Help me brainstorm my comic!

[theeternitycode]

Hey guys! I've been thinking of starting a new comic. (Pft, isn't everyone?)

I've cocked things up magnificently, and ended up writing characters before story. Woops! The thing is, I've always had a creative partner to help me brainstorm comics in the past. I'm not great at gunning things alone.

So... I'm looking for a little help with writing for it! Rather than tell you about the half-baked worldbuilding I've made, I was hoping you could take a look at the character designs and let me know what kind of story pops into your heads. What kind of comic naturally suits the designs? What kind of genre would fit them best? Which characters do you see grouped together, and what do you think would be most interesting to read? Who's the bad guy and why?

Here they are below:

The only thing really certain here is that it's naval themed and I would prefer to avoid doing a story about pirates. I like to do comedies and I love things that are off-the-wall. Thanks a ton for any answers!

If anyone would like to brainstorm their own comic or plot with me, I'd be happy to help in return.

[theeternitycode]

Here's another set because new users have an image limit.

[WakaXO]

What first comes to mind is a sci-fi space thriller about a crew of space whale hunters/pirates. All the characters in the picture are part of the crew and the story follows them all (no one main character), like Firefly but with more wacky fun.

[theeternitycode]

What first comes to mind is a sci-fi space thriller about a crew of space whale hunters/pirates. All the characters in the picture are part of the crew and the story follows them all (no one main character), like Firefly but with more wacky fun.

Oh boy, that sounds like Cowboy Bebop too.

Thanks for your impression! Making them pirates would definitely give all these different characters a reason to work together. If I worked from that angle, I might make one of them a stow-away so we can gradually introduce characters....

Who would make a better stow-away: the beach bum looking guy or the ex-prisoner? Hmmmm!

I have no idea why people in space would be wearing such old-timey naval clothes, but sillier things have been explained away by writers.

[marygold]

I don't have much time for a co-op just yet but I'm willing to dish in a few ideas on this forum. This look like a scifi space thriller like the above said, but I can feel a touch of steam punk in it, which is always a cool but sometimes not really used theme. Your story looks like it could be one of those centering around a lot of characters who's actions effect each other in the long run, like Baccano or Durararara!

Although maybe not with pirates, this cast looks like on where most of the important characters would be crew mates to something big, maybe a ship, or a shipping delivery organization... A fun collection of people under one roof, like Kekkai Sensen or Bungo Stray Dogs. I'm sorry, these are all Japanese. I have no life, I know.

Any one of them could be the bad guy. Maybe the bad guy doesn't have to be bad, maybe your comic could be that one interesting one where conflict is really just a conflict of interest for what is best, not evil and justice!

I don't know what the setting would be. Alternate universe? Maybe the far future, so there's technology but maybe a pollution screw up kind of made the world more primitive at the same time. Stand Still Stay Silent is a we omit that follows that theme awesomely.

Hope this helped a little bit! As for a central conflict that literally narrates where characters will go and why and what they will do, I it usually comes to you when you continue your comic and read widely!

[Michelle]

Honestly, writing the characters before the story makes a lot more sense to me. Otherwise, you're just planning out a bunch of stuff that happens but you don't know who it's happening to.

But yeah, there definitely seems to be some kind of sea-faring sci-fi thing going on :u I think it would be easiest to figure out which of these bunch would make the best main character and work from there.

[J.Z.Castillo]

what first came to my mind was the movie Atlantis: The Lost Empire by Disney. You got this ragtag group of eccentric characters in the search of treasure and adventure. I think that would be really cool to see with the characters you've designed.

[theeternitycode]

I don't have much time for a co-op just yet but I'm willing to dish in a few ideas on this forum. This look like a scifi space thriller like the above said, but I can feel a touch of steam punk in it, which is always a cool but sometimes not really used theme. Your story looks like it could be one of those centering around a lot of characters who's actions effect each other in the long run, like Baccano or Durararara!

Although maybe not with pirates, this cast looks like on where most of the important characters would be crew mates to something big, maybe a ship, or a shipping delivery organization... A fun collection of people under one roof, like Kekkai Sensen or Bungo Stray Dogs. I'm sorry, these are all Japanese. I have no life, I know.

