Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - HOW do you train your writer?

It’s hard for me to believe it, but its been exactly 12 months since I started ‘A3on11’ last November. Back then I committed to doing it for a year, and this installment fulfills that commitment. I'm starting to feel that posting ‘A3on11’ every month is a bit excessive...add that to the fact that I'm a SLOW typist, and it will go bi-monthly from here on out.

Without further ado, here is this month's question:

How do you "train your writer" to think in your style while giving their work proper respect?

Hmmm... this is a good one. I'm not sure I've 'trained' many writers, but I sure have made lots of suggestions, and I always respect their work.

When it comes to writers, I like to work with ones that are flexible and looking to partner with the artist on the project to get the best results. Respect is a 2 way street after all.

First up, I look to see what the STORY is that they are looking to tell, then I look to make it as visually cool as I possibly can WITHOUT changing the story. This means I will sometimes mess around with things like (but not limited to!):
changing the number of panels for pacing reasons, zooming in and out for close up/long shots, finding or creating action/emotion somewhere on the page, and generally cranking (cartooning!) up the levels on the page.

If I could 'train' other writers, here's a couple of points I'd recommend you consider.

1-Let your artist breathe his own life into the work, by leaving some areas less specific. Tell me you want the scene set in a "futuristic high tech control room" of a ship which I can design, instead of one that is "exactly like the battleship in Empire Strikes Back".

2- give your artist emotional context. Don't ask me to draw a 'dark room', if what you want is a 'creepy, sinister dark room'! I will draw those 2 descriptions VERY differently.

3-If something mentioned in the script is important later (or will be) tell your artist upfront! If that motorcycle in a street scene is the same one the hero is going to race away on in 3 pages, or next issue, let me know! I'll then draw it prominently enough to make it noticeable when people look back to make sure it really was there all along.

4-PLEASE! Don’t be afraid to leave some panels with NO dialogue. 'Nuff said.

5-Leave some pages lighter on panel count. This is a personal preference of mine. Look at your favorite Marvel or DC comic lately, 3-4 panels seems like more the norm now than 8 panels a page...and I'm happy about that!

I found this question to be a challenging one, so I hope I have answered it and helped writers looking to write for comic artists some new ideas.

Previous month's 'ask an artist' articles can be found over here : A3on11

Remember, I’ll be answering any questions you ask on the 11th of every month right here. Questions can range from very basic ones about general art creation and processes, to very technical comic creation ones. To shoot me a question, TWITTER it to me @gibsonquarter , email me : gibsonquarter27@yahoo.com , ask me on Facebook, or throw it in the comments section here. What I talk about just depends on what gets asked!

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - What now?

Today’s question is an easy one: What are you working on now?

Right now I’m finishing up 16 pages of The Organ Grinder for Undertow #2. (Details on Undertow #1 can be found right here) Undertow #2 is set to be launched at the Wizard New Orleans con which I’ll be attending on January 28 and 29, 2011.

I’m also doing another cover and feature for the good folks at Futurequake. This one ties into the Olympics, with aliens added.

Lastly, (at the risk of jinxing it!) I’m very near a cool #1 issue for a North American publisher. I can’t say anything more than that yet, but hopefully by mid November I can chat all about it.

Until next time, here’s a page of art for Undertow #2.

Previous month's 'ask an artist' articles can be found over here : A3on11

Remember, I’ll be answering any questions you ask on the 11th of every month right here. Questions can range from very basic ones about general art creation and processes, to very technical comic creation ones. To shoot me a question, just email me (address on the right side on this blog), ask me on Facebook, or throw it in the comments section here. What I talk about just depends on what gets asked! Thanks for the question. Keep 'em coming. See you next month.

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - HOW much does working in comics pay?

Welcome back to this month's edition of A3on11.

This month's question is “How much do you make for each page”?

Rather than get into the specifics about me in particular, I’m speculating that this means: How much money can I make in comics? Is it lucrative?

