Heroes of the Lost Age: Night Man

 Hello and welcome to the second edition of Heroes of the Lost Age!

Our new lost hero explored is...Night Man!

Night Man made his comics debut in The Strangers #1 and Night Man #1, created by Steve Englehart and Rick Hoberg in 1993 as a part of the Ultraverse imprint of Malibu Comics. What's the story you ask? Night Man is about Johnny Domino/Domingo, a jazz musician operating in the Bay Area, until a cosmic event called "The Jumpstart" endowed him with the power to hear evil thoughts of others around him, and to see in the dark. At the cost of his ability to sleep.

Armed with this new ability, Domino put together a costume to fight criminals as the Night Man.

The character has undergone certain changes as to his powers and development. In the second relaunch of the comic book series, Night Man had his powers altered by Rhiannon, enabling him to see a dark aura around people, generate lightning from his hands, fade into the darkness for stealth, and being mentally linked to a dagger that was bestowed upon him by Rhiannon which he can sense from a distance and cut portals in the air for teleportation. But Rhiannon's gift came with a cost, Night Man must consume a broth of human organs in order to survive.

In 1995, Night Man made his TV debut in the old Ultraforce cartoon. In the episode "Night and the Night Man", his origin is told in the same fashion as the comic book. When Johnny is turned into an Ultra like others involved in the accident, team members Hardcase and Contrary try to recruit him to their ranks as their adversary Chrysalis terrorizes San Francisco.

Though it was declared official Malibu Comics had fallen by their being purchased by Marvel Comics in 1995, Night Man would make his presence felt once more in a live action TV series starring Matt McColm as the title character from 1997 to 1999. The series was created by Glen A. Larson.

In contrast to the comic book incarnation, Night Man's origin is told differently as to not being called an "Ultra." He's struck by a bolt of lightning in a freak cable car accident which gives him his powers. Although he battles a different villain in each episode, Night Man's arch enemy is computer billionaire Kieran Keyes (Kim Coates) who would kill his father in the premiere of the second and final season.

The TV version of Night Man is painted in a different light. Instead of a makeshift costume he put together himself, a tech wizard gives him a bulletproof body suit which enables him to fly with an anti-gravity belt, a camouflage invisibility mechanism, and advanced sight functions in the lens over the left eye of his mask that allows him to fire a laser beam. Like his comic incarnation, this Night Man could see in the dark. 

In retrospect, Night Man appealed to me in my youth. Being a superhero fan I didn't care how the TV show looked since I enjoyed Spider-Man, Batman, and X-Men when they had their own animated series respectively. What fascinated me about him was how he's different from the others. He's a musician playing a mean saxophone. And though Night Man possesses a telepathic power, he's trained in aikido which he utilizes in his endeavors to make him a grounded character. With the Ultraverse in the hands of the House of Ideas, those who remember the characters like Johnny/Night Man should hope for a comeback from limbo. 

That's all for our Heroes of the Lost Age! Tune in next time!

Tools for Writing Comics Pt. 1

Hello, world!

I'd like to welcome you to the first part of my Tools for Writing Comics series.

I present to you three guides by the industry's brightest minds: Peter David, Alan Moore and Brian Michael Bendis.

First up is Writing for Comics & Graphic Novels with Peter David. What I found interesting is David's approach to writing comics how he's providing helpful insight as well his own personal yet funny anecdotes from his storied career in comics. [Peter] David's book also has advice on how to create your own comics from the essentials of character development, plot and pacing, scripting format, and an updated chapter on how to break in to the comics game by Andy Schmidt. The best part of this book are the writing prompts which helped me with original story ideas as I dove in to writing my own projects.

Second is Alan Moore's Writing for Comics. I've only heard of Alan Moore through works like Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and his work on Swamp Thing. I first picked up this book looking for sources on writing years ago. Another thing was to see what Moore had to offer on the craft. His way differs from others because he's narrating through an essay he wrote in 1985 on how to write a great script. In the reprinted edition, Moore teams up with artist Jacen Burrows and adds a bonus essay on how the writer should not be afraid to try new styles circa 2003. On the same level of Peter David's book, he gives an honest perspective on writing for comics.

