Editing Letterer (section)

=== Computer lettering ===
The evolution of desktop publishing powered by computers, especially those made by [[Apple Inc.|Apple]], began in the 1980s, and started having a gradual impact on comics lettering soon after. One of the first users of computer-generated lettering was writer/artist [[John Byrne (comics)|John Byrne]], who made fonts from existing lettering. (Incidentally, Byrne made use of existing lettering by other artists, such as [[Dave Gibbons]], without their permission.<ref name="computer">Klein, Todd. [http://kleinletters.com/ComputerLettering.html "Computer lettering," Todd Klein: Lettering – Logos – Design.] Retrieved July 23, 2008.</ref> Now Byrne uses a computer font based on the handwriting of letterer [[Jack Morelli]] – with Morelli's permission.)<ref name="FAQProcess">Byrne Robotics FAQ: [http://www.byrnerobotics.com/FAQ/listing.asp?ID=6&T1=Creative+Process Creative Process]. Retrieved December 2, 2005.</ref> Other early users of computer lettering were [[David Cody Weiss]]<ref name="computer" /> and [[Roxanne Starr]], who experimented in computer lettering with [[Bob Burden]]'s ''[[Flaming Carrot Comics]]''.

Computer lettering really started making an impact with the availability of the first commercial comic book font, "Whizbang" (created by Studio Daedalus) around 1990.

In the early 1990s letterer [[Richard Starkings]] and his partner [[John Roshell]] (formerly Gaushell) began creating comic book fonts and started [[Comicraft]], which has since become the major source of comics fonts (though they have competition from others, such as [[Blambot]]).

In deference to tradition, at first computer lettering was printed out and pasted onto the original artwork, but after a few years, as comics coloring also moved to desktop publishing, digital lettering files began to be used in a more effective way by combining them directly with digital art files, eliminating the physical paste-up stage altogether. [[Wildstorm Comics]] was ahead of the curve, Marvel came around a few years later, and DC held to traditional production methods the longest, but now nearly all lettering is digitally applied.<ref name="computer" />

In the early years of the 21st Century, the mainstream American comics companies moved almost exclusively to in-house computer lettering, effectively ending the era of the freelance letterer.<ref name="Contino" /> [[Chris Eliopoulos]] designed the fonts for Marvel's in-house lettering unit, and [[Ken Lopez]] did the same at DC.<ref name="Contino">Contino, Jennifer. [http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=36&t=001693 "ABCs with Orzechowski," Comicon.com: The Pulse (Dec. 30, 2003). Retrieved July 17, 2008.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080926133441/http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=36&t=001693 |date=September 26, 2008 }}</ref> Since then the trend has swung the other way, with most comics publishers once again using freelance letterers rather than in-house staff. Nearly all use computer and digital comic book fonts.