Kevin J. Anderson has published more than 180 books, 58 of which have been national or international bestsellers. He has written numerous novels in the Star Wars, X-Files, and Dune universes, as well as the unique Clockwork Angels steampunk trilogy with legendary Rush drummer Neil Peart. His original works include the Saga of Seven Suns series, the Wake the Dragon and Terra Incognita fantasy trilogies, and humorous Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I. series and The Dragon Business series.

He has edited numerous anthologies, written comics and games, and the lyrics to two rock CDs. Anderson is the director of the graduate program in Publishing at Western Colorado University, and he and his wife Rebecca Moesta are the publishers or WordFire Press.

He worked on the recent films Dune Part One and Part Two from Legendary Entertainment, as well as the forthcoming Dune TV series from MAX, and other films in development, including Persephone and Karousel.

He has 24 million copies in print in 34 languages. His most recent novels are Bats in the Belfry, Skeleton in the Closet, Persephone, and Princess of Dune (with Brian Herbert).

Clockwork Angels - The Comic Scripts by Kevin J. Anderson

Clockwork Angels is a steampunk fantasy adventure—and an innovative multimedia feast! Based on a story and lyrics by legendary drummer Neil Peart, Clockwork Angels became the worldwide bestselling concept album by Rush and was developed into a New York Times bestselling and award-winning novel by Kevin J. Anderson. Anderson and Peart, working with comics artist Nick Robles, brought the epic tale to a visual canvas, a six-issue graphic novel published by BOOM! Studios. Clockwork Angels: The Comic Scripts pulls aside the creative curtain, showing the original scripts, panel by panel, interactions between author and artist, as well as all the secret "Easter eggs" intentionally planted throughout the images as a special treat for Rush fans. Clockwork Angels: The Comic Scripts is a fascinating book in its own right, to be studied by comic writers, Rush fans, Kevin J. Anderson fans—and anyone interested in a truly astonishing story of a young man's journey across a remarkable steampunk landscape with airships, pirates, alchemy, lost cities, a fabulous carnival, and a hero who insists on making his dreams come true.

 
 

BOOK PREVIEW

Excerpt

ISSUE 1

PAGE 1

PANEL 1

These first two pages all have a sepia tint to differentiate that this is a frame story, introducing our character who is telling the tale.

Big panel: Stone angel in the foreground, a garden ornament, weathered, covered with moss, seen from behind (throughout this series, we will NOT show the angels' faces). It is on the edge of a garden; there are flowers in bloom, vegetables in rows in the garden, orchard trees all around, with APPLES, bright red, hanging from the branches. (Apples will be a metaphor throughout the story.)

Mid-ground, the real focus, is an old man, old OWEN HARDY, in a chair with a book on his lap, a journal, and a pen in his hand.

NOTE: Owen Hardy is an old man here, but he is NON-ETHNICALLY SPECIFIC ... should have darker/olive skin, dark eyes, dark hair, could be Hispanic, Greek, Filipino, light-skinned black. Who can tell? This is an Everyman, worldwide.

CAPTION

Adventuring is for the young ...

CAPTION

Remembering is for the old.

CAPTION

But in order to remember, one must have done the things in the first place.

CAPTION

Too many people forget that.

PANEL 2

Close-up of open book, blank page, hand holding pen, as Owen ponders.

CAPTION

It seems like a lifetime ago—which, of course, it was … all that and more. A good life, too, though it didn't always feel that way.

CAPTION

How do I tell that?

PANEL 3

Three children go running through the garden, wild and rowdy, a girl pulling the string of a kite, a boy with a makeshift wooden sword, and ALAIN, a blond, freckle-faced kid.

SWORD BOY

You'll never get me! I'm the Anarchist!

GIRL

You're not smart enough ... or evil enough!

PANEL 4

Alain stops and turns to face Owen, who is watching the wild kids with a trace of amusement.

ALAIN

Grandpa Owen, could you tell us a story?

OWEN

My stories are for everyone ... but only those who want to listen.

PANEL 5

Sword boy and the kite girl tease Alain.

KITE GIRL

Come on, Alain! Do you want to sit around, or do you want to PLAY?

PANEL 5

The boy goes bounding off with his friends.

CAPTION

"And no one can listen all the time ... "

PAGE 2

PANEL 1

A MONTAGE of images, like scattered photographs—use Hugh Syme's paintings from the published novel, scattered images of memories, teasers of the story to come. Intersperse captions among them

CAPTION

From the very start, I had stability, measurable happiness, a perfect life.

CAPTION

Everything had its place, and every place had its thing.

CAPTION

I knew my role in the world. What more could anyone want?

CAPTION

I wanted more. And I got more ... so much more.

PANEL 2

Birds-eye shot of the sprawling, colorful landscape, circus tents, striped and colorful practice pavilions.

CAPTION

Pirates, anarchists, alchemy, lost cities, treachery, explosions, adventure ...

PANEL 3

Owen in his garden.

CAPTION

Adventuring is for the young ... I wish that I could live it all again.

PANEL 4

Close-up of hand writing these words: "The best place to start an adventure is with a quiet, perfect life … and someone who realizes that it can't possibly be enough."

PANEL 5

Owen looks up at the sky.

PAGE 3

PANEL 1

Small panel, an echo of previous panel, but this time a young Owen, staring into the sky, same position.

OWEN

That one, there ... it looks like a dragon.

PANEL 2

Owen is sitting under an apple tree on a hill. His back is against the trunk, feet sprawled out in front of him as he looks up at a big cloud in the sky. This panel is right out of the Rush song "The Analog Kid" on the Signals album. He is looking up at a big cloud in the sky, gray and puffy, but it is shaped just like the dragon from the cover of the Rush in Rio album.

OWEN

See its wings, the head, Lavinia?

PANEL 3

Pull back a little to show that Lavinia is standing next to Owen; she is a teenaged girl, brown hair, and everything about her reeks of No Nonsense. She has a basket of apples in one hand. In this panel, though it is almost exactly the same as Panel 2, the cloud looks like just a cloud.

LAVINIA

Owen Hardy, why do you always see shapes in the clouds?

OWEN

I wonder why I'm the only one who does ...

PANEL 4

Owen picks an apple from a branch above his head.

OWEN

I like to dream of what's out there in the wide world. The Watchmaker, Crown City, the Alchemy College ... the Clockwork Angels!

OWEN

I can't stop thinking big.

PANEL 5

Lavinia puts the apple in her basket; her expression is somewhat annoyed.

LAVINIA

I'd rather you spent more time thinking about being the assistant apple orchard manager and the town business of Barrel Arbor. We're on the schedule to be married soon.

LAVINIA

That's the Watchmaker's plan. All is for the best.

PANEL 6

Owen stands, excited, on top of the hill, shading his eyes to look down in the sweeping valley below, where a STEAMLINER is passing by, like a bizarre steampunk caravan/freight train of zeppelin balloons, rail cars, gondolas with wheels, following a glowing blue line on the ground, like a magical rail. This is in the distance and we can just barely see how exotic it is. [We will get a full-scale look at it on page 12.]

OWEN

Ah, someday, to hop a steamliner, head off to see all of Albion ...

PANEL 7

Lavinia stares at a pocketwatch in her hand.

LAVINIA

But not today. The Watchmaker has a rainstorm scheduled in thirteen minutes. We'll have to run.