Studying Comic Book Craft

Studying Comic Book Craft

Writing every single day is only half the battle for someone looking to create their own story. It doesn't matter if it's a comic, a novel, or a screenplay, the only way to get better at something is to constantly expose yourself to elements of your craft.

Despite being in school for the past umpteen years, I've found ways to learn a little more about creating comic books and the comic book industry nearly every day of the week. They might not be big leaps or bounds, but even the littlest bit of information or exposure keeps me excited about writing and making comics with other creators.

Podcasts

I spend a lot of time in the car, so listening to podcasts that talk about comic book craft helps me feel like I'm less of a road zombie between errands and classes.

Right now one of my favorite podcasts about creating comics is Decompressed by Kieron Gillen (Young Avengers, Phonogram). Gillen talks to other creators about creating and crafting comics, and the guests always provide deep insight and methods for producing great material.

Decompressed Podcast Cover

Books

I try to read a book on comic book craft at least one every week or two weeks, even if it's just a chapter a day or every other day. There are a ton of books that you can get on the subject of making comics. So here are a few that stand out on my shelf:

• Make Comics Like the Pros - by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente
• The DC Comics Guide to Writing Comics - by Dennis O'Neil
• The Insider's Guide to Creating Comics and Graphic Novels - by Andy Schmidt
• Making Comics - by Scott McCloud

I'd personally recommend starting with The DC Comics Guide, because O'Neil goes into detail about setting up a plot, character arc, and a resolution to a single-issue comic book script.

The DC Comics Guide to Writing Comics - O'Neil

Reading Comics

This is a big one, and it's not always easy to do. I try to read at least a single comic book every day of the week. I'll often read it once for fun, then go back and analyze how panels were paced, where the cliffhangers and page turns were used, and how the story played out over 20-24 pages. Having apps like Marvel Unlimited and Scribd help a lot for this, since it saves me serious money on a daily basis.

You can't really write if you don't read.

Just make sure not to replace all writing with reading - I'm guilty of that sometimes. Haha

Finally

I try to remember that some days I'm not going to find anything new, and that's fine. Even if I do one of these things it feels like I'm making steps in the right direction. I'd suggest adopting any of these habits if you want to keep your motivation up and deepen your knowledge of comic book craft on a daily or even weekly basis.

Comics Experience Make Comics Podcast Ep. 71 - Guest Appearance!

I was asked to talk on Ep. 71 of the Comics Experience Make Comics Podcast to talk about works inspire me to make my own comics. The other fantastic guests are Paul Allor, Amy Chu, Rich Douek, Bryan Richmond, and Joe Sergi!

Listen to the podcast

A big thanks to Joey Groah and Andy Schmidt, as well as the whole Comics Experience team!

Writing Improvements for Mr. Porter

I've been really lacking when it comes to writing up posts on this blog, but I do have a good reason for that. You see I've been putting my nose to the grindstone so much that I now only have a hole on the front of my face. I knew that I had the whole summer to write comic book scripts and pitches, but I didn't know I was going to spend the entire season doing exactly that.

I regret nothing!

Don't get me wrong, I go outside all the time. Between walking the dogs, going for runs, and taking strolls with my headphones on, I keep active. And a good book and a tall cup of iced coffee usually get me outside in the evenings.

The stories I've been working on are some of my best. Do I think that the things I've written in the past were bad? No, not at all. But I have seen an increase in creativity and skill from myself that I've never noticed before. Usually after a year or so I would notice a jump in my craft, but lately I've been jumping by leaps in bounds.

How can I tell without sounding like I'm giving myself fellatio?

That's a hard question (laughs like a schoolgirl at that pun), but I think I can answer it. The help that I've received from fellow writers and people in the comics industry has been phenomenal this year. The Comics Experience Workshop has been a huge help to me. The staff of Comics Experience, led by Andy Schmidt, is so knowledgeable and willing to push others to succeed that it should be criminal. Monthly challenges and critiquing other writer's scripts has kept me on my toes this year and I'm very thankful for it.

If you'd like to know more, here's a video for a bit of a visual appetizer:

Learn more about Comics Experience courses and the Creators Workshop community from Comics Experience on Vimeo.

If you're thinking about writing or drawing comics I can't recommend Comics Experience enough. They have classes for every aspect of the comic book industry and workshops each month that delve deeper into the creative and business sides of panels and gutters.

Instead of sitting around and asking yourself if you should create your own comics, why not just sign up and see if you like it?

Also, I want to point out that I'm not getting paid for this. This is pure opinion. Andy Schmidt has no idea that I'm writing this post.

So as I sip on this tall iced coffee before I go for my daily run, I want to remind everyone that they should always pursue what they love and surround themselves with others looking to succeed.

PORTER OUT!

*Drops invisible microphone*