GREETINGS FROM WEBCOMICS LAND: THE DEAD GIRLFRIEND MOTIVATOR

I receive on average one to three scripts per month from aspiring comic book writers. The majority of the stories are superhero stories and those scripts really lack a good motivation for the hero. I have read one too many stories where a mother, father, brother, sister, boyfriend, girlfriend, wife, or husband are killed for no reason and that's the motivator for the hero to go out and get revenge.

The problem I see with some writers is that they think killing a person for no reason is good enough to motivate a person to be a hero. I have read some silly death scenes in scripts where a demon, assassin, or beast appears out of nowhere and kills a loved one that was introduced one or two pages earlier. It's usually a girlfriend that was killed moments before the boyfriend proposes marriage. That is stupid as hell and readers will stop reading your story in a heartbeat.

I'm not saying you can't use death as a motivator, but if you are going to do it then at least make the death part of the story and not just some unnecessary random event. If you kill of the hero's girlfriend then create a believable mystery where the hero has to link clues together to find the killer. Readers will want to see that mystery solved. They do not want the girlfriend killed for no reason and then the hero decides to put on a silly costume and fight crime.

I'll digress a bit and add that I'm amazed that writers are willing to develop these incredibly violent deaths that are witnessed by the hero. Also, these violent deaths apparently create no psychological damage to the hero. They see a violent death, scream and/or cry, and go on with their lives. Amazing.


TonyDoug Wright is the owner and head writer for Champion City Comics. 

COMIC BOOK AND WEBCOMIC WRITING TIPS: THE SUDDENLY APPEARING GIANTS

Aaron Schutz is a professor and a writer that created the Doctor Death charcater. He has provided me with plenty of great writing tips, and one of my favorites is his pet peeve regarding "The Suddnely Appearing Giants". This is Schutz's explanation:

In a well known fantasy series, giants appear half-way through the third book. And it turns out that all the characters in the books knew about giants, while the reader had never heard of them (obviously because the author invented them only half-way through book three). Don’t do this. This kind of clumsy world-building can shatter the illusion that the world the characters are in has any solidity of its own. If you want to add something later, figure out a way to weave it in earlier, or don’t add it.

This is something that I remind myself of when I'm developing a synopsis for a story. If there is going to be an encounter down the road with a radiocative gorilla then make sure you at least hint to the fact that there might be a radioactive gorilla. Yes, I'm still writing about radioactive gorillas.


TonyDoug Wright is the author of two webcomics titled The Red Devil and Day 165. Do him a kindness and check them out.

CHAMPION CITY COMICS WRITERS ACADEMY: VILLAINS II

 Welcome to part two of our series that deals with developing villains in your comic book script. If you missed part one then click here to read a few basic tips on developing your villain. Today's post is about goals. 

A villain should have goals because they can not be evil simply because you need a villain in your story. What will set the villain apart from your hero in the goals department is that the villain will act in an unethical manner to obtain their goals. For example, they'll con someone or hurt someone or blow up a building. It is important to point out that the goals of the hero and villain should be believable. World domination is a goal that has been done again and again in comics, so it is important to have the reader believe this villain wants to dominate the world because that's their goal and not because they are assigned the role of the villain. 

Tomorrow's post will be talking during a fight.

TonyDoug Wright is the owner and editor of Champion City Comics. His webcomics include Dr Death vs The Zombie, The End of Paradise, The Red Devil, and Day 165.

CHAMPION CITY COMICS WRITERS ACADEMY: GOALS

Courtesy Blake Snyder

Welcome back to the Champion City Comics Writers Academy. The purpose of these articles is to aid novice comic book writers. I've learned from my mistakes and I am here to provide some useful tips for your comic book script.

I've already discussed not getting married to your script and having a boring story. Yesterday, I told you that it was OK to have stories that feature superheroes, vampires, and zombies. Today, I want to talk more about your story. Your story needs a goal for the main character. This may sound easy, but you really need to get this right or your story is an EPIC FAIL.

When scripts are submitted to me for review by up and coming writers, I do see some rookie mistakes. A major problem for some writers is that they have not developed a goal for their main character. If you are developing a superhero tale, a sci-fi story, a criminal tale, a fantasy story, or even a horror story, then set a goal for your main character. Most importantly, the goal has to be something that will get readers to turn the pages of your comic book. The goal has to be a major accomplishment.

For example, having Batman race back to the Batcave to turn off the coffee maker before it sets off the smoke alarm is not a page turning goal. Batman racing to an orphanage to diffuse a gigantic bomb planted by The Joker is a great page turning goal. Now add some obstacles for Batman. The orphanage has been sealed by The Joker, making it impossible for anyone to escape. Maybe have The Joker create some flying teddy bears with bombs strapped to them to blow up the Batmobile or the Batwing to stop Batman from getting to the orphanage on time. Batman has a goal and there are obstacles from having him achieve his goal. Perfect.

Readers want their heroes to win in the end by achieving their goal. Placing major obstacles in the way of that goal makes things more interesting for your story. Good luck!

Tomorrow I will discuss the slice of life script.

TonyDoug Wright is the owner and editor of Champion City Comics. His webcomics include Dr Death vs The Zombie, The End of Paradise, The Red Devil, and Day 165.

