Q&A with Neil Gaiman: Author, DC Comics Superstar, and Character on "The Simpsons"

DC has sent us this exclusive Q&A, in which they talked to Neil Gaiman about his appearance on ‘The Simpsons,’ the Sandman series finally being available digitally, and more.

DC: How does it feel to have all ten volumes of Sandman available digitally for the first time?

NG: A relief. Now that so much reading is being done on tablets and eReaders, I was getting embarrassed when people asked me why Sandman wasn't available digitally.

DC: You've officially reached pop culture icon status with a guest appearance on "The Simpsons" What was that like? Some eagle-eyed viewers thought they noticed Sandman as an Easter Egg in the scene - is that true?

NG: It is true. And, we discovered, Moe the barman has definitely read the first volume of Sandman, "Preludes and Nocturnes".

DC: Annotated Sandman is coming in January, do you think it will drive collectors to go back and read the original volumes digitally now?

NG: I don't know. I would love, one day in the future, a digital version of Sandman that included annotations and links and such, a version that would really take the digital nature of the medium as far as we could.

DC: Do you think digital is a different reading experience than print? Do you have a preference?

NG: I love holding books. But people have injured themselves reading the 16-lb Absolute Sandman volumes. Right now the best thing from my point of view about a digital Sandman is that it doesn't weigh anything at all...

DC: Does the digital books format change how you write or think about writing?

NG: No. Or at least, not yet.

DC: What is your favorite volume of Sandman?

NG: Probably "A Game of You," because it's most people's least favourite volume, and I love it all the more for that.

-- Alex Carr