[...]

Definitely appreciated. It's cool that you picked up the steam-punk vibe, I really like it as an aesthetic because it's really whimsical and you can excuse nonsense technology with The Rule of Cool.

I've actually seen both Durararara and Baccono (anime nerds unite) and they both have a careful way of unfolding things. However, personally, I'm not sure I could pull off such a hectic plot. I'd probably need a really strong focus. Baccano takes place EXCLUSIVELY on a train so it's very contained. Durararara takes place in a city, but it never really leaves the city. If I'm going for a lot of plot threads, I'd have to do the same.

Delivery organizations crack me up because Futurama is such a great deconstruction of "Pizza Guys.... IN SPACE." I actually really like the idea of submarines floating around in space because the image makes me laugh. Big ensemble casts on the same team is really overplayed, though.

As far as conflicts on interest, I'd love it to be really ridiculous and trivial. Any ideas?

The thing about Stand Still Stay Silent is that it has such a melancholic art style that omitting history suits it perfectly well! I'm more likely to explain things by saying a giant space octopus tried to mate with their planet and ended up shattering it to pieces, so the inhabitants now live on floating chunks in space.

Thanks again!

[theeternitycode]

what first came to my mind was the movie Atlantis: The Lost Empire by Disney. You got this ragtag group of eccentric characters in the search of treasure and adventure. I think that would be really cool to see with the characters you've designed.

A straight-forward plot, but it would make for an easy episodic series! Borderlands does the same thing. I would need to put a cool twist to it though, to avoid clichés.

[niinasalmelin]

What a cute designs! Love them <3__<3
For me they look like they belong to big submarine and solve mysteries on the big sea on a big adventure. I can also see the Sci-fi setting, but perhaps it could happen in setting like Treasure planet, you know, old-style ships in space

[mariusthered]

first of all i don't think your star is there. these guys and gals all look like people who could play parts but none stand out as a lead character. and what came out to me was a sort of cross over story between Alice in wonderland and captain Neamo (40,000 leagues under the sea) and i'm guessing there is a chance you have read Alice in wonderland but not Neamo. reading both books would give you a huge advantage to your skills you need to develop, I encourage all the younger generations to go support your local library while then are still around, read the classics and tone them story building muscles.

as for your story i will throw you out the nest but you must flap your own wings!

Main character (still unseen as yet so no name, could be boy or girl) ends up lost in magical world and trying to find something to get home. ends up travelling on a boat or submarine meeting weird people along the way some join the crew others point the way along the adventure.........

now get some scraps of paper and plot the steps of the story. good luck

[mariusthered]

lol great minds think alike

[nessiefynn]

It looks like some sort of space-seaman adventure story to me! The first four guys could live on a boat together, while most of the other characters could be people they meet in space port towns. I imagine the first four guys are a pirate crew who probably spend their days fishing for exotic space creatures, The green haired guy in the white uniform on the bottom row could be their rival of sorts. Maybe the space sailors do illegal fishing and the green haired guy works for the government and wants to arrest them?

That's just what I came up with off the top of my head, but all your character designs look really fun and quirky! I hope you go somewhere interesting with them!

[marygold]

Yeah, I see your points 👌 As for ridiculous and trivial conflicts of interest... I'm not good at those... I'm literally turning on my "just spit stuff out" thinking filter.
-Shipping rights?
-Really old but ridiculous grudge (if you read Black Haze- a really good and hilarious Korean webtoon, there's a short arc where the MC has to go on a mission to fulfill a plot of revenge- that is basically just pulling a guy's pants down) that makes one side really want to thwart the other
-You gotta read paranatural if you want examples of a healthy mix of interesting/kind of serious/hilarious conflicts
-Ship flying tournament race with an idiot in the background trying to cause trouble because of x y and z
-MC thinks an escaped convict is really useful for whatever business he's trying to achieve but authorities think otherwise
-MC is part of a small-a$$ business and will do whatever it takes to get more recognition, even if it means pissng a few people off
-Okay I feel like an idiot. I'm going to stop here before you facepalm yourself too much

[theeternitycode]

Honestly, writing the characters before the story makes a lot more sense to me. Otherwise, you're just planning out a bunch of stuff that happens but you don't know who it's happening to.

