Mr. Sandman (24 page)

Afterword: A Tale of Two Dream Lords

 

What's the best way to break into comics? Publish your own webcomics or print-on-demand volumes? Set up a Kickstarter project? Self-publish your comics in e-book form through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or iTunes? Self-publish direct to comiXology or another digital comics outlet? These are all viable paths and can lead to success in the field.

But back in the 1980s, they didn't exist. If you wanted to break into comics, which I did, your options were more limited. Self-publishing existed, but it was a much more expensive proposition than it is today; print-on-demand was decades in the future. So what could I do to make my work visible in an industry I loved more than any other?

For one thing, I wrote lots of fan letters and sent them to the editors of my favorite books. The idea was to put my name in front of the editors so they might recognize it and give me a break when I submitted my work. I got to be pretty good at it, in fact; I was no T.M. Maple, but my letters appeared in 69 nationally-published comics between 1984 and 1992.

The next part of my plan was to write a demo script for my favorite major publisher at the time, DC Comics...something about a character no one else was using at the time. I thought that might improve my chances of getting the script published, or at least making a favorable impression with the editorial staff.

Which character did I choose? I considered quite a few obscure DC super-heroes before I finally settled on one in particular...an underused character with crazy powers and a bizarre supporting cast, set in a wildly imaginative world. I picked someone who'd been on the sidelines for a very long time, someone who had a history and deserved better.

In other words, I picked the Jack Kirby version of Sandman from the 1970s, the one with the red and yellow costume and the nightmare sidekicks. The one with the Dream Dome headquarters and the hypnosonic whistle. The one whose secret identity was Garrett Sanford.

Once I got rolling, my imagination took flight. My script took on a life of its own, expanding from a single-issue tale to a four-issue mini-series. I filled it with experimental techniques and quote from literary authors...plus a cool villain called the Bogeyman and lots of surprises.

When I'd finished, in early January 1988, I sent off the script for
The Sandman Awakens
to an editor at DC Comics who'd published quite a few of my letters. His name was Bob Greenberger.

As you might know, sending a full-length unsolicited manuscript to a publisher--
any
publisher--is often frowned upon. As a rule, editors don't like receiving big thick manuscripts that they haven't asked for from people they don't know; they're just too busy to deal with them. But Bob Greenberger was no ordinary editor. To his credit, he not only took the time to read some of the manuscript, but he actually sent me an encouraging letter! "No introductions were necessary since I am quite familiar with you and your letters," he wrote. "Your actual writing is pretty good but the script format requires some polish."

Bob went on to give me a number of pointers. He also said that he'd be happy to speak with me the next time I visited New York City.

Unfortunately, he also wrote that "DC's plans for Sandman totally invalidate any hope you have of selling us this mini-series." After all the work I'd put into that mini-series, DC wasn't going to publish it. "The greatest problem for people trying to break in," wrote Bob, "is that they attempt it with mini-series or series based on characters we already have in the works."

So much for
The Sandman Awakens.

But at least I'd made contact with an actual DC Comics editor, and he'd offered to meet with me. He'd given me inside information on the return of the Kirby Sandman character, too...and sure enough, his information was right on the money. Shortly after I received Bob's letter, I picked up the new issue of DC's
Infinity, Inc.
, and there he was--Kirby's 1970s Sandman. Writers Roy and Dann Thomas had brought him back in the form of Hector Hall, formerly the Silver Scarab. Hector, who'd died in an earlier issue of the series, returned as the latest incarnation of the 70s Sandman.

I mentioned this in the thank-you letter I sent Bob, dated January 31, 1988. "I've been following Roy Thomas'
Infinity, Inc.
," I wrote, "and I see what you mean about DC's plans for the Sandman. Too bad my mini-series is unfeasible...but I
am
getting a kick out of what Roy's doing with the character." I also wrote this: "So Hector Hall is the Sandman! Quite an intriguing turn of events, I must say."