Finally, we get down to...Words for Pictures by Brian Michael Bendis!

In my opinion, Bendis gives a very deep look in to the comics business. He shares the process of writing script formats to sequential art and more. The book also features insights from industry legends and glossary for business terms in writing for comics. What Bendis gives in detail is how to build relationships with the creative teams on a project. Added with his own experiences in the business, Brian Michael Bendis lays out the best advice for all writers: Write truthful and honest. 

For my overall review, these books have pointed out a clear and concise view on how to not only write for comics but also how to thrive in the industry, making connections and how to build solid ones as one goes into comics & graphic novels. To anyone looking for resources on writing for comic books, I recommend these works from the legends themselves.

Happy Creations!

Comic Book 101

Greetings!

I know that are those who are unfamiliar with writing for comic books and graphic novels. So I'm bringing forth knowledge on the craft. First, we'll begin with formats.

*Full Script-This gives the artist and editor the entire story descriptions of scenes, dialogue, sound effects. Character dialogue is written in all caps. Action descriptions of characters and setting are described in each panel up to several paragraphs or less. Plus, each page should start fresh on another piece of paper with a notion of how many panels. Another thing to take heed are the modifiers.

• OP=Off panel.
• Thought=dialogue in a word balloon.
• Whisper=dialogue lettered in a whisper balloon.
• SFX=Sound effects.
• Cap=dialogue written in captions.

*Marvel Script- Also know as the Plot Script. This particular style was created by Stan Lee in the 1960's. With this format, the writer breaks down the story and for each page you describe the action and situations that's wished to be represented within the artwork. Panel breakdowns are suggested or given and more or less dialogue is required.

*Now that we got that covered, we now move to the word balloons. When writing word balloons in the comic script, they are formatted in different formats such as italics and bold.

• Word balloon for "punch"= italics. Applies to an irritated character. 
• Express yelling= Dark type. Comes in handy when a character is yelling at another character.
• Anger= italics and boldface. Bruce Banner will tell you that one.
• White Area= dropping point size letters. This one occurs when a character's speaking in a strangled voice.
• Thought balloon= puffy cloud. For those who've read comics of days past, you know how characters don't want say something out loud, so the dialogue goes in that balloon. Sadly, no one uses them anymore.
• Illegal Immigrant Effect= Anyone falling into a time portal? The Punisher throwing a hoodlum out the window? Words emerging from the balloon border indicates that a character is being dragged away, pushed out of a window, or off a cliff. In the case of The Punisher, sometimes firearms won't cut it when "punishing" the wicked.
• Attach balloons for conversation= When someone is talking in one panel, attaching one balloon to the next occurs with the following. 1. to convey individual thoughts; 2. to emphasize certain beats; 3. to indicate a measured way of speaking; 4. avoid too many words in a balloon and a massive block type.
• Stacking balloons= Two or more characters speaking to one another. One balloon is inserted between two others in exchange of dialogue. They run horizontally or vertically.
• Wavery balloon= Upper/lowercase letters with a "wavery" look makes the speaker talk with much effort. Best use for when a character is drugged or stark-raving-drunk.
• Burst balloon= Zigzag pattern to indicate shouting, conveying volume and extreme anger. Also referred to as the "static burst" when pointer is to a radio or telephone.
• Narrative caption= For those who read Spider-Girl, DC Comics' Talon, and Wolverine, this is used for first-person narrative. Of course, Harry Dresden does that since his adventures are blended with magical mayhem and noir themes.
• Frosted balloon= icicles dripping off the bottom of the balloon to indicate sarcasm. Best for female characters.
• The whisper= Broken line around balloon to indicate whispering.
• "Hmmm" balloon= This is new here. Found in manga, or Japanese. A place maker where a character has just received a message, or piece of information but doesn't know how to react.
• Heart balloon= Word balloon shaped like a heart indicating love affection. Hugh Grant could use that in his movies.

