Mike Carey (writer)

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Mike Carey
Carey at the New York Comic Con in Manhattan, 10 October 2010
BornMichael James Carey
1959 (age 64–65)
Liverpool, England
NationalityBritish
Area(s)Writer
Notable works
Lucifer
Hellblazer
The Unwritten
X-Men: Legacy
The Girl with All the Gifts
AwardsInkpot Award (2012)[1]

Mike Carey (born 1959), also known by his pen name M. R. Carey, is a British writer of comic books, novels and films, whose credits include the long-running The Sandman spin-off series Lucifer, a three-year stint on Hellblazer, as well as his creator-owned titles Crossing Midnight and The Unwritten for DC Comics' Vertigo imprint, a lengthy run on Marvel's X-Men, the 2014 novel The Girl with All the Gifts and its 2016 film adaptation.

Early life and career[edit]

Carey was born in Liverpool, England, in 1959. He describes his young self as "one of those ominously quiet kids... [who] lived so much inside my own head I only had vestigial limbs". As a child, he maintained an interest in comics, writing and drawing primitive stories to entertain his younger brother.[2] He studied English at St Peter's College, Oxford[3] and, upon graduation, became a teacher. He taught for 15 years before moving on to writing comics.

Writing career[edit]

After a series of one-off jobs for independent comics companies, including a biographical Ozzy Osbourne comic and a fantasy tale starring the band Pantera, Carey became a contributor to the British comics anthology 2000 AD, where he co-created the original series Thirteen and Carver Hale, and wrote two series for The Sandman Presents line published by DC Comics' Vertigo imprint, Lucifer and Petrefax. Lucifer was subsequently extended into an ongoing series, which Carey wrote for its entire 75-issue run.[4] Further work for Vertigo includes a 40-issue run on the imprint's flagship title Hellblazer[5] as well as the spin-off graphic novel All His Engines,[6] several creator-owned endeavors, such as the six-part mini-series Faker with art by Jock[7][8] and the ongoing series Crossing Midnight with artist Jim Fern,[9][10] and two more The Sandman spin-offs in the form of graphic novels, The Sandman Presents: The Furies and God Save the Queen, both created with artist John Bolton. In 2009, Carey launched his longest creator-owned series to date, The Unwritten, co-created with the Lucifer collaborator Peter Gross and featuring covers by Yuko Shimizu.[11][12]

Carey at the DC Comics booth at the New York Comic Con, 10 October 2010

Other work for DC Comics includes the long-delayed reboot of Wildstorm's Wetworks[13][14] and two graphic novels for the Minx imprint aimed at the teenage female audience, one of which was co-written by Carey with his daughter Louise.[15] In 2003, Carey was announced as the new writer of the Firestorm ongoing series,[16] however, he left the project few months after the announcement as the editors wanted to take it in a different direction.[17] The series was launched in 2004 with Dan Jolley as the writer.

In 2006, Carey took over the writing duties of Marvel's X-Men series, which was soon rebranded into X-Men: Legacy.[18] He saw the title through a number of inter-title crossovers between the various X-Men books such as "Endangered Species", "Messiah Complex", "Original Sin" (a crossover between X-Men: Legacy and Wolverine: Origins that was tentatively titled "Dark Deception")[19][20] and "Age of X".[21] Carey wrote X-Men: Legacy for six years[22] and contributed a number of X-Men stories to other publications, such as two tie-ins to the "Secret Invasion" crossover storyline, the four-issue mini-series Secret Invasion: X-Men and an eight-page story in the one-shot anthology Secret Invasion: Who Do You Trust? featuring Abigail Brand of S.W.O.R.D.,[23][24] a retelling of Beast's origin story as part of the X-Men: Origins line[25] and an Iceman serial in the X-Men: Manifest Destiny anthology series.[20][26] Other work for Marvel includes the comic book adaptation of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Shadow.[27]

Carey's first novel, The Devil You Know, was released in the UK by Orbit books in April 2006, and as a hardcover in the US in July 2007. Its sequel, Vicious Circle, was published in October 2006, and the following three novels in the series, Dead Men's Boots, Thicker Than Water, and The Naming of the Beasts, followed in September 2007, March 2009 and September 2009, respectively. What would have been Carey's first feature film, the erotic ghost story Frost Flowers, was reported to be in pre-production in June 2006, with filming to begin that September under the direction of Andrea Vecchiato.[14] Carey was also reported to work on the TV adaptation of his comic book series The Stranded, a co-production between Virgin Comics and the Syfy network.[28] Also for Virgin, Carey took part in the short-lived Coalition Comix project created in association with MySpace, where users could suggest ideas for a comic which then would be used during its production.[29][30]

In 2014, Carey published another novel, The Girl with All the Gifts. That same year, the screenplay of the same name, written by Carey concurrently with the novel, appeared on the Brit List.[31] Filming began in May 2015, with Colm McCarthy directing and Gemma Arterton, Paddy Considine, Glenn Close and Sennia Nanua starring.[32] The story, depicting a dystopian future where most of humanity is wiped out by a fungal infection, focuses on the struggle of a scientist, a teacher and two soldiers who embark on a journey of survival with a special young girl named Melanie.[33]