Comics can be a GREAT living, but alas, only for a small percentage of folks in the industry. Comic art professional page rates range from $50-$500 per page. This upper rate can go even higher for superstars who sell a ton of books. After that, the artist can sell his or her original pages to the art collectors market. Here too some of the ‘hot’ artists’ pages can sell for thousands of dollars! But wait…there’s more! You can also get that lovely royalty check every quarter as long as your back catalogue of work is still in print. The larger publishers track all that and pay out your % of the trade paperbacks sold.

Sounds good eh?

Time for a reality check.

The vast majority of folks in comics don’t make anywhere close to the big bucks. Even if they do, it’s usually after MANY years of working for REALLY low page rates, or even working for FREE.

Yes, I said it. FREE.

In the up and down world of comic publishing, you MUST be able to endure long periods of what I call ‘delayed financial gratification’ (DGF)! You gotta love the comics medium, and MUST be prepared to work for free when starting out. A perfect example of this dirty little secret was recently highlighted over at PJ Holden’s terrific blog. He was talking about the upcoming Fearless trade paperback. He penciled 4 issues when he was first starting out, and hasn’t seen a dime from it yet. He’s a consummate pro who keeps busy NOW, but as you can see …this wasn’t always the case. He survived the ‘DFG’ period that comics almost always demand.

So…if you are reading this and toiling away on a book or project you believe in without getting paid for it, have faith! Many of your favorites in the industry did the EXACT same thing. Keep your dreams alive, confident in the fact that this price has to get paid before you can grow into bigger and better things….and a decent page rate. ;-)

Take it from me, if you keep at it and stay positive, the money will follow. Then you’ll be doing something you love AND getting paid for it!


(I have a pet peeve about updating an art blog without putting any art up. So, here's a new page from the 2nd issue of Undertow , which I'm currently hard at work on)

Previous month's 'ask an artist' articles can be found over here : A3on11

Remember, I’ll be answering any questions you ask on the 11th of every month right here. Questions can range from very basic ones about general art creation and processes, to very technical comic creation ones. To shoot me a question, just email me (address on the right side on this blog), ask me on Facebook, or throw it in the comments section here. What I talk about just depends on what gets asked! Thanks for the question. Keep 'em coming. See you next month.

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - What happened to WASTED?

The question I've been asked the most this month by FAR..."What happened to WASTED?"

For those that haven't heard, WASTED magazine is no more.

The message on their website reads as follows:

Due to unforeseen and adverse circumstances, Bad Press Ltd is closing down. Thank you to all our writers, artists, colourists and letterers; to all of our customers, supporters, distributors and advertisers; and to all who only came to browse.

Please note, all existing email addresses and points of contact are in the process of ceasing business. For any further information, please contact:-
bp.liquidation.info@gmail.com


An article over here provides a bit more insight.

So, it appears that a lack of support for small independent books like WASTED has reared it's ugly head again.

I've gotten the impression that some of the people asking about the situation have been looking to hear 'sour grapes' and bitter, negative comments from me. That ain't gonna happen! The WASTED crew and Alan always treated me like gold, and I enjoyed every minute of working with them. So much so, that I was surprised how gutted (to use the U.K. expression!) I was when I got the bad news in early July. It really bummed me out for a few days. I had just started working on Alan's latest script for issue #9 at the time. I'm hoping that the pages will it one day see print...and they might.

The fall of Bad Press in no way restricts or prohibits our ownership/rights to the characters. I'm hopeful that Alan and I can find the "War on Drugs" and Johnny K a new home in the future. (If anyone can suggest any magazines/anthologies looking for this type of content...hit me up!)

So there you have it.

Here is strip from issue #2 that was one of my favorites. Let's go out with that.




As always, if you have a question …just ask! I’ll be back next month on the 11th to answer another question. They can range from very technical comic art ones, to very general questions- there is no such thing as a bad question. What I answer will depend on what gets asked. Feel free to email me at gibsonquarter27@yahoo.com , ask it in the comments section below, or shoot me a message on Facebook.

Other 'A3on11' blog posts can be found by clicking here.