When submitting comic book scripts, stables like DC Comics, Marvel, Dark Horse, and Top Cow have certain guidelines to follow. Another thing I feel that needed to be addressed is that reading comics and graphic novels plays a part in writing them. Screenplays to start small, if you wish. I recommend that anyone up for the challenge of creating their own super hero or fantasy adventure need to do their homework and pick up books that give insight on this form of writing.

Happy Creations!

*Source: Writing for Comics and Graphic Novels with Peter David.

*Dave A. Law. "How to Write a Full Script for a Comic Script." www.suite101.com Oct. 16, 2001

*Dave A. Law. "How to Format a Comic Script: Part 2." www.suite101.com. Oct. 30, 2001

  

Communicating with your Artist

What we got here is a failure to communicate.

Cool Hand Luke (1967)

 No matter how meticulous you are in describing to your artist what you want, you will come to a moment where it feels like that line from Cool Hand Luke-A failure to communicate. When working with an artist on a project be sure to watch what you say.

*According to Peter David a photo or frame of reference can be useful to the illustrator. Photo reference like (Tight shot of the Transamerica Pyramid. Photo reference can be found at the website en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transamerica_Pyramid) or a frame of reference such as (You know the stare down between Captain America and the Winter Soldier on the SHIELD helicarrier? That's the intense action I'm aiming for.)

Communication is key when working with an artist; you can give as little to as much information.

Another thing to remember is the reader will never see your script. As a comics writer, only a handful of people in the world will never see your script.

*Comics legend Brain Michael Bendis says your creative team is you and your friend, or someone who you are creatively in sync with, or someone who does everything: full art, coloring, lettering, and all the production work. Bendis also states when working commercially for Marvel or DC, your script will be in the hands of the editor. Comic editors make sure that your script serves its function which is to communicate clear story images, and characters to your artist.

If you work commercially you’ll probably work with someone who’s an inker, colorist, and letterer. The comic script is read by six people: artist, inker, colorist, letterer, editor, and assistant editor.

Screenwriters are similar in the production process. Their work is read by producers and executives, and if filmmakers are lucky enough to go into production, dozens to a couple hundred people will also read the script. They make sure it communicates to the cast and crew.

However Mr. Bendis says every artist has strengths and weaknesses. You must find those things and write to them.

Recalling on communication with the artist, it is a key factor to reach the person through emails and phone calls. Have an open door policy with the team to discuss ideas about the book.

*Over time, you will develop a shorthand with some of your collaborators. Sometimes they develop right away, while the other collaborations can go on for years and the shorthand never really develops. Bendis says it’s because collaborators are developing different voices. As the years pass, you may also find that you are constantly challenging each other in different areas.

In the conclusion of writing for comics and graphic novels, communication builds not just a partnership with collaborators but it builds relationships with them.

Happy Creations!

*Source(s): Writing for Comics & Graphic Novels with Peter David pg. 154

Brian Michael Bendis, Words for Pictures, pg. 73-80

How to Find an Artist

Hello, friends!

I'm back after so much going on in the outside world. I blogged about writer topics like conflict, story set up and comics. Now I'm going to cover a daunting challenge in creating comics...finding an artist for your work.

It's a given that aspiring comic book creators have asked that question when they have completed project. *Luck & persistence are the two factors that play into it, but however, you must be the kind of writer the artist wants to work with.

*Comics' creator Jim Zub suggests that you also have to think like the other side asking "If I were an artist, what would convince me to jump in on the project that's being pitched to me?"

(Remember my post about preparation? This is it!)

There are also four things to keep in mind when seeking out an artist for your comic series or graphic novel.

• Money
• Professionalism
• Search
• Contact
• Introduction

Money- If you're independently wealthy and can afford a professional page rate, you can be able to convince a larger number pool of artists to work with you. Freelance artists, even the good ones, go through slow periods. If your money is good they'll take on commissions if they're available. For those who aren't, there's another factor you'll need and that's...

Professionalism- Be presentable and courteous. The pitch should be clear and catchy. Must be willing to work a flexible schedule and be fair with sharing ownership of the final work. Your communication should be straight forward, your ideas should be easy to understand and your attitude should be upbeat and friendly. Story concepts must be tightly written, engaging, and grammar/spell-checked. 

