Scan barcode
A review by jason_pym
Words for Pictures: The Art and Business of Writing Comics and Graphic Novels by Brian Michael Bendis
3.0
This is more like “an introduction to…”, and while it has some interesting information and points you in the right direction, it does not go into the nuts and bolts of any aspect of comic book writing: This is not the place to find information on character, plot and good dialogue, or even comic specific information that you find in McCloud’s Understanding Comics (which I thought this would be like). To give an example, there’s a chapter on the business side of things by Bendis’ wife which has a list of legal terms that you would do well to consider in a business contract; more useful and interesting (to me, anyway) would have been actual sample contracts.
It is also specifically geared toward writing for the big corporate companies (Marvel/DC*). So the information we do get is advice on how to communicate your story to the artist, someone that you have been partnered with by an editor and who you may never have met in person. This consists of lessons such as:
Pace out actions over a number of panels, never try and cram several plot points into one panel.
Do not stay in one location for more than, say, six pages, otherwise the story will lose momentum.
Give the artist a say in the story, whether that be a lot (through a Marvel-style one page character story) or just listening to their input on the layout of a single page.
Don’t forget until page 12 to tell the artist the hero is carrying a sword.
Etc.
There is a similar section with editor interviews, here the advice is things like: Send in pitches (ie, the whole story) not teasers – especially if you are an unknown, it’s not enough to know you can set a story up, you have to show you can finish it.
There was a couple things useful to prospective comics artists. First, when sending in your portfolio keep it under 4mb. Lead with comic book pages (with panels laid out) to show you can do the job: Just because you can do a splash image of Wolverine doesn’t mean you can put a story together.
My favourite thing from the book was Joe Quesada’s foreword, which is generally great but includes heartening words in a story about his daughter figure skating – “if you’re not falling (=failing) you’re not trying hard enough”. That works for most creative industries, I think.
All in all I was hoping for something a bit more detailed and substantial, but if what you’re looking for is how to write for big name superhero comics, this is a good place to start.
* There is not much mention of DC, all the interviews are with Marvel guys or the occasional Dark Horse guy, not that it makes much difference.
It is also specifically geared toward writing for the big corporate companies (Marvel/DC*). So the information we do get is advice on how to communicate your story to the artist, someone that you have been partnered with by an editor and who you may never have met in person. This consists of lessons such as:
Pace out actions over a number of panels, never try and cram several plot points into one panel.
Do not stay in one location for more than, say, six pages, otherwise the story will lose momentum.
Give the artist a say in the story, whether that be a lot (through a Marvel-style one page character story) or just listening to their input on the layout of a single page.
Don’t forget until page 12 to tell the artist the hero is carrying a sword.
Etc.
There is a similar section with editor interviews, here the advice is things like: Send in pitches (ie, the whole story) not teasers – especially if you are an unknown, it’s not enough to know you can set a story up, you have to show you can finish it.
There was a couple things useful to prospective comics artists. First, when sending in your portfolio keep it under 4mb. Lead with comic book pages (with panels laid out) to show you can do the job: Just because you can do a splash image of Wolverine doesn’t mean you can put a story together.
My favourite thing from the book was Joe Quesada’s foreword, which is generally great but includes heartening words in a story about his daughter figure skating – “if you’re not falling (=failing) you’re not trying hard enough”. That works for most creative industries, I think.
All in all I was hoping for something a bit more detailed and substantial, but if what you’re looking for is how to write for big name superhero comics, this is a good place to start.
* There is not much mention of DC, all the interviews are with Marvel guys or the occasional Dark Horse guy, not that it makes much difference.