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - Pacing and Dynamic layout...

Talk about good timing...it's posted on the 11th!

As you probably know I'm working with the fine folks over at Holmes inc. and they are just about to launch issue #2.

They had asked me to write a brief tutorial on 'Dynamism and pacing' in the laying out a comic page. I'm a bit afraid I've made it TOO brief, but you can judge for yourself over here. If you need/want more details, just LMk and I'll be happy to expand more on this in the future.


As always, if you have a question or want me to expand on any of the above…just ask! I’ll be back next month on the 11th to answer another question. They can range from very technical comic art ones, to very general questions- there is no such thing as a bad question. What I answer will depend on what gets asked. Feel free to email me at gibsonquarter27@yahoo.com , ask it in the comments section below, or shoot me a message on Facebook.

Other 'A3on11' blog posts can be found by clicking here.

Cheers!

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - Best Advice?

This month's question: "What is the best advice you’ve ever received"?

I’m going to assume that this question is about comic art, otherwise I’d have a smart ass answer like “always eat your vegetables” or “never drink liquor after beers” or some such…

I’ve been a student of comic art for a long time, and ALWAYS will be. Because of this, I’ve had the luxury of getting to know a number of comic professionals. Each one of them has taught me something in their own way. When it comes to helpful advice, here are some of the highlights that really helped me.


The late SETH FISHER (R.I.P.) was a terrific talent and a super nice guy. In my early days he helped me a TON via emails and scans. Here are a few quotes from Seth’s correspondence to me that I found fantastically useful:


"Just draw to feel good and always raise the bar for yourself
on every picture you draw. in this way you will always move forward.

No matter what you draw it is still a vast
simplification of the object so don’t worry about perfection.
Perfection is dull. Character is interesting. Give your objects
and people character.

I’m guessing that the bottom line for you that distinguishes between really good pages and the mediocre is just the amount of time that you put into the page. A good page takes a long time to make and is often redrawn several times to make it work. This is a secret part of the process of course. People assume it comes out right the first try".


GQ here again….This last quote REALLY flicked on a light bulb in my head, as in my early days that was exactly what I did assume! Learning this ‘secret’ from Seth really helped me.


JOE MADUREIRA is another artist who’s an inspiration to me, and I’m a fan of his work. I found an online interview with him where he said:


"The best advice I can give you is to pick up a few books on animation. I LOVE animation and I really study how things move, react, etc. Im sure my love of animation has rubbed off on me in more ways than I can imagine".

That coupled with his speaking about ( and I’m paraphrasing a bit here as I cant find the exact quote) the fact that :

“you’re never as good as you think you are”

I found to very helpful to keep in mind…and I still do.

TY TEMPLETON has given me so much terrific advice over the last 4 years its hard to know where to start!!! To keep it brief, I’ll summarize the most helpful thing he ever taught me in 2 words:

“Narrative flow”.

It’s all about leading the eye around the page on purpose, and correctly. (I touched upon this a bit in the very first ‘A3on11’ right here…it’s the red line on the rough layout page)
The last piece of advice is more general, and comes from one of my favorite writers, BERNARD CORNWELL:

"In the end you have to write the book. Do it, and remember that everyone began just like you, sitting at a table and secretly doubting that they would ever finish the task. But keep at it. A page a day and you’ve written a book in a year! And enjoy it! Writing, as many of us have discovered, is much better than working".

Substitute the word ‘drawing’ in there for ‘writing’ and voila, instant comic artist advice. This quote is printed out and hanging above my drawing board to this very day.

That’s some of the advice that worked for me, and I really hope it’s helpful to some of you.

As always, if you have a question or want me to expand on any of the above…just ask! I’ll be back next month on the 11th to answer another question. They can range from very technical comic art ones, to very general questions- there is no such thing as a bad question. What I answer will depend on what gets asked. Feel free to email me at gibsonquarter27@yahoo.com , ask it in the comments section below, or shoot me a message on Facebook.

Other 'A3on11' blog posts can be found by clicking here.

Cheers!

