Every one of us has enjoyed comics at some point growing up, and even way into adulthood. Comics are entertaining and they are a great learning tool for children who are not yet ready for serious scholarly work.
From the Superman story first published in 1938 to great new characters from DC, Marvel, and Japanese Manga, great writers that have influenced many generations to date have written great comics. What makes a great comic writer, and a great comic? Here is a comprehensive guide to writing comics.
How to get ideas for comics
A great idea starts with ordinary, mundane experiences. To leverage this, you want to carry your notebook on you at all times to note down those curios incidents or comments people make. When musing over your notebook entries later, something in there might just plant that all-important seed for a great comic.
Aside from entertainment, comics in learning are a great visual medium for teaching, especially in elementary school. So, why not draw from your own experience as a student growing up and develop comics that can make learning fun for students? Alternatively, you may approach education authorities and offer your services in writing educational comics.
How to write a winning script for comics
Now that you have found the right idea, pause for a moment, and plan before you start drawing your comic. Drawing on the fly will fly you into the headwinds of confusion and a lost storyline. You want to work by a structured storyline to carry your comic.
Instead of the sketchpad, pull that notebook and start putting down your script. Visualize how the beginning, the middle, and the end of your illustrated story will be and develop an appropriate script. Assume the role of your characters or the story’s hero and create a realistic script in a believable setting that will guide your illustration.
Using writing tools is another great strategy here. Paraphrasing tool from EduBirdie helps you in presenting an idea in many different ways. This enables you to come up with the best words for a sentence and the right structure as well.
Create an engaging layout
Ah yes, the script is right and you know your drawing is top-notch, but will the flow be captivating across the pages?
To preempt this and make sure you do not work for naught, plan your layout so that page endings entice the reader to open the next. Plan your script for every page with a rising urgency for what happens next and then throw it over to the next page.
You don’t want comics you invested a lot of time and resources tossed after the first two or three pages. It is bad for business and it is bad for the reputation. Put a lot of thought into layout planning for stellar comics.