Search- When choosing an artist to represent your work, you have to do your homework on the person. *Mr. Zub states there are far more people who believe they're writers than there are great artists to draw their stories. Online art communities and social media platforms like deviantART, Instagram, Digital Webbing, and comic publisher forums are a place to start as well. There's also Artist's gallery at a convention which can increase your odds of finding one too.

Once you've chosen the artist YOU believe is the perfect one for your project, do some research (art blog, professional background, etc.)

Contact- When contacting the illustrator it helps to be direct with a personal message. Odds are good the person will turn you down, but at least, there's communication and a connection was established which could be helpful later on. According to Zub, a "no" now could be a "yes" down the road.

It's highly recommended to have your letter/email written in advanced, especially the parts about your story concept or yourself, but be sure to include a personalized section about the artist--what you see in their work that appeals to you and why you think they'd be a good fit for your project.

Don't include your written samples or story pitch to the artist in your introduction email because you'd project yourself as demanding or pushy, and you don't want that. It's just a simple introduction. Speaking of which...

Introduction- This is one of a few introduction emails I've written in the past with some modifications.

Dear Jane Doe,

The website deviantART is an online forum for artists of every skill from around the world. Your gallery of various characters, expressions, and style grabbed my attention. Finding more of your art on your Instagram account, I was amazed at your take on characters like Spider-Gwen and Blue Beetle. Your art is dope!

My name is Andrew McQueen and I'm writing a comic book series entitled "Sean McCloud: Telepath" for Dark Horse Comics. Boiled down to its essence, it's a crime solving fantasy series for long-time fans of Jim Butcher, Mark Del Franco, and X-Men. To complete the creative team for the book, I'm looking for comic book artists to collaborate with on the project.

If you'd like to give Sean McCloud a read, I can shoot you an email or a PDF on the scripts if you allow me to have your email address. I'm working on different concepts with different tones and subject matter, but reading Sean McCloud will give you a clear and consice idea how I work.

I don't know what your work slate is at the moment or if you'd be interested in working a creator-owned project, but I wanted to let you know I was blown away by your artistic style, and I would be thrilled to work with you at anytime.

However it goes, keep up with your art.

God bless,

Andrew McQueen

With the way I've set up the email, I'm establishing myself as friendly and considerate. If you have other publishing credentials those are okay to share with the artist. This puts me in the position to connect with the person whether or not they're interested. There's no 100% guarantee my creator-owned project will be published.

Keep in mind that even though you have specific project in mind, it always good to leave the field wide open. If you receive a positive response you can see if they have a particular genre/style they're excited about or you can mention a story concept you want to collaborate with them on.  

The search can be long. It requires patience and persistence. You can send out tons of introduction messages before getting a big "yes" from choice number 75 or so. 

*Mr. Zub points out that the writer/artist relationship is like dating. You have to make a strong first impression and convince the person you have the right qualities to go to the next stage with. Think carefully on how you present yourself and make sure you're an "attractive" creative collaborator.

Once you got a working relationship with the artist, make sure you have a clear agreement in place so everyone knows what's expected of them. Charles Soule lays down the nitty-gritty on the topic here.

And that's how you make contact with a comic book artist.

Special thanks to Jim "Zub" Zubkavich for allowing me to cite his expertise for this blog.

Happy Creations!

*Jim Zub. "How Do I Find An Artist?" www.jimzub.com. October 2012.    

#OctWritingChallenge Weekly Report #2

Hello! Welcome to the Week 2 of my #OctWritingChallenge Weekly Report.

My progress is not too shabby but I can't argue with the results. Let's see how we did!

Day 8-9: No writing.

Day 10-1 hour & 25 minutes.

Day 11-1 hour.

Day 12-1 hour.

Day 13-1 hour & 40 minutes.

The story, so far, is progressing as I hoped for after I trashed it to oblivion. It was a painful choice to make but from what another set of eyes told me, this (character) was useless because (his critique on the character), the illustrator could use something that can tell him who the characters are so insert a character sheet.

