So here are the links for each of the writing advice pages that I had during today's meeting. I'll also paste in the outline of today's notes as well.
John Steinbeck's Six Tips on Writing
Writing Tips from Elmore Leonard, Neil Gaiman, Margaret Atwood, etc.
Kurt Vonnegut's Eight Tips to Writing a Good Story
Six Rules for a Great Story
Pixar's 22 Rules of Storytelling
Below are my notes, all of which came from writing lists off of the Writer's Digest website.
Attitude:
1) Take yourself seriously and act like a professional
2) Do not write as revenge
3) Just start writing, don’t try to wait for perfect moment/perfect mood
4) Don’t get jealous/competitive
5) Don’t try to be trendy.
6) Don’t be a perfectionist.
7) Write in small pieces
Plot:
1) Start with a smash, don’t build up to it -- “Bob crashed his car”
2) Show, don’t tell
3) There needs to be cause and effect -- do not make people do things only because you want them to or because of the plot
4) Escalate the stakes throughout the story
5) Don’t do what people expect you to do based solely on your premise
6) Avoid prologues
7) If it’s something you’d skip over in someone else’s book, don’t put it in
Characters/Language:
1) Dialogue is how you show who a character is -- don’t have everyone talk about how wonderful Mary is, have Mary be a wonderful person and let readers figure it out
2) Make sure each character has a voice -- they shouldn’t all ‘sound’ the same
3) Be conversational but don’t get bogged down in how people actually talk -- “Hi, how are you?” “I’m fine. You?” “Oh, I’m okay.” “That’s good.”
4) Try to simplify your character’s lines -- people don’t speak in prose.
5) Don’t overemphasize.
6) Avoid regional dialect
7) Everyone has to want something/don’t write about wimps
8) Be sadistic
Storytelling:
1) Do not clutter with detail -- don’t need to show Bob getting dressed, brushing teeth, eating breakfast, driving, then crashing car -- just show the car crash
2) Try to make every page interesting -- don’t waste time on filler
3) Don’t try and telegraph when you’re being funny, thoughtful, serious, etc.
4) Kill your darlings.
What Not to Do:
1) Avoid cliches -- the morning routine, explaining a day-to-day routine, start of a phone conversation, etc.
2) Don’t rely on coincidence
3) Don’t try to force symbolism/themes
4) Don’t write for the invisible audience
5) Don’t write for your mother
6) Don’t focus on the weather
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
"Submission Guidelines for every Comic and Manga Publisher in the Universe"
This is a list compiled almost two years ago, but it's chock-full of information on what each specific comic publishing company is looking for in a writer/penciller/inker/colorist.
http://www.optimumwound.com/the-submission-guidelines-for-every-comic-and-manga-publisher-in-the-universe.htm
If you were interviewing for a regular nine-to-five job, you'd need to tailor your résumé to match what the job requirements are to make you seem like the most suitable candidate -- portfolio reviews are no different. If you're looking to get a job doing art chores for one of these companies (I'm looking at you, James), make sure your portfolio/submission shows that you can do the job they're looking for.
As I wrote before, the list hasn't been updated since a year before the DC relaunch set the comic industry on a bit of a boom again, so what each company may be looking for now could be different. Some publishers are missing from the list. I didn't see BOOM! Studios anywhere on the list and they've become quite an up-and-coming publisher of both licensed and creator-owned titles. Looking at the BOOM! Studio's website I found the following info on their submission process; apparently you can post art samples (not stories or scripts) to their message boards. They "do not reply to these posts directly, but have hired several people that way." Info on that here: http://forums.boom-studios.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=4
Not all these options are necessarily work-for-hire or freelance opportunities; Image Comics is entirely creator-owned comics -- basically you bring your comic, story pitch, script, and art samples to them and they'll help you publish it (at a cost to you, of course.) But this model has worked for people -- look at Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore & Charlie Adlard's The Walking Dead, Brian Michael Bendis & Mike Avon Oeming's Powers, or John Layman and Rob Guillory's Chew as a few hugely successful comics from Image.
