 |
 |
|||||
|
|
 |
|||||
 |
||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
|||||
 
|
Monday’s strip! WOOOH! You know…. I am fully aware of the fact that my background work takes a really long time… and at the same time I tell myself “I could get these strips done a lot faster if I didn’t put so much detail into them…” But then I tell myself to shuddup and to crawl back into my drawing pit…. and if I hear just one more noise out of me, so help me God!
Yeah so the detail remains…. 
 |
 |
|||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||
 |
||||||||||
 |
|
 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
||||
 |
 |
 |
||
|
|
 |
|||
 |
 |
|||
|
|
|
|
|
|
Maybe it comes from my art and programming backgrounds, but I am constantly trying to find some kind of formula or exercise that will make the construction of a storyline an easier process. Now that may feel like a kind of clinical and antiseptic way of approaching what is very much an art form. But to be perfectly honest, that’s how I approach my artwork. Now granted, that isn’t how I always thought of art, but in college I learned that a well drawn character begins with a solid construction from basic shapes, so why should writing be any different?
I tend to start my writing sessions by recapping what is happening to the characters, what they might be feeling, thinking, what they want to do… just something to get the writing juices flowing. A little like a warmup sketch.
The next step is for me to write out a series of Plot Points I want to hit. I don’t try to fill up every slot in a month of comics or anything, adding in more points between them to achieve a proper pace for the story can come later. I just throw in anything I can think of that I’d like to have included in the storyline. These Plot Points can be as detailed as fully fleshed out comic scripts or as vague as a single sentence that gives a loose idea of what will eventually become a script.
At this point I look over what I’ve got and I just kinda guess at where I need to add another strip or two between the existing plot points to correct the pacing. This is one part of the process that I don’t fully understand myself. Pacing is just one of those things that I can just tell is off by looking at it. I know it’s not particularly helpful, but it’s true. Sometimes I can just tell that I need to add a strip before a change in location or subject matter, like it needs a transition… I dunno, it’s hard to explain.
This is the point when I’ll often have a hard time coming up with ideas for those filler strips. Luckily I recently discovered a writing trick that helps me come up with some new ideas. It’s a variation of brainstorming I think of it as “the what if game.” I just make a big old list of what ifs that relate to whats currently happening in the strip.
What if the car breaks down on the way to the hospital?
What if Brody discovers he’s allergic to the gel in disposable diapers?
What if Abbey goes into false labor?
What if Max breaks his arm and they all end up in the hospital together?
You get the idea…
So this list will generally generate enough options that SOMETHING in there will spark my imagination that will eventually become a joke. You know it’s been said that ideas are cheap, that the execution of those ideas are what matter. This is true for writing comic strips. I have learned that ANY situation can become a joke, you just need to find the right angle to approach it from. Humor comes from the unexpected. Present a problem or situation and then resolve it in a way your audience wont expect and you illicit a humor response.
The last thing I do when writing a strip is simplify it. Again with the writing as a formula…. This is the point where I take the joke I have and I optimize the script. I try to take the most basic essence of the comic and I try to reduce it down to as few words as possible. Editing down your scripts is important, but there is such a thing as doing it to aggressively. You still need to maintain the tension in the strip. By tension I mean you need to build up the tension in your first two or three panels and then release it on the final panel. That tension can be lost if you edit the script down too far. But that’s what I mean by optimizing…
Anyway, that’s my writing process… Hope you guys find it interesting.
I’d love to hear from you guys regarding your own writing tricks and tendencies.
Rawb
Sorry about the lack of updates lately guys… I picked up a neat little contract to work on in my spare time and it has completely dominated my time over the last couple of weeks and will continue to do so for a little while longer. I’m not sure how much I can share about the project at the moment, I’ll have to defer to my collaborators on divulging information on it. But I will say that it is very much the kind of thing you all might be interested in.
I’ll be back with some more information as soon as I can.
Rawb
Hey guys! Been working a little bit on a map for my next D&D session… thought I’d post some in progress pics.
