The superhero comic book format that you see today originated in America in the early 20th century and has been adapted worldwide in countries such as Japan, France, China and the UK to name a few.

It has been used to tell modern myths and stories ever since.

Though comic books can be read and enjoyed by all ages and backgrounds, here in the UK there is still a tendency to look down on comic books as throw away or children’s literature.

This is frustrating as many excellent comic book writers are being denied a potentially huge audience.

Of course there are comic books written just for children but I am not addressing those here.

I’m talking about quality stories written for all ages.

Flat characterization with a few strong words and images are used rather than stretching the imagination to create a memorable experience.

For excellent examples of good comic book writing, look out for anything by writers Alan Moore, Warren Ellis, Christopher Priest, Brian Michael Bendis, Geoff Johns, Mark Millar and Dwayne McDuffie.

There are many more great authors including Grant Morrison and Neil Gaiman.

The first comic book I read, enjoyed and subsequently collected was a Marvel Comics’ title called The Avengers.

It was initially created in the early 1960's to have all of Marvel's most popular superhero characters in one book acting as a team.

The penciller was the late John Buscema who was truly a master artist.

His hand drawn characters had real expressions and the scenes contained pure drama.

The inker was Tom Palmer who complemented Buscema's work beautifully.

The issue (number 257) was lettered by Jim Novak and coloured by Christie Scheele and was the second part of a classic story.

Writers and artists stay on a title for a certain number of issues, called a run, before a new creative team takes over.

Stern's run started from issue number 227 and he was joined by Buscema to create an extraordinary run which lasted some 30 issues.

Each issue is usually a chapter of a larger tale told over many issues or occasionally a complete short story.

They are famous for their shock; cliffhanger endings and 4 week wait for the next chapter.

Monthlies are predominantly ongoing series but there are many, separate limited series containing 2 to 12 issues.

These contain stories for new characters or established ones and are mainly vehicles for the best creative talent.

The majority of new issues (imports) arrive every Thursday at comic book stores in the U.K. (Wednesdays in the U.S) delivered mainly by Diamond Distributors.

The page count can increase for a special edition.

Once the readers’ main choice, monthlies are slowly being caught up in popularity by trade paperbacks.

The majority of new issues (imports) arrive every Thursday at comic book stores in the U.K. (Wednesdays in the U.S) delivered mainly by Diamond Distributors.

The page count can increase for a special edition.

Once the readers’ main choice, they are slowly being caught up by trade paperbacks.

Soft cover, trade paperbacks (or Trades) are collections of individual comic book issues (with no advertisements) reprinted and bound in book format.

Sometimes called graphic novels, they are gaining popularity on single issues.

Containing a satisfying, complete story, you don’t have to wait between chapters, it can be stored on a bookshelf and is increasingly available in hard cover.