Bibliography[edit]

Comics[edit]

Early work[edit]

  • Toxic! #30–31: "Aquarius" (with Ken Meyer, Jr., anthology, Apocalypse Ltd, 1991)
  • Rock-It Comix:
  • Caliber:
    • Inferno #1–5 (with Michael Gaydos, 1995–1996) collected as Inferno (tpb, 144 pages, Titan, 2003, ISBN 1-84023-764-3)
    • Negative Burn #49: "Suicide Kings" (with P. J. Holden, anthology, 1997)
    • Dr. Faustus (with Mike Perkins, one-shot, Tome Press, 1997)
  • 2000 AD (anthology, Fleetway/Rebellion):
  • Just 1 Page (series of charity benefit anthology one-shots self-published by Adrian Brown for Comic Festival):
    • Just 1 Page: Heroes: "Little Nemo" (with Adrian Brown, one-page strip, 2001)
    • Just 1 Page: Brits: "Wham! and Smash!" (text article detailing the history of the eponymous comics magazines, 2003)
  • 9-11 Volume 1: "In the House of Light" (with Mike Collins, anthology graphic novel, 196 pages, Dark Horse, 2002, ISBN 1-563898-81-0)

DC Comics[edit]

Marvel Comics[edit]

Other publishers[edit]

Poetry and short prose[edit]

Uncollected[edit]

Year Title Source Publisher Notes
2002 "In Thule with Jessica" Xconnect: Writers of the Information Age Volume 5 CrossConnect ISBN 0-9651-4504-2
2006 "Auszug" Mike Carey's One-Sided Bargains Desperado Publishing Published with an illustration by Michael Gaydos
2009 "Now! and Then!" Murky Depths #10 The House of Murky Depths ISBN 1-9065-8415-X
2016 "The Ornament" O Horrid Night FunDead ISBN 0-9894-7263-9
2019 "There Were No Birds to Fly" Wonderland: An Anthology Titan Books ISBN 1-7890-9148-9
2020 "War Crimes" London Centric: Tales of Future London NewCon Press ISBN 1-9129-5073-1
2023 "Mr. Thirteen" Twice Cursed: An Anthology Titan Books ISBN 1-8033-6121-2

Collected[edit]

Novels[edit]

Year Title Series Publisher ISBN Notes
2006 The Devil You Know Felix Castor Orbit Books 1-84149-413-5
(Paperback, 480 pages)
2006 Vicious Circle Felix Castor Orbit Books 1-8414-9414-3
(Paperback, 512 pages)
2007 Dead Men's Boots Felix Castor Orbit Books 1-841-49415-1
(Paperback, 544 pages)
2009 Thicker Than Water Felix Castor Orbit Books 1-841-49656-1
(Paperback, 512 pages)
2009 The Naming of the Beasts Felix Castor Orbit Books 1-8414-9655-3
(Paperback, 512 pages)
2011 The Dead Sea Deception Heather Kennedy Sphere Books 0-7515-4573-2
(Paperback, 400 pages)
2012 The Steel Seraglio ChiZine 1-926-85153-6
(Paperback, 400 pages)
  • Co-written by Carey with his wife Linda and daughter Louise
  • Published as The City of Silk and Steel in the UK
2012 The Demon Code Heather Kennedy Sphere Books 0-7515-4578-3
(Paperback, 576 pages)
  • Written under the pseudonym Adam Blake
2014 The Girl with All the Gifts The Hungry Plague Orbit Books 0-3565-0015-2
(Paperback, 512 pages)
2014 The House of War and Witness Gollancz 0-5751-3272-8
(Paperback, 528 pages)
  • Co-written by Carey with his wife Linda and daughter Louise
2016 Fellside Orbit Books 0-3565-0358-5
(Hardcover, 496 pages)
2017 The Boy on the Bridge The Hungry Plague Orbit Books 0-3565-0353-4
(Hardcover, 400 pages)
2018 Someone Like Me Orbit Books 0-3565-0946-X
(Hardcover, 512 pages)
2020 The Book of Koli Rampart Trilogy Orbit Books 0-356-50955-9
(Paperback, 400 pages)
2020 The Trials of Koli Rampart Trilogy Orbit Books 0-3565-1349-1
(Paperback, 480 pages)
2021 The Fall of Koli Rampart Trilogy Orbit Books 0-3565-1350-5
(Paperback, 560 pages)
2023 Infinity Gate The Pandominion Orbit Books 0-3165-0438-6
(Paperback, 544 pages)
2023 The Ghost in Bone Felix Castor Subterranean Press 1-6452-4133-5
(Hardcover, 144 pages)
2024 Echo of Worlds The Pandominion Orbit Books 0-3565-1808-6
(Paperback, 496 pages)

References[edit]