Hey guys… I did this sketch at lunch today and thought I’d share!
 |
||
 |
|
 |
 |
||
|
|
||
 |
||
September 23rd, 2008 at 8:44 pm
lol, yeah. Usually when it comes to backgrounds I try not to put so much detail in them, unless the characters are in a place aside from their own apartment. I’ve also learned how to not kill my drawin’ hand in backgrounds, I look at what detail there can “possibly” be, but I stick with what’s necessary to convey the message.
September 24th, 2008 at 9:52 am
yeah it’s always a bit of a task deciding what to put in and what to leave out…. but coming from an animation background, the BGs don’t look right to me untill they are a little more full…. It’s just how I’ve been conditioned I guess
September 24th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
You also have some pretty big panels, so you have a lot of room to show the little things. It really brings the background in as a silent character and conveys parts of the story you don’t have time/space to write.
I like your style of sweeping lines along most of your background edges, which also give that volume you see in animation backgrounds. Quick question, though, how do you get your lines for the desk and such so straight?
September 24th, 2008 at 2:48 pm
I love the detailed back grounds, it helps with the entire feel of the comic and adds a real sense of presence to the characters.
So yeah, back to the hole for you!
September 24th, 2008 at 5:22 pm
you are own system? Sorry, homophones irk me, and in a strip as well drawn as this one, I hate to see little details like grammar/spelling keep it from being A1 top notch.
September 24th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
Lou:
Thanks a lot. I’m glad you like the BGs. I think that the size of the panels and background details definitely come from the fact that I am much more comfortable with my art then my writing. It comes out subconciously. As far as my linework goes…. a quick stroke will usually be straighter then a slowly drawn one. The fact that I am drawing on a 20″ Tablet monitor helps too
Andrew:
Again, I’m happy you like the art. I’m starting to feel like it’s a major draw for people, so I’ll do my best to keep it up.
Crystalis:
Oh my god! You are correct sir! I apologize… The worst part is that I even had my wife proof read this one before I posted it. Usually she catches even the smallest mistake, she has been busy with school lately though. Thanks for pointing it out… By the time you read this it will be changed. I really do appreciate the notice. I tend to be an okay speller, but with something like this the art seems to take priority in my brain. It’s a right side of the brain thing I guess. I didn’t realize that homophones would bug anyone… :O If you like I will endeavor to avoid them from now on.
I’m glad you guys are this invested in the strip! Always glad to hear from any of you!
September 25th, 2008 at 10:58 am
Do you write first or draw and fill in the text later? I find that writing first and reading just the words helps a lot. If I’m getting ahead and really motivated, I’ll even script it out before sitting at the drawing table, but that’s pretty rare.
I work by hand, so it’s necessary to write first, but I do the text, rough bubbles and characters, read through the text, finish up the pencils, ink the text, bubbles, borders, read again then move on. It helps keep the art separate from the writing that way…Of course, mistakes ALWAYS get through.
September 26th, 2008 at 6:47 am
Hmmm… well my process is ever changing…. I’ve tried scripting like a month before hand…. that was okay. I also tried to write my dialogue directly onto the panels ahead of time… that worked all right as well… but what I have been doing lately is really unorthodox, but it’s been working for my schedule….
The entire strip is usually more or less fleshed out in my mind before I start. Location, punchline, rough dialogue…. then I draw the entire strip in pencil while I’m on the couch watching TV… ( that way I can hang out with my wife and get some work done at the same time ) When it’s done I actually sit down to clean and colour the entire thing and the very last step is text and bubbles.
Yeah it’s not the best way to do it, but that’s my method…
September 26th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
There is no best way. I do my inking by hand, that’s the only reason I set my lettering first. It’s out of necessity…Otherwise I’d be dropping correction fluid over half my page (well, not THAT drastic).
September 26th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
That’s Karls way with over coming one gaming addiction
September 26th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Lou: Yeah the digital inking really allows for a lot more playing around after the fact… I can see why you would want to letter first.
Lorna: Well the booze takes away the pain Lorna… You should know that