Need the full scoop on Chew? I chatted with writer/creator John Layman, who discussed the comic’s success and future. Hop over to Impulse Creations for the entire interview!

Recently we tracked down writer John Layman and urged him to indulge us in a little conversation about his hit book, Chew. Image Comics publishes the ongoing series, which unravels the adventures of a cibopath named Tony Chu—who channels psychic readings from whatever he eats (sans beets)—and his crime-whooping partners. Starting with his earlier days, Layman dishes on his inspiration for Chew and spills a few details regarding the comic’s future. What does the world of Chew look like behind the finished pages? Let’s find out!

Impulse Creations: Thanks for agreeing to answer some questions, John! To start, can you tell us a little about yourself? How long have you been involved in the comics biz, and what kind of things have you done before?

John Layman: I’ve been in comics for about fifteen years before CHEW made me an “overnight success.” I started as an assistant editor at WildStorm, then I became an editor, and after about five years at WS I made the jump to freelance writer. And over the course of my freelance career I’ve worked for Marvel, Image, Oni, IDW, WildStorm, Dynamite and Avatar—pretty much everybody under the sun except for Dark Horse and DC. Probably the most commercial stuff I’ve done is the work for Marvel: Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness, House of M: Fantastic Four, and the last run of Gambit. And I’ve done my fair share of licensed stuff: Xena and Scarface and Thundercats and Red Sonja. I’ve also done a couple of creator-owned things—Puffed for Image and IDW, Armageddon & Son for Oni, and Bay City Jive for WildStorm (which I created but do not actually own.)

So, uh, I’ve been around a while before I started up on CHEW.