Writing a Comic Book Memior: Part 3

Hello Comic Fans!

I've been having a bit of a crazy week dealing with some family stuff, but I'm back on track with writing now. I actually recorded an episode of a podcast on writing, which I'll share when it gets posted.

The memoir is coming along on schedule. I was sent some updates by Gale and she asked me if it she was good to start working on the layouts. I told her to go for it, so now I'm waiting for those sweet pages to roll in! She's a delight to collaborate with and I couldn't be happier with the process.

I still don't have anything that I can share just yet, so please enjoy this little snippet of writing advice from Brian Clark that I completely agree with.

Makes sense to me.

I'm revising the outline for the rest of the story and coming up with the pitch for the book. I plan on submitting to both comic book and regular book publishers. I might even send it to some literary agents, since comic book memoirs tend to be a bit more popular in the literary world. At least when it comes to academia.

The projects I'm spending more time on while I work through these next steps are a manga inspired title that I talk about on the podcast, as well as the edits of the chapters of the novel I wrote this past summer.

My Writing Space

Set the mood, baby

Over the years I've realized that I have to set a kind of mood around myself in order to get any good writing done. While I would love to wake up in the wee hours of the morning and write everyday, my schedule doesn't allow for it. Some of my most productive writing sessions have been at 3 a.m. when I had to work a third shift at the grocery store. I think it has to do with the fact that the world is basically asleep. That romantic notion tends to fuel me as much as a good cup of coffee, which is never far away when I’m typing.

My coffee mug and approving bust of Thomas Jefferson.

But it takes more than the stalwart gaze of Thomas Jefferson to get me ready to put pen to paper, fingers to keys, or creativity to the grindstone.

My routine

Cleaning’ up the town

If I’m writing at home I have to clean the apartment first. I've heard lots of other writers say this, but somehow having a clean work space makes you far more productive. Maybe the clutter of laundry on my floor somehow sucks the life out of my creative juices, using them to baste the t-shirts that have accumulated over the week.

My closet just threw up . . . OH LOOK A GUNPLA BOX!

Noises off

I have to turn my phone off or set it to silent. I still check it often, because I’m a slave to technology, but the sound of my text messages arriving or Facebook updates start to drive me crazy.

Little breaks

I do treat myself. Probably too often, but it helps take the pressure off of deadlines and big projects. I’m a big fan of YouTube series, since many episodes are only 5-12 minutes. And if there’s one thing I can justify it’s always finding time for an AVGN (Angry Video Game Nerd) or Game Grumps video.

Doesn't take rocket appliances

Basically I've been studying how I write in order to maximize my output. Going to school full-time, working, and trying to write and produce comics is stressful. When I have time to write I want to make sure I’m juicing that orange to bottle-filling capacity. I’m not sure what I meant by that, but I hope you at least pretended to understand what I was talking about. I’d love to hear from other creative people about their mental state when they write, paint, or send themselves macaroni versions of celebrities in the mail as personalized gifts.

Write What You Know -- Unless Your Life is Boring

Writing Advice

Writing advice is something writers try to give each other constantly. Like middle-aged women in a book club talking about their weight loss regiments, writers love to share what works for them. Or lies they tell others and believe themselves order to feel more productive. I want to come out right now and admit that not only am I guilty of the writing crimes, but I can hash it out with the harshest of housewives about how many skinless chicken breasts I eat in a week.

On average it's five. But that's when I haven't swallowed a whole pizza in some sort of childish state of depression . . . Or as a reward for a mundane task . . . Or because I rented The Wolverine tonight and wasn't even hungry but just needed something to do with my hands and mouth (which gets me in more trouble than you'd think *wink wink).

But all joking aside, at least for a few sentences, I just wanted to trash talk the piece of advice that I hear the most. Do I hate the piece of advice? No, in fact there's some truth in it, but when people hold it as gospel it kind of puts writing in a bad light.

"Write what you know."

. . .

That's it! We solved it! Writing is done. Killed the creative process. Shut it down, Marv! Shut it all down!

. . .

Seriously though, that's kind of a crock of shit. Most people don't know anything. Hell, I recently researched group therapy sessions for three hours just to write a two page script scene. I didn't know anything about group therapy, I had to seek it out. If I had to write that scene based on what I already knew it'd be about people dog sitting, drinking iced coffee, and reading about giant Japanese robots. And while Mobile Suit Dog Watcher Coffee X might sell to a limited crowd, I just felt like it didn't fit the story I was trying to tell.

I'm a much bigger fan of the advice "write what you like." Because generally what you like is something you're going to know a lot about. Now you might think that dog watching and drinking iced coffee sounds like a riveting tale. We all know that iced coffee can contain way more caffeine depending on the brand, so that's ripe for adventure sewing!

I just thought I'd warn people about taking writing advice too seriously. When Stephen King says that you have to be willing to "kill your darlings," he doesn't mean get rid of every fantastic idea you have, just the ones that don't fit. And when people tell you to "write what you know," just remember that sometimes what you know is boring. Because honestly, compared to the lives of some of my characters, I'm a real watching paint dry kind of fellow.

My best advice -- just keep practicing!

Love,

Kenny Porter