"Q&A With Barry Lyga"

November 13, 2020

Book: Thanos: Titans Consumed

Header Photo Courtesy of Barry Lyga

Author: Barry Lyga

Author Bio:

"Barry Lyga has published more than twenty novels in various genres in his dozen-plus-year career, including the New York Times bestselling I Hunt Killers and Thanos: Titan Consumed for Marvel Studios. His books have been or are slated to be published in nine different languages in North America, Australia, Europe, and Asia."

1. You authored the prose novel, “Thanos: Titan Consumed”, what was a characteristic that you wanted to showcase in Thanos that wasn’t commonly seen in past books or even the Avengers movies?

On the screen, Thanos is older, wiser, cagier. He’s considered the most powerful being in the universe. My goal was to show how he got to that point, so I had to start with him when he was NOT any of those things. The book literally begins when he’s six months old. I wanted to show how he developed his skills and his base assumptions about the way the world works, and in order to do that, I had to go all the way back to the beginning.

2. The MCU is one of the most successful movie franchises in the history of cinema. What would you say was your favorite film and why?

I think The Winter Soldier is the one that made me sit up and say, “Oh, wow — they’re not just making good superhero movies; they’re making good movies, period.” It was so meticulously put together, had such a delicate balance of pathos, humor, and drama. Just a flawless movie, really, and the fact that it was about a superhero is just the icing on the cake.

3. Who is a superhero whose book you would love to write and why?

I’ve been fortunate enough to write some novels based on the Flash — my favorite character — so I’ve scratched that itch. I would love to take a shot at Wonder Woman or Superman.

4. In your humble opinion, who is the best supervillain and why?

Thanos-lovers everywhere will hate me for this, but my favorite supervillain has always been Lex Luthor. There’s just so much to do with the character, and I feel like his physical vulnerability is such a great counterpoint to the endless depths of his villainy.

5. What does your writing process typically look like?

These days especially, there’s no “typical” at all! But in general, once I have an idea fully framed, I look for its beginning, its ending, and some sort of epiphany for the main character. Once I have those elements, I can usually start writing and use those three points as landmarks for my hike through the brush and brambles of the story.

6. Your book, “Thanos: Titan Consumed”, is credited as a must-read connecting the films Avengers Infinity War and Endgame. Was this a goal of yours while bringing this story to life?

Of course! I absolutely wanted the book to feel integral and integrated.

7. Who’s a comic/prose author you admired growing up and why? And has their style been woven into yours at all?

I make no secret of my love for the writing of Paul Levitz in my childhood favorite comic book, Legion of Super-Heroes. His ability to juggle subplots and weave them into each other and into the main plot is unparalleled in the comic book industry, and his world-building is just pitch-perfect. I think I might have incorporated some of his world-building into my work, but I won’t even TRY to execute the kind of subplot shenanigans he does so effortlessly.

8. What upcoming MCU movie are you most excited to see and who is a Marvel character currently not on the big screen that you would like to see?

I’m looking forward to BLACK WIDOW (someday!) and man-oh-man would I love to see a Captain Universe movie. I love Captain Universe. (Kevin Feige, call me! I work cheap!)

9. What’s your best advice for getting over writer’s block?

I actually wrote a whole blog post about that a while back, so let me just drop that in here.

10. What’s the best book you have read this year so far?

It’s probably a toss-up between THE FOLD by Peter Clines and THE SPACE BETWEEN WORLDS by Micaiah Johnson. Both about parallel worlds, but wildly divergent otherwise.

11. Do you plan on writing more books in the future?

Until someone pries my keyboard out of my cold, dead hands, yes! Look for THE FLASH: CROSSOVER CRISIS: THE LEGENDS OF FOREVER in March 2021, and TIME WILL TELL in September 2021!