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Hey.

I really dug the layout of your script. Its a simple thing, but, I really appreciate how you have it set up. I also enjoyed reading the script as a whole, but that one detail made it even better for me.

This was my entry. In hindsight, it was a pretty ballsy move on my part to even enter the contest in the first place. When I first read the contest details, I had never written a script before in my life. This one that I submitted is only the second one I did, after cherry picking what I liked out of the first one and scrapping everything else I didn't.

However, for whatever reason, I said "Why the hell not" and got to writing.

At the end of the day, someone at Top Cow read my comic, and even though it got put in the "no" pile (deservedly so), its still something I'm pretty pleased with.

Now, to actually learn how to write comics properly...

I got Understanding Comics sometime around 6th or 7th grade, I remember loving it. It's written in the form of a comic book, so it's not that challenging to read (he could take away a lot from the visuals alone, and then go back and read the text more carefully in a year or two).

That being said, there are probably some alternatives better suited for his age (and style, since Dog Man is very cartoon-y). Maybe try something like this?

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzmWf-kBZktAQ09DUzZEemE1S3M/

There's mine. I haven't gotten a chance to take a look at the other ones posted, but I am quite curious as to what people went in for.

Good work to everyone who submitted! :D Sucks to not get any sort of feedback on the scripts, but then when they have that many entrants, what can you do?

Hey there. I'm very interested in the anthology. My idea would essentially be a literal version of the poem, Solomon Grundy. It would be about child who was born on Monday and rapidly ages till when he dies Saturday and buried on Sunday. While that's happening, his parents are none the wiser to his aging until he's near death. The idea is really about the selfishness of parents and how they are constantly pushing their child out of nest only to regret it when the child flies off. I would guess this would be about 15 pages long (I'll start working on an outline for a more accurate number). I know that's a bit long, but I am willing to help out with finding and paying for an artist. If you want references to my writing, I have published one comic book through Comixology. https://www.comixology.com/Symptom-1/digital-comic/89375 (I can send you a PDF copy if you'd like. Just let me know.)

I only write. I found an artist for my comic, https://tapas.io/series/Thorn-Squadron, through the /r/ComicBookCollabs subreddit.

I'd recommend doing the scripts first, it will be easier to find an artist willing to work.

Stephen King's On Writing is one of the best books on writing anything.

If you want to write, you need to read a lot, and not just good works but bad works as well so you can tell the difference. For two good comic writers, Alan Moore is a master of comics writing so I'd check out Top Ten by him and the first volume of Jack Staff by Paul Grist. Both writers have very different approaches to comic writing where Moore would write 40 page scripts for 20 page comics while Grist is really simplistic and experimental.

For art there are a lot of books on art. It would depend on what your friend wants to improve on. Reading comics can help there as well. For an actual book Drawing Words and Writing Pictures is fantastic.

Hey everyone, I've just finished with a major update to the guide "Taking a Comic From Start To Finish" and wanted to share with all of you.

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Direct download link: https://gumroad.com/products/NQME

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Recent updates include:

- How to make sales tabling at conventions

- Marketing tips and tricks

- Gaining a social media following for your books

- A huge update to the sections on how to print and ship your books

- How to acquire ISBNs and UPC numbers and barcodes for your books and which of the two you'll actually need

- A ton of various additions to pre-existing sections, as well as numerous images to go with the tips.

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The guide is now sitting at a solid 174 pages and they're all yours for free!

I hope you find the guide useful and thanks for checking it out :)

I have a comic where the main character is a sentient lamp; she 'talks' by way of a sticky note pasted to the lampshade that 'writes' out her internal monologue.

Perhaps you could try:

• the goldfish talks in sign language or flag semaphore with their fins
• scrabble pieces in their fishtank to move and spell out words
• the power of empathy and meaningful gazes
• morse code via swimming back and forth in front of a light in the tank

....That's all I've got right now, hope any of this helps.

Three ideas that I decided to work into one. Almost 10 years ago I started writing a series inspired by Gatchaman. It was an all-female team using bird costumes. I wrote the first issue and the outline for 12 issues. Then I shelved it.

A few years later I thought about a fighter pilot squadron. Then I shelved that too.

Before the writing of Thorn Squadron I wanted to write a story set in Star Wars about an all-female squadron that dealt directly with Mon Mothma doing secret missions.

I then thought why would I write a story set in Star Wars when I could make my own. So I did. I mixed all the previous ideas and stories into what's now Thorn Squadron. I was lucky I found an amazing artist and from her, a letterer and colorist.

Hey Maximus, here are my personal recommendations, as with all writing, your mileage may vary

Learning to "think" like a writer: Bird by Bird written by Anne Lammot

Learning the Principles of Story: Story by Robert Mckee

Learning the Principles of comics: Understand Comics and Making Comics by Scott McCloud.

There are other good resources mentioned like Denny O'Neil's writing guide as well as Nick Mac's

The best general advice I can give you is read and write every day and try to spend just a little time dedicated to studying the craft every day. Read as many comics as you can and try to analyze what you like and dislike.

I recommend you go through a book called Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. You can pick up a used copy for around $4 with shipping. I'm going it through it right now and my drawing went from looking like something a child would make to passable art in a very short period of time.

I also want to echo what some have said. Just get some cheap printer paper and a couple of pencils for practice. I have all kinds of fun drawing tools, but none are necessary at this point.

Here it is. It's a little embarrassing but if anything, it was a good learning experience.

I still like to think the project wasn't that bad, it was just my ability to promote the book that sucked. I only ended up with about 40 video views in 30 days, which kind of shows my struggle.

Everyones advice here is sound, you don't need anything fancy. Sometimes you might want something that helps with formatting, keeps extra notes on hand for quick referencing, or lays out scenes in an easier way to visualise/rearrange at a glance. By notes I mean things like world building definitions or notes to yourself. If you're hunting through notes for half an hour trying to find info you want to reference quickly, then you're not writing either. So long as you dont let yourself linger over adding every minor thing, then finding notes or scenes in order in a sidebar can be a huge help.

Personally I really like either Quoll Writer, or SmartEditWriter (both free) for keeping things together, formatting, editing down into a script I like to work from. Neither are available for mac. If its only a preference but not a necessity then they might still be worth mentioning. I've found them to be the most efficient for me and have everything I need, but everyones different.

I'd highly recommend using LibreOffice (https://www.libreoffice.org/) instead of OpenOffice. It's a fork that is more actively developed, from what I understand. I believe that there was a security issue within the last month that LO patched that's still unpatched in OOo.

[Paul Kupperberg's Illustrated Guide to Writing Comics)(https://www.amazon.com/Kupperbergs-Illustrated-Guide-Writing-Comics/dp/B088T7VHZ4) has several examples of this. It's a book I am reading myself, as I type this.

This blog post specifically shows a couple of his examples pulled right from the book: https://www.firstcomicsnews.com/paul-kupperberg-talks-about-writing-comics/

Just open the images in a new tab after you click them, so you can zoom in.

I'm not a pro, but I would recommend picking up the book, Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, THIS sub, and the Proko Drawing Basics Playlist.

What has works for me is forcing myself to write 500 words every day whether I feel like it or not. If I don't have my own idea I go to /r/WritingPrompts, if I don't feel like doing that I just journal about what I did that day. Just do something to get yourself started and you'll find that the ideas are summoned back from the subconscious.

Another tip I can give is that even if you don't feel like writing you can still study the craft by reading something like Making Comics or Bird by Bird or try to dissect what you like about a comic you enjoy reading.

Writing is a lot like running or weight lifting. Getting into it after you haven't been doing it a while sucks and there are always days where you don't feel like it but if you can force yourself through those days you can reach a state where it requires less effort.

Lol. If you'd like to check my credentials I recommend:

1) Google. 2) The Nick's Work page on my site. 3) And... you might want to actually read the opening quotes to my book on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Working-Writers-Comics-Graphic-Novels/dp/0692577106/ref=sr_1_21?ie=UTF8&qid=1506895917&sr=8-21&keywords=how+to+write+comics+and+graphic+novels

P.S. Having a doctor make an inappropriate comment about your girlfriend when he's giving you a testicular exam is insulting. Strangers on reddit, not so much.

Write on, write often!

I suggest this one.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0692577106

I might be bias 'cause it's mine. But folks seem to dig it. :)

I've also recently posted the comic script template I use on my comic writing craft page. As folks have touched on, there is no defacto standard, but I've found this template to be the quickest most efficient one to date.

http://nickmacari.com/writing-craft/

*Write on, write often! Author of "The Working Writer's Guide to Comics and Graphic Novels"

I love pirates! Do you know Chris Schweizer's work at all? His Crogan Adventures stories might be of interest to you: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Crogan-Adventures-Catfoots-Vengeance-Adventure/dp/162010203X

I posted recently, writing is 70% planning, 10% writing and 20% rewriting.

A story needs a master theme and fully developed characters. *Write on, write often! Author of "The Working Writer's Guide to Comics and Graphic Novels" http://www.amazon.com/dp/0692577106

These two books are great. Best $40 you will ever spend.

http://www.amazon.com/Words-Pictures-Business-Writing-Graphic/dp/0770434355/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1463121823&sr=1-1&keywords=words+for+pictures

http://www.amazon.com/Make-Comics-Like-Pros-Graphic/dp/0385344635/ref=pd_sim_14_11?ie=UTF8&dpID=61UB9MAkkjL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR125%2C160_&refRID=1D8HQXEZ6V4S2DP6P3Q6