Ditko Essays

The recent announcement of Steve Ditko's new essays seems to have generated some attention, including some from people who weren't aware of Ditko's extensive history of such writings. Robin Snyder has helpfully provided the following list of those he's published (including both text and illustrated form) in his quarter century of publishing Ditko. I've added the location of the most recent printing of each entry (as Ditko often revised essays when they were reprinted, I recommend the most recent printing).
---

SNYDER AND DITKO

mark 25 years of publishing

Here is a list of the many articles and essays by Ditko. Did we list them all? How many have you read?

“At Some Point” [AW]

“Creator’s Rights & Wrongs” [AW][AW2021]

“Tools of the Trade” [AW]

“History Of The Mocker” [MOCKER]

An Insider’s Piece of History: “Jack Kirby’s Spider-Man” [AW]

“ART!?” [AW]

“Identity, Identification” [AW]

“ART—the Panel” [AW]

“First Choice” [CHARLTON]

“Laszlo’s Hammer” [AW][AW2021]

“The Sore Spot Cause and Crusade” [AW][AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk!: “Whatever Happened to Common Sense?” [32Page][AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk!: “Why Do Some People Seek the Unearned...” [32Page][AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk!: “Comic Fans Keep Blowing Meaningless Sound Waves” [32Page][AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk!: “Public ‘Debates’” [32Page][AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk!: “The Fallacy of the Half and Half Men” [32Page][AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk!: “The Unearned” [32Page][AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk!: “Stolen Art Pages” [32Page][AM2023]

Additional Tsk! Tsk! pages [32Page, see notes][AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk!: “Has the Age of the Anti-Hero Become the Age of the Anti-Self?” [Mr. A. #21][AM2023]

“The Self-Proclaimed” [PUBLIC][C4P]

“The ‘Stolen Art Page’ Problem and the Error of Non-Principled Thinking” [AW][AM2023]

“A Mini-History” [The Comics, serialized, see notes]

“Who Owns Original Art?” [AW]

Tsk! Tsk! Examining a “Creator”/”Creation” Claim” [AW][AM2023]

“Violence, the Phony Issue” [AW][AW2021]

The Tsk! Tsk! Forum: “…On An Unresolved Issue” [THE COMICS V13 #11 2002][AM2023]

“The Avenging Mind” [The Comics, serialized, see notes][AM2023]

“An Issue, Question” [The Comics, serialized, see notes]

“Toyland” [AM][DOWN MEMORY LANE]

“Roislecxe” [AM]

“Creator or Co-Creator?” [AM]

“Creative Crediting” [AM]

“He Giveth and He Taketh Away” [AM]

“Lifting and the Lifter” [AM]

“Revealing Styles” [AM]

“Martin Goodman/Stan Lee” [AM]

“They Are the…” [AM]

“The Mark and the Stain” [AM]

“The Ever Unwilling” [THE COMICS V20 #3 2009]

“The Ever Unreachable” [Online][C4P]

“[#1]: The Knowers & the Barkers” [4PAGE#1][C4P]

“[#2]: The Silent Self-Deceivers” [4PAGE#1][C4P]

“[#3]: A Newspaper Article, A Reporter's Report” [4PAGE#1][C4P]

“[#4]: A Deadly Fantasy” [4PAGE#1][C4P]

“[#5]: Why Out Of Their Way?” [4PAGE#1][C4P]

“[#6]: Circle The Mind” [4PAGE#2][C4P]

“[#7]: The Fixated Negative” [4PAGE#2][C4P]

“[#8]: For/Against One's Best Interest?” [4PAGE#2][C4P]

“[#11]: LINT” [4PAGE#2][C4P]

“[#16]: Honoring Or Dishonoring” [4PAGE#2][C4P]

“#9: An Eternal Truth, Lesson Rejected” [4PAGE#3][C4P]

“#10: The Fantasy Lifters” [4PAGE#3][C4P]

“#12: For Good Or Ill” [4PAGE#3][C4P]

“#13: Tsk! — The Still Unreachable — Tsk!” [4PAGE#3][C4P][AM2023]

“#18: Anti-Ditko 'Fans'” [4PAGE#3][C4P]

“#17: …To The Last Drop” [4PAGE#3][C4P]

“#19: Action/Reaction And The Self-Claimed, Self-Creators” [4PAGE#4][C4P]

“#14: Labels And Labelers” [4PAGE#4][C4P]

“#21: How Dare He!” [4PAGE#4][C4P]

“#29: Too Late” [4PAGE#4][C4P]

