CHAPTER 26 Creating a Hero

Thank you for whomever has given this fic power stones.

Here is a special thanks to Stryker117,

fire_in_ice, rockhunter, Chunchunmaru_Lord, AStrAl_Soul for their powerstones.

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CHAPTER 26 Creating a Hero

Over the next few days, Colin devoted himself to the "creation" of Superman.

Soon, he would complete the content of the last two issues of the comic, and unsurprisingly, the story of these two chapters also received praise from young John, who even made solemn promises to support it.

Colin's creation, "Superman," was the most exciting comic he had ever read.

After all, although some comics during this period had introduced a few superhero characters, their abilities were far inferior to the mighty Superman created by Colin. This extraordinary superpower, which existed only in science fiction stories, surpassed the abilities of humans and was a power that everyone yearned for but could not attain.

Finishing the creation of the comic did not mean that Colin's work was over.

On the contrary, what he had to do was just beginning.

Inside the Messenger Daily office, Jimmy greeted Colin cautiously, holding his oversized newsboy cap on his head.

"Hello, Mr. Colin..."

"Hello, Jimmy."

Colin smiled and greeted the newsboy, looking at his freckled face without a trace of disdain.

In this era, everyone was striving to make a living, even newsboys.

Seeing the goodwill in Colin's smile, Jimmy's initial nervousness gradually eased, but soon he seemed to remember something and restrained the expression on his face.

He adjusted his clothes, trying to make himself appear more mature. With a serious face, Jimmy said to Colin, "So, sir, did you call me here to negotiate?"

"Negotiate?"

The content of the newsboy's words slightly surprised Colin.

And Jimmy calmly nodded and said, "Yes, negotiate. In fact, all newsboys understand one thing: generosity has its limits. The Messenger Daily cannot continue to provide us newspapers at a discount of 5 cents per bundle forever. With the spread of nursery rhymes, the effect of newsboys singing has diminished. So, it is not surprising that you intend to withdraw the discount..."

If anyone in this era was most sensitive to the direction of newspapers, it was undoubtedly the newsboys.

As the leader of the newsboys in this area, Jimmy naturally had the responsibility to safeguard the newsboys' income. "The newsboys understand the Messenger Daily's approach. We only hope that the newspaper doesn't raise its price but continues to sell it to us at the original price without the discount, sir."

"We just want an opportunity to make a living..."

As he said this, Jimmy's tone carried a plea.

Under the impact of the Great Depression, life was not easy for the newsboys. In this era, even adults were struggling, let alone children like them. Especially with the popularity of newsstands, more and more people preferred to choose publications from the newsstands instead of buying limited newspapers from newsboys.

This made the newsboys' survival environment even more difficult. They had to go further and sell newspapers in areas where newsstands had not yet become common.

Colin met Jimmy's hopeful gaze, which carried a firm determination, and he suppressed the smile on his face. "Don't worry, Jimmy. The reason I called you here is not to negotiate the discount with The Messenger Daily. In fact, I never had the intention to raise the newspaper's price from the beginning."

The newsboys' work was vital for both The Messenger Daily and Colin himself.

He couldn't possibly jeopardize his relationship with them for a mere 5 cents. After all, a previous newspaper that did so had suffered the consequences, proving that newsboys were indispensable. Without their hard work, newspapers would lose their distribution channels in this era without home delivery and electronic media.

Or perhaps it was precisely because they recognized this fact that the newspaper industry actively developed newsstands to replace the role of newsboys.

However, at least for now, the existence of newsboys was still necessary, especially for small newspapers like The Messenger Daily that lacked competitiveness at newsstands.

Not to mention for Colin.

The existence of newsboys held another even more significant meaning for him—they provided him with more "faith" through their hard work to accumulate the "Dark Iron Mark."

The early storyline of the "Superman" comics was fairly straightforward. Furthermore, "The Messenger News" serialized the comic in a four-panel format. To immediately captivate readers from the very first issue, Colin opted for a simple and direct comic style.

Rather than delving into an elaborate introduction to Superman's origins, Colin chose to briefly skip his upbringing and immediately showcase his extraordinary abilities.

During the creative process, Colin also made certain adjustments to the original "Superman" settings to align the comic's background more closely with what would become widely known.

For instance, in the initial version of the "Superman" story, Superman was discovered by a passing car driver after landing on Earth and taken to an orphanage. Thus, when the comic was first serialized, Superman was depicted as an orphan growing up in an orphanage, where he first revealed his powers as a baby by lifting a sofa.

Colin rectified this aspect of the plot and eliminated the orphanage scenario, instead opting for the more familiar background of being raised by farm parents.

By refining the plot and using a few panels to introduce Clark's Superman persona, Colin let out a sigh of relief, massaged his sore wrist, and set down his pen, gazing at the four-panel comic on the manuscript paper.

During this era, particularly for comics serialized in newspapers, the artistic style requirements were not as stringent due to time constraints. Hence, Colin's art, while average, sufficed for serialization as a comic.

While artistic skill is undoubtedly important in creating a remarkable comic, the most crucial element lies in telling a compelling story.

With a solid story as its foundation, even if accompanied by average artwork, a comic can still capture readers' attention. Conversely, the same cannot be said for a visually extravagant but empty content—it remains devoid of substance.

...

With the first issue of the "Superman" comic completed, Colin handed it over to Old John.

Little John, who had been assisting on the side, became the first person of this era to witness the birth of a superhero.

"So, this is what a superhero is like!"

After reading Colin's original manuscript, Little John handed the somewhat unsatisfied document to Old John near the typesetting machine and eagerly inquired, "How did Superman acquire these abilities? Are there truly beings like Superman in the real world?"

"Who knows? Maybe there are, maybe there aren't."

Colin didn't provide a direct answer to Little John's question but smiled with a knowing expression.

Perhaps, in the world of the Great Depression, there were no so-called superheroes.

Yet for Colin, superheroes were a palpable presence in his life.

However, they existed in a world different from the one immediately before his eyes.

...