Hey Comic Creators,
Something I've been really enjoying this year is looking at the comic-creating process in new and interesting ways. And in yesterday's video, I talked about working in reverse.
It essentially boils down to thinking about the last panel on your page instead of your first and figuring out the steps needed to get there. That helps you define your panel count, keeps the pace up and ensures that the last panel is (hopefully) the most interesting, meaning readers will want to turn the page.
A lot of traditional artists, while drawing, will turn their canvas upside down or reflect it into a mirror in order to spot flaws or errors. If we're intensely focusing on a puzzle, it can be difficult to see what's right in front of us. Taking breaks helps, but turning the process upside down can have just as much, if not more, impact.
Sticking with the drawing analogy, if you've ever drawn before or can remember when you first learned, I'm sure there are times where you'd start a picture only to realise that you run out of room on the page. So you tend to get a big upper part of a body but really tiny legs where you ran out of roo. (confession, this still happens to me on occasion).
That can happen with comics sometimes, too. You plan out the first few panels, thinking you've got plenty of room to finish off the page, only to realise that you don't and so you either need to start again or make the panels progressively smaller in order to fit all of the story beats in.
And that's not going to work if there's a lot of detail and dialogue that needs to go into those panels.
So what you're doing, by working in reverse, is plotting two points and joining the dots between them. Plot 1 is the last panel on the previous page and plot 2 is the last panel on the current page. It's much easier to navigate from plot 1 when you know where plot 2 actually is.
And just like an artist, who will rough in a gesture or construction lines before detailing out their drawing, the comic creator is doing the same thing.
Like with a lot of these new ways of working, it may not work for you, but it might also come in handy when you're really struggling with a page. So give it a go and see if it helps.
Before I leave you, my cohort course is officially launching next month (April 8th) and I'd love to know how people feel about it. I've made a Google form that I'd really appreciate you filling out if you can.
https://forms.gle/BeYxWHQzwLEUyS976
I'm not going to lie, I'm feeling really anxious about it. I don't have a huge audience and so most of the time I'm fumbling around in the dark, trying to figure things out blind. But I've also realised that if I don't actually ask people, I'll never really know, even if I'm scared of the potential answers.
So if you could do that, I'd be very grateful!
I'll see you next week
-John
Get your pre-production comic planner
I'm offering my pre-production comic planner for 50% off to subscribers of this newsletter. Find it using the link below:
https://brinkleycomics.ck.page/products/comic-creator-planner-pre-production?promo=BRINKLEY
Use the planner for the following:
✍️ Writing your outline
🦸♀️ Organising your character profiles
📜 Housing your script
🎨Collecting concept drawings/references
💵 Planning your art budget
📏 Figuring out your comic page dimensions
📅 A work schedular
📃 A to-do list
✅ Recommended tasks
💡 I've also included tooltips throughout to guide you
