Whether it was Peter Parker sweating over rent or the X-Men grappling with discrimination, Stan Lee’s stories worked because they punched with style and landed with heart.
Writers still quote him and study him because he transformed comic books into a storytelling bible that teaches you how to convey more by showing less, and how to navigate big ideas without ever losing sight of the human beneath the mask.
This article breaks down ten writing principles Stan Lee lived by—just a good old-fashioned advice from the man who turned radioactive accidents into character arcs.
1. Make Your Characters Relatable
Stan Lee wrote larger-than-life people with human problems. Spider-Man could stick to walls and dodge bullets, but he couldn’t dodge guilt or homework. Tony Stark built a suit of armor to protect himself, but couldn’t protect his relationships.
If your character doesn’t have a clear emotional anchor—something the reader recognizes in themselves—then all the explosions in the world won’t matter. Stan Lee ensured his heroes had baggage, like insecurity, arrogance, trauma, and regret. He gave them the power to save the world, and then made them late for dinner.
Relatable doesn’t have to be boring. Give your characters something real to wrestle with, and even the wildest fantasy becomes personal.
2. Keep Your Story Moving Forward
Stan Lee wasn’t big on meandering. His comics took off, rarely letting up. That’s pacing.
Momentum matters. A story doesn’t need to be nonstop action, but it should never feel like it’s stuck in traffic. Cut the scenes that go nowhere. Trim the dialogue that repeats what we already know. Every page, every line, and every panel should drive toward a goal.
The Marvel universe grew massive, but Lee always kept the engine running. The stakes evolved, the characters changed, but the stories never hit snooze. Learn to build tension and deliver payoffs like it’s your job (because if you’re writing, it is).
3. Write with Passion and Conviction
Stan Lee’s voice was unmistakable. If we consider his stories a mirror of his personality, you can imagine a vivacious, eccentric man with a child’s spirit.
You don’t need to write like Lee. But you do need to care like him. Readers can sniff out phoned-in writing faster than Wolverine smells trouble. When you’re genuinely excited about a scene, a joke, or a character arc, that energy hits the page.
Lee also knew how to laugh at himself. His film cameos were more winks than fan service. If you're bored writing it, the reader will be twice as bored reading it. Simple math.
'Iron Man' Credit: Disney
4. Collaborate, but Stay True to Your Vision
Stan Lee famously popularized “The Marvel Method,” where artists would draw the action first, and he’d fill in the dialogue after. Sounds chaotic, but it worked because it was built on trust, flexibility, and shared purpose.
Working with legends like Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko meant checking your ego at the door. However, Lee still ensured that the story came first. If you’re collaborating, whether with artists, editors, or other writers, be open to ideas, but don’t let your vision get steamrolled.
Creative friction isn’t the enemy. Compromise on details, not direction. The Marvel Method was less about giving up control and more about knowing when to let others carry the ball.
5. Create Memorable Catchphrases
“Hulk smash!” “I am Iron Man.” “With great power…” These were, yes, cool lines, but even more so, these were identity capsules. They summed up the character in five words or less.
Catchphrases work because they echo. They give readers something to latch onto, to repeat, to remember. But they only land when they match the voice of the character. The Thing yelling “It’s clobberin’ time!” works because it feels like him. You can’t force it.
Want a memorable line? Boil the characters down to their essence. Write 10 bad versions. Say it out loud. If it sounds like something they’d shout mid-fight or whisper mid-crisis, you’re close. If not, back to the lab.
6. Engage Directly with Your Audience
Stan Lee, instead of hiding behind his stories, spoke directly to readers in editor’s notes, on letters pages, and in playful narration that sometimes broke the fourth wall, like Deadpool. He made readers feel like part of the club.
That kind of intimacy builds loyalty. When you write like you’re talking to someone, not performing for them, the whole tone shifts. You’re inviting. Even now, in a world of newsletters, podcasts, and interactive storytelling, this lesson holds.
Don’t be afraid to show up in your work as a presence. Readers don’t just want the story. They want the storyteller, too.
7. Small Details Can Have a Big Impact
Stan Lee’s cameos were quick, weird, and unforgettable. A delivery guy. A security guard. A barber on an alien planet. None of these scenes drove the plot, but they added flavor and surprise. That’s world-building done right.
Details are where your story gets its fingerprints. A side character who returns in Chapter 8. A running gag that pays off three arcs later. A visual clue that hints at future twists. It all adds up to a world that feels lived in.
Don’t overload your writing with filler. But a few well-placed Easter eggs can be the things fans remember long after the plot fades.
8. Write Great Antagonists
Stan Lee didn’t treat villains like props. He gave them depth, motives, and charm, sometimes even more than the heroes. Doctor Doom was so much more than just a mad scientist. He was a wounded ego wrapped in armor. Magneto wasn’t born evil. He was shaped by trauma and survival.
A good villain doesn’t wake up and say, “Time to be evil today.” They think they’re right. That tension between their view and the hero’s is what fuels real conflict. You don’t need to justify their actions, but you should understand them.
So don’t write bad guys who twirl mustaches and vanish. Write ones who challenge your protagonist to think twice.
9. Know When to Let the Art Speak for Itself
Stan Lee could write paragraphs of inner monologue, but he also knew when to zip it. Some of the most powerful comic panels had no words at all—just emotion, action, and silence.
In prose, that means trusting the reader. Show a character clenching their jaw instead of saying “he was angry.” Let the subtext carry the weight. Cut the over-explaining.
Visual storytelling of comics is for any writer who knows how to paint with verbs instead of adjectives.
10. Build a Brand
Stan Lee gave Marvel a voice, and it wasn’t corporate or sanitized. That voice was energetic, oddball, a little chaotic, but unmistakably them. And over time, that voice became a brand.
As a writer, your tone, themes, and storytelling quirks are part of your signature. Own them. Develop them. Stay consistent enough that people recognize you, but never so rigid that you can’t evolve.
Lee built a brand that could adapt across decades, genres, and formats. Keep your core values, and keep pushing.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Writing Guide
You don’t need to write about superheroes to learn from Stan Lee. Just write characters who feel real. Keep the story moving. Talk to your audience. Take risks. And have a blast doing it.
So go on—write something marvelous. Excelsior!
Credit: I love Hate Photo
Credit: I love Hate Photo
Credit: I love Hate Photo
'Iron Man' Credit: Disney 
