Fantasy stories, comics, etc.

Discussion in 'Off Topic Area' started by Nachi, Jun 18, 2018.

  1. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    So I mentioned this before, but I have a longer-term goal to one day try and write and draw my own comic. The idea struck me quite suddenly, as I have never really been into this, but once I got the idea including the topic or a plot, it has been stuck in my head since and I have been writing down notes occasionally for a year and a half now.

    Actually starting or working diligently on it has become something for the future for me, until I found a contest just opened on the website I was going to try to get it published at. It basically means I need to finish a few chapters in a few months. It may not sound like much, but after actually starting to draw, I, "surprisingly" discovered it is quite a challenge and I haven't exactly gotten far yet :D

    Without having the story and characters, at least for the beginning thought up, I wouldn't be able to make it at all, but still I am doing some learning and research as I go and since I remember there are people who like to read and creative people, surely some with more experience in something similar than me here, I thought I'd ask for general opinions, be it from authors or maybe even more importantly from readers. No matter if is it a comic, or a novel, fantasy of not, I am very curious about tips on what you enjoy or enjoyed about your favourite book/story/comic art... whatever. Or what you dislike, too.

    Right now I am also trying to figure out a name for the story. What do you think about a naming after the main character? Like "Harry Potter" lets say. Do you think it is more interesting or telling than a bit more generic wanna-be epic name for example? This is my big struggle now at the moment. It is going to be named either by the main character, or I though about a name indicating a journey and the settings at the beginning, probably. I will still try to come up with more, but... I guess this is my struggle alone. I would still be very interested in any opinions or observations you have about (fantasy) stories or storytelling in general. Or things you think inexperienced authors do that would be good to avoid. It would help a lot! :)
     
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  2. Mushroom

    Mushroom De-powered to come back better than before.

    You can just use the name of the character as a working title for the time being and if the name fits...then keep it? Depending on how your story goes I guess.

    You're using the name Harry Potter as an example, yes obviously he is the central character but he was also (within that World) a legend/lore. I've written something where an object/place was the title but mainly because it's kind of a character in itself. I am very very very amateur myself though.

    So good luck?
     
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  3. melbgoju

    melbgoju Valued Member

    Maybe name it after the main point of conflict or character quality in your plot? like "my heart is not my own" or "a war of the nameless" or "can I be a person too?"
     
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  4. philosoraptor

    philosoraptor carnivore in a top hat Supporter

    I think you can worry about a title and name of the character when you're closer to a finished product. You don't need to nail everything down in the first draft. It's why there's a Luke Starkiller out there.
     
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  5. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    Have you ever tried to draw characters consistently before? It's a skill unto itself.

    If it's a reasonably realistic style you're going for, then many comic book artists compose basic scenes in 3D before tracing and embellishing them. It is a lot faster and more consistent than drawing each frame from scratch.
     
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  6. Mushroom

    Mushroom De-powered to come back better than before.

    I would kinda "cheat". Although I would draw heads with a bit similarity, I would distinguish differences using differing hair and costumes. I don't do faces well, so everyone kinda looks the same. :p
     
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  7. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Thank you :)

    Actually, changing a name later on would be quite good. Unfortunately, I want to participate in this contest where, since it is going to be an online comic, I need to post first few chapters. And that would include name :/ I am not sure if it actually is possible to change in the future. And if it is, it may be more of an disadvantage, so it would be best to come up with a name right away, but that is haaard :confused::(

    Haha, Luck Starkiller? :D Really?
    It is true about Harry Potter. Actually if it ever works, my story is supposed to make the main character improve and power up a lot and sort of become an important person for the world as well. So this probably shouldn't be a problem. It just seems to me that naming the story after him is... somehow cheap and not very original. However most if not al the other names I've come up with are worse, I'd say. :/

    Hmmm, that is a good tip! I will try to come up with something of this style too and add it to my very short) list of possible names and see what fits the best! Thanks!

    Hehe, no XD That is one part I find is going to be hard! I've always been drawing quite a lot, but not people, really. So for the past few years I occassionally at least practised drawing people :D
    I have seen that 3D, I think. I am however afraid it would take a good amount of time (now for me at least) and I have no experience with 3D and probably prefer the 2D drawing style, even with its inaccuracies. It just has some charm to it, too, I think. My style is also not going to be extremely realistic. I think I figured a way now how to go about it and it is probably going to be a bit like manga, I mean in the general style and complexity/simplicity, but without stuff like ridiculously huge and unrealistic eyes etc. It is also going to be in full color.

    That's what I am going to do XD And I'll try to perfect drawing faces as I go. That in general is hard for me. Hopefully I have already at least learned a bit how to make a female face look female. Sort of :D

    I would post the link to the first chapter after it is finished here, but that would probably break the ToS. I am generally looking for critique, but now, I need to keep some level of self confidence, too :D

    Thank you for the tips, guys. I am going about watching various tutorials and my comic is not going to be perfect, now, but I guess that is a natural part of the process. I actually rather enjoy reading comics like this when in the beginning the artist was obviously not very experienced, but after a... well, few hundred chapters their art flows really well and looks pretty cool, too. I don't know and probably won't start drawing the comic on and on now and it is really hard to improve that much by just drawing in this style occassionally. I need to improve the main mistakes and then generally work on everything else as I go, I'd say. :)
     
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  8. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    Even very simple comic book styles can use 3D figures. It's like an artists dummy on your computer. It especially makes perspective a lot easier. Are you going to be drawing by hand, or digitally?