The two cents given to me were insightful. I didn't think to come up with a character sheet that can give me an idea of who my characters are and how they function in my story. It's another lesson in writing I learned along the way as I prepared my pitch to a comics publisher.

1. Have a character sheet ready.

2. Give thanks to your support group, folks! I know I did.

That's it for my #OctWritingChallenge Weekly report. There's more to come. 

Movies and Books that Inspired my Writing

Hello all Black Thursday/Friday survivors!

I'm back on the blogging horse to answer one of the most simple writing questions...What inspired my comics?

Considering how I wrote my "first" piece of fiction off the top of my head, I've no idea. In the years of writing my comics I came to realize some aspects came from books, movies and comics. Here are the following.



1) The Howling (1981)

2) Blood & Chocolate

3) Darkman (1990)

4) The Mercy Thompson Series by Patricia Briggs




















5) The Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris

And there you have it. My top inspirations for fiction friends.

Interesting Characters, Part 3: Sister Grimm

We now return to the third edition of my Interesting Characters series. And today's interesting character is Nico Minoru AKA Sister Grimm from Marvel's Runaways. She first appeared in Runaways #1, created by Brian K. Vaughn and Adrian Alphona in 2003.

Like all members of the team, she's the daughter of super powered criminals called "the Pride"; in the case of Nico, her parents are dark wizards. Finding out their parent's secret, she ran away with her fellow teens but discovered her parent's aptitude for dark magic. Whenever Nico bleeds, she summons a powerful staff from her chest allowing her to bend magic. Seeing the damage the Pride has done to Los Angeles, the kids set out to use all their special talents to make up for the sins of their parent's crimes.

The first time I read Runaways I was, rather, curious about the idea of this group of young cats and how they play in the Marvel Universe. After Vol. 1 of the complete series, it had me wanting to see more of them. In particular to Nico, she's unlike any character in comics I read in years. A Japanese American heroine wearing Gothic attire, wielding dark magic was not the one thing that made her cool in my book, but how she's very human. Being a very emotional person who seeks comfort in people after times of stress or highly emotional periods. However, regardless of this weakness, she's very open when trying to express her feelings and has been able to connect with her team mates on an emotional level.

And that's what makes Sister Grimm an entirely interesting character to me.     

Why I write for Comics?

A blog from a Writing Challenge compadre gave out a clear definite reason why she writes the genre she loves had got me to thinking about the reasons I'm writing for comics. I've asked myself why for a while and let me tell you there's no easy answer. I felt that everybody's got a reason for writing for the genres they represent as I struggled to find mine. Then I realized they've been a part of me from the very beginning.

I didn't choose comics; comics chose me.

 Comics & graphic novels were an instrumental part of my growth as a person. They showed me the fantastical world of fantasy like any book I've read growing up. Granted it was the artwork of some best names out in the industry like Mark Bagley or Ming Doyle. Recalling The Death of Superman being my "first" comic, I was mostly excited because of the art by Dan Jurgens. Not only that my mom would read it to me whenever I asked her to.

As a boy I even tried to draw like the artists in the comics.

Going into my early teens, I had Spider-Man: Hobgoblin Lives collected as a TPB (trade paperback) and Spider-Man/Kingpin: To the Death before going my lone quest to find any comics store in my area. From middle school to almost throughout high school I collect what came out at the time and back issues until my retirement at 19.

 Sometime in my twenties, I decided to expand my writing to novels and that didn't work out so great because I don't have a handle on prose despite how much I've read it. Basically I didn't have the patience to write 300 pages worth of words to save my life. Once I wrote a graphic novel just out of nowhere, I saw where I can expand myself creatively by writing for comics. Of course it was hard. But nonetheless I had fun creating something of my own imaginative mind. It's all clear that comic books have never left me at all.

Comics are my definition of who I am.








 

Working with Established Characters. | Critique Circle

Working with Established Characters. | Critique Circle: Alrighty, boys and girls! Are you looking to put in your writing into comic books? If you are, here's a little heads up: When you're writing for comics and graphic novels, you'll be appointed with established characters at one point or ano...

