This article expresses a view I've held for a long time although I know it's not widely held among creators. I know it's not widely held because, whenever I express it in forums, amateur creators jump on me. I also know it's not widely held because so many professional creators are still foisting picture books on us instead of comics.

The best response I had to it was from a writer who submitted a script to Midnite Comics. His script had several wordless pages and I put to him the arguments outlined in this article.

When he finally replied, he admitted that his first reaction had been defensive and that he felt his comic was fine without words. Then, after a period of reflection he said he remembered how cheated he felt whenever he bought a comic only to find he'd finished reading it in less than 10 minutes.

I liked that response, partly because he actually took the time to think about the points I'd made but mostly because, in the end, he recognised the importance of the reader. There are so many professionals who could benefit from doing the same.