Making Comics

Scott and Keith discuss commissions (1:30), reviewing PDFs for final changes (17:50), direction in comic book pages (23:35) and finding a comic printer (29:30) before they talk about collectible comics (46:20)

Scott and Keith - in the same room - discuss making a fun exercise out of tracking changes from ashcan to comic (3:00), the value of off-screen writing / riff writing (14:30) and comic recommendations (22:30) before they review dollar book (and not dollar book) purchases from recent shops (36:30).

Keith and Scott compare notes on project hiccups (4:25), covering Adobe Illustrator, finishing up PDFs, cycling through cover artists, feedback on non-convention commissions, toy-making, and a printing conundrum (33:40) before answering a listener question about juggling multiple projects (41:40).

This week, Scott and Keith revisit last week's discussion around changes for a master edition (8:45) before discussing corner boxes (14:50), slabbing comics and collecting in general (18:30), when writing refrains go wrong (41:00), holding back on information (43:30), and pet peeves on comic book covers (49:40).

Back recording at a normal time of day, Scott and Keith discuss lettering nuances and shortcuts (6:50), finding a good printer (18:55), taking feedback and how the adage 'write what you know' can steer you wrong (25:05) before discussing changes to comic panels for a collected edition (48:15) and the question - change it, or leave it as is? Reminder: the preorders on Kodoja Volume 3 are about to c...

Scott and Keith cover a lot of topics this episode - mocking up panels with sketch software to confirm the angles on drawn art are correct (2:30), editing for clarity after receiving finished pages (8:00), reading every day and how inspiration can be in unlikely places (24:10), working with printers (27:00), sifting through critiques and what to do when expert reviews contradict each other (35:00)...

Keith and Scott discuss how a busy schedule makes people more productive (0:55), re-thinking overdubbed dialogue and cutting it down for clarity (3:00), editing language (10:30), project management for the upcoming Second Shift hardcover (16:00) and big-picture thinking for the next arc of Kodoja (20:10) before a large discussion on 'rules' and why understanding them is good, but following them cl...

This episode, Scott and Keith welcome friend Terry Mayo to the podcast!  Topics this week include Terry's current Kickstarter Buddy (5:45), re-lettering older comics (11:30), an update on the Kodoja Volume 3 soundtrack (15:00), an upcoming project of Terry's and how copyrights play in (16:30), the joy of receiving art pages (24:40), more discussion on indies and creator rights (33:00), and so...

This episode Scott and Keith recount Keith's trip to Richmond, Virginia (1:00), an episode of late night productivity (19:30), accountability threads (21:50), writing bonus material for comics (28:15) and listener questions (37:00) on media mail, rights and ownership before discussing character development (53:00).

Scott and Keith discuss the completion of the 2nd Shift PDF (3:00), work for an ad that never happened (5:50), creating a project plan for delivering Kickstarters (18:05), and calibrating positive feedback into future artistic direction (22:40).  The two then discuss comic purchases over beers in the field (34:00).

This episode Scott and Keith discuss the twenty-five episode milestone (1:10), a batch of revisions on one of Keith's comics (7:00), graphic design for Scott's future hardcover (12:50), Keith's indie creator 'originality' conundrum (16:40), a comparative experiment Keith did with his novel (26:50) and revisiting the power of one panel a day (38:00).  A discussion on the maximum price to sell...

This week, Scott and Keith discuss re-finding your creative time as the world returns to how it was in 2019 (4:40), Big-picture thinking about future projects (12:45), figuring out the right stew of story ingredients (22:00), artistic techniques to make your images better (23:50) and revisiting great modern comics (38:20)

Scott and Keith discuss characters with dialogue quirks (3:00), text-heavy and text-only pages (7:55), one-in-ten variants and value in comics (12:25), Keith's big-picture thinking for Volume Four of Kodoja (28:00), Scott getting back to the panel-a-day goal (38:50) and the pricing of commission work (44:50).