Comics as a part of Literature

As a comic book fan, I enjoy the visual art work of the comic when I was a boy. That I owe to my mother when she bought me a copy of The Death of Superman and the magic of reading comics had stuck with me ever since.

I grew up not realizing their literary merits as I collected them throughout my youth. On the other hand, my vocabulary had increased as I read them by the dozen. Through them I learned about various real life elements such as AIDS, addiction, and racism. In my opinion, comics are a part of literature because they teach reading and expand the minds of readers.

Another aspect I wanted to touch on are the myths surrounding comics and one of them being "just for boys." For me comics can be for girls as well and they can share the magic of reading them with boys and they can bring together people of all races.  

*In a research poll I conducted, one person said that comics have become an ever evolving medium the last fifty years, moving towards stories about the complex relationships and conflicts rather than the "powers" the characters have. Another statement pointed out it depends on the comic. Prolific titles and some comic books that pander cliches and tropes to intended audiences. Poll results are 92 percent agree with comics being a part of literature to 8 percent of those who disagree. 

*Also recognition from respectable outlets as the National Book Foundation, Time Magazine, Booklist and Publishers Weekly have proven the merit of comics and graphics novels as a literary form. In 1982, Watchmen by Alan Moore and David Gibbons won the Hugo Award (Other forms category). Next in line was Art Spiegelman winning the Pulitzer Prize for Maus in 1992 and mainstream acceptance comics and graphic novels has grown. 

*According to an article by Christopher Murray, they have achieved a hard-fought for degree of critical respectability since the "graphic novel" boom of the mid-1980's. Maus, Fun House, and Palestine have been recognized as works of art and literature, and in recent years they have crept into university reading lists worldwide, and across a range of disciplines, from literature courses to history and media studies. Dundee University's master programme in comics studies combines the academic study of comics with practical assessments, allowing students to create comics as well as research them. Claims such as universities are "dumbing down" in order to recruit more widely and comics being "just for kids" stand in the way. 

The value in comics have been undervalued for so long, it's easy to write them off as "just for kids." But let's not forget the bright minds in comics like Will Eisner and Dwayne McDuffie who have made their stamp in the field telling stories about the world around us through visual story telling that touched the lives of anyone who picked up a comic book. For me, it's not just a book with cool art work it's one of the greatest works of literary art in history.

*Online research

*www.halloweencomicfest.com

*Christopher Murray “Comics studies has been undervalued for too long: We’re fighting to Change that.” The Guardian.com Feb. 2015

  

  

Why Comic Book Writing Should Be Critiqued.

Hello, my name's Andrew McQueen.

I'm a member of the Critique Circle online writing group and I write comics. Since joining the Circle out of seriousness of being a writer, I presented them with some amateur prose from a novel-in-progress. Then I remember a graphic novel that I've written a few years ago by the seat of my pants (pantser) to polish it up for publication and I've gotten up to a few critiques or less from members that have never seen a comic book script. And that's okay, I can't argue with the results that are given to me.

Since I'm writing for comics & graphic novels and writing groups are not familiar with the craft, I wanted to say why comic book writing should be considered to be critiqued in writing groups and beta-readers.

1. They deserve a chance because like any form of writing. It takes more than one person to make a story when someone's writing a novel. Plus, we can learn from them like how a member of a critique group can learn from the critiques they receive for his/her WIP. 
2. Comic scripts have similarities to screenplays. When studied closely, you can see how they're different and the same. However, they are two different ways to write a comic book script. The full script and the Plot (Marvel) script.
3. Comic writers want to tell the best story they want to tell the world, like their compatriots who write novels, short stories, screenplays and stage plays. They're built from the imagination of the hands that bring the words together, building a world which can thrill us, touch us, and inspire us.

Critiquing comic book and graphic novel scripts are out of everyone's expertise and that's fine. But let's not forget to open up to someone who's trying their hand at writing for comics and they need either a writing group or beta-readers to give them a hand with their story. You don't have to be an expert on the medium. You just have to tell them "I'll do my best with your story."