In 2002, Ryall was hired by filmmaker Kevin Smith to run the entertainment-based MoviePoopShoot.com, one of Smith’s first forays outside of filmmaking.
The site originally appeared in Smith's 2001 film, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, as a parody site.
Ryall, along with Web designer Ming Chen, news writer/editor Scott Tipton and many freelance columnists and cartoonists, launched the site on June 17, 2002.
In addition to serving as the site's Editor-in-Chief, Ryall wrote multiple weekly columns for the website, including "One Hand Clapping", "TV Recommendations", "A Night Out", and "TV Pilot Reviews".
Ryall continued to run the site after joining IDW in mid-2004.
He departed the site altogether in January 2006.

On June 21, 2004, Ryall joined San Diego-based comic-book publisher IDW Publishing as the company's second Editor-in-Chief.
Ryall's first published comic-book work as writer with IDW was an adaptation of the film Shaun of the Dead with artist Zach Howard; he also helped launch the horror mag revival Doomed (for which he and artist Ashley Wood received an Eisner nomination for their adaptation of Richard Matheson's "Blood Son" short story), dialoguing the lead character, Ms. Doomed, and writing numerous stories for the magazine's four issues; also, he adapted George A. Romero's Land of the Dead with artist Gabriel Rodriguez; Masters of Horror with artist Jeremy Haun; he co-wrote with Simon Furman the first Transformers film prequel, with artist Don Figueroa; Ryall and Rodriguez again adapted Beowulf; Gene Simmons House of Horrors; a prose short in 30 Days of Night, a DVD pack-in comic for the movie Role Models; and Weekly World News with artist Alan Robinson.
He adapted the epic Clive Barker’s The Great and Secret Show with Rodriguez illustrating all 12 issues.
Ryall wrote four of the eight issues of IDW's Kiss comic series, with artists Jamal Igle and Wagner Reis, as well as two issues of Kiss Solo, and co-wrote with Tom Waltz four issues of Kiss Kids with artist Jose Holder.
Ryall more recently adapted the Stephen King/Joe Hill tribute to Richard Matheson, "Throttle" with artist Nelson Daniel and Matheson's own "Duel" in a book called Road Rage.
Ryall spearheaded an inter-company crossover involving Mars Attacks and numerous IDW properties, and wrote two of the issues: Mars Attacks Kiss and Mars Attacks Zombies vs Robots.
In 2014, Ryall and Sam Kieth again partnered to launch a four-issue miniseries Mars Attacks: First Born.

Comics series he has created include Zombies vs. Robots (and its sequel Zombies vs. Robots vs. Amazons) both co-created with artist Ashley Wood; Groom Lake (co-created with artist Ben Templesmith); The Colonized with artist Drew Moss; and The Hollows with artist Sam Kieth.

In February 2006, IDW promoted Ryall to Publisher.
Among the properties he helped develop and shepherd to IDW Publishing were Hasbro's Transformers, Locke & Key, Toho’s Godzilla, CBS/Paramount's Star Trek, HBO's True Blood and 2000 AD's Judge Dredd.
During Ryall's tenure at IDW, the publisher was made a premiere publisher, won their first Eisner Awards, published the first-ever inter-license crossover and the first-ever Doctor Who crossover, and is currently the fourth-largest publisher in the country.

In 2009, Ryall and co-writer Scott Tipton released the prose primer on the comic book industry, Comic Books 101, through IMPACT Publishing.
In addition to featuring Ryall and Tipton's overview of comics history and creators, the book features contributions from creators such as Stan Lee, Harlan Ellison, Gene Simmons, Mark Waid, Joe Hill and Brian Lynch.

Independent of IDW Publishing, Ryall published Frank Frazetta’s Neanderthal with Jay Fotos and Tim Vigil, through Image Comics.
He also published a short comic-book story with artist Drew Moss, "High Ball on the Low Road," in the Image Comics anthology "Outlaw Western, Vol.
3" (2013). "
Outlaw Western" was nominated for a 2014 Eisner Award for Best Anthology.

