Getting Started
November 18, 2020
I’ve been wanting to do a longer story project for a while now, but was reluctant in tackling something as large as a full-length graphic novel. The main doubt lies in my writing abilities. See, I’m dyslexic. (In case of stairs use fire.) To overcome these doubts, I’ve done and continue to do a number of things. One item which helped me put things in perspective was a graphic in the back of Will Eisners’ book “Comics and Sequential Art”.

Graphic by Will Eisner
In this graphic Will Eisner lays out all the areas someone would need to know in order to create a good comic or graphic novel. Lucky for me, I already have most of the skills through my art school education and years as a graphic designer. However, the one area where I’m missing the goods is the “Language” column.

So, I set a plan in motion get language on my side.
Here is my list:
  • Read Joseph Campbell’s “The Hero with a Thousand Faces”
  • Read a bunch of books on script writing
  • Read scripts and analyze them
  • Reading at least 100 graphic novels before starting
  • Take creative writing courses
  • Write more (that’s one of the reasons for this here blog)
And that's just to get started.
Now, the next big thing is how will I draw some 1200 different panels, while keeping the characters in harmony from page to page, and not spend the next ten years of my life on just one graphic novel.

For this too, I have a plan. I’ve done a few quick tests already, but my thinking is to build a library of parts for each character. I can then use these parts to assemble each panel. Of course there will be tweaks, but this should get me 80%-90% there. Also, I will be able to share works in progress to get feedback. Woot!

No matter how you look at it though, this project is truly overwhelming when you think about all the steps it will take. I liken it to looking at a 1000 page book... “For fuck sakes look at all the pages!” But, once you get into it and start reading, you simply go page by page until you reach the end.

I plan on doing the same thing, just one step at a time until the graphic novel is complete. Although there is no way in denying it, with this project I’m putting all my baskets in one egg.