“This book shows you how graphic novels get made, from the very beginning of the concept to the end result that you can hold in your hands.” So writes Nat Gertler in his introduction to The Complete Idiot's Guide to Creating a Graphic Novel. And really, who doesn’t want to know more about how to make their own graphic novel? It’s a form of writing on the cutting edge, movies are made from graphic novels yearly, the most famous and recent being Frank Miller’s Sin City epic. And with a foreword by Max Allan Collins (writer of another graphic novel that had a movie made out of it, The Road To Perdition) you can’t go wrong with this book. It’s a valuable tool that should be utilized if you can afford the twenty bucks to purchase it.
The book itself is woven with valuable information on successfully writing, drawing, inking, coloring, lettering, and finally publishing your very own graphic novel. Built from the minds of Nat Gertler and Steve Lieber, Creating a Graphic Novel shows you all intricacies of making a graphic novel. Both writers have had unique experiences in the comic business. Gertler found his greatest success in creating his own imprint, About Comics. Lieber had success illustrating Batman and Conan the Barbarian. As a bonus for readers, there are pages of script, sketches, and completed black and white pages for Gertler and Lieber’s graphic novel The Big Con.
Before you write your piece, you should set artistic goals. Don’t set financial goals early on, focus on what you want to write or draw. An artist should realize that time is in short supply. This book won’t solve that problem for you, but it will help you manage your creative energies.
In depth analysis is given to creating believable protagonists and antagonists: each should have strengths and weaknesses, attitudes and abilities. Villains should have had some tragedy in his or her life, and each hero a life-affirming story, or vice versa.
There should only be one action per panel. But the number of panels on each page can range from one to a dozen, or more, it’s really all up in the air. Your basic comic page should have six panels. The Big Con was a graphic novel that had a base of 4 panels for each page because the paper would be smaller for it. In theory, panel placement should be made by the penciler, but the writer should have some input. Each panel needs to have a preordained camera angle. Camera angles that can be used include the wide shot, medium shot, close-up, and extreme close-up.
Thought balloons, dialogue, and captions form the core of a graphic novel. You should have no more than 60 words per page and 15 words per balloon. The main job of thought balloons is to express emotion. Avoid complete sentences in thought balloons as people don’t usually think in complete sentences. Also, realistic dialogue shouldn’t always be used. People tend to talk in broken sentences. Write the type of dialogue that furthers your story. Captions, like thought balloons, have been eschewed in favor of a more cinematic style of storytelling. The most common captions you will see are the settings caption and the first person narration. But remember, your style can change any rule. You can think in complete sentences, have few images, and have little dialogue. It is really all up to you.
Before you draw a character read through the whole script: take notes on each character as you progress through the story. Brainstorm as much as you can before you begin. Cut out pictures from magazines so you can develop a working model for a person’s head. Start with the heads of each character and move on to bodies when your done sketching the heads. As you begin to work on the bodies leave room for options and try to build interesting proportions.
Theme is another important part of any story. Sometimes an illustrator has to make crucial decisions on theme in a graphic novel. The right shades can dramatically change how your graphic novel is read. Draw people and places that are fluid. The reader should be able to dance across the pages of your graphic novel.
Inking, lettering, and coloring are a completely different animal to master. Creating a Graphic Novel explains with clear examples how to do these important tasks. It’s good to bring someone in to do these chores but it’s always cheaper to do it yourself. If you can draw complex figures you can probably learn to ink. Lettering can be done digitally or by hand. The best program for lettering is Adobe Illustrator. When coloring, you should remember that you have millions of options, but choose the right ones. For example, when coloring super heroes, use bright and bold colors. Avoid getting too fancy when coloring as it can be a distraction to the reader.
After writing and illustrating your very own graphic novel, you need to think about publishing it. First off, you’re going to make some very important choices. Should you send it to a publisher? Publish it yourself? Put it on the web? Creating a Graphic Novel explains all the intricacies of print publishing or web publishing your work. To get your work published, you’ll need to have a writer, penciler, and a pitch. A pitch is a condensed version of your story told to an editor. A basic format for a pitch could include a cover, character guide, plot, and a sample of your finished work.
If a publisher accepts your graphic novel, try to set terms that work best for you. Being paid per page is optimal, as are royalties, if you can get both, all the better. If your graphic novel isn’t picked up, don’t worry; you still have many options, and not just self-publishing. Use a photocopier to make copies of your work. One option is to take these copies to a comic convention. You could rent a booth at the convention to get yourself noticed by the public. Beware, many conventions are dominated by people who don’t give small press a second glance. If you can find a convention where small press is featured, this is the optimal place to be. Publishing your graphic novel on your own is expensive, but if you can build a base of fans before you take this step, you might have a chance to at least break even. Two examples of good printing companies to use are Printing-On-Demand and Café Press: both of these companies charge reasonable rates. Many companies similar to these two are not to be trusted, so make sure you do your homework before you spend any money.
The best way to get noticed is to get your graphic novel in the Previews catalog published by Diamond Comics Distributors. If you want to make any money in the comics business, you're going to have to eventually deal with Diamond. Before you make the decision to print your graphic novel, contact Diamond and read through their policies.
Creating a Graphic Novel is a humorous, intelligent, and grand design. Nat Gertler and Steve Lieber have written a worthwhile read for any comic fan. It’s the little things that really make the book work. The book has wonderful side notes giving advice on what to read and how to avoid the major mistakes. Style is key with both Gertler and Lieber. Hopefully after reading the book, your style and business sense will take a step forward.
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