May 2015
4 / 9
May 2015
Jun 2015
TristanJensen
May '15
3

Since I've finished creating the full story for [Insert Epic Title Here] after easily 50-70 edits to the plot (side note, that epic title may be "SUBSCONSCIOUS" but I'm still debating that) I've decided to do what I didn't last time. And that's write a script. Which turns out to be harder than I thought.
The first time around I'd drawn all the pages, posted them, then realized "Oh crap I forgot this, that, and the other thing" and have no way to fix it afterwards, I'd just accept my fate and try to put it somewhere else, with comical results (well, to me at least).

So what's a good script writing method?
I'm kinda lost...

(Holy crap I bug you guys for writing advice a lot....)

  • created

    May '15

  • last reply

    Jun '15
  • 8

    replies

  • 1.4k

    views

  • 8

    users

  • 11

    likes

  • 1

    link

eagle1
May '15

I work from full scripts, and my method usually involves the following steps (which have changed since I discovered Comic Life 3).

Step 1: Notes. I keep a sheet of paper with notes about the story idea. During this time, I am writing down whatever comes to mine. Character names, plots, themes, conflicts, scenes, etc. This can take anywhere from 20 minutes to 10 years. No, I am not joking.

Step 2: Notecards. I use a set of notecards that are blank on both sides. One side is for the thumbnail of the page, the other side is for notes. I number them (in pencil) and then write a single sentence that reminds me what that scene is supposed to be. I then spend time jotting notes, lines of dialogue, quick sketches, and the like.

Step 3: Comic Life 3. I start typing the script into Comic Life 3, so that I can see how it plays out. I usually do the page layout at the same time, and will even play with captions and word balloons since the programme allows me to drag them and drop them directly out of the script window into the page layout window.

Eagle
(Simplified, but that's it.)

fighterxaos
May '15

With webcomics I have a bare bones script and a story guide. Basically because I see these as mainly for fun and hopefully make enough money to never fall behind on a bill again... hopefully.

But you want to know about scripts that are fleshed out right? Well, for my "to be traditionally published" comics I have a writing style very similar to Fred Van Lente. The man who wrote Valiant's Archer and Armstrong which has since finished and was my favorite book from them and currently writing Ivar, Timewalker which is related to Archer and Armstrong.

Oddly enough I developed my style before reading his scripts and his explanation to his style. But it's so similar that I feel that linking to his "how I write" page and seeing how he writes along with his examples and templates you'd see pretty much how I write a "for realsies" script. Fred Van Lente's How I Write page8

Diabolo
May '15

Once I have the story well-developped in my mind, with ideas of situations and actions, and some sort of timeline for what comes when, I write my script, ie the full story separated in chapters will all the dialogues, description od the scenes and "stage directions", just like a movie scenrio.

From that moment on, I have a reference document where all is written ; this enables me to have a global vision of my story and realize what has to be changed, if needed.
Building your storyboard and/or your final pages out of a solid script will be far easier !

UltHamBro
May '15

I started writing a simple script which only contained the number of panels per page and the dialogue in each one. I also had rough drafts of what I wanted the pages to look like (I mean "characters are actually stick figures" rough).

Now I've begun writing another script for a full plot, and I've realised I have too much information smiley
I have six files: "Story arcs", "Chronology", "Data about future arcs", "Stories", "Summary of the story so far" and "Original summaries for chapters". And I plan on adding more. So I'm probably not the best one to give advice on that matter.

sarahrebecca58
May '15

I work with the screenplay method. I prefer to imagine the panel layout. I'm not one that believes it's efficient to really try to compress a three page script into a one page comic.

AnnaLandin
May '15

I don't really write separate scripts; the writing and the storyboarding kind of go together for me. My process goes as follows:

  1. Write an outline of the story I want to tell. Keep it kind of general, so I can fill in details later. Try to outline the whole big-picture of the story, with beginning, middle and end, so I know where I'm headed.
  2. Pick some plot points from the outline that feel like they'll fit together as one chapter.
  3. Break down said plotpoints in a short, page by page summary ("Page 1: main character walks through forest. Page 2. He spots something on the ground. Page 3: He goes to investigate." etc.) so that I know what I need to fit into each page.
  4. Start storyboarding, with your page-by-page breakdown handy. Re-shuffle events as necessary (maybe "He spots something on the ground" and "He goes to investigate" can fit into one page, etc.), write the dialogue below the thumbnails. I say "below", because I do literal thumbnails as page-layouts; if they're taller than 5 cm, they're taking up too much room.
  5. Edit dialogue when I start sketching full-sized pages.

For me, writing a script entirely divorced from the storyboarding isn't really possible; even the page-breakdown is just a handy guide, and nothing definite. I need to see what a page will look like before I can decide how much dialogue and action fits into it.

27 days later
sarahrebecca58
Jun '15

I may have to try this, I'm finding word count difficult these days.

So now I have like this 80,000 word larger arc that goes beyond the lifetimes of individual characters at times, because in essence a Earth generational saga at times.

And now a touch exhausted of prose.

AkaOkami
Jun '15
1

Like you I use to just draw page and page and see how it goes from there. But it lead to a lot of discontinuity which bugged me a lot.

So What I normally do now is doodle out the pages and panels and work on dialogue from there. And for anything important I would write down on a separate paper. Like plot stuff, I have a bullet list and timelines and maps. X_x
It might be messy but I feel maps are really useful. But if ur story is really complex, the map might end up looking like spaghetti.

I know there are some that do it the other way around. Write the script and draw accordingly. Depends on the creator. Which you feel more comfortable with.

But script aren't already necessary. If u feel comfy with how it is now then maybe just leave some sticky notes?
(There are quite a few artist who just draw it as they think of it. Can't think of any names atm.)

Hope that helps somewhat.

(P.S dunno why but when I first saw the word script in the post name, I was thinking something like coding scripting. I was like crackling my knuckles ready to bust out my CS skills XD)