Lastly, and most exciting for me, is the emergence of Kickstarter as a means to not just financing a project you're working on but also as a grass-roots way to find an audience. A lot of the comics projects posted on KS look like junk (bad design abounds!), but should you present your idea well you can find a following while maintaining complete creative control and ownership over your property. It's all do-it-yourself: you need to find a printer to print your story, organize shipping of the books once their complete, etc, etc. But isn't that the most exciting prospect?
Well, that's enough rambling from me. Hope some/all of you find this useful -- if not now, maybe at some point down the road.
http://www.optimumwound.com/the-submission-guidelines-for-every-comic-and-manga-publisher-in-the-universe.htm
If you were interviewing for a regular nine-to-five job, you'd need to tailor your résumé to match what the job requirements are to make you seem like the most suitable candidate -- portfolio reviews are no different. If you're looking to get a job doing art chores for one of these companies (I'm looking at you, James), make sure your portfolio/submission shows that you can do the job they're looking for.
As I wrote before, the list hasn't been updated since a year before the DC relaunch set the comic industry on a bit of a boom again, so what each company may be looking for now could be different. Some publishers are missing from the list. I didn't see BOOM! Studios anywhere on the list and they've become quite an up-and-coming publisher of both licensed and creator-owned titles. Looking at the BOOM! Studio's website I found the following info on their submission process; apparently you can post art samples (not stories or scripts) to their message boards. They "do not reply to these posts directly, but have hired several people that way." Info on that here: http://forums.boom-studios.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=4
Not all these options are necessarily work-for-hire or freelance opportunities; Image Comics is entirely creator-owned comics -- basically you bring your comic, story pitch, script, and art samples to them and they'll help you publish it (at a cost to you, of course.) But this model has worked for people -- look at Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore & Charlie Adlard's The Walking Dead, Brian Michael Bendis & Mike Avon Oeming's Powers, or John Layman and Rob Guillory's Chew as a few hugely successful comics from Image.
Lastly, and most exciting for me, is the emergence of Kickstarter as a means to not just financing a project you're working on but also as a grass-roots way to find an audience. A lot of the comics projects posted on KS look like junk (bad design abounds!), but should you present your idea well you can find a following while maintaining complete creative control and ownership over your property. It's all do-it-yourself: you need to find a printer to print your story, organize shipping of the books once their complete, etc, etc. But isn't that the most exciting prospect?
Well, that's enough rambling from me. Hope some/all of you find this useful -- if not now, maybe at some point down the road.
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Thirteen Writing Tips from Chuck Palahniuk
Re-stumbled across this as well: 13 Writing Tips by Chuck Palahniuk
It seems we already have "Number Six" down, but we do it monthly not weekly.
Some of these might help you out if you feel stuck or you're struggling with your story; I find myself doing a lot of these on my own and sometimes they help (and even work!).
It seems we already have "Number Six" down, but we do it monthly not weekly.
Some of these might help you out if you feel stuck or you're struggling with your story; I find myself doing a lot of these on my own and sometimes they help (and even work!).
A Little Composition Lesson from Milton Caniff
I had favorited this link on Twitter months ago and just found it again; this is a quick little lesson about comic panel composition from the late, great Milton Caniff. Not an earth-shattering revelation -- just something to keep in mind.
Story Composition
For those who don't recognize his name: Milton Caniff was the writer/cartoonist of war/adventure comics strips Terry and the Pirates in the 1930s and Steve Canyon in the 1940s up through his death in 1988 (although he didn't draw all of Steve Canyon after the first few years).
Story Composition
For those who don't recognize his name: Milton Caniff was the writer/cartoonist of war/adventure comics strips Terry and the Pirates in the 1930s and Steve Canyon in the 1940s up through his death in 1988 (although he didn't draw all of Steve Canyon after the first few years).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)