Books

This page only lists major works. It does not include works that have since been collected in larger editions, replaced by newer editions, or that the author deems unimportant.

Fiction and Screenplays

Dance until DismemberedDance until Dismembered
forthcoming

A huge collection of short stories and screenplays, several of which were previously published elsewhere, including as separate volumes.

See it on Goodreads, Martian Lit

Nira/SussaNira/Sussa
336p (print edition)
forthcoming (10th anniversary edition; 1st edition, June 2012)

This metafictional novel patterned on Nabokov’s Lolita originated as a creative dissertation at University of Hawaii at Manoa.

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Martian Lit

Watching People BurnWatching People Burn
192p (print edition)
December 2011

A screenplay about the Bath school bombing, a horrific real-life event that took place in rural Michigan in 1927.

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Martian Lit

Non-Fiction

My Voyage in Letters: Essays on Literature and Film from Dante to Tarantino
forthcoming

A huge collection of essays on literature and film, written over the course of 25 years. Several essays focus on Shakespeare, Milton, and contemporary cinema. (Many of these essays were previously available as Kindle shorts.)

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Martian Lit

Early America in Milton: John Milton’s Utopian Anxiety and Milton as “American”
196p (print edition)
March 2022

This book originated as my master’s thesis in English, authored from 2000 to 2002 at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Martian Lit

Classics on Infinite Earths: The Justice League and DC Crossover Canon
428p (print edition)
April 2015

A massive study of the entire history of the Justice League and of DC universe-wide crossovers, filtered through the lens of a literary canon.

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart

When Manga Came to America: Super-Hero Revisionism in Mai, the Psychic Girl
80p (print edition)
June 2014

A monograph on an important but little-studied work of manga.

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart

The Weirdest Sci-Fi Comic Ever Made: Understanding Jack Kirby’s 2001: A Space Odyssey
90p (print edition)
May 2013

A monograph on Jack Kirby’s wonderfully bizarre adaptation and continuation(!) of the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey.

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart

And the Universe so Big: Understanding Batman: The Killing Joke
58p (print edition)
November 2012

A monograph on Batman: The Killing Joke, by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland. This book got considerable praise and attention (including by Kevin Smith) for its theories on the graphic novella’s ending.

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart

Improving the Foundations: Batman Begins from Comics to Screen
264p (print edition)
November 2011 (now in its “revised 2nd edition”; 1st edition, September 2005; 2nd edition, July 2009)

The first book ever published on Christopher Nolan’s Batman films.

See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart

Additional Non-Fiction

I’ve published lots of other non-fiction, most frequently on Sequart.org, but here are some notable shorter works not included in the above books:

  • “A Brief History of the Dark(er) Judges” appears in Judging Dredd: Examining the World of Judge Dredd, edited by Scott Weatherly (Sequart Organization, July 2021). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “The Pegasus as a Mirror for the Galactica” appears in Somewhere Beyond the Heavens: Exploring Battlestar Galactica, edited by Rich Handley and Lou Tambone (Sequart Organization, Dec 2018). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “On the Marvel Comic-Book Adaptation of Blade Runner” appears in The Cyberpunk Nexus: Exploring the Blade Runner Universe, edited by Lou Tambone and Joe Bongiorno (Sequart Organization, July 2018). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “How Star Wars Broke Cinema” appears in A Long Time Ago: Exploring Star Wars Cinematic Universe, edited by Rich Handley and Joseph F. Berenato (Sequart Organization, Nov 2015). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “From Casual Galactic Genocide to Self-Referential Canon: Gold Key’s Star Trek and the Evolution of a Franchise” and “‘The Action ‘Comes Alive’ as You Read!!’: On Peter Pan Records’ Star Trek Stories” appear in New Life and New Civilizations: Exploring Star Trek Comics, edited by Joseph F. Berenato (Sequart Organization, Aug 2014). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • I co-authored, with Kevin Thurman, Voyage in Noise: Warren Ellis and the Demise of Western Civilization (Sequart Organization, Aug 2013). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “Grid of Mutilation: The Structure of Transmetropolitan” appears in Shot in the Face: A Savage Journey to the Heart of Transmetropolitan, edited by Chad Nevett (Sequart Organization, Aug 2013). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “What Fall from Grace? Reappraising the Chichester Years” appears in The Devil is in the Details: Examining Matt Murdock and Daredevil, edited by Ryan K. Lindsay (Sequart Organization, Feb 2013). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “Revisionism, Radical Experimentation, and Dystopia in Keith Giffen’s Legion of Super-Heroes” first appeared in Teenagers from the Future: Essays on the Legion of Super-Heroes, edited by Timothy Callahan (Sequart Organization, July 2008; revised first edition, Nov 2011). This essay was subsequently published as its own short book (Sequart Organization, Nov 2012). See the larger book on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “The Hidden Wonders of the World: Planetary and Reconstructionism” and “Sequencing Planetary” appear in Keeping the World Strange: A Planetary Guide, edited by Cody Walker (Sequart Organization, November 2011; first edition, May 2011). See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “58 Varieties: Watchmen and Revisionism” appears in Minutes to Midnight: Twelve Essays on Watchmen, edited by Richard Bensam (Sequart Organization, November 2011; first edition, October 2010). World Literature Today said it was “a loving psychedelic romp… that uses a deconstructionist’s lens to dissect and reassemble every aspect of the story.” See it on Amazon, Goodreads, Sequart.
  • “Car Crash Crucifixion Culture” appears in Car Crash Culture, edited by Mikita Brottman (Palgrave Macmillan, 2002). A fun essay that got a lot of positive notes in reviews of the volume (which featured some real luminaries!). See it on AmazonGoodreads.