors of NinthArt.com, an attempt at taking a literary and critical approach to the comics medium designed to act as a journal and aimed at "the discerning reader."^[3] Between 2001 and 2004, he contributed a mostly-monthly Editorial entitled "Cassandra Complex,"^[4] and for five years formed one-third of the infrequent "Triple A" discussions, including the last (on June 19, 2006).^[5]

His fiction debut, Frightening Curves, was an illustrated horror novel with artwork by Aman Chaudhary, published by now-defunct Cyberosia Publishing in 2001. The book won the Best Horror Award in the 2002 IPPY awards at Book Expo America.^[6] Johnston would also produce a graphic novel - Rosemary's Backpack - and a contribution to the first PopImage anthology for Cyberosia in 2002.

In June 2008, Johnston held a Writing Masterclass workshop as part of the Thought Bubble Sequential Art Festival in Leeds.^[7] He is also known as a whiny bitch who can't stand criticism.

Johnston "lives in northwest England with the loves of his life: his partner, Marcia, his dogs... and his iMac."^[8]

Oni and Avatar

Johnston's early comics work consisted primarily of non-serialised graphic novels for Oni Press ^[9][10], and authorised comics adaptations of prose and poetry works by Alan Moore for Avatar Press.^[11]

Oni

In 2002, he began his association with Oni Press by writing the five-issue miniseires Three Days in Europe (with art by Mike Hawthorne). Described by the publisher as a romantic comedy, Johnston revealed the origins of the series as being borne out of his "want[ing] to avoid being branded as a one-trick pony."^[12] Initially, Johnston (who had been writing for comics journalism website NinthArt.com) produced a proposal for Oni Editor-in-Chief Jamie S. Rich, and with editor Jamie Lucas Jones transformed it into a title to be called Emily Spook.^[12] While this, and Johnston's 150 West, a "crime/horror serial for the Warren Ellis-edited anthology Night Radio," were in the works, Johnston wrote the "completely different" series Three Days in Europe.^[12]

After this initial mini-series, Johnston penned a number of graphic novels for Oni Press - Spooked (with Ross Campbell), Julius (with Brett Weldele) and Closer (with Mike Norton) released between February and May 2004; The Long Haul (with Eduardo Barreto) and F-Stop (with Matthew Loux) released in February and April 2005.

In 2005, Johnston became the first - and thus far only - other writer to pen a story for Greg Rucka's award-winning espionage comic series Queen & Country, writing the three-issue Queen & Country: Declassified miniseries with artist Christopher Mitten.^[13] A year later, Johnston and Mitten launched Wasteland (2006), an ongoing post-apocalyptic series, again for Oni Press.^[14]

Avatar

Meanwhile, Johnston began an association with Avatar Press adapting work by Alan Moore. Announced in September 2002, Moore's Lovecraft tale The Courtyard was 'sequentially adapted' for comics by Johnston, described then as "one of the industry’s rising stars."^[15] Praised by writer Warren Ellis^[16], after collaborating with Moore personally on The Courtyard (initially intended to be published as part of Moore's Yuggoth Cultures, but ultimately published independently) Johnston went on to adapt a number of Moore's prose writings for Avatar Press. These included:

• Another Suburban Romance (adapted from Moore's performance work),
• "Me and Dorothy Parker" (adapted from a song in Alan Moore's Songbook, and published in Yuggoth Cultures and Other Growths #3)
• Hypothetical Lizard (adapted from Moore's novella, originally printed in the shared-world anthology Liavek: Wizard's Row (Ace, 1987))
• Light of Thy Countenance^[17][18]

In addition, Yuggoth Creatures^[19][20] and the four-issue Nightjar (with input from Bryan Talbot)^[21][22] were inspired by Moore's earlier Cthulhu mythos works, but largely written by Johnston alone. Johnston's script for The Courtyard saw print in 2004 alongside the original short story which inspired the comics adaptation.

Johnston has also worked on non-Moore titles, including the adult story "Spellbound" for Vivid Girls (with Juan Jose Ryp) starring Vivid Entertainment stars Jenna Jameson and Tawny Roberts,^[23] and the final Avatar release tying into the 2003 remake of cult horror film The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Fearbook #1 (with Daniel HDR), released in 2006.^[24]

Other publishers

2006 also saw the release of Stormbreaker: The Graphic Novel, the first of Johnston's adaptations of Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider series for Walker Books.^[25] In 2007 Del Rey Manga announced Johnston as the writer of a Marvel Comics-licensed original English-language manga version of Wolverine, due for publication in 2009.^[26][27][28]

Most recently, Johnston began writing the comic book prequel to the Electronic Arts videogame Dead Space, illustrated by Ben Templesmith^[29] and published through Image comics, for whom he had previously written a number of short stories.^[30]. Shortly after, he was also announced as the game's scriptwriter.^[31]

Films

In 2008, Variety reported that one of Johnston's early graphic novels, Three Days in Europe, was on Jennifer Garner's production slate (following her first look deal with Warner Bros.), with Garner to star alongside Hugh Jackman.^[32] Later in the same year they revealed that Mandalay Pictures had acquired the film rights to Julius, and F. Gary Gray was pencilled in as director.^[33]

Awards

Johnston's 2001 novel Frightening Curves won the 2002 American Independent Publishing (IPPY) "Best Horror" award at Book Expo America.^[6][8]

Nominations

• 2006: Nominated (for Wasteland) for the "Best New Series" Harvey Award
• 2007: Nominated (for Wasteland) for "Favourite Black and White Comicbook - American" Eagle Award

Bibliography

Comics and graphic novels

• "Sunday Mourning" (short story, with Mike Norton, in 9-11, 2002)

