Daniel Kibblesmith is no stranger to comedy. As a writer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and author of How to Win at Everything: Even Things You Can’t Or Shouldn’t Try to Win At, the WGA award-nominated Kibblesmith knows his way around crafting thoughtful observations, using comedy as a vehicle.

This Wednesday, Kibblesmith will debuting a different type of wordsmithery in Valiant Comics’ Valiant High, debuting as part of the comiXology Originals line, following such Valiant mainstays as Bloodshot, Archer and Armstrong, and Ninjak in the treacherous waters of high school. Mr. Kibblesmith spoke with me recently about the genesis behind the book, how his work on Late Show informs his work, and how his personal experiences influenced how he approaches the series.

FS: For folks looking into the book, what can you tell us about your contribution, “Disqualified”?

SMV: It focuses on Marshall and Gumball, and it explores their competitive relationship. It also questions whether Marshall is as evil as he claims! It’s a quick story, so I didn’t have a lot of time to go super in depth but I tried my best to get at what I think makes these characters attracted to each other, the tension that they have.