“#27: The Movers And The Freezers” [4PAGE#4][C4P]

“#25: Choice: Either/Or” [4PAGE#5][C4P]

“#34: Memory” [4PAGE#5][C4P]

“#32: With Everyone, A Free-Will Choice” [4PAGE#5][C4P]

“#24: The Eternally Fixated” [4PAGE#5][C4P]

“#26: 4 tHe knot 2 BritE, rite” [4PAGE#5][C4P]

“#28: Red Flag” [4PAGE#6][C4P]

“#35: FP: Comic Book Fan Packs” [4PAGE#6][C4P]

“#33: X's 'Idea'” [4PAGE#6][C4P]

“#23: The Intolerable Other” [4PAGE#6][C4P]

“#36: CC: The Caller and the Called” [4PAGE#6][C4P]

“#30: Repeater, Spreader, Reinforcer” [4PAGE#6][C4P]

“#37: Start & Finish” [4PAGE#6][C4P]

“#43: The 1st New York City Comic Book Convention” [4PAGE#7][C4P]

“#40: The Chosen Grey Mind” [4PAGE#7][C4P]

“#41: A Cure Or The Actual Disease?” [4PAGE#7][C4P]

“#31: Copycat Mind” [4PAGE#8][C4P]

“#38: Correct, Corrector, Corrections” [4PAGE#8][C4P]

“#22: He Should Have X@*#! Done...” [4PAGE#8][C4P]

“#42” [4PAGE#8][C4P]

“#45: Why I Quit S-M, Marvel” [4PAGE#9][C4P]

“#20: Out Of Their Way” [4PAGE#9][C4P]
“#44: Foolish Fans” [4PAGE#9][C4P]

“#15: Wants/Needs Shortchanged” [4PAGE#9][C4P]

“#46: Either/Or” [4PAGE#9][C4P]

“CBF's 'Truths'” [THE COMICS V27 #1 2016][C4P]

“Shaky Mountains” [THE COMICS V27 #2 2016][C4P]

“A Wider Context” [THE COMICS V27 #5 2016]
“Influence” [THE COMICS V27 #12 2016][C4P][AM2023]
“Introduction [Mr. A. is based on...]” [MR. A #21]
“Time/Change” [MR. A #21][C4P][AM2023]
“Philosophy Vs. No- Or Anti-Philosophy” [OUT OF THIS WORLD #20]

“Choices” [THE COMICS V28 #5 2017][C4P]

“Choice” [THE COMICS V29 #2 2018][C4P]
“Once Upon A Time” [THE COMICS V30 #1 2019]
“Sad Words” [THE COMICS V30 #1 2019][C4P]
“Identity” [DOWN MEMORY LANE]
“Borders” [DOWN MEMORY LANE]
“When Will We Catch Up?” [DOWN MEMORY LANE]

“A Toast” [DOWN MEMORY LANE][C4P][AM2023]
“Holiday/History” [THE COMICS V31 #7 2020][C4P]
“Advice” [DITKO'S MR. A. #8]
“Life” [OUT OF THIS WORLD #28][C4P]
“Hitting Rock Bottom” [THE COMICS V32 #3 2021][AM2023]
“Could/Should” [THE HERO COMICS #29][C4P]

“Everyone” [THE HERO COMICS #30][C4P][AM2023]

“Nowhere” [FRISKY FROLICS #35 #28][AM2023]

“Ghosks” [GHOSTLY HAUNTS #170][AM2023]

“The Real/True/Positive/Good”[C4P]

“And Lo, There Was a Hulk”[C4P]

“The Decline” [THE RETURN OF GORGO #31][AM2023]
“Credit” [THE COMICS V32 #8 2021][AM2023]
“I Remember The Hero” [TALES OF THE MYSTERIOUS TRAVELER #34]
“Who Can Say?” [THE COMICS V33 #4 2022]
“I Remember Sound Effects” [THE COMICS V33 #5 2022]

“I Remember” [THE COMICS V33 #8 2022]
“Ditko Complains” [AM2023]
“I Don't Remember Lifting...” [AM2023]

“Integrity” [AM2023]
“Remember No. 6: Captain Atom” [THE HERO COMICS #37]

“The Snyder-Ditko Repertory Part IV” [THE HERO COMICS #37]
“How” [THE COMICS V34 #2 2023]
“I Remember No. 7: Unpredictable” [THE COMICS V34 #5 2023]

“Remember No. 10: Integrity” [TALES OF THE MYSTERIOUS TRAVELER #38]
“Remember No. 9: By-lines” [THE COMICS V35 #1 2024]

To be continued?

