Writing for your First Audience
Hello!
Today's blog is mostly for newer to comics folks, though there's probably some useful stuff for old hats here too. As an editor, I see a LOT of scripts every year. Since I am reviewing a high-volume of them on a regular basis, I end up seeing some commonalities of both good practices and things that could make everyone down the line's life easier, so I thought I'd briefly talk about that!
Who Reads the Script vs. Who Reads the Comic
If you're making a comic and making it available to be read, the idea is you want someone reading the final product, right? The full execution of your (and your collaborators') ideas. But most of the time, unless you're quickly cartooning something, that final stage is not the initial execution of a comic. Exact workflows vary from person to person, team to team, but generally speaking, most comics start with a script that's going to be read and shared.
Think of a good mystery. As a reader, you're compelled by putting the pieces together, seeing what's going to happen next, being surprised or vindicated (or both) when a reveal does happen, and these things work in tandem to keep you turning pages. A good script is like that, but you have to make sure you're leaving very clear signposts for the people you're working with to properly put together the puzzle.
It's worth remembering at this point, that your comic is likely to have anywhere between 1 and 7 other people reading it at the script stage: an editor, a penciller/artist, possibly an inker, possibly a colorist, possibly a licensor, possibly a letterer, and possibly any of those sorts of people in duplicate! And because they are helping build and refine the story with you, they need to know what they're working on as early as possible.
The very basic version of that is something like if a baddie is giving their grandiose speech before they blow up a bank vault or whatever, if you know they're going to thumb a detonator on page 8, you should probably make sure you show the detonator while they're speechifying on page 7, just so the action tracks more easily for the reader. And, more importantly at the script stage, so your artist knows that they should be drawing the villain with detonator in hand before they press the button.
But there are a lot more complex versions, and a lot of those come down to formatting as much as the actual writing process.
Where Do You Put the Information
Again, a lot of this is going to come to personal preference between the people involved, but I would generally consider what information the rest of your team will need and flag it as early as possible. Some of my favorite scripts to read as an editor start out with a reference section before the script itself. Some writers I work with will provide short descriptions of the major locations or set-pieces and props. If there's reference available--something we've seen previously in the series and are revisiting--maybe they'll drop in some pictures. If there's a new character joining the cast, they might have a short description of their appearance and personality. Some folks even go so far as to flag ahead of Page 1 word 1 to call out if they've got specific requests for the lettering.
I am very grateful to my collaborators who don't mind that I don't tend to do that in my own scripts (though I try to be better). But I really appreciate it as an editor because it makes my life a lot easier knowing I can properly communicate that information not just to the rest of the team working on that issue's interiors, but also often by having that info and reference available for cover artists.
The other place I see those larger reference archives added is the back of the script. Generally, I find if the reference is at the back of the script, it tends to be more photo-heavy with ideas for locations or specific callouts for characters (or sometimes memes). It doesn't reduce the helpfulness or importance of the reference, but I do find reference in the back tends to be for broader picture ideas that help set a more specific sense of place or build upon a reference, rather than helping to dictate the action.
For myself, I tend to be a heavy in-script referencer. Which is to say, I add a lot of hyperlinks and comments to the things I have a specific idea on how they should look, as they enter the script. That's also a totally fine option, as long as you're planning your script for the other readers. Again, that's making sure the detonator's there before it's used, but it's also things like if you have a back-and-forth with your editor about something being unclear and you figure it out in the comments, make sure you also go back and add that clarity in the actual script so licensors or artists aren't having to track down and read through all your back-and-forth. Plus, as an editor, I tend to like to send licensors "clean" scripts, so I minimize the number of comments as much as possible.
With all that said, figure out what works for you and your partners. A couple of times I've gotten scripts with accompanying thumbnails (usually when the writer is a cartoonist in their own right) and those have specific compositional ideas or funny little details that might not get illuminated in the script as written. I've had some writers drop like one link early on in a script to a shared folder that has all the references or mood boards or whatever for an issue in a single place. I've worked with teams who have created shared inspiration boards and reference boards that make getting a fill-in artist on-board super easy.
Not Everyone Starts at the Start
I was talking with an artist friend at SDCC and she was mentioning how she likes to tackle issues in reverse page order. She reads it front to back, but then she starts drawing with the last page. Her reasoning, which makes a lot of sense, was starting at the back, she'll have the most energy for the most exciting pages, the cliffhanger or finale. And she'll know how things are set up at the end so as she works backwards to the front, she can keep continuity going because she already knows what she's supposed to be setting up. And I thought that was a very neat way of doing things!
I bring this up because it speaks to one of the most important things: like half of knowing how to format for the people you're working with is finding out how they work. And that's not always an option. I have heard a lot of folks talk about how--despite comics being collaborative--they haven't really had a chance to speak to the writer or the artist or whoever else they're working with. Which makes working with them really hard. As an editor, I tend to facilitate communication at the start, but if the creators ask to or seem like they should be in direct communication, I link them up ASAP.
All of which is to say, unless you're operating in total isolation, someone else is going to access your script and when they do, make sure you're making it illuminating for them so they can do their best job, rather than having to piece too much together on the go.
What I enjoyed this week:
Blank Check (Podcast), Craig of the Creek (Cartoon), Honkai Star Rail (Video game), My Adventures with Superman (Cartoon), the beach, The Broken Room by Peter Clines (Book), Crime Scene Kitchen (TV show), Dumbing of Age (Webcomic), Barbie (Movie), Guy's Grocery Games (TV show), Dungeons & Daddies (Podcast), not being at SDCC.
New Releases this week (7/26/2023):
Godzilla: Monsters & Protectors Summer Smash (Editor)
New Releases next week (8/2/2023):
Nothing from me!
Final Order Cut-Off next week (7/31/2023 - AKA Preorder Deadline)
Godzilla: Best of Mechagodzilla (Editor)
Sonic the Hedgehog #64 (Editor)
Plug:
No big announcements, but maybe join my Patreon! You get this same blog, but without this part plugging my Patreon! Plus you get extra stuff! This week, I'm putting up Jimmy Squarefoot for all $5 and up backers and have my first "something weird" coming out for $10 and up backers: a presentation about some best practices on moderating (and making presentations for) panels!
Pic of the Week:
Took the day after SDCC off to recover at the beach, so that's what's here, but the real pic of the week if Becca's series of Freddie and Laurie's summer vacation!
