I'm so impressed by Jed Mackay, my Canadian cousin I've never met. (Too bad I couldn't make it across the channel for his book signing in London earlier this month.)
Jed grew up in Stanley Bridge, Prince Edward Island, and now lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He spent years as a junior high school teacher, toiling in a grocery store to make ends meet, and freelance writing on the side. Now, he writes for a living.
Known for writing Marvel Comics: Black Cat, (#1 seller), Edge of Spider-Geddon, Infinity Wars and Man without Fear, he is currently writing the Moon Knight series to rave reviews. Moon Knight #1 (July 2021) topped every store on the Bleeding Cool Bestseller List, which to me, although not a comic book fan myself, sounds spectacular!
In this recent interview, Jed talks about his career and his Moon Knight series.
There's also a Moon Knight TV series and even talk of a movie. I don't understand how the Marvel universe works, or even how often comic books come out, so I consulted with my cousin Matthew, Jed's father. Here's what he said.
"Comics usually come out monthly. I’m no expert on how the system works, but all the creative content is horizontally marketed. Comics, TV and movies all feed each other. This is handled at an editorial level, not a writer level. For example, when Disney plans a Black Widow movie, some comic editor is told to work the Black Widow into particular storylines. It’s left up to the writer how to do this, but the character is provided by marketing management. Everything helps sell everything else. The integration of the different universes, i.e. the comic universe, the movie universe, the tv universe, is quite loose, and while the audiences overlap, marketing and production needs take priority. It would be impossible to juggle all the variables based on timeline. Jed has to crank out a story every month, while a movie can take years to create, so it is impossible to tie everything together. I never saw the Moon Knight TV show, but understand it differed greatly from Jed’s Moon Knight. But, both helped sell the other, and that's the bottom line, isn’t it?"
Find out how Jed became a writer for mega-publisher Marvel and learn about his writing process here.
I like this 2021 comicsschool interview with Jed.
Jed's Man Without Fear series (2019) was hailed as "a smart and critical deconstruction of what it means to be a Man Without Fear," (Comicosity) Comic book fan or not, that description has me curious!
I used to spend my summers in Stanely Bridge, Prince Edward Island. Jed wasn't born yet, but his grandmother, my aunt, kept me up on the latest news and occasionally sent me photos from his babyhood onward. I won't publish them here out of temporary respect for Jed's privacy. But Jed, watch out when you become a huge worldwide superstar, they'll be priceless!
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