X-23 Writer Mariko Tamaki on Marvel's Voices

I heard the news about the passing of Stan Lee shortly before I began writing this piece.

As a writer, an editor, publisher, and Chairman Emeritus, Stan “The Man” Lee helped propel the comic book industry toward a more diverse and representative culture. In fact, his work helped pave the way for many of my favorite creators to have a platform in comics—including immensely successful writers like this week’s Marvel's Voices guest, Mariko Tamaki.

If you've read Tamaki’s work then you already know that she is simply incredible at writing diverse and inclusive coming-of-age stories that explore self-identity and amplify internal struggle. But she is not only a great writer, she is also an immensely talented oral storyteller with a knack for taking the perfect selfie. The secret to the latter, she would say, is to ensure that when taking a picture, you always “make a shape.”

The Canadian-born artist is best known in the Marvel Universe for her work on SHE-HULK, the current x-23 series, as well as being one of the writers of the brand new INFINITY WARS: INFINITY WARPS. Do yourself a favor and check them out!

I sat down with her in the wee hours of the morning on the first day of  New York Comic-Con—shortly before the madness—to chat about learning how to write comics, why she loves the collaborative process of creating comics, and the massive error on her Wikipedia page.

Listen to the full episode now to find out more about her work and how her love of cooking videos made it into Marvel canon.

Download this episode of Marvel's Voices from Marvel.com/podcasts and subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts now!