---

[AW] AVENGING WORLD [2002]

[32Page] STEVE DITKO'S 32-PAGE PACKAGE TSK! TSK! [2000]

[MOCKER] THE MOCKER, 2nd Edition [2000]

[AM] THE AVENGING MIND [2008]

[CHARLTON] STEVE DITKO'S 160-PAGE PACKAGE FROM CHARLTON PRESS [1999]

[4PAGE] THE FOUR-PAGE SERIES

[PUBLIC] THE DITKO PUBLIC SERVICE PACKAGE, 2nd Edition [2013]

[AW2021] THE COMPLETE MR. A. VOLUME II: AVENGING WORLD [2021]

[C4P] THE COMPLETE FOUR-PAGE SERIES AND OTHER ESSAYS [2020] (Ditko Complains #3)
[AM2023] THE AVENGING MIND [2003] (Ditko Complains #2)
[Online] Online only, link no long active

[The Comics] THE COMICS newsletter by Robin Snyder

Most of those are readily available, see here as usual. Contact Robin Snyder for availability on specific back issues of THE COMICS or to subscribe, address at the same link.

The 2020 book THE COMPLETE FOUR-PAGE SERIES AND OTHER ESSAYS (ISBN 9781945307263) features all 45 essays from that series, plus the following others

“Once Upon A Time” [THE COMICS V30 #1 2019]

“Choices” [THE COMICS V28 #5 2017]

“CBF's 'Truths'” [THE COMICS V27 #1 2016]

“Choice” [THE COMICS V29 #2 2018]

“Holiday/History” [THE COMICS V31 #7 2020]

“Could/Should” [THE HERO COMICS #29]

“The Real/True/Positive/Good”

“Influence” [THE COMICS V27 #12 2016]

“Sad Words” [THE COMICS V30 #1 2019]

“Shaky Mountains” [THE COMICS V27 #2 2016]

“Time/Change” [MR. A #21]

“Life” [OUT OF THIS WORLD #28]

“The Self-Proclaimed” [PUBLIC]

“Everyone” [THE HERO COMICS #30]

“The Ever Unreachable” [Online]

“And Lo, There Was a Hulk”

“A Toast” [DOWN MEMORY LANE]

The 2023 book THE AVENGING MIND (ISBN 9781945307331) all the Tsk! Tsk! cartoon pages, plus the following essays, various Ditko letters and illustrations and more

“The Sore Spot Cause and Crusade” [AW]

“The ‘Stolen Art Page’ Problem and the Error of Non-Principled Thinking” [AW]

The Tsk! Tsk! Forum: “…On An Unresolved Issue” [THE COMICS V13 #11 2002]

“The Avenging Mind” [The Comics, serialized, see notes]

“#13: Tsk! — The Still Unreachable — Tsk!” [4PAGE#3][C4P]

“Influence” [THE COMICS V27 #12 2016]

“Time/Change” [MR. A #21]

“A Toast” [DOWN MEMORY LANE]

“Hitting Rock Bottom” [THE COMICS V32 #3 2021]

“Everyone” [THE HERO COMICS #30]

“Nowhere” [FRISKY FROLICS #35 #28]

“Ghosks” [GHOSTLY HAUNTS #170]

“The Decline” [THE RETURN OF GORGO #31]

“Credit” [THE COMICS V32 #8 2021]

“Ditko Complains” 

“I Don't Remember Lifting...” 

“Integrity” 

Included on Snyder's list are two earlier essays published in fanzines, "Violence, The Phoney Issue" (GUTS #5 [1969]) and "Who Owns Original Art?" (INSIDE COMICS #2 [1974]). Both were revised and reprinted in AVENGING WORLD [2002].

The following essays were serialized in THE COMICS and, reprints, if any, as noted:

“A Mini-History”