Little did I know that Hector Hall and
Infinity, Inc.
weren't exactly the most intriguing developments in store for a Sandman character at DC Comics. Less than a year later, a new DC series debuted, starring a master of dreams with a bizarre cast of characters...but his real name wasn't Hector Hall or Garrett Sanford or even Wesley Dodds, as the original Golden Age Sandman had been named.

This new character was named
Morpheus
. His series was titled
The Sandman.
And it was written by Neil Gaiman.

So, yes, DC did indeed have a different Sandman plan in mind. But it all worked out in the end. Years later, I went on to write for DC. I became a novelist, too; my young adult fantasy,
My Favorite Band Does Not Exist
, was named a Top Ten First Novel for Youth by
Booklist
. And I started my own publishing company, Pie Press, which made it possible to publish
The Sandman Awakens
after all these years...in a different form, of course, using new characters of my own invention.

So now you can finally read this mini-series script. And you can judge for yourself if it measures up to Neil's creation. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised; working on it again after so many years, I think it definitely holds up. As you'll see, I used some interesting literary techniques throughout. It certainly has that Vertigo feeling. And it's jam-packed with surprises, action, and edgy dialogue. Maybe, like Gaiman's
The Sandman,
The Dream Lord Awakens
was ahead of its time in its own way.

If it had seen print way back in 1988, would it have made as big of a splash as Neil's project? In my wildest dreams, maybe. Or maybe it never stood a chance.

Or maybe, like so many dreams, its biggest splash was simply delayed, awaiting the right moment. And perhaps
this
moment is as good as any other for this dream of mine to become a reality.

 

*****

 

Also by DC Comics Author Robert T. Jeschonek

 

7 Comic Book Scripts

 

Comic book and super-hero fans, rejoice! This volume includes seven scripts—mostly super-hero tales, plus one war/horror story—from a writer whose work has been published by DC Comics, among others. Robert T. Jeschonek has written plenty of scripts in his career, and these seven will shine a light on his writing process, his wild imagination…and some thrilling and thought-provoking adventures. The first in a series collecting some of his best work, this action-packed book includes seven scripts:

 

"Super-Powered Poser Blues": A super-hero stand-in runs into unexpected problems while impersonating a mighty mortal.

 

"My Date With Godling": A hard-driving cosmic god-hero launches a mission under false pretenses…a mission that quickly goes from intense to insane.

 

"The Mime: On Bread Alone": An endangered priest is protected by a silent hero whose make-believe performances have real world consequences.

 

"Young Soldiers Never Die": A future warrior discovers that one man's idea of a perfect soldier is another man's idea of pure hell.

 

"The Child Is Father to the Man": The younger selves of three great old-time heroes leap forward to the future after suffering their greatest defeat.

 

"Johnstown Man: Losing Ground": A blue collar steel town hero battles crime in the age of layoffs.

 

"Don't Tug on Superstar's Cape": A super souvenir hunter goes after the ultimate prize from the ultimate hero and nearly loses everything in the bargain.

 

Don't miss this collection of seven comic book scripts for one low price. It's the latest book from award-winning storyteller Robert T. Jeschonek (My Favorite Band Does Not Exist), a master of unique and unexpected fiction that packs a punch.

 

Now on Sale!

 

*****

 

Also by Robert T. Jeschonek

 

7 More Comic Book Scripts

 

Comic book and superhero fans, rejoice! This volume includes seven scripts—a mix of superheroes, mobsters, horror, and humor—from a writer whose work has been published by DC Comics, among others. Robert T. Jeschonek has written plenty of scripts in his career, and these seven will shine a light on his writing process, his wild imagination…and some thrilling and thought-provoking adventures. The latest in a series collecting some of his best work, this action-packed book includes seven scripts:

 

"You're Listening to Alter Ego Talk Radio 1050": A radio call-in psychiatrist gets his kicks doling out advice to nutty superheroes...until he says the wrong thing to a head case with the ultimate power.