  1. ^ Inkpot Award
  2. ^ Carey, Mike (July 2000), On The Ledge, DC Comics / Vertigo
  3. ^ Carey, Mike (Autumn 2005). "Comic Stripped" (PDF). Oxford Forum: 54–55. Archived from the original (pdf) on 8 October 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
  4. ^ Irvine, Alex (2008), "Lucifer", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The Vertigo Encyclopedia, New York: Dorling Kindersley, pp. 118–124, ISBN 0-7566-4122-5, OCLC 213309015
  5. ^ Irvine, Alex (2008), "John Constantine Hellblazer", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The Vertigo Encyclopedia, New York: Dorling Kindersley, pp. 102–111, ISBN 0-7566-4122-5, OCLC 213309015
  6. ^ CCI, Day 2: Keanu Sold Separately: Carey talks "Hellblazer: All His Engines" OGN, Comic Book Resources, 23 July 2004
  7. ^ Mike Carey'a A Faker For Vertigo Archived 29 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Comicon
  8. ^ Carey's Faker: A Thriller Rooted in Paranoia, With Some Existentialism Thrown In Archived 15 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Comics Bulletin, 28 October 2007
  9. ^ Irvine, Alex (2008), "Crossing Midnight", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The Vertigo Encyclopedia, New York: Dorling Kindersley, pp. 49–51, ISBN 0-7566-4122-5, OCLC 213309015
  10. ^ Goldstein, Hilary (21 July 2006). "Comic-Book 2006: Mike Carey's Vertigo Trio". IGN.com. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  11. ^ Vertigo's 'The Unwritten': Mike Carey & Peter Gross, Newsarama, Mon, 30 March 2009
  12. ^ Ekstrom, Steve. "Life as Fiction? Mike Carey on Vertigo's 'The Unwritten'", Newsarama, 26 March 2009
  13. ^ Wildstorm Takes The Plunge: Mike Carey talks 'Wetworks', Comic Book Resources, 2 November 2003
  14. ^ a b Take A Dive With Mike Carey Into "Wetworks: Worldstorm", Comic Book Resources, 23 June 2006
  15. ^ Confessions Of a Carey: Louise Carey talks "Blabbermouth" & Minx, Comic Book Resources, 23 May 2007
  16. ^ Singh, Arune (27 February 2003). "GOODNESS, GRACIOUS, GREAT BALLS OF FIRE: CAREY TALKS 'FIRESTORM'". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 25 March 2003.
  17. ^ Singh, Arune (16 May 2003). "IN THE END, WE ALL GO TO HELL! MIKE CAREY TALKS THE END OF 'LUCIFER' & NO MORE 'FIRESTORM'". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 4 June 2003.
  18. ^ Mike Carey: Carrying on the X-Men Legacy Archived 15 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Comics Bulletin, 24 January 2008
  19. ^ Richards, Dave. "Mike Carey & Daniel Way's "Dark Deception", Comic Book Resources, 6 June 2008
  20. ^ a b Ekstrom, Steve. "Sins, Destines & Legacies: Mike Carey Talks X-Men", Newsarama, 8 September 2008
  21. ^ "Mike Carey reveals the "Age of X"". comicbookresources.com. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  22. ^ "Marvel Announces Mike Carey's Final "X-Men Legacy" Arc". comicbookresources.com. 16 August 2011. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  23. ^ Mike Carey on Secret Invasion: X-Men, FCBD X-Men, Legacy and More[permanent dead link], Newsarama, 2 April 2008
  24. ^ Richards, Dave. "Mike Carey's 'Secret Invasion' Plans", Comic Book Resources, 7 May 2008
  25. ^ Dallas, Keith. "Mike Carey: Re-Telling the Origin of The X-Men's Beast" Archived 21 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Comics Bulletin, 2 September 2008
  26. ^ Richards, Dave. Carey on "Manifest Destiny" and "X-Men Origins: Beast", Comic Book Resources, 28 August 2008
  27. ^ Ekstrom, Steve. "Enrolling in School: Carey on Ender's Shadow: Battle School", Newsarama, 2 December 2008
  28. ^ Brady, Matt. "The Virgin Days Of Mike Carey – Talking The Stranded And Voodoo Child" Archived 11 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Newsarama, 9 October 2007
  29. ^ Manning, Shaun. "Mike Carey talks Virgin & MySpace's Coalition Comix", Comic Book Resources, 8 May 2008
  30. ^ "Virgin Comics Brings Director's Cut Comics to Life With Animated Trailers" PR Newswire; Accessed 13 October 2010
  31. ^ Jaafar, Ali (20 November 2014). "'Matinee Idol' & 'Gateway 6' Top Annual Brit List". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  32. ^ Barraclough, Leo (23 March 2015). "Gemma Arterton, Paddy Considine, Glenn Close to Star in 'She Who Brings Gifts'". Variety. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  33. ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (23 March 2015). "Glenn Close Among Cast of UK Zombie Thriller 'She Who Brings Gifts'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 23 September 2016.

External links[edit]

Interviews[edit]

Preceded by Hellblazer writer
2002–2006 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Red Sonja writer
2005–2006
(with Michael Avon Oeming) 		Succeeded by
Michael Avon Oeming
Preceded by X-Men: Legacy writer
2006–2011 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Ultimate Fantastic Four writer
2006–2008 		Succeeded by
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