CHAMPION CITY COMICS WRITERS ACADEMY: SUPERHEROES, VAMPIRES, AND ZOMBIES ARE OK

Welcome to the third installment of The Champion City Comics Writers Academy. This weekly column is for those aspiring comic book artists that are low on funds to hire an artist and lack any artistic abilities. The first article dealt with not getting married to your script while yesterday's article dealt with the fact that your story just might be boring as hell.Today the purpose of this article is to tell you that it is OK to develop superhero, vampire, or zombie stories.

There have been a few moments where writers submit scripts to me and they are somewhat apologetic about the fact that they wrote a superhero, vampire, or zombie story. There is no shame in developing a superhero, zombie, or vampire story. Having said that, you must set yourself apart from the pack.

Do your best to come up with a superhero, vampire, or zombie story that is slightly or vastly different from the rest. We have stories that deal with all three at Champion City Comics: 

Rapid City is a superhero tale that explores the complexities that comes with the job of being a superhero. Kinetic is the main character and we see how he struggles to maintain a normal life while learning the ropes to be a superhero. We have more of a normal guy developing into a superhero story than a cliched tale featuring mindless fights and women with large breasts serving as eye candy.  

Doctor Death vs The Vampire takes the vampire concept but changes them from the Bram Stoker blood lusting variety into creatures that feed off of pain and suffering. Gone is the black cape and fangs, and they have been replaced by normal looking people. However, these new vampires are incredibly intelligent and they hunt their prey by the amount of pain they have from an illness or an addiction.

Doctor Death vs The Zombie is influenced by the West African and Haitian mythos and  is combined with the George A. Romero world of zombies. You have the zombie that loves to eat brains, but must be controlled by the voodoo priest or bokur.

Slight changes will make your story stand out and that will appeal to readers.

Setting yourself apart from the others is not as difficult as you think. Take time and work on your sscript so that you have a superhero, vampire, or zombie story that brings something relatively new and fresh to the table. Have an artist or a fellow writer review your concept to see if it works. Be willing to revise and revise and revise some more until you have a solid story.

Tomorrow we will discuss goals for your main character.


TonyDoug Wright is the owner and editor of Champion City Comics. His webcomics include Dr Death vs The Zombie, The End of Paradise, The Red Devil, and Day 165.

CHAMPION CITY COMICS WRITERS ACADEMY: YOUR STORY IS BORING AS HELL

The Champion City Comics Writers Academy is a daily column where I provide some advice for rookie comic book writers.I'm writing these columns for the writers who have no artistic abilities and do not have the cash to hire great artists. Yesterday, I wrote about not getting married to your script.Today we need to talk about the fact that your story is boring as hell.

A majority of scripts sent to me by aspiring comic book writers are boring as hell and that is very disappointing. I've been guilty of committing the same crime and have learned from my mistakes. I want you to know that when it comes to pitching a comic book to an artist, and eventually to a publisher, then you better bring some action or major conflict to the table.

When you develop a script for a comic book or webcomic, be sure to have a good balance of plot development and action. If your story doesn't require action then conflict is something that will keep the reader interested. You must grab the attention of the reader or else you might lose them quickly. I'll use my comic book Day 165 as an example and it is posted below.    


WARNING: DAY 165 CONTAINS ADULT LANGUAGE AND VIOLENCE.

DAY 165 - ISSUE 1 (Adult Language) by tonydoug25

Day 165 was developed as a war story that included some supernatural elements of The Twilight Zone. Some readers like war stories and others enjoy tales of the supernatural. By combining the two, I believed we had something fun and interesting. I wanted to grab the attention of the reader quickly and had our main character, Pvt. Chris Richland, ambushed on the second page. From there I keep the pace moving by developing story and including enough action to keep the interest of the reader. The action and the plot were linked together, which is important. Also, there were moments of conflict between Richland and the medic.

One thing that all aspiring comic book writers should understand is that action scenes need to move the story along and be part of the overall plot. Never create an unnecessary action scene that doesn't develop the character, introduce another character, or have something to do with the overall plot of the story. I have plenty of pet peeves about action scenes that will be for another article.

Tomorrow's Post: Superheroes, Vampires, and Zombies are OK. 

TonyDoug Wright is the owner and editor of Champion City Comics. His webcomics include Dr Death vs The Zombie, The End of Paradise, The Red Devil, and Day 165.

KAV'S RULES FOR MOVIES

A. 'Kav' Kaviraj is our local artist, comic book guru, and movie script expert. If you have plans to write a movie script, then follow Kav's rules for movies below!

1. It's easy to start a car by just pulling apart some wires with your bare hands and rubbing them together.

2. In a shoot out in a hotel or neighborhood, no one ever calls the cops. These things can go on for like 10 minutes without any police response.

3. A grenade will only kill someone when the plot requires it-otherwise it just knocks them back.

4. Whenever someone is stalked by killers and comes home to see the door jimmied open, they will enter and shout 'Is anybody there?'

5. Whenever a cop finds a suspect, instead of walking up to him and sticking a gun in his ribs, he will stand 30 feet away and shout 'Halt! Police!' giving the guy the ability to simply run away.

6. A bad guy in a hotel room will always be with a hooker.

7. Vegas is still controlled by the mob in movies - in reality there has been no mob presence since the 70's.

8. No matter what a bad guy has done, the detective will be told they can't hold the guy and he's turned loose.

9.  In a Western, the first time the good guy enters a bar he will be engaged in a shoot out.

10.  The bad guy leader will shoot his underlings as they disappoint him-no one ever says 'F*** this' and just blasts him.

11. No bank robbery scene ever ends without a bunch of people getting shot.

12. A guy being stalked by a killer will still give his real name at motels.