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - How to draw talking heads in an engaging way?

This month's question comes from a local artist who is at the beginning of his career. He asked me: "When drawing comics, how do you make talking heads less boring?"

In the beginning I struggled with this(and still do!)but its very critical to learn. As much as I wish it wasn't so, writers will write scenes where people ACTUALLY TALK to each other, and not just fight,shoot guns or do other cool action stuff.

Comic writers have a lot of nerve.

Anyways, I have 5 major techniques that I use to help the talking heads scene that work well for me, and other major comic pros...as we'll see below.

In no particular order:

1-Extreme Emotional close up.
Use this one only when it's needed to deliver a character's emotion. Use it too much and you lessen its effectiveness.

2-Angle the panel.
Don't be afraid to 'tip' the characters in the panel to the left or right. Movie makers do this a fair bit and it keeps some visual variety and interest - too many straight up and down shots can get boring after a while.

3- Vary the head size.
This can be done with perspective and characters standing a distance apart in the same panel, or by switching the size of the heads from one panel to the next.

4- Move the Camera view around.
Don't just use straight shots and side views! You can go 3/4 views, go for an over the shoulder, overhead views, worms eye views...etc.

5- Pull in and out to show the WHOLE figure.
Just because heads are talking doesn't mean we have to see their lips move! I'd suggest pulling way out and showing the whole figure and space they occupy from time to time. Re-establish where they are in space often to remind your reader whats up.

So...that's some of what works for me and other artists. Look for these 5 techniques in your favorite comics.

In the new issue of HOLMES INC. that I'm drawing up, you can see me putting 4 of the 5 to use for this 'talking heads' page...

Here I've used #1, #3, #4 and #5 from above.

Now in this ARTHUR ADAMS page he incorporates #1, #3, #4 and #5

Over in Body Bags, JASON PEARSON uses #2, #3, #4 and #5

Lastly, in this Battlechasers page JOE MADUREIRA uses all 5, check it out!


Previous month's 'ask an artist' articles can be found over here : A3on11
Remember, I’ll be answering any questions you ask on the 11th of every month right here. Questions can range from very basic ones about general art creation and processes, to very technical comic creation ones. To shoot me a question, just email me (address on the right side on this blog), ask me on Facebook, or throw it in the comments section here. What I talk about just depends on what gets asked! Thanks for the question. Keep 'em coming. See you next month.

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - Comic Conventions...Why?

Video this time, let me know what you think...should I do another 'fireside chat' for a future A3on11?



UPDATE: Sometimes technology really SUCKS! I was able to put together a pretty nice video (IMHO) answering a question about conventions, but it will... Not... LOAD... Properly on the blog!! The audio and video are way out of synch. I've spent far too long trying to get it right...now I've thrown in the towel.

You win internet...this time. (-insert western gunslinger music here-)

So, my apologies.

In keeping with the theme of video and conventions and me answering questions, please check this informal interview from the Montreal con last year.

Cheers!

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - What Materials do you use?

The question this time around is: What materials do you use?

My working methods and supplies used have really changed since my "One pencil" days of long ago.

Here is a quick shot of just about all my 'tools of the trade' as it were. You cant see the photoshop program, but it's a big part of my work now too.





I use colored pencils alot more lately for layouts and underdrawing. I try to keep the gestural stuff (energy and lively lines) a different color than the tigher top pencil layer, where I'll lock in the parts I like while tightening things up. At this point I'll switch between technical and taditional pencils depending on what I'm rendering.

Once I'm done this part (often on seperate pencils in my sketchbook) I'll scan and throw in the individual section into photoshop to play around with. Photoshop is super helpful in the 'tweaking' of the page to help make it more dynamic when called for. Things like adding more of an angle to the panel, enlarging or shrinking etc, are all the types of descisions I'm confirming here. But all the while doing this, I'm keeping an eye on the layouts I've done previously.



Once the page is laid out in a manner I'm happy with,(and there is enough room for word ballons, sfx, etc) it gets printed out on quality paper sized at 11x17.

