Would you read?

[Karebear]

Hi there!

I am trying to expand my portfolio, one of the ways I am thinking of doing this is by creating my own comic. The only problem is I have no artistic ability besides drawing blobs (if you have ever seen the Fairly Odd Parents think of the episode where Timmy wishes everyone to be exactly the same). My question is, would you read a well written comic that does not have the best art? Is it worth creating a comic like this even to expand my portfolio?

Thank you so much!

[joannekwan]

Is your portfolio for writing or for art?

[Karebear]

It would be for writing.

[joannekwan]

In that case you could probably either 1. novelize it, or 2. write a full comic script and when you're ready, pay an artist to draw pages of it for you.
Portfolios are meant to express the best of your ability, so if you aren't confident in your drawing skills, it may be best to leave it out.

Of course if you just want to experiment or practice drawing, there's nothing stopping you from making your own comic!

[Karebear]

Thank you so much for your advice I really appreciate it!

[rajillustration]

I mean it depends on the genre, too. Look at Homestuck or Achewood. They're hardly beautiful but they're iconic webcomics because of the writing. People aren't as picky about the art as you'd think, and you can always have a novelization on the side so you have two forms of the same story.

Just bear in mind making a comic of a story takes actual years. Actual years of your life.

[artofkcici]

I think it depends on how well you use the format of the comic to convey your story as well.

Take for example Webcomic Name by Alex Norris. It's a 3-panel strip web comic in which they literally draw a blob that delivers, as they say themselves,"the same joke every time." It has a simplistic writing and art style, but Norris' use of color and details to bring visual variety, and the "oh no" joke set up has allowed them to create eye catching, easy to digest content and humor.

Another example is with the artist One and his One-Punch Man and Mob Psycho 100 series. While his art needs some improvement in some areas, the man knows how to entertain by intertwining humor, story, and character personality with a strong composition and paneling layout. Even with Murata Yusuke's rendition of his One-Punch Man series, they kept most, if not all, of the the original storyboard layout because it conveyed the message and humor of the characters and story perfectly from the get go.

Since you said that this is for a writing portfolio, you could add an extra/miscellaneous/for fun section for script and storyboard examples of your writing to showcase that you understand the nuance of bringing your writing into the comic medium. Or you could just create a portfolio specifically for comics altogether. But like @joannekwan said, only include what you feel confident with and know that you can deliver.

But yeah, don't worry about whether you think your art is bad. There are more elements to the art itself when it comes to comics and the only way to improve is to just get started and practice. I wish you luck with your work and decisions!

[punkarsenic]

In that case you could probably either 1. novelize it, or 2. write a full comic script and when you're ready, pay an artist to draw pages of it for you.Portfolios are meant to express the best of your ability, so if you aren't confident in your drawing skills, it may be best to leave it out.

i kinda disagree; i think if i was hiring a comic writer, even if they couldnt draw, id wanna see that they understand how to lay out a comic visually. ive heard from other comic writers, such as kieron gillen, that they made fairly ugly comics to practice writing comics in the beginning

OP, if your comic isnt pretty it will be offputting for a lot of people. but as an exercise for you in composing comics it will be extremely valuable - but make sure your writing shines! if you can pitch it well and you can write well, the people who do bite will love it.

also, consider how much you can use found footage; you could go the homestuck route with clipart and mspaint sprites, or you could play around with photo comics. sometimes not being able to draw will lead to the most innovative art.

[joannekwan]

i think if i was hiring a comic writer, even if they couldnt draw, id wanna see that they understand how to lay out a comic visually. ive heard from other comic writers, such as kieron gillen, that they made fairly ugly comics to practice writing comics in the beginning

lol don't let those 'visionary' collab seekers see this! this may be asking too much of them!

[JeanGuillet]

well written comic with terrible art....I'll tell ya, I've never come across such a thing. the examples given, Homestuck, (original one punch man), they never did it for me. if the art is terrible, why should it even be a comic? comics limit writing in really restrictive ways, and the only way you can make up for that is to have pretty pictures. would I read? no, honestly not. I like the suggestion of hire an artist though, that can get you very high quality if you feel like you want to position yourself as a comic scriptwriter. everything will look much more professional if you do this.

[Iris-Grimoire]

Reading over pictures is unfortunately the minority. People don't want to sit down and fill in the blanks, they want something they can consume fast, drop and pick up as they go. It really should be half and half but in social media that's what gets encouraged.

But other users said it better than I could - don't make it the focus until you can make it something very easy to present, but don't be afraid to have it as a little side folder where you practice storyboarding. You don't have to grasp perspective and anatomy yesterday to use simple drawings to convey what you want written, and it's pretty much what I hear from other artists that do commissions; they'd rather have someone do a poor MS Paint drawing of a character design or a photo collage than to wrap their heads around subjective text that might have to be revised several times.

[StrangeVision]

if the art is terrible, why should it even be a comic?

It's all relative. Original One Punch Man is charming and has every right to have existed as it did.
Didn't do it for you, did it for me. Heck, a lot of professional art doesn't do it for me.