@mrtrickster said:
@fodigg said:
If you want to write for comics, you have to be prepared to make Indy comics, possibly for years, without pay, and hope to get noticed and welcomed into the ground floor. Webcomics are also an option, but right or wrong, most publishers look to print.
But portfolios and scripts are useless. For prospective writers they want to see finished products.
can a novel writer or a screenwriter become a comic writer? or are there any specific skills comic writers have to learn?
Writers of any profession need to be able to operate in different voices for different audiences. This means difference not only of tone and style, but of basic fundamental structure. A poem is not a novella, is not a screenplay, is not an office memo, is not a text message. This is what 90% of any formal writing/English education boils down to--knowing what your audience demands and meeting or exceeding those expectations in a punctual manner. In the academic setting, this often included a hypothetical audience for the course (e.g., "English 001" is different from "Writing For the Professions," is different from "Creative Writing"), but that's usually just defined by your teacher or whatever TA is grading your paper. When students would come into my writing center the first questions I asked were always:
- Who is your teacher?
- What's the assignment?
- What comments have they made on past papers?
- What style guide do they use (e.g., MLA, Chicago, APA)?
- Do they accept early submissions so you can do rewrites? (if they do, always submit early for guaranteed higher grade)
This might seem mercenary because you're not considering artistic directions, but I'd argue you should worry about grand artistry after you've broken in with good fundamentals and persistence.
Now, I'm not a comic book writer, I'm not even an aspiring comic book writer (aspiring novelist maybe but who isn't?), but my suggestion would be to get your hands on professional scripts. There are a number of books out there that have shown what a script by Bendis or Morrison or whoever looks like. Learn to put your scripts together in a professional format and then try drawing those scripts with stick figures and chat bubbles to keep yourself honest.
Beyond that, the fate of your final product is entirely in the hands of your artist. If you've got the cash it might even be worth it to pay a commission to a professional to complete some of your projects (look at it as if you were paying a consultant to help with your resume) or find a fellow amateur who can draw who is willing to throw their lot in with yours.
Once you have a product you can show, pay for a booth at a local comic book convention and put that book in the hands of every publisher you can. That book is your business card (and should have all your contact info on it). A good buddy of mine is going through this process now with his Indy book BEEF JAMS, which he describes as:
@davelandsberger BEEF JAMS, my first comic work comes out today in Hoax Hunters #3! Its about a cheeseburger that plays basketball. Typical formulaic stuff.
Hoax Hunters is an Image title and he's got his 2-page backup in there for everyone to see.
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