Making Comics

This week, we talk about building a brand new scene out of a cut scene from a previous (different) story (5:30), working on table design and presentation (13:20), setting deadlines for a short-term writing project (28:10), expanding on drawings to make trading cards (36:30), and taking time for yourself (40:30).

This week, we discuss penciling pages while you do the big thinking about a story (6:40), finding pockets of time to get editing in, plus an editing test case (16:20), comparing sticker companies (26:20), tackling the large issues in a comic script (31:50), and a field report from Fil-Am Creator Con (40:20).

This week, we compare notes on stories we're starting, including penciling pages in a new story (4:25), compartmentalizing a story's editing fixes (15:20), finishing comics in preparation for a trade (23:50), closing in on a structure for a new story (33:10), sticker designs (42:20), and a recap of Rose City Comic Con (46:20).

This week, we talk about convention prep for an air travel show (4:15), finishing projects as a skill (13:20), the first comics we ever made (22:15), reviewing critical pages to close a story (30:35), putting work in an anthology story (38:45), ironing out the key plot elements of a sprawling story (48:15), and horror sticker designs (56:25).

This week, we celebrate a Kickstarter coloring book launch and the work behind it (6:25), provide a recap of Keith's new favorite convention (16:25), submitting a cover to a client (27:00), and making a big structural change to a non-linear story (30:45).

This week, we talk about changing your work method for a crucial scene (3:00), the graphic design work (and the other work) in setting up a Kickstarter (12:45), finishing a page outline for a comic (27:50), and field reports from two different shows (34:20).

This week, we talk about the pages that require heavy work and visual problem-solving (2:20), how "Making the bad thing" doesn't apply to some of the creative process (14:00), continuing the page outline for a script (25:10) and an anthology short (31:40), exploring a new storytelling format (40:15), and pushing through some urgent project management issues (52:50).

This week, we talk about trashing a page layout and starting from scratch (4:30), working hard to finish a comic script on a deadline (16:00), expanding your print repertoire (22:00), and buying books for future story fodder and expanding your breadth (27:20) before this week's main topic: what it takes to be a working comics professional (37:40).

This week, we celebrate our 300th episode by hanging out with Cory Kerr ( Rage of Enlightenment ), Jim Lujan ( The Unicornians ), Scott Serkland ( Young and the Dead ), and Gary Hodges ( D vs M ) and recapping this year's creative retreat! We start with pre-retreat work and expectations (5:30), then compare drawing tablets (16:00), and discuss pushing to finish a draft (26:50), synthesizing fe...

This week, we talk about writing what you can, but being okay with not having all of the answers for a comic script (3:10), making the time to create (7:30), and getting feedback from readers (13:20) before we dig into our time at San Diego Comic Con, including overall impressions (20:00), reconciling being a fan versus a creator (32:30), and staying level (45:00).

This week, we talk about getting down to the wire for a pre-con commission (3:50), enjoying the act of exploring scenes at the panel level (14:00), acting as a project manager (24:00), layering mysteries (35:45), and enjoying things you can't possibly make (43:30).

This week, we talk about working with artists to fine-tune a story and/or concepts (6:30), and working through a new print with a tight deadline (13:30) before we discuss the highlights of a chock-filled email from comic creator Josh Pasquini (20:00), including the benefits of distribution versus crowdfunding (36:20), and flatting colors (47:50).

This week, we discuss finishing a labor-intense cover (4:40), cranking through the back-end work involved in being a publisher (12:50), working on pre-show commissions for SDCC (23:00), creating an Art Variant for a limited- edition comic (34:00), and waiting on client approval to proceed to the next step on a commission (45:10).

This week, we talk about changing the look of your character when outside forces dictate it (10:45), finishing the page-level script for a new story (17:00), those times when a cover doesn't come together (25:20), and zeroing in on an inker (50:15).

This week, we discuss a top-down writing format for comic scripts (3:50), quickly figuring out the layout for a cover (26:00), brainstorming exclusives for SDCC (36:45), and a wild search for freelance inkers (45:00).

This week, we talk about the satisfaction that comes with fulfilling every part of a Kickstarter campaign (4:00), one way to get unstuck when writing a story (9:00), coloring pages using a fresh style (14:10), spreading the word about your stories (24:15), working through art issues (32:30), and a plan to crank out a bunch of comic scripts (46:20).

This week, we wrap up Phoenix Fan Fusion (4:15), staying comfortable when you hit a wall in your story (23:20), taking time for the admin stuff (32:00), the idea of "emptying the idea tank" (35:30), and the right amount of information to give a colorist (41:10).

This week, we sit with Scott Serkland ( Young and the Dead, Hiphoptimus Rhyme ) and talk about cranking out a pre-show commission (5:00), illustrating a one-page story that's also a dream (7:45), a rush of work to finish a book to send to the printer on a tight deadline (11:30), intuitively exploring structure before you know what you're doing (24:30), when a necessary change results in a...

This week, we talk convention selling (3:30), comic show logistics (17:00), figuring out alternating character voice (33:20), getting books from the printer (40:00), and fine-tuning colors (47:50).

This week, we talk about finishing another interior page (3:35), fixing the issues that arise in a nonlinear story (15:10), leaning into the unnatural on a drawing (24:30), reviewing art pages from different artists (44:45), and a Kickstarter packing party (53:20).

This week, we talk about the admin and social media stuff that goes with being a creator (4:35), creating a detailed drawing for a coloring book (14:15), Comic Con Revolution (18:20), refining pitches (33:35), restarting the fire for drawing (43:45), and flatting pages (52:00).

Today, we talk about a record(?) week of art productivity (4:15), assembling bonus material for the back pages of a comic (13:30), chaos via issues with files for the printer (22:00), writing the correct age and digging into dialect (31:00), and rising printing costs (48:00).

This week, we discuss early story pacing (6:45), drawing interiors (14:00), compare notes on Free Comic Book Day (35:30), and behind the scenes work to finish a comic (57:30).

This week we talk about going from idea to a cover (2:40), how lettering on a comic evokes Marvel method (13:30), continuing work on interiors (23:30), the odd feeling of light notes in a workshop (26:10), preparing PDFs and files in advance of a Kickstarter finishing (30:00), and discuss current comics we're reading (41:00).

This week, we discuss the beginning of a story draft edit (6:00), making the most of extra pages in a comic (26:45), editing a comic as you letter (32:20), finishing thumbnails for common pages in a comic (40:15), the LA Times Festival of Books (44:40), and finding the right thumbnail for a cover (49:30).