Comic Book Script Archive and Formatting

Comic Book Script Archive

One of the great things about writing comics is that there's no set format for writing a script. Unlike screenwriting, where there are lots of set rules that have to be applied to formatting. I've been playing around with my own template for writing comic book scripts in word, and I've been getting inspiration from The Comic Book Script Archive, which is a part of Andy Schmidt's Comics Experience.

What I like about the archive is that has lots of scripts from some of comics' greatest writers, as well as a template from Comics Experience for newcomers to use for their own scripts. While picking the same scripting style as another writing won't make you a better writer yourself, sometimes it just helps to see how some writers tackle different panel descriptions and how they communicate to the artist.

Some of the writers that are featured are Warren Ellis, Jason Aaron, Matt Fraction, Neil Gaiman, Mark Waid, and Brian K. Vaughan.

I actually used the Comics Experience template as a jumping off point for my own script format, which is pictured below.

Kenny Porter's Current Script Template

If you want more information on how to format scripts or create your own template I'd suggest reading Make Comics Like the Pros by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente. They lay out how to create your own template in a very simple, concise way.

Short Comic Book Stories - Back to Basics

I’ve made a promise to myself that I won’t start any more huge projects until Bluster, The Dominoes, and a new secret project are wrapped up. In that time I do want to work on my ability to write short comic book stories. It’s been a while since I wrote a short, but I remember how useful it was to learn to tell a full story in a quarter of the pages that standard comic books usually have.

The best part about writing is that you can choose your mentors. The even better part of choosing your mentors is that you never have to meet them. I’ve learned just as much from studying other people’s work as I have from talking to actual writers. In order to sharpen my short story skills (until I can take a Comics Experience course I’ve been dying to enroll in) I decided to pick up All-Star Future Shocks from 2000 AD.

All-Star Future Shocks from 2000 AD

Some of my favorite creators have shorts between these covers. Including Grant Morrison, Neil Gaiman, Peter Milligan, and Frazer Irving.

I wanted to share this because it’s important to go back to basics and sharpen your skills for projects down the road. Making a mini-series or original graphic novel is fun, but there’s still room to dabble in short comic book stories or strips in order to experiment with narrative and characters.