Maus Discussion & Comic Book Project

After our quiz on Maus, we will take some time to discuss the book in small groups. By the end of period 1, we will retire to the lab to work on the following project:

1. Alone or in groups of two, brainstorm some ideas about a short comic book you would like to write. Consider genre.
2. What genre would you like to work with? Fantasy, science-fiction, action, comedy, romance, super-hero, drama, how-to, parody, satire, mystery, horror, western, multi-genre, or some other idea. Brainstorm some ideas. Then select one that suits you.
3. Together or on your own, create a protagonist. You may have more than one protagonist, as in Maus or X-Men, but usually one will suffice. You may find this program helpful in creating a concept for a character.

HeroMachine 3

4. Flesh out your protagonist a bit. Consider who this person is, give the character a name, an occupation, special traits, consider a personality, and give the protagonist a few details concerning a background. By the end of class today, please turn in your character design and character sketch(es).

You may also spend a few minutes coming up with ideas for supporting characters. Who knows or loves your protagonist? Who hates him/her? Who acts as a foil? Come up with a few minor characters to support your main character/hero.

5. If you have fleshed out your character a bit, please move on to the following tasks:

6. Begin brainstorming an idea for a script. Your script should be a single story arc, with a beginning, middle, and end. The ending can be open-ended (to allow for a sequel) or it may resolve. You may brainstorm a series of story ideas by listing the possibilities on index cards, the computer, or notepaper. A sentence or two premise is all that is needed at this point, as long as you think of something.

Remember that in all good stories we begin with a hook, followed by an inciting incident that involves the protagonist in some way. After the inciting incident, we have a series of events (rising action) that leads to a crisis (turning point), dark moment for the protagonist, an enlightenment, that leads to a climax and finally, if possible, a resolution.

SUGGESTION: Use index cards to indicate possible scenes. You can rearrange these in various orders to create a plot.

7. Begin writing your script. If you have a partner that is a better drawer or designer, you can split your abilities: one of you write the script, the other partner draw the script. Most comics range anywhere from 21 to 30 pages in length. Yours should be at least 10 pages, if possible, for this project. That does not mean your script will be that long. 

Often a single page of text can cover 2-3 pages of panels, depending on detail. It largely depends on your # of panels. A single panel covering the whole page is called a splash page and is reserved often for your title page or an important climactic scene. Try not to have more than 2 splash pages in this project.

Most non-splash pages contain 4-6 panels, but you can play with this depending on how much is shown in each panel.

You may find it helpful to outline or summarize your story in a short treatment first.

In your script, introduce new characters in bold and CAPITALIZE that character’s name the first time it appears to make it easy for the artist to see.

A comic book is a visual medium. “Show, don't tell.” You should show your story graphically through the pictures rather than dialogue or description. Just like a film script.

A comic script differs a bit from a play or film script. Start by signifying which page of the comic you are on. The page number should be written out, underlined, and in ALL CAPS like so: PAGE ONE.

Dialogue tags are indented 2" (four tabs). The specific line of dialogue is indented to 1" (two tabs). All captions, descriptions, transitions, page #'s, panel #'s, etc. are left justified.

Then, use numbers to signify what panel you are writing action for, with the characters and dialogue beneath the action text:

PAGE ONE
1. Our POV is through the office window of a private school in New York's Westchester County. 

2. Long shot of PROFESSOR X sitting in his wheel chair, a blanket covers his legs. 

Professor X

Attention X-Men! This is Professor Xavier calling!

Advice: Try not to have more than one character talking in the same panel, unless the panel is big enough to include two characters and their dialogue balloons.

Sound effects are written out as SFX: (and the sound), for example: (SFX: boom!) and are written in parenthesis. 

Captions and transitions are indicated in the script by stating: Caption: or Transition:. For example:

PAGE ONE

1. CAPTION: In the main study of an exclusive private school in New York...

2. TRANSITION: Meanwhile...Back at the Hall of Justice...!

For more assistance with the script format, check out the following link:
Comic script format guidelines

If you'd like to read a few scripts to get the hang of it, you may find some pdf and doc files here. 

HOMEWORK: None. You may read X-Men, Issue #1 if you'd like.