 

"The Cold Shoulder": How do you handle the world's mightiest Mafia enforcer gone rogue? Drive him to suicide, and hope he doesn't kill you first.

 

"Redneck Neighbor": What's worse? Having an obnoxious upstairs neighbor who's a vampire, or one who's a country music singer? Put them both together, and your life becomes a living hell.

 

"The Super Hitman's Secret Power": An F.B.I. agent who's about to lose everything seeks out the one man with the power to save him: his old enemy, the super hitman whose life he ruined years ago.

 

"Deadly Standoff": What happens when a superhero finds himself caught in a no-win situation? With a child's life at stake, can he still find the strength to make a difference?

 

"Hot Potato": An STD with a mind of its own seizes control of its host. Can the "Barnacles" be stopped before they drive a good man to commit an unspeakably horrific crime?

 

"Neil Ballantyne, Hellraker: No Good Deed": A priest saves souls by summoning demons, proving the existence of Heaven and God by demonstrating the influence of Hell. But when his scheme goes horribly wrong, only Neil Ballantyne, the supernatural fixer, stands a chance of stopping a rash of atrocities.

 

Now on Sale!

 

*****

 

About the Author

 

Robert T. Jeschonek is an award-winning writer whose fiction, comics, essays, articles, and podcasts have been published around the world. His young adult urban fantasy novel,
My Favorite Band Does Not Exist
, was named one of
Booklist
's Top Ten First Novels for Youth. Simon & Schuster, DAW/Penguin Books, and DC Comics have published his work. He won the grand prize in Pocket Books' nationwide Strange New Worlds contest and was nominated for the British Fantasy Award. Visit him online at www.thefictioneer.com.

 

*****

 

E-books
by Robert T. Jeschonek

 

Fantasy

6 Fantasy Stories

6 More Fantasy Stories

Blazing Bodices

Earthshaker
– a
n urban fantasy
novel

Girl Meets Mind Reader

Groupie Everlasting

Rose Head

The Genie's Secret

The Return of Alice

The Sword That Spoke

 

Horror

Bloodliner
– a novel

Diary of a Maggot

Dionysus Dying

Fear of Rain

Road Rage

 

Humor (Adults Only)

Dick by Law
– a novel

 

Literary

6 Short Stories

Getting Higher
–
a novel

 

Mystery
and Crime

6 Crime Stories

Crimes in the Key of Murder

Dancing With Murder
(a cozy mystery novel)

The First Detect-Eve

The Foolproof Cure for Cancer

The Other Waiter

Who Unkilled Johnny Murder?

 

Poetry

Flight of Ideas

 

Science Fiction

6 Scifi Stories

6 More Scifi Stories

6 Scifi Stories Book 3

Beware the Black Battlenaut

Give The Hippo What He Wants

Lenin of the Stars

Messiah 2.0

My Cannibal Lover

Off The Face Of The Earth

One Awake In All The World

Playing Doctor

Serial Killer vs. E-Merica

Something Borrowed, Something Doomed

Star Sex

Teacher of the Century

The Greatest Serial Killer in the Universe

The Love Quest of Smidgen the Snack Cake

The Shrooms of Benares

Universal Language
– a novel

 

Superheroes

6 Superhero Stories

7 Comic Book Scripts

A Matter of Size
(mature readers)

Forced Retirement
(Forced Heroics Book 1)

Forced Betrayal (Forced Heroics Book 2)

Forced Partnership (Forced Heroics Book 3)

Heroes of Global Warming

Mr. Sandman: The Dream Lord Awakens - graphic novel script

The Masked Family
– a novel

The Wife Who Never Was

 

Thrillers

Backtracker – a novel

Day 9
– a novel

 

The
Trek
It! Series

Trek This!

Trek Off!

Trek Fail!

Trek Script!

Trek Script 2

Trek Novel!

Trek You!

Trek It!

 

Young Readers

Dolphin Knight
– a novel

Lump

Tommy Puke and the Boy with the Golden Barf

Tommy Puke and the World's Grossest Grown-Up