Scott and Keith welcome Ed Brown, writer of the 2nd Shift, to the podcast!  Ed discusses his current writing work (2:30), which leads to a conversation on his backstory and unpacking writing quality (16:30), author intent, and three-act structure (26:00).  Scott and Keith review their week's art, administrative and even music activities (33:20) to end the main part of the episode.  ...

Scott and Keith discuss a current commission, which leads to a conversation about mermaids (4:50) before the two talk comic scripts against pencils (10:45) and likenesses of people in comics (15:00).  Keith recaps his recent travels (18:05) and Scott goes over a heavy week of activity (33:25) before the two answer the question 'what comic advice would you give your past self ten years ago? (4...

Surprise!  Scott and Keith welcome Gary Hodges back to discuss Godzilla versus Kong and the three other Monsterverse movies ( Godzilla 2014 , Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla: King of the Monsters ) as a whole.  SPOILER WARNING!  Stay around for the post-credit conversation on 'live draw' models that's sure to win us a podcasting award.

Keith gives Scott props (1:50) and discusses a personal goal before the two discuss Scott catching up on comic work (4:25), dark versus the conveyance of dark in art (11:05), the influences watching over us during creation (20:30) and further discussion on what indie is (26:10).  Keith then makes a plea to the writers out there (39:05) to be mindful of cliches and dialogue tags, which leads t...

Keith gives a recap of his brief time in Denver (0:30) - hint, it involves beer - before Scott discussed his recent trip to Arizona (5:50).  The two talk Kickstarters (15:00) and how long production gaps create writing difficulties (25:00).  Bonus: the two return to the field (36:50) and review their purchases from another dig at Socal Comics San Diego. 

Scott and Keith catch up on recent reads (1:45), Scott's week and the perspective of convention organizers (10:10) before Keith reviews progress on his fourth novel draft (13:50) while remembering pivotal moments in earlier drafts (20:30).  The 'Gary Yap email trilogy' concludes with a lengthy discussion on influences (25:00) before Scott and Keith give their answers to another mailbag questi...

Scott and Keith talk beer (1:00) including a real-time tasting, then move in to Kickstarter talk (6:00) before Keith talks about Marvel horror comics in the 90s (14:55) and both discuss production lead times (24:45).  Keith then brings up two examples of rewriting-as-problem-solving (34:15) before the two discuss Keith's adult comic influences (46:15). 

After a connectivity misfire, Scott and Keith start for good (3:30) with Scott's friendly 'productivity competition' with a studiomate and some feedback he got from Jim Lee and other artists (6:30).  Keith discusses positive confirmations along the way (17:35), getting feedback and truly exposing yourself to critique (20:50), and Keith's primary fear as a creator (26:30).  The two then t...

In the same room for this episode, Scott and Keith begin with a discussion on Collaboration vs Work for hire (4:00), Scott's week and Keith's business preparation around Kickstarter launch (17:25).  The two then talk respective future plans for story (24:55). Beer and basketball talk starts at 38:00.

A mid-week Bonus Episode!  We wanted to do something a little different to celebrate the dual timing of our Kickstarters so we hit up a couple San Diego comic shops, drank a few beers and recorded all along.  Note: the episode was recorded in the field, so there are background conversations, wind noise and other elements not usually present. Kodoja Volume 3 Kickstarter:  https://www...

Scott mentions an interesting project (1:20) before both guys recap the work on their Kickstarters.  They touch on two adages: 'youth being wasted on the young' (19:45) and 'ten percent of something or 100 percent of nothing' as well as Gerard Way, Parrish Smith and Rob Liefeld.  A bonus pop cultre conversation follows with Gary Hodges, including Godzilla vs Kong (34:55), a SPOILER on cl...

It's time for our first guest!  Gary Hodges (writer/artist of D vs M 1997 ) joins Scott and Keith this week, beginning with a conversation about the script-crafting process for the next two issues of D vs M (3:45), then moving to panel layouts and the conflict between Art Gary vs Script Gary (26:30).  The three discuss long-form and short-form stories (34:00) and Kickstarters, from Keith...