The inking starts and I'm now using lots of brush work (brushes size 2 and 3) for line weights and organic objects. After that a LARGE portion of the inks are done with a crowquill, Hunt 102 almost exclusively. Lastly the spotting of black gets the big old Sharpie marker treatment. Lastly, the touch ups are done with white ink -again with a crow quill- and I'm done!



I hope this answers the question!


Previous month's 'ask an artist' articles can be found over here : A3on11

Remember, I’ll be answering any questions you ask on the 11th of every month right here. Questions can range from very basic ones about general art creation and processes, to very technical comic creation ones. To shoot me a question, just email me ( gibsonquarter27@yahoo.com ), ask me on Facebook, or throw it in the comments section here. What I talk about just depends on what gets asked! Thanks for the question. Keep 'em coming. See you next month.

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - Timing with publishing?

This month's question is: "How far ahead do you work?"

Hopefully WAAAYY ahead of the deadlines...but that aint always the case! It's usually about 2-3 months from the time the page leaves my drawing board to when it gets published in the comic. For example, I'm currently working on pages for the next issue of WASTED which will be published in and around May.

I'm also just finishing up some Zarjaz pages which are set to be published in time for the comic expo in London mid-March. Admittedly, I'm cutting it a bit close on that one.

There is also the one comic that took about 8 years from when I drew it until it saw the light of day...that story is over here.

Comic covers have a much longer life cycle, as they need to be done very early for marketing purpose. (Website promo, the Previews catalogue, etc.) The next cover for Wasted was done back here, and that was done in early November. It'll be out in May, so that's like 6 months or so.

The publishing delay is frustrating to me. Once I finish the pages, I'm obviously happy with them or they wouldn't be finished! At this point I want to show EVERYBODY what I'm up to, and how they look. Problem is, publishers hate that and it will often spoil part of the story. (Spoiler alert- Johnny K. shoots a junkie!) You know, that type of thing. So...by the time the actual issue comes out, I'm usually thinking, "yea it's ok, but you should see these NEW PAGES I'm working on now...they really rock!" Unfortunately that art wont be out for about 3 months. The vicious cycle continues. ;-)

That's why I sneak in previews on my blog. It lets me my sanity, and show a little art to the world without getting in too much trouble.


Previous month's 'ask an artist' articles can be found over here : A3on11


Remember, I’ll be answering any questions you ask on the 11th of every month right here. Questions can range from very basic ones about general art creation and processes, to very technical comic creation ones. To shoot me a question, just email me (address on the right side on this blog), ask me on Facebook, or throw it in the comments section here. What I talk about just depends on what gets asked! Thanks for the question. Keep 'em coming. See you next month.

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - Inspiration?

This month's question is: "What inspires you?"

I honestly think when people ask me this they want to hear about some mystical creative secret that only a few folks know, and aren't allowed to speak about except in hushed tones. (ie: The first rule of ART CLUB is do NOT talk about ART CLUB!)

The reality? When it comes to inspiration...deadlines help.

Seriously.

As much as we like to think of comic art as true 'art', and take all the time in the world to create it -"I'm an artist dammit, it'll be done when it's done!"- the reality is when drawing for publishers you just dont have this luxury. Comic art comes with a timeline.

This means that SOMETIMES you have to crank up your own inspiration and draw when you really dont feel like it. When this happens to me, I usually flip through some comic works from my favorite artists, and surf over to deviantart. Just looking at other great artists can help get the creative juices flowing. The trick here is to not spend too much time surfing, reading, and generally 'getting ready'.

The right music always helps too. I've gotten some great band and disk suggestions from other artists, as we all seem to have a rather voracious appetite for tunes! Occupational hazard I guess. The right music can really get me ready and zoned in to draw.