In October 2010, Ryall contributed a prose story, "Twilight of the Gods", to Classics Mutilated, a prose "monster-lit" a
In 2002, Ryall was hired by filmmaker Kevin Smith to run the entertainment-based MoviePoopShoot.com, one of Smith’s first forays outside of filmmaking. The site originally appeared in Smith's 2001 film, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, as a parody site. Ryall, along with Web designer Ming Chen, news writer/editor Scott Tipton and many freelance columnists and cartoonists, launched the site on June 17, 2002. In addition to serving as the site's Editor-in-Chief, Ryall wrote multiple weekly columns for the website, including "One Hand Clapping", "TV Recommendations", "A Night Out", and "TV Pilot Reviews". Ryall continued to run the site after joining IDW in mid-2004. He departed the site altogether in January 2006.
On June 21, 2004, Ryall joined San Diego-based comic-book publisher IDW Publishing as the company's second Editor-in-Chief. Ryall's first published comic-book work as writer with IDW was an adaptation of the film Shaun of the Dead with artist Zach Howard; he also helped launch the horror mag revival Doomed (for which he and artist Ashley Wood received an Eisner nomination for their adaptation of Richard Matheson's "Blood Son" short story), dialoguing the lead character, Ms. Doomed, and writing numerous stories for the magazine's four issues; also, he adapted George A. Romero's Land of the Dead with artist Gabriel Rodriguez; Masters of Horror with artist Jeremy Haun; he co-wrote with Simon Furman the first Transformers film prequel, with artist Don Figueroa; Ryall and Rodriguez again adapted Beowulf; Gene Simmons House of Horrors; a prose short in 30 Days of Night, a DVD pack-in comic for the movie Role Models; and Weekly World News with artist Alan Robinson. He adapted the epic Clive Barker’s The Great and Secret Show with Rodriguez illustrating all 12 issues. Ryall wrote four of the eight issues of IDW's Kiss comic series, with artists Jamal Igle and Wagner Reis, as well as two issues of Kiss Solo, and co-wrote with Tom Waltz four issues of Kiss Kids with artist Jose Holder. Ryall more recently adapted the Stephen King/Joe Hill tribute to Richard Matheson, "Throttle" with artist Nelson Daniel and Matheson's own "Duel" in a book called Road Rage. Ryall spearheaded an inter-company crossover involving Mars Attacks and numerous IDW properties, and wrote two of the issues: Mars Attacks Kiss and Mars Attacks Zombies vs Robots. In 2014, Ryall and Sam Kieth again partnered to launch a four-issue miniseries Mars Attacks: First Born.
Comics series he has created include Zombies vs. Robots (and its sequel Zombies vs. Robots vs. Amazons) both co-created with artist Ashley Wood; Groom Lake (co-created with artist Ben Templesmith); The Colonized with artist Drew Moss; and The Hollows with artist Sam Kieth.
In February 2006, IDW promoted Ryall to Publisher. Among the properties he helped develop and shepherd to IDW Publishing were Hasbro's Transformers, Locke & Key, Toho’s Godzilla, CBS/Paramount's Star Trek, HBO's True Blood and 2000 AD's Judge Dredd. During Ryall's tenure at IDW, the publisher was made a premiere publisher, won their first Eisner Awards, published the first-ever inter-license crossover and the first-ever Doctor Who crossover, and is currently the fourth-largest publisher in the country.
In 2009, Ryall and co-writer Scott Tipton released the prose primer on the comic book industry, Comic Books 101, through IMPACT Publishing. In addition to featuring Ryall and Tipton's overview of comics history and creators, the book features contributions from creators such as Stan Lee, Harlan Ellison, Gene Simmons, Mark Waid, Joe Hill and Brian Lynch.
Independent of IDW Publishing, Ryall published Frank Frazetta’s Neanderthal with Jay Fotos and Tim Vigil, through Image Comics. He also published a short comic-book story with artist Drew Moss, "High Ball on the Low Road," in the Image Comics anthology "Outlaw Western, Vol. 3" (2013). "Outlaw Western" was nominated for a 2014 Eisner Award for Best Anthology.
In October 2010, Ryall contributed a prose story, "Twilight of the Gods", to Classics Mutilated, a prose "monster-lit" a
Chris Ryall