    Here are a couple of bits I found that have good advice:

    The Secret To Drawing Characters Consistently & Expressively

     
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  9. Smitfire

    Smitfire Cactus Schlong

    Harry Potter is a great name in the context it's used because it's very ordinary. It has to be ordinary to contrast with the new world and characters he gets exposed to that are anything but ordinary.
    Wouldn't work as well if he was called Darius Zamora or something.

    Good comic writing and good comic drawing rarely exist in the same person. There are some examples but there's a good reason in the old days there used to be a writer, penciller, inker, colourist and text artist on one strip.
     
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  10. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Hm, I guess you are right there. But I've no experience in 3D, nor do I have any program. Having a dummy is good, but tracing after a model is not something I would want to know as I wouldn't learn much that way. So I guess a regular dummy and a mirror will have tu suffice :D Or there are apps with 3D model of a person you can move around.
    I am going to do it digitally.

    And thanks for the video! I have already had it in my queue of tutorials to watch, so I am definitely going to! Thanks for going out of your way to search it for me :)

    Hmm, that is a good point, I didn't think of that. My character's name isn't that simple. He's be called by a simple nickname, but I wouldn't name the whole thing that way, I think. On the other hand it will be a fantasy world, and I am not going to use the completely typical names, at least not usually. So there will be no John or Harry.

    That, of course, is true. It is twice as difficult then. But I am not aiming to make my comic best in the world, but enjoyable to read, I am not aiming for perfection and... well, nothing you say is going to stop me from trying, so I have to have some degree of trust in myself :p
    But of course, a team's cooperation would surely produce a better thing. On the other hand, as a writer and artist in one person, it is easier to put these things together and draw exactly as I imagine the story. Which is one advantage I can think of! :)
     
  11. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    No problem! :)

    I'm not trying to push you into using 3D, it's just quicker than drawing 2 or 3 point perspective skeletons and then fleshing them out. If you want to take a look, then this is a free 3D programme with some free basic content (male and female figures) that I know is popular with comic book artists: DAZ 3D | 3D Models and 3D Software by Daz 3D

    You wouldn't have to be good at composing scenes in 3D, you could simply pose figures for trickier perspectives and draw all the detail in afterwards.

    I think the advice in the article I linked to is most important: knowing the personality of your characters is the best way to keep them consistent, both in terms of story telling and drawing. You have to be able to put yourself in their shoes.

    And personally, I wouldn't worry about a title yet. Decide what story you want to tell first. Most people who create art have a theme that is always present in their work. Even if the plot points and characters are different, I think that people convey the same message every time, in different ways.
     
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  12. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    That programme sounds and looks interesting! Thanks, I'll check it out! :) It is true that I will still need to look up or make my own references for trickier positions, and this could help. :)

    Yes, that is true, I am aware. Especially the drawing part might be a challenge, I do know there are a lot of things I need to work on, but I am determined to pull it off! :)

    I would gladly leave the title for a later time, but as I said, I will need to come up with one as soon as I want to publish the first chapter and that should, if I want to enter the competition, be pretty soon. So I don't have much of a choice, unfortunately.
     
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  13. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    Get the chapter done then decide what you want to call it. :)

    I honestly don't think the title is so important. Stories grow into their titles, and associations grow with time. "Star Wars" is a terrible title, but is now loved because of what people associate it. Especially with comics, I think that the cover art is a lot more important.
     
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  14. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Hmm, I didn't think of it that way. That is true, although a title should be good for grabbing people's attention or maybe hint at what the story is going to be about. In that sense, the character's name may not be the best option, now that I think of it, but at least it's nothing strange-sounding :D I will have to give it some more thought, but is a way, you are right. Thanks :)
     
  15. Smitfire

    Smitfire Cactus Schlong

    Just had a look at your FB art page Nachi and to be honest I was dreading it a little because I was afraid I'd see some dodgy fan art type stuff and then have to be diplomatic about what you needed to improve.
    But...you're really good!
    You definitely have the 2d digital skills to pull off a comic provided you can get the feel for page construction, layout, flow, dynamism, keeping characters consistent and all that comic specific stuff.
     
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  16. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Oh, thank you! :oops::)
    I know exactly what you mean and I kind of expected people to expect that of me :D I am not saying I am any better than those types of comic artists wannabes, so I tried to be a bit careful with this whole topic :D I have a lot of stuff to improve and comic art is something I haven't done before, so there's lots to learn. I am not sure if for this reason it is lucky or unfortunate that I have never been into the fan art stuff you mentioned. I don't like copying others, never traced drawings, I always wanted to create my own stuff :)

    The page construction would be something I'd be very scared of. Luckily, the format for this comic is a line webtoon, meaning the panels follow one after another, not several panels on a page. So it is a long noodle with pictures like a film, sort of :) Other stuff is exactly what I found is difficult right after barely starting :D I will need some victi... ehm, volunteers, to read it and tell me if it even makes sense :oops:
     
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  17. Mushroom

    Mushroom De-powered to come back better than before.

    I'm willing to read it.
     
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  18. Smitfire

    Smitfire Cactus Schlong

    Ditto
     
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  19. David Harrison

    David Harrison MAPper without portfolio

    Me too!
     
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  20. Archibald

    Archibald A little koala

    Re: title

    I used to torture myself over titling what I'd written and I got around it by sticking with the single word you're left with after boiling down you're entire story to its barest element
     
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