If these options haven't got me going, I use my ace in the hole technique...I go to my bookshelf and grab Stephen King's ON WRITING book. I flip it open to page 151 ( hardcvover version). It's here that he writes "if you read alot , write a lot", and proceeds to tell the story of the writer Anthony Trollope. Anthony's "day job was as a clerk in the British Postal Department, and he wrote for two and a half hours each morning before leaving for work. This schedule was ironclad. If he was in mid sentance when the two and a half hours expired, he left that sentance unfinished until the next morning. And if he happened to finish one of his 600 page hevyweight novels with 15 minutes of the session remaining, he wrote THE END, set the manuscript aside and began work on the next book."


Sure he's talking about writing and not drawing, but that's not the point. For some reason, just thinking about that level of dedication to one's craft motivates the hell out of me and makes me want to get the pencil moving. So that's what inspires me. I hope that helps. Excuse me, I'm psyched now and gotta go draw something. ;-)

Previous month's 'ask an artist' articles can be found here: A3on11 !

Ask an Artist on the 11th! - A3on11 - books?

Welcome to ‘Ask an Artist on the 11th, or ‘A3 on 11’ as I like to call it. It's a little early this month, as I'm keen to get right to it.

This month’s question comes to me via Facebook:
“Are there any books on art techniques/comic creating that "you" personally recommend?”

This is a perfect question for me, since I’ve read a TON of art books. (yes, a metric ton, I checked!)I mean, I have a really large collection of ‘em. This is partly due to the fact that I love to learn, and also due to an early phase I suspect lots of folks go through when first starting out.

See, back in the early days I thought if I somehow bought and read JUST the right book, everything would fall into place, and I’d become a great artist. An illustration ‘short cut’ as it were…no such luck. So, let me preface this discussion by warning that books are only 20-30% of what can help you. The rest is a combination of drive, focus and talent in my opinion. And practice! Lots of practice! I heard somewhere that every artist has 1000 bad drawings in them, you just have to get them out before you can really see improvement. I don’t know if this is true, but I sure choose to believe it.

I also believe that part of what will make a book ‘good’ for you, is where you are with your art. I’ve read a few books where it soon became apparent that it was a case of ‘too much too soon’ for it to benefit me. Basically, it was ahead of my time. I’ve gone back to books like this later on and they were much more helpful. Only THEN was I ready to internalize what they were trying to tell me…know what I mean? I think this is worth keeping in the back of your mind while you read art books. Sometimes it might be the right book at the wrong time.

By now you are probably thinking, GQ just say what damn books you like already! OK, alright! There are 2 books that I continually refer to, and probably couldn’t live without.

The first is ‘Gesture Drawing for Animation’ by Walt Stanchfield. This was available out on the web as download at one point, and that’s when I first read it. My copy is well loved, and I refer to it constantly. Basically, it helped loosen up my figure drawing, and helped me make a quantum leap forward with my art. With chapter titles like “Go for the Truth”, “A Visual Vocabulary for Drawing” , “Elements of the Pose”, & “A Sense of Story - talk to your audience through drawing”, I can’t think of a better more comprehensive art book. The first page of my dog eared copy says:

”Draw ideas, not things; action, not poses; gestures, not anatomical structures”

Reading that was like a light switch going off in my head. If that quote appeals to you, try and track this book down.
It has since been collected, updated and formally released as a 2 book set called Drawn to Life (The Walt Stanchfield Lectures) I bought these books, but I still prefer my old, worn, highlighted original copy the best. ;-) All the same material is in the new releases, but they messed up the order of the lectures and it doesn’t seem to flow as well to me . Still worth a place on your shelf though!


The 2nd book that really helped me advance my comic art was- and is- 'FORCE -Dynamic life drawing for animators’ by Michael D. Mattesi. This book really helped me figure out why some art has more energy and well…force, than others. Since energy and motion are elements I really like to play with, it helped give me a few tricks and tips to use to help turn up the volume in these areas as it were. (This one goes to 11…it’s one louder!)


With chapters like “Seeing life”, “Forceful Form” and “Forceful Shape” it stays very close to what the title promises. It deals with rhythym, balance and straight vs. curved lines -how to use them to maximize the force of your art. You know, the stuff that Bruce Timm and other great cartoonists seem to do effortlessly. For some inexplicable reason the author put a section about animals as the last chapter which I skipped over. Hey, it’s his book, I guess he can do what he wants. Don’t let the livestock section fool you… I highly recommend this book .


