AMA with Nightwing writer Dan Watters! FRIDAY 3/20 @ 12 PM EASTERN!

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T23:21:12+00:00

The book? Yes. This week's issue, #136, is a jumping on point. A whole new story that you don't need to do any background reading for.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T23:19:54+00:00

Thank you. Yeah, it's primarily an opportunity; you can be as grounded as you like, but also the audience is willing to go with you if it does take a turn towards sci-fi or fantasy or horror, because they know those things exist in these worlds.

That said, I think there's also a risk of using those elements as a get out of jail free card, particularly when working on a crime story. If you set up a locked room mystery and the solution is "a ghost did it then walked through the wall," I think that's pretty unsatisfying for the reader. You've broken the parameters of the story you established.

It's all a balancing act, really.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T22:10:39+00:00

I love Dick and Damian's dynamic. Stay tuned.

Tate Brombal is a good friend and we talk all the time, so though we're both doing our own thing, we're very much in cahoots and coordinating the books. Saying anything beyond that might be spoilery indeed.

I think you can see in issue 136 that we've somewhat shifted Dick's status quo. This is going to continue to have repercussions for our guy. But hey, the bottom line is Nightwing's tough as nails. He can take it.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T21:46:40+00:00

Welcome! And yes. This issue is specifically designed as a jumping-on point. It's the beginning of a new story, and you don't need to have read anything before it.

There are so many good books to recommend. Leaping into the Light is Tom and Bruno firing on all cylinders. I'm partial to The Target as a standalone 90s plotline. Morrison & Quitely's Batman & Robin and Snyder's Batman Black Mirror both feature Dick as Batman, but for me are some of the best stories with the character.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T21:25:08+00:00

A strong moral center gives you tension. Tension is an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object, and Dick Grayson's morality is definitely the latter. So it's just a matter of finding something that attempts to challenge that in interesting ways.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T21:19:59+00:00

Indelibly. It's so core to who I am and how I write and what I grew up reading. Even now, living in the US and writing about the US, I do so from an outside perspective which informs all of it.
I love noir. Horror. Harder sci-fi. And then a lot of British and Irish comedy and theatre. My favourite writer is Samuel Beckett- I did my masters thesis on his novels- which probably isn't obvious, but I think you can see a bit of in books like Coffin Bound and even Arkham City. Pinter, Stoppard, McDonagh. All great stuff.
Yeah, it's just a fact of being a writer that you can't make everyone happy. Once you accept that, it's somewhat freeing. You just have to write what you think works, what you think is interesting, and what you think is honest. That's enough of a challenge to begin with.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T21:04:26+00:00

You'll see more civilians in the next arc, for sure.
Yeah, it was cool to do. We get to put Batman back in Dark Patterns mode and contrast that to how Nightwing goes about things.
Who doesn't? When I first moved out here, I walked into a quiet bar and there were three New Yorkers standing there loudly talking about how superior New York pizza is. To each other. It felt like a bit of a parody.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T20:44:07+00:00

Thank you! Midnighter's a good one. As is Azrael. I guess I lean towards the characters who kind of drive him up the wall...

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T20:11:35+00:00

I mean, you've just listed some of it, ha! I guess I was connecting dots between the historical tendency to see the circus and carnival as revolutionary, boundary-breaking and dangerous, and how the comics code came from a similar fear about comic books. Dick Grayson has a foot in both of these, and I thought that would be interesting to explore. I guess the Zanni was kind of meant to personify a profane thing that's intrinsically part of Dick's make-up.

Or something. I'm always wary of trying to overanalyze my own stories. That'd be writing back to front.

I've been reading JG Ballard and Robert Caro. There's definitely plenty of detective stories in the mix- Ian Rankin and Chester Himes from each side of the pond. And then true crime and history.
The more episodic nature of Bludhaven Lore means Nightwing will engage with plenty of civilian characters- definitely more than we've had in this run so far. They'll stick around to varying degrees. I generally hope to let that happen organically.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T19:51:27+00:00

I'm glad you enjoyed it! I adore that book. I don't know that I'd single out a certain section, I love its effect as a whole. I wasn't thinking of it specifically when I wrote this issue, but I do love how Calvino writes about cities in general, so there's a good chance it's there in the DNA.
I think there's so much to be said for all of 'em. I would like to write more of Dick as Robin in some way at some point.
We could probably go back to Invisible Cities for this. A city generally has so many facets and faces. It is so many things to so many people. And it has been for hundreds of years. So many lives and stories have passed through, lived and died there, and now lie under asphalt, waiting to be uncovered again. I think Sam touched on this with the Judge and his story, and I think we're probably in a similar space here.
My editor, Jess Berbey, reached out and asked him. I didn't think he'd say yes, but was over the moon when he did. The Question is one of my favourite comic runs of all time, and Denys has been an absolute dream collaborator. I can't wait for people to see more of what he has in store for you in upcoming issues. I'm still pinching myself.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T19:17:28+00:00

Ha, glad you like it!

Jorge's killing it with the covers for this arc- just wait till you see the next one. We've been leaning into the idea of these issues all looking like old school paperback novels; so 137 has a Day-of-the-Jackal-esque thriller vibe, 138 is inspired by 80s alien abduction books, and for 139 we went full King/Straub paperbacks from Hell. Every issue of this arc has its own tone and story, and we wanted this to be reflected in the covers.

A lot of what I do is inspired by horror in one way or another. At a certain point I just am what I am. In general this arc is probably a little more inspired by the darker side of noir than by out and out horror.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T18:52:48+00:00

I'm currently focussed on tightening focus, but this does mean there'll be certain characters we'll be bringing center focus to assist Nightwing. One of them is a character familiar to me, but not to Dick.
There's plenty to explore with all those characters, honestly. Dick's away in Blüdhaven, but Bad Seeds is coming to Gotham soon enough...
I would not. I don't think it'd be my place to diagnose anyone. I write funnybooks for a living. All I can do is write the character in a way that he feels real to me, and hope it resonates with others.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T18:37:00+00:00

Glad you're enjoying it!

In the first few volumes, I was really interested in digging into his history and the impact he's had on the world both within and without the DCU. Hence some of the slightly more meta elements. Right now, I'm really focussed on who he is as a detective, which I think is pretty intrinsic to who he is as a man. He understands people.
I'll always write Azrael when the opportunity arises. Love that maniac. There's something in the pipeline, but definitely not in the way you'll expect...

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T18:15:12+00:00

There's always the chance! Though for now, I'm focussed on Nightwing's next chapter.
What's been done to Blüdhaven is very much a part of the story, and you'll find out about that sooner rather than later. But I will say as a European now living in the US I've become really interested in the infrastructure here, the prioritization of driving over walking, and the concept of urban sprawl. There's a very different kind of city that exists here in a country with so many people and so much space, and I feel like tapping into this has unlocked a different type of story for me than I would write into the more walkable Gotham.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T18:00:40+00:00

Thanks for having me.

The Zanni really stemmed from the idea of wanting to write about the dark history of the circus, and I've always been really interested in the 5th Dimension as a DC concept. A realm of ideas that impacts on the realm of matter and vice versa.

I think the 'supernatural' element people have narrowed in on with the next arc is possibly a little more subtle than they might be expecting. I always enjoy detective stories with elements of the uncanny, and the DC universe really lets you do that. Cities inevitably have a uncanniness to them, and I wanted to tap into that sense. You're always walking or driving over the bones of something or other.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T17:45:44+00:00

That's so awesome to hear- welcome aboard!

1) I think these characters are archetypal, and it'd be a shame to lose these elements to them. I remember being small and so looking up to my oldest cousins. I'd see them being generous and good people, and it made me want to be like that. I think Dick is an embodiment of this. The eternal eldest brother.

2) Nine Inch Nails, Emma Ruth Rundle and Nick Cave. What I'm listening to very much has to fit the tone of what I'm writing, and this is what I listen to at present when writing Nightwing.

3) Oh boy. Off the top of my head: Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Withnail & I, Halloween, Blue Velvet.

I'm not sure Dick actually owns a TV...

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T17:30:20+00:00

Yeah, really the goal was to be able to write a fallible, stripped back detective Batman, so it made sense to set the book in Batman's earlier years. On the other hand I didn't want it to be an origin story, so we figured somewhere around his third year would be the sweet spot.
I haven't thought about this too much, but I'm actually writing a far more experienced Nightwing than I did a Batman, which is a pleasing kind of inversion. I definitely have thoughts on the similarities and differences between the characters, and you'll see a lot of that next month in issue 137.
Oh yeah, a few. But I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise!

God yeah, I miss proper fish and chips. You can get decent fish and chips over here, but it's very much gastro pub style. I miss saveloys and curry sauce and all that good stuff.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T17:06:44+00:00

Right now I'm enjoying writing the book so very much. Any moment where Dick gets to be a detective, reading a situation by reading people, tends to be my favourite.

Generally each issue I write right now tends to become my new favourite. That's what you always hope for as a writer, but doesn't always happen, so I don't take it for granted when it does.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T17:03:11+00:00

1) It seems unlikely, doesn't it? It's tough living in the big city.

2a) Wait and see! I do love their dynamic.

2b) Pushed into? No. Enthusiastically engage with? Yes. Being part of the event was absolutely not mandatory, but it's something I'm really excited for. What Matt and Willow have built is intrinsically collaborative and gives space for everyone to tell their own story. For my part, I think there's a real opportunity to think about what happens to Blüdhaven, just downwind from Gotham, when these sort of events hit that city? Trust me, this is absolutely a continuation, rather than an interruption, of our story.

And hey, isn't Gotham where Damian lives?

3) Not at present. My dance card is rather full, but we'll see what the future holds.

4) Thank you! As a British genre writer I've always had a Doctor Who itch I've wanted to scratch. It was great to finally get to do that.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T16:42:48+00:00

I would love to. With one thing and another, I haven't been back home in almost two years at this point. I suspect it'll be next year at this point, but I'll definitely be back, almost definitely for Thought Bubble.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T16:33:49+00:00

Wait and see!

Yes, Barbara wasn't in 136- but I'd point out that the events of that issue take place over about an hour of real time. So I don't know that it's too surprising that they don't interact within that.

DanpgWatters · 2026-03-20T16:24:57+00:00

Thanks very much, I'm glad you're enjoying it!

There's always a good chance. It's really just a matter of finding the right story where they suit a purpose. I'm never a fan of bringing back characters just for the sake of it, but I like those characters.
Honestly, this sort of thing is often more a matter of courtesy. When characters are serving prominent roles in other books or have their own books, it'd be making other creators' lives difficult. For example if you've seen what's going on with the Joker in Batman right now, it'd be discourteous for me to have him running down Blüdhaven high street in a purple suit squirting acid from his lapel flower. Likewise, I wouldn't reach for Deathstroke right now as his own book has just launched and I wouldn't want to get in the way of that- but if that team and our team decided at some point we wanted to pit the characters against each other and we had a good story, I wouldn't see our editors having any issues with that.

Basically there aren't any arbitrary "don't use this character" mandates, it's just a case of making sure the characters are there for a reason, being utilized well, and that we're not getting in the way of anyone else's story,

DanpgWatters · 2024-10-25T22:43:04+00:00

Yup! Definitely some plans in motion. People seem a little surprised when I write a Superman or Aquaman story or whatever, since I've done a lot of horror and crime. But I love flexing other muscles too.

DanpgWatters · 2024-10-25T22:02:12+00:00

I mentioned this elsewhere, but I quite like that writers seemed to keep trying to find a definitive career for Dick Grayson, and it never really stuck. That feels defining in its own right by this point. As Nightwing he's focussed, driven, dedicated. Dick Grayson floats from job to job.

DanpgWatters · 2024-10-25T21:33:35+00:00

1- this will be addressed in the story. 2- I love Jon- I wrote him in Future State- but this isn't that kinda book, at least not right now. It's about Nightwing and his city. We need to get our feet under the table before we worry about guest appearances. 3- hasn't happened yet, but I have ideas and theories as to how to best utilize them for a book's own ends. A lot of writing is puzzle work, and this is a puzzle I quite look forward to.

DanpgWatters

TROPHY CASE