11 Black comics writers to read, from DC to Marvel and beyond

Luke Cage Vol. 1: Sins of the Father (Cover image via Marvel)

David Walker

When you start paying attention, you begin to realize that David Walker is practically everywhere. Seriously, he’s written comics for all of the major publishers and beyond. There’s his work for DC on Cyborg, the Black character who is also part, you know, cyborg and brings plenty of juicy pathos to the writing process. Walker has also had a hand in stories for Marvel, including Luke Cage, Avengers, Nightfist, and Power Man and Iron Fist. He’s also written stories for Shaft and Red Sonja (Dynamite Entertainment), Planet of the Apes (BOOM Studios), and Tarzan (Dark Horse).

Walker is also a young adult author, with the novel Super Justice Force, which is part of the larger planned series, The Adventures of Darius Logan. He’s also written Shaft’s Revenge, the 2015 novel starring the groundbreaking detective character, the first work featuring Shaft in many years.

If that isn’t enough, David Walker is also a filmmaker and film scholar who’s made serious waves with his work. He produced a major documentary about blaxploitation films of the late 20th century, Macked, Hammered, Slaughtered, and Shafted. He’s currently an adjunct professor at Portland State University, where he continues his work teaching film studies, criticism, and writing.

So, where to start with David Walker’s comics work? With Marvel, you might consider starting with the collected issues of work on Luke Cage. For DC, begin with his run on Cyborg. If you want some more off the mainstream and maybe a little eerie, then check out Bitter Root, his Image Comics series featuring a family of very conflicted monster hunters.