Making Comics Is Cool Now

UF student, Gabriel F. Camba, blogging for MMC2100. I discuss how to make great COMICS.

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Well Written Comic Characters

More likely than not, your comic will have characters. I know, crazy right? It’s simply more interesting if you have people (or things) making choices in your story.

However, there is an art to creating well-written characters, and this applies to comics as well as literature. These are not just pictures on a page. If you want your story to be good then you must treat these pictures as real people.

Sabaa Tahir, author of the Ember in the Ashes series of books, tells us in her class on SkillShare that a good story is more likely character driven than plot driven. “You don’t want to readjust your characters to fit the plot halfway through.”

That is why it is imperative that you understand what you’re working with before you write your story. Ms. Tahir provides an excellent way of doing this by essentially interviewing your character. However, before you do this you must know three things.

First things first is to know your character’s goal; what does he or she want in life? Then you must determine his or her motivation; why do they want this? Lastly you must know the conflict; what is in the way of him or her achieving this goal.

These three things are gospel and although they may seem simple they must be adhered to when developing your characters. Many writers can get wrapped up in the complexity of their own plots but if you look back to these three tenants then you will be able to keep things consistent and well-rounded.

After noting things like age and ethnicity then you must conduct the interview. Treat your character like they are right in front of you and ask them provocative open-ended questions that require more than a one word response, things like “what is the thing you least like about yourself” or “If you could make one person disappear who would it be?” If you know your characters on a personal level then the story you want to tell will come to you more naturally. 

I have struggled in the past to keep characters consistent with my story but by following simple processes like the ones Ms. Tahir has shown me you are less likely to fumble.

Photo Credits: Writing Authentic Fiction [Course on SkillShare] by Sabaa Tahir

Source: skillshare.com/classes/Writing-Authentic-Fiction-How-to-Build-a-Believable-Character/1816239284

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Memorable Character Design

https://techcrunch.com/2015/04/12/how-pixar-solves-problems-from-the-inside-out/When designing a character for a comic book, in general you want to achieve memorability; you want your character to be visually unique. There are two ways to achieve this: bold fashion and a strong silhouette.

First of all, it is good to remember that a complex design is not always the best design. Characters like Kirby or Snoopy are so well remembered because their shape and colors are so simple. Also, remember how much of a pain it would be to draw a complex character over and over throughout a comic.

Now, fashion is first and foremost the most important factor in design as the way someone dresses showcases their personality as well as social standing. Do they wear big expensive clothes or tattered rags? Colors can also play a part; warm colored clothes like yellow or red can indicate joy or passion while colors like blue can invoke melancholy and green can invoke nature or perhaps sickness.

Photo URL: https://techcrunch.com/2015/04/12/how-pixar-solves-problems-from-the-inside-out/

Muted colors, grey and black are usually avoided by character designers as they can give characters a dull look. That’s why it is important to use strong colors so that your viewer’s brains can latch on to them and associate them with your character. Think or the iconic blue fur of Sonic or Mario’s red cap and shirt.

If I were to show you a silhouette of Pikachu would you be able to recognize it? Most likely yes thanks to those iconic ears and tail. That is what it means to have a strong silhouette: unique visual cues that standout to a viewer like tails, hair or even exaggerated proportions.

Photo URL: https://characterdesignreferences.com/

Giving your character something as simple as cape or hairstyle can determine if he or she is memorable but what about shapes? It is important to remember that certain shapes have different connotations. Sharp triangular porportations signify danger; round shapes indicate cuteness and positivity; squares represent strength and fortitude.

Now of course this is not always the case. If you’re perhaps writing a more serious story that’s more realistic, then your character may just be some guy in a trench coat maybe and that’s fine. However, remember that there are still little things like accessories or even physical actions that can give your character life.

Photo Credits: 

Inside Out - Disney

CharacterDesignReferences.com

Source(s):

https://www.clipstudio.net/how-to-draw/archives/157653

https://pixel77.com/10-tips-design-characters-pro/

https://characterdesignreferences.com/visual-library-2/character-design-silhouette

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It Is Not Just A Bunch of Squares

Comics are unique as a visual medium because they are the most fluid and allow the greatest amount of creativity. Although you may be constrained to the dimensions of a page or two for traditional print comics or to a single long strip for webcomics, there is still an incredible amount of freedom for comic artists.

When you think of a comic you think of panels. You think of little square windows with characters and places in them with text bubbles floating around indicating speech and you read (at least here in the West) from left to right, top to bottom. A good comic artist knows not only how to follow these conventions but how to exploit them.