• Rosemary's Backpack (with Drew Gilbert, Cyberosia Publishing, 112 pages, 2002, ISBN 097094747X)

• Three Days In Europe (with Mike Hawthorne, 5-issue mini-series, Oni Press, 2002-2003, tpb, 152 pages, 2003, ISBN 1-929998-72-4)

• Alan Moore's The Courtyard (adapted from work by Alan Moore, with art by Jacen Burrows, 2-issue mini-series, Avatar Press, March 2003, tpb, 2004)

• Another Suburban Romance (adapted from work by Alan Moore, with art by Juan Jose Ryp, Avatar Press, April 2003)

• Alan Moore's Yuggoth Cultures and Other Growths #3: "Me and Dorothy Parker" (adapted from song by Alan Moore, with art by Marat Mychaels, Avatar Press, 2003, tpb, Yuggoth Cultures, 2006, paperback ISBN 1-59291-026-2, hardback ISBN 1-59291-027-0)

• Spooked (with Ross Campbell, Oni Press, 168 pages, February 2004, ISBN 1-929998-79-1)

• Julius (with Brett Weldele, Oni Press, 168 pages, March 2004, ISBN 1-929998-80-5)

• Closer (with Mike Norton, Oni Press, 152 pages, May 2004, ISBN 1-929998-81-3)

• "Sweeps Week" (short story, with Mike Norton, in Noble Causes: Extended Family #2, Image Comics, 2004)

• Alan Moore's The Courtyard Companion (reprints Johnston's script for Alan Moore's The Courtyard with annotations by NG Christakos, Moore's original short story, new pinups/art by Jacen Burrows, and a new essay by Johnston, 2004)

• Alan Moore's Hypothetical Lizard (adapted from work by Alan Moore, with art by Lorenzo Lorente, 4-issue mini-series, Avatar Press, 2004-2005, tpb, 2007)

• Yuggoth Creatures (with Jacen Burrows, Sebastian Fiumara, Andres Guinaldo, Matthew T. Martin, Juan Jose Ryp, Dheeraj Verma and Mike Wolfer, one-shot, Avatar Press, 2004)

• Nightjar (with pencils by Max Fiumara and inks by Sebastian Fiumara, 4-issue mini-series, Avatar Press, 2004-2005)

• "Spellbound" in Vivid Girls Volume 1 (with Juan Jose Ryp, Avatar Press, 2005, ISBN 159291022X)

• The Long Haul (with Eduardo Barreto, graphic novel, 176 pages, Oni Press, February 2005, ISBN 1-932664-05-X)

• F-Stop (with Matthew Loux, Oni Press, 164 pages, April 2005, ISBN 1-932664-09-2)

• "Hype" (short story, with Mike Hawthorne, in Four Letter Worlds, Image Comics, 2005)

• Queen & Country Declassified (with Christopher Mitten, 3-issue mini-series, Oni Press, 2005)

• Texas Chainsaw Massacre Fearbook #1 (with Daniel HDR, Avatar Press, 2006)

• Wasteland (with Christopher Mitten, Oni Press, 2006-ongoing):
  • Cities In Dust (collects Wasteland #1-6, March 2007, ISBN 978-1-932664-59-1)
  • Shades of God (collects Wasteland #8–13, December 2007 , ISBN 978-1-932664-90-4)
  • Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos (collects Wasteland #15–19, December 2008, ISBN 978-1-934964-08-8)

• Alex Rider (with Kanako Damerum and Yuzuru Takasaki):
  • Stormbreaker (Walker Books, 2006, ISBN 1844281116)
  • Point Blanc (Philomel Books, 2007, ISBN 0399250263)
  • Skeleton Ket (Walker Books, September 2009, ISBN 1406313483

• "Best Side Out" (short story, with Noel Tuazon, in Postcards: True Stories That Never Happened, Villard Books, 2007)

• "Supergiant Blues" (short story, with Luis Sopelana, in 24Seven Vol. 2, Image Comics, 2007)

• Texas Strangers (with co-author Dan Evans III and art by Mario Boon, Image Comics, 2007)

• Dead Space (with Ben Templesmith, Image Comics, March 2008-)

• Wolverine: Prodigal Son (with Wilson Tortosa, Del Rey, 2009, forthcoming)

• Light of Thy Countenance (adaptation of poem by Moore, with art by Felipe Massafera, 48 page, graphic novella, Avatar Press, paperback, January 2009, ISBN 1592910629, hardcover, June 2009, ISBN 1592910637)

Prose

• "Panel Beating: Geek To Chic/Mule Variations/Let's Kill Comics" in POPIMAGE, Vol 1 (Cyberosia Publishing, 2002)

• "Pick Up the Phone" in Alan Moore: Portrait of an Extraordinary Gentleman (Abiogenesis, 2003)

Novels

• Frightening Curves (Cyberosia Publishing, July 2001, ISBN 0970947402)

• (Dreams of Inan:) Stealing Life (Abaddon Books, January 2007, ISBN 1-905437-12-9)

Essays

• "Cassandra Complex Editorials" by Antony Johnston at NinthArt.com (May, 2001 - April, 2004) (via the Internet Archive)
• "Getting Things Written" by Antony Johnston, August 2007

Notes

References

External links

• Official home page
• Antony Johnston on LiveJournal
• "Getting Things Written" by Johnston

Interviews

• AntonyJohnston.com Interviews listing
• Interview with Antony Johnston at ComiXology, January 21, 2008
• Wizard Q&A: Antony Johnston, Wizard, March 5, 2008

Persondata
NAME	Antony Johnston
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Writer, mainly of comics, known for his work adapting Alan Moore's work in other media
DATE OF BIRTH	August 25, 1972
PLACE OF BIRTH	Birmingham, England
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH