NYCC Cosplay, Part 1
Holy cow, there were a lot of costumes at the New York Comic Con. We tried to capture them all, and we’re posting hundreds of pictures on our Facebook page. Come join us there!
Author: Glenn Hauman
National Graphic Novel Writing Month, Day 13: Even if you don’t wanna…
Even if you’re sick…
Even if it’s only a sentence…
Write something.
After all, one sentence may turn into two sentences.
And two sentences may turn into a paragraph.
And before you know it, you might have written a panel. Or two panels. Or even a page.
No, it might not be good. It might even be lousy and you may need to rewrite the entire thing. But it might be good. It might even be brilliant. Particularly if you’re on those really good meds that will knock you out and give you all those really fun hallucinations. (Hey, if it works for Grant Morrison and Jamie Delano…)
And writing short stuff is more useful than you think it is. We’ll come back to that later.
Remember: you can follow all the NaGraNoWriMo posts here!
National Graphic Novel Writing Month, Day 12: Comic Scripts AREN’T Screenplays, by David Alan Mack
Day twelve of NaGraNoWriMo, and we’re bringing in some fresh voices to add their expertise. First up is David Alan Mack, the national bestselling author of nearly twenty books, including Wildfire, Harbinger, Reap the Whirlwind, Road of Bones, and the Star Trek Destiny trilogy (Gods of Night, Mere Mortals, and Lost Souls) as well as a writer for television and– most important for our work today– the writer of the Farscape: Scorpius comic for BOOM!
<
p class=”MsoPlainText”>My first training as a scriptwriter was a screenwriting
101 course I took more than 25 years ago. In that class I learned the
fundamentals of writing for motion pictures and television, and I refined my
understanding of those forms a few years later during my studies at NYU’s film
school. Nearly a decade later, after three sales to the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star
Trek Voyager television series, I had to unlearn most of what I knew about
scriptwriting when I got a chance to write for the Star Trek comic books, then produced by the now-shuttered
WildStorm.
A lot of scriptwriters make the mistake of thinking that
if one knows how to write teleplays or screenplays, that comic books are just
the same thing without the constraints of a limited budget or an overworked
visual-effects department. After all, they both describe stories pared down to
images, sounds, and dialogue. However, the two forms differ on a few very
important points.
The first key difference is how the two formats break up
the narrative. A screenplay or teleplay simply has scenes, which might or might not be subdivided into shots. Scenes can start or end anywhere
on the page. It’s a minimalist format intended to serve as the blueprint for a
story while affording the production team great latitude for interpretation.
A comic-book script needs to break up its story into pages, and those are further broken up
into panels. As a general rule, a
page should be treated as a discrete storytelling unit, which is a fancy way of
saying don’t start or end a scene in the middle of a page. It’s also important
not to clutter a page with too many panels, or to crowd a panel with too many
lines of caption or dialogue text.
National Graphic Novel Writing Month, Day 11: Can you afford to get sick?
Day eleven. Are you ahead of where you thought you’d be? Or have you fallen behind?
It happens, you know. Some days, you’re sick and can’t write. Or you aren’t inspired. Or you’re stuck doing something that takes you away from they keyboard.
If you’re smart, you built in some cushion for your deadline– so with any luck, you’re a bit ahead and can take that emergency day. But if not– you’re in for a bad crunch at the end.
Ever wonder why so many stories fall apart at the end? Yes, in the words of William Goldman, endings are a bitch– but they aren’t often improved by doing it at a rush. And a lot of endings are simply that– rushed.
If you’re working in a bit of time, you have the chance to not only take a day off if you need to, you could spend that extra time going back and revising, cleaning up, and otherwise tweaking. And remember, there’s somebody next on the assembly line who can’t get started until you deliver pages– the artist. The sooner there’s a script to work on, the sooner he can get started– and if you can give him more time to do the job, he’ll deliver a better project– or at least, he’ll think better of you because you aren’t forcing him to rush as much.
Otherwise, you’ll be typing at 11:05 PM to hit a midnight deadline. And only an idiot would allow that to happen. See, right now, it’s only 11:03. Plenty of time to finis– ooh, who’s on The Daily Show tonight? Really? Okay, I’ll get started after that… after Colbert, for sure.
Remember: you can follow all the NaGraNoWriMo posts here!
Monday Mix-Up: Klingons Are A Superstitious, Cowardly Lot…
That’s it! An omen! I shall become a Bat’leth!
(Hat tip: Irene Gallo and the other fine people at tor.com.)
National Graphic Novel Writing Month, Day 10: Can conventions get your graphic novel written, part three
Day ten, and also day three or four or ninety-seven of the New York Comic Con… and the sad truth of how they can wreck your schedules. So let’s pick up a few quickies:
For those who find they are having a little trouble there are a number of tips online that can be helpful. Below are a few tips that professionals in the industry have posted on blogs and news sites over the last couple of years.
Online at the Clockwork Storybook blog site is a nice in depth look at the writing process by Bill Willingham (writer of Fables). This takes a whole look at scripting keeping in mind that this must also be interpreted by the artist.
On his personal website Warren Ellis (writer of Transmetropolitan) posts an helpful answer to character motivation and action concerning “Want/Get/Do“.
And from our own site archives: two years ago John Ostrander (writer of Suicide Squad) posted an article with writing tips all writers can benefit from, covering the creative process and what being a writer means and does to you as a person.
Also: Dennis O’Neil did a more detailed write up on the differences between the full script method and the Marvel method which is much better than mine, and I should have lifted it directly. Here’s part one, and here’s part two.