But yeah, there definitely seems to be some kind of sea-faring sci-fi thing going on :u I think it would be easiest to figure out which of these bunch would make the best main character and work from there.

Looks like everybody's going with sci-fi, which is pretty interesting. The main character would really depend if I'm going for adventure, war, or a mystery. Here's a shot in the dark! Maybe something like this would work?

1) Fantasy/Adventure. The "King" is offering to trade his wish granting Magic Fish in exchange for something bizarre like a rainbow one-eyed trout that he saw in his prophetic dreams. The simple-minded King only uses his Magic Fish to ask for fish and chips when he's hungry. Everyone scrambles to find the trout, but as each chapter draws to an end, the characters keep finding fish that are really close to the description but no cigar. It becomes a running gag. Many adventurers gave up years ago, but our valiant and stubborn crew are still trying to various idiotic and hopeless reasons.

[theeternitycode]

What a cute designs! Love them <3__<3
For me they look like they belong to big submarine and solve mysteries on the big sea on a big adventure. I can also see the Sci-fi setting, but perhaps it could happen in setting like Treasure planet, you know, old-style ships in space

Haha, cool! I really did like Treasure Planet, despite it's failure at the box offices.

[theeternitycode]

first of all i don't think your star is there. these guys and gals all look like people who could play parts but none stand out as a lead character. and what came out to me was a sort of cross over story between Alice in wonderland and captain Neamo (40,000 leagues under the sea) and i'm guessing there is a chance you have read Alice in wonderland but not Neamo. reading both books would give you a huge advantage to your skills you need to develop, I encourage all the younger generations to go support your local library while then are still around, read the classics and tone them story building muscles.

[...]

Really well done critique there! I didn't want to give people the idea there was a main character here, but it might make sense if you know the initial designs were for the main characters to be a family unit.

I looove the idea of Alice in Wonderland. I still have books to return to the library, I just finished borrowing a book on Pixar's story designing.

I had an idea similar to that, but I'm still at the wishy washy stage. How's this:

2) A small crew of sailors wind up in something like the Bermuda Triangle. The sea steals a precious item to them, one that links them to their home (IE: a necklace, a watch, a dress they were wearing). That item, if found by others, gains magic properties. The magic it holds is related to the owner: IE, super strength or the ability to fly. Everyone who enters the triangle cannot leave, trapped forever at sea. They can only leave by ship and find their way home if they find their original item.

Thanks for getting me going! Good book recs too.

[TomSawyer]

The girl in the sailor outfit is obviously the villain
The plot could be a contest to win 10 billion dollars or something crazy!

[theeternitycode]

It looks like some sort of space-seaman adventure story to me! The first four guys could live on a boat together, while most of the other characters could be people they meet in space port towns. I imagine the first four guys are a pirate crew who probably spend their days fishing for exotic space creatures, The green haired guy in the white uniform on the bottom row could be their rival of sorts.

[...]

Oh maaan, think about it! Rival crews! I love the idea of all the space ships carrying around specific bait (giant worms, crazy steampunk fishing gear) to catch the space creatures they specialize in. I also love the idea of the crew sitting outside the ship with fishing poles, trying to catch fish inside a black hole.

Maybe one crew could hunt squids, and the other is better at hunting for oysters, who of course have pearls made of some rare sci-fi ore. This is a fun idea that allows for a lot of conflict, and the main characters get to be "bad guys".

I hope I do too! I just wanna have fun.

[theeternitycode]

The girl in the sailor outfit is obviously the villain
The plot could be a contest to win 10 billion dollars or something crazy!

I laughed. That's the best villain, oh my god.

Ahhh, I see, we're doing it tournament style. The contest would have to be sea based.... I think a fishing contest over the span of an hour would make a great one-shot. I hadn't really considered a one-shot because there are so many characters. The fishing contest is of course, hosted by a talking fish.