Remember, I’ll be answering any questions you ask on the 11th of every month right here. Questions can range from very basic ones about general art creation and processes, to very technical comic creation ones. To shoot me a question, just email me (address on the right side on this blog), ask me on Facebook, or throw it in the comments section here. What I talk about just depends on what gets asked!

See you next month!



Commercial break- If you'd like to support small press, please go here and grab a copy of Undertow #1.

If you missed last month's 'A3on11', it was all about the process of creating a page of comic art from the script to the finished page...it can be found right here.

Ask an artist on the 11th !

Welcome to the very first ‘Ask An Artist on the 11th’! Or, as I like to call it: “A3on11”. I’ll be answering any questions you ask on the 11th of every month for the next year. I think the questions will range from very basic ones about general art creation and processes, to very technical comic creation ones. In order to shoot me a question, just email me (address on the right side on this blog), ask me on Facebook, or throw it in the comments section here. What I talk about will just depend on what gets asked.

This month I’m going to answer both these questions:

‘What does a comic Script look like?’
and
‘Does the writer tell you exactly what to draw?’ ( which I think really means… ‘How do you know WHAT to draw?)

Alan Grant has kindly allowed me to put up part of his actual WOD script which will see print in an upcoming issue of WASTED. It looks like this:


This is Step 1. Get a good script to work from. Check. As I start reading I usually make little sketches/ thumbnails in the margin if I get a quick clear image in my head as I go. Inspiration and first instincts have always served me well in the creative process, so I try and capture them when I can. I didn’t do it too much here, but I knew I wanted to go for a big sexy glam shot to introduce Narcobitch.

I’ll generally read the entire script, then re-read it, then read it 3 more times. Gotta make sure that nothing gets missed! Alan always uses CAPITAL LETTERS in the script to make key items ‘pop’, and I find this VERY helpful. I recommend all comic writers do this.

At the top, the number of pages Alan suggested is 3 or 4, and the amount of panels required per page is not mentioned. Alan leaves this part is up to the artists. I could jam 17 panels onto page one in order to save room for a lovely full page splash on page 2 if I wanted. Hmmm….No, I’d never do this. I COULD, but I wouldn’t.

Please note how most of the design elements are vague leaving more room for the artist to work. It doesn’t say ‘crowded beach’ or ‘beach in the early afternoon on a cloudy day’. It’s left to me to design it visually. Since Narcobitch is going to murder someone in broad daylight, I decided it best to leave the beach pretty unoccupied. Especially since the next page is folks trying to figure out who killed the hippy agent. I’ve worked with writers who try and micromanage all the elements on a page. I don’t enjoy working this way. I think that if the script leaves room for interpretation, you get better results. Artists can then invest some of their personality and ideas. It is a collaborative medium after all.

I generally try to keep scene and same locations all on one page, but it wasn’t possible this time around. I thought about it, (hence the pencil mark above section 4) and tried it, but the last few pages became too tight and the story didn’t flow well visually.

I played around with the layouts for a while as evidenced by the very rough layout below. At this step I’m really just worrying about Narrative flow and word balloon placement. No actual drawing has been started yet. I also decided at this stage that an extra ‘beat’ would work well, so I split panel #3 into 2 parts by adding the silhouette panel and the close up panel with the smoking gun. I don’t do this often, but I felt it worked better in order to show her emotion as she spoke the dialogue. I used to minimize this layout step in my haste to draw stuff, but I’ve since realized that this is the MOST important part in making a good page of comic book art.


Now comes the fun part! I’m now confident that the eye will be pulled around the page as I want it to, and the dialogue is sorted. (ie: no crossed tails on word balloons. This keeps letterers like Jim Campbell very happy!) Now it’s all about cranking up the energy and emotion. Basically, just trying to make a cool page that will tell the story well!

Does this answer the question?