When constructing a page of a comic artists often plot out a bunch of squares and then draw within them. That’s fine and dandy but you can be more creative than that. For example: if you have a really intense action scene, don’t use simple square panels as your drawing space - instead use jagged uneven panels with sharp corners so as to convey dread and intensity.

Photo URL: Gabriel F. Camba

Remember text is also important. Sometimes an exclamation mark isn’t enough - if you really want the character to show emotion, like rage, then you could embolden and accentuate his words with different colored different sized text. Hell, what the characters say doesn’t have to just be relegated to a speech bubble. 

Photo URL: https://readcomiconline.to

Sound effects can also be used creatively. Why not incorporate their text into the scene itself. Have the repetitive sounds of a siren snake throughout the panels getting larger - this way the reader understands the sound is getting louder.

Photo URL: http://www.comicbookfx.com/result.php?tagexact=1&tags=siren

Photo Credits: 

Dark Knights: The Batman Who Laughs - DC Comics

Strange Tales #95 - Marvel

Sources: https://www.digitalartsonline.co.uk/features/illustration/20-comic-drawing-tips/

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Starting Out It Is Never Perfect

When I was young, I always had this idea in my head that if I was going to start some kind of artistic project then it had to be perfect. I always bought new sketchbooks even when the old ones were nowhere near full because I wanted to start over fresh and have everything look exactly the way I wanted.

If you are an artist or a writer, more likely than not you are a perfectionist. Many young artists have trouble beginning artistic projects because of this. It is shown that the quality of written or artistic work by people who are perfectionists actually decreases over time because they are afraid of making mistakes.

This is how I was for a long time; I did not begin anything because I was afraid of having to look back on it one day and see how bad it was. I treated everything as if it were my magnum opus. You mustn’t do this.

When I got started making comics it was ridiculous. I spent long stretches of time drawing something and then a few weeks later I would go back and change things. I kept having new ideas that I wanted to replace the old ones. The problem with this is that it is incredibly counterproductive.

The first step to overcoming this way of thinking is understanding that growth is a good thing. Seeing your journey to becoming an experienced artist/writer is something that your audience will appreciate.

Thus, there is really only one statement, trademarked by Nike, that I can use as advice. Just do it - just put your stuff out there. Don’t keep going back and reediting forever, otherwise people will never get to see your talent.

Sources: https://www.goodtherapy.org/learn-about-therapy/issues/perfectionis

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Comics Are Cool Now

I have loved making comics for a while now. When I was little I used to draw my own little stories on printer paper, fold them and staple the middle. It was then that I knew that I would end up in some sort of creative industry; maybe it would be comics.

Comics used to be lame. What I mean is we all remember the times before the Marvel Cinematic Universe - kids who read comics were nerds, geeks, dorks and whatever other stereotypical names we wanted to call them. Now in recent years with the grand success of the MCU, superheroes have come into the mainstream.

Thanks to this the comics upon which these characters are based have become more popular. Characters like Thor or the Hulk or Iron Man are well known by the public. However, this wave isn’t just relegated to superhero comics, things like webcomics have also become more popular.

Now with the internet and digital art software, the medium of comics is more popular and accessible than ever. In the old days, if you wanted to create a comic of your own you really only had one option: you had to get a job at a major corporate body like Marvel or DC and work your way up the chain until they trusted you with your own creative vision. Now, with websites like Instagram, DeviantArt or Webtoon, a young person just needs a computer and a tablet to make a comic that thousands can read whenever they want.

The art of making comics takes time and effort. It is not as simple as drawing a picture and posting it online. It’s not just about knowing how to draw characters; a comic maker is also a writer who must know the inner workings of his or her characters and their story.

Many young artists starting out making comics may be daunted by the task ahead. How do you write a comic? How do you set up the pages, the characters, the plot? I am here to discuss the art of creating good comics and how you can get started.

Photo Credit: 50yearoldcomics.com

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A Planet Fitness located at 160 Malabar Road in Palm Bay, Florida. 

Few people still attend this gym, no doubt over fears of the Corona Virus. 15-20 people occupy the building during the day as opposed to the usual 30-40

Juan Garcia, a manager, discusses gym memberships with a customer. Garcia says that even though gym members aren’t forced to wear masks all staff must do so.

Staff working at the front desk are no longer allowed to scan your membership for you at the check-in - members must do it themselves or use the Planet Fitness app.

Runners must leave every other treadmill vacant as to exercise social distancing.

Stickers line the floor emphasizing the CDC’s 6-foot distancing rule. 

Apart from the usual paper towels and disinfectant at each cleaning station, hand sanitizer is now being provided too.