Instead, I’ll lift his RECOMMENDED READING and suggest his book, The DC Comics Guide to Writing Comics, which somehow wasn’t included on our first list of writing books to look at. It’s truly excellent, and the only reason I can think of that it slipped my mind is that it’s constantly out on loan to other people who are using it to become better writers themselves.
Hat tip to Kyle Gnepper for the assist on tracking down articles. Remember: you can follow all the NaGraNoWriMo posts here!
National Graphic Novel Writing Month, Day 9: Can conventions get your graphic novel written, part two
Day nine, in the middle of New York Comic Con, and pointing out that comics conventions can be good for your graphic novel.
You can see who else is out there. A quick trip through Artists Alley will find you numerous styles and artists who may inspire you, and if you strike up a chat with them, some may even be willing to collaborate with you.
You can attend various panels on the craft of writing, and hear how some of your idols solved some of their own writing problems.
You can make industry contacts, people you may be able to show your finished graphic novel script.
But the important word back there is finished. You have to have a script ready to drop in the mail the second that an editor or publisher says, “sure, send it to me”. More, you have to have your graphic novel so well put together in your own head that you can verbally deliver what it’s about– one, because carrying around a script is awkward and geeky, and two, because knowing it means you can tell it.
So make no mistake, the goal is to finish writing. A convention can help you, and can certainly help your career, but you can’t have a career without something to base your career on.
Remember: you can follow all the NaGraNoWriMo posts here!
NYCC: I Finally Figured Out The Digital Comics Adoption Rate
After a very very VERY long time (over a decade and a half) dealing with the concept of electronic publishing and how it was going to come about– particularly how it was going to be adopted– I finally figured out how to describe it at yesterday’s ICv2 Conference on Comics and Digital. And sorry to disappoint Mr. Gold, but it’s not from Blazing Saddles.
Electronic publishing and distribution, always far off in the distance, not here yet, not here yet…
…wait, it’s here already? And it’s doing what to the industry?
See if you can figure out who represents who.
National Graphic Novel Writing Month, Day #8: Can conventions get your graphic novel written?
Day eight, which coincides with the first day of the New York Comic Con. The obvious question for the day: can conventions get your graphic novel written?
HELL NO.
You know what gets your graphic novel done? Butt in chair in front of writing implement of choice, fingers to writing implement of choice, one word after the other, until you have it written.
Time spent wandering the aisles is not spent writing.
Time going to parties is not spent writing.
Time sitting in panels listening to writers does not get a single word of yours down.
And time spent obsessing over your hall costume embroidery is definitely time spent not writing.
Get your tailfeathers down and write. You know how to do it. So do it.
Tomorrow: how conventions can help get your graphic novel written.
Remember: you can follow all the NaGraNoWriMo posts here!
NYCC: A Party for the CBLDF tonight! (and a plug for the co-opetition)
Normally we wouldn’t dream of sending you over to someone else’s web site, because we need every bit of traffic we can get, but we would be remiss in not pointing you to The Beat, who have done their usual great job of listing most of the events taking place around NYCC/NYAF, but are also throwing a great party of their own tonight to benefit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund:
Come support Free Expression, the 2010 LIBERTY ANNUAL, and mingle with the greatest talents in comics, at the
CBLDF’s NYCC Welcome Party, presented by Image Comics & The Beat
this Thursday at The Village Pourhouse Restaurant Row! We’ll have
special gifts, copies of the Liberty Annual and special open bar
bracelets! Come out and support the CBLDF!Starting at 8 p.m., this event is free and open to everyone! With
a suggested donation of $10 or more, you will receive a special gift
bag, full of goodies from Image Comics & CBLDF! In addition to great
gifts, an open bar will be available for donations of $30 and $50.
Preordering bracelets is strongly encouraged, as we’ll have a very small
quantity of them at the door. For information on Open Bar bracelets,
please visit: http://tinyurl.com/38rgblr. The Village Pourhouse
(http://ph46.villagepourhouse.com/ ) is conveniently located near the
Jacob Javits Convention Center and always provides an excellent time
with a fun atmosphere.Start your New York Comic Con off right by celebrating with the
CBLDF, Image Comics, and The Beat. The CBLDF’s NYCC Welcome Party will
feature surprise guest artists from the pages of CBLDF’s LIBERTY ANNUAL
2010, as well as a chance to meet comics’ best creators, insiders, and
fellow fans, in a star-spangled festival of good comics and free speech!What: CBLDF’s NYCC Welcome Party, presented by Image Comics
(http://www.imagecomics.com ), The Beat https://www.comicsbeat.com/ ),
and the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund http://cbldf.org/ ) !When: Thursday, October 7, from 8 to 10 p.m.
Where: Village Pourhouse Restaurant Row – 366 W. 46th St.
Who: Anyone who is 21 and over – IDs will be checked!
Why: Support Free Speech, Mingle With Top Creators, and Enjoy Free Food and Great Gifts!
The CBLDF’s NYCC Welcome Party is also a terrific opportunity to become a
member of the Fund or to renew existing memberships. You can also visit
our website to become a member, or support the Fund by shopping at our
Web Store. (If you cannot attend the party, please visit your Local
Comic Shop to pick up a copy of the 2010 LIBERTY ANNUAL, available 10/6
and featuring some of the most talented creators working today!)
Note: this is the MIDTOWN Village Pourhouse, not the one down on 3rd and 11th from years past.
