Posted in: AfterShock, Comics, DC Comics | Tagged: garth ennis, Jamie McKenzie, kickstarter, war stories
Garth Ennis turns to prose with “Words Only”, reviving Jamie McKenzie from War Stories
Article Summary
- Garth Ennis writes his first prose fiction, reviving Jamie McKenzie from War Stories and Out of the Blue.
- The story, titled Jamie, appears in Legends of Indie Comics: Words Only, Volume 2, funded via Kickstarter.
- Ennis explores RAF pilots in WWII, capturing the grit and humanity of his famed war comics in prose form.
- The anthology features new prose tales from indie comics icons, with classic characters returning in text.
Comic book creator Garth Ennis is switching from comics to prose, for one short story at least. He is taking one of his wartime characters, Jamie McKenzie, from his 2019 graphic novel Out of the Blue with Keith Burns from Aftershock Comics and 2003 War Story: Archangel with Gary Erskine from DC Comics, and transplanting him into words for Legends of Indie Comics: Words Only, Volume 2.
The book is a crowdfunded anthology that revives classic characters from indie comics through brand-new stories written by their original creators, but told entirely in words, no panels or speech bubbles required. The anthology, edited and spearheaded by author Robert T. Jeschonek via Unforgettable Books, successfully funded on Kickstarter in October 2025, surpassing its $5,000 goal with $15,121 pledged from 249 backers. And it was a key stretch goal that unlocked Ennis’s involvement, adding his story to an already impressive lineup of creators paying homage to their own past works. Ennis’s piece, simply titled Jamie, features the character who previously followed a group of RAF pilots during the Battle of Britain, blending historical accuracy with Ennis’s trademark grit and humanity. Jamie, a young and idealistic flyer thrust into the horrors of aerial combat, stood out as a poignant figure amid the chaos.
In a Word Balloon interview, Ennis described the experience as his “first foray into prose fiction” and called it “very rewarding creatively.” Without the crutch of visual storytelling, he leaned into descriptive prose to capture the intensity of Jamie’s world, the roar of engines, the terror of dogfights, and the quiet moments of reflection that define his war comics.
The story expands on the character’s arc, offering a fresh, text-only perspective on themes Ennis has explored for decades: courage under fire, the cost of survival, and the absurdity of war.
Legends of Indie Comics: Words Only, Volume 2 includes new prose stories from the original creators starring Nexus, E-Man, Faust, Dalgoda, Twilight Man, Megaton, Star Slammers, Cheech Wizard, Bitchy Bitch, the Aristocratic Xtraterrestrial Time-Travelling Thieves and a brand-new prose short story by Howard Chaykin. Volume 1 already included Concrete, GrimJack, Jon Sable, Badger, Whisper, Flaming Carrot, and more.
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