As Claire E. White noted in
Writers Write, Gaiman "has not exactly had the normal author's experience" vis-à-vis his fans. White noted that these fans "treat [Gaiman] more like a rock star than an author, lining up hours before a signing or reading appearance."
Locus writer Edward Bryant distilled the reason for Gaiman's transcendent popularity: His work "can intrigue and satisfy dyed-in-the-wool prose chauvinists." White thought such devotion might also be the result of Gaiman's "dark good looks, mesmerizing voice, trademark wit," as well as his "brilliant writing." Whatever the constellation of reasons, the undisputed fact is that Gaiman has become one of the most popular and sought after authors of his generation with credits in novels, comic books, television scripts, screenplays, and children's books. His book sales soar into the millions of copies and his advances and options fees are approaching such astronomical numbers as well.
The scripts Gaiman composes for his illustrated fantasies transcend the genre of comic book; many reviewers have compared them to the work of postmodernist writers like William Burroughs and Thomas Pynchon. Even when viewed within the limits of the graphic novel genre, Gaiman's haunting mythological fictions break molds, shatter assumptions, surprise, startle, and reflect upon their reader a totally new perspective.
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