THE COMICS v12 #5 [2001] - "A Mini-History - Some Background"
THE COMICS v12 #7 [2001] - "A Mini-History Part 1 - The Green Goblin"
THE COMICS v12 #10 [2001] - "A Mini-History Part 2 - Amazing Fantasy #15"
THE COMICS v12 #11 [2001] - "A Mini-History Part 3 - The Amazing Spider-man #1"
THE COMICS v13 #1 [2002] - "A Mini-History Part 4 - The Amazing Spider-man #2"
THE COMICS v13 #4 [2002] - "A Mini-History Part 5 - The Amazing Spider-man #3"
THE COMICS v13 #5 [2002] - "A Mini-History Part 6 - Spider-woman/Spider-girl"
THE COMICS v13 #8 [2002] - "A Mini-History Part 7 - The Amazing Spider-man #4"
THE COMICS v14 #2 [2003] - "A Mini-History Part 8 - Others, Outsiders (OOs): Complainers and Complaints Against Betty Brant"
THE COMICS v14 #4 [2003] - "A Mini-History Part 9 - The OOs and Aunt May"
THE COMICS v14 #5 [2003] - "A Mini-History Part 10 - The OOs and JJJ"
THE COMICS v14 #6 [2003] - "A Mini-History Part 11 - Further Complaints and Influences of the OOs"
THE COMICS v14 #7 [2003] - "A Mini-History Part 12 - Guest Stars: Heroes and Villains"
THE COMICS v14 #8 [2003] - "A Mini-History Part 13 - Speculation"
THE COMICS v14 #9 [2003] - "A Mini-History Part 14 - The Mistrial"
THE COMICS v14 #11 [2003] - "A Mini-History - Wind-up"

“The Avenging Mind”

THE COMICS v14 #3 [2003] - "The Avenging Mind 1"
THE COMICS v15 #4 [2004] - "The Avenging Mind 1 [revised]" [AM2023]
THE COMICS v15 #5 [2004] - "The Avenging Mind 2 - How And Why Conflicts Begin... Part 1" [AM2023]
THE COMICS v15 #6 [2004] - "The Avenging Mind 3 - How And Why Conflicts Begin... Part 2" [AM2023]
THE COMICS v15 #7 [2004] - "The Avenging Mind 4 - The Anti-Ditko Mentality Part 1" [AM2023]
THE COMICS v15 #8 [2004] - "The Avenging Mind 5 - The Anti-Ditko Mentality Part 2" [AM2023]
THE COMICS v15 #9 [2004] - "The Avenging Mind 6 - The Anti-Ditko Mentality Part 3" [AM2023]

“An Issue, Question”

THE COMICS v17 #11 [2006] - "An Issue, Question 1"
THE COMICS v17 #12 [2006] - "An Issue, Question 2"
THE COMICS v18 #2 [2007] - "An Issue, Question 3"
THE COMICS v18 #3 [2007] - "An Issue, Question 4"
THE COMICS v18 #4 [2007] - "An Issue, Question 5"
THE COMICS v18 #5 [2007] - "An Issue, Question 6"
THE COMICS v18 #6 [2007] - "An Issue, Question 7"
THE COMICS v18 #7 [2007] - "An Issue, Question 8"

STEVE DITKO'S 32-PAGE PACKAGE TSK! TSK! [2000] contained 7 illustrated 1-page features reprinted from THE COMICS, as well as 24 original pages, all also reprinted in [AM2023]

Tsk! Tsk! “Comic Fans Keep Blowing Meaningless Sound Waves”

Tsk! Tsk! “Public ‘Debates’”

Tsk! Tsk! “What is…”

Tsk! Tsk! “The Fallacy of the Half and Half Men”

Tsk! Tsk! “A Con Mind, A Con Game and the Gullible”

Tsk! Tsk! “Some Facts Can Sustain a Lot of Illusion”
Tsk! Tsk! “Toleration”
Tsk! Tsk! “The Shielders”
Tsk! Tsk! “Property”
Tsk! Tsk! “The Unearned”
Tsk! Tsk! “Stolen Art Pages”
Tsk! Tsk! “The Communicators” C1
Tsk! Tsk! “The Communicators” C2
Tsk! Tsk! “The Communicators” C3
Tsk! Tsk! “I’m Indifferent”
Tsk! Tsk! “By Choice”
Tsk! Tsk! “Step Forward”
Tsk! Tsk! “The Trial”
Tsk! Tsk! “It's Judge…and Be Prepared to Be Judged”
Tsk! Tsk! “Who Has the Burden of Proof?”
Tsk! Tsk! “What?”
Tsk! Tsk! “Is There a Need to Outweigh Arbitrary Claims with Facts and Truth?”
Tsk! Tsk! “Why Me?
Tsk! Tsk! “The Envious”
Tsk! Tsk! “I Resent It”
Tsk! Tsk! “Parasites”
Tsk! Tsk! “Choice: Real Achievement”
Tsk! Tsk! “Whatever Happened to Common Sense?”
Tsk! Tsk! “Why Do Some People Seek the Unearned...”

Tsk! Tsk! “!?!?!?”