Pat Shand's Whaddya Gonna Do? - Newsletter #5
Comic Script Discourse
The comics industry has a bad habit of turning opinions into morality-defining stances.
It unfortunately kills conversations that can lead to aspiring writers actually learning helpful tips.
That is why I largely stay out of the comics “discourse” on Twitter, which usually doesn’t end up anywhere productive. It creates divides over small issues and leads to weird pile-on moments.
I remember this one interview Joe Brusha from Zenescope Entertainment did where he spoke about how he forged his own way, stayed out of all that shit, and did his own thing. I admired that then and do now, and it’s what I try to do.
There was an interesting topic brought up, though, in the middle of another shit-storm.
Someone on Twitter criticized writer Tom King, posting a screenshot of a script he wrote. The screenshot showed a very sparing script next to the final page by Mitch Gerads which was highly detailed artwork. The tweet was created to suggest King was being lazy and Gerads was doing all of the work.
Chiming in on this on Twitter would appear to be both a defense of Tom King who doesn’t need it, and a pile-on of a random account with an uninformed opinion because everyone was already talking about it.
I don’t know Tom King and have never read his work, so I don’t want to wade in publicly to what quickly became an attack or a defense and nothing in between. It just so happens that the tweet about King is factually incorrect, and the truth behind why is important to what we as creators do.
This all brings up SUCH an interesting thing to talk about, though. To actually talk about.
There is no industry-standard comic book script.
There are very few writers who share their scripts, and fewer still whose scripts would actually be interesting or helpful to read.
In the midst of the shit-storm this stirred up, there were a few interesting points made that I want to dissect.
A comic book script is a letter from the writer to the artist (and the editor, and the colorist, and the letterer, etc)
Writers, I hope you’re seeing this. This discourse completely covered what could actually help you here.
Your script should be written in a manner that gets the best artwork from the artist. That’s it. Nothing more.
Every script I write is tailored to either the artist, the current schedules we both have, or even the title.
Here’s how I write on various titles:
Destiny, NY necessitates full script. It’s a character-driven series of graphic novels I’ve been building for almost a decade. Because of that, I have to largely dictate the emotions to make sure they are right for the character. To make sure the character-acting in the art is as specific as possible, this means I’m also writing the dialogue before giving the script to the artist. However, these graphic novels tend to keep artists working on the characters for a long time. The current artist, Matteo Leoni, did Volumes 5 and 6 and is currently working on 7. When he’s done, he will have drawn over 500 pages in this world. Because of that, I can pull back from writing longer panel descriptions because the world and characters are familiar. So I’m writing almost purely to dictate the emotional state of the characters. Matteo knows what to do with the rest.
Note that there are errors in the dialogue as well as differences in the final lettering. Fixing that kind of stuff before and over lettering is also very important.
Now, we get into it.
The script:
The page:
That moment where Logan turns away from Arvid the same exact time that she’s giving him an olive branch is important to both characters. That is the kind of thing I’m directing when writing panel description for this title.
A newer title will largely call for a more detailed script, especially if it’s your first time working with an artist. This is especially true of comics that will go on for a long time. I’m currently working on Wild Wisps with Nabetse Zitro. I have a tight schedule right now and he’s on Wild Wisps for at least six 36-page issues, so I am essentially giving him pieces of the script as he needs rather than a fully finished script. He finished the first six of #1? Here’s the next. He finishes #1? Here’s the beginning of #2. That way, we’re always moving. Here’s a piece of Wild Wisps #1:
Script:
The page:
Note how much more detail and how many panels Nabetse added. That is why sometimes, when a writer just adds a one-word description for a panel, it’s not laziness. Take a look at this other page from Nabetse along with my script from the Wild Wisps short in Emerald Fantasies: Space Between Annual 2023:
My adjusted script:
The page:
There is an error in my script that shows just how much Nabetse added. The final panel, which should be Panel 9, is marked “Panel 6” in error. That’s because the original script had six panel and Nabetse added three to break up the action beats and make it more dynamic and tense. Panels 4, 6, and 7 all have VERY light description, with Panel 4 having zero description, because I merely added those in my script so the letterer would look at the new art and knows where to place what. There would be no reason for a writer to go back and flesh out the description of panels that are already drawn just to — what, avoid some social media ire if the script ever leaked? This is just the nature of comics creation.
Then, there is a title like OnlyFriends With Penn. Manos Lagouvardos knows Penn and Benny so well that I prefer to write the dialogue completely over his finished artwork. The same is true of many of my comedy books, like I Summoned Cthulhu to Fund My Kickstarter with Patrick Mulholland and Amorini: Amateur Cupid with Valeria Del Gatto. I’ll write the panel descriptions and a brief, rough suggestion of what might be said in the dialogue to remind myself for when the art comes in. And then, I write it over the art. With Patrick in particular, his style is so unique and intense that I much prefer to write dialogue after seeing the pages. Here’s an example of what he sees and what I get:
The script:
The page:
That incomplete dialogue will be completely fleshed out and punched up with jokes. Right now, it’s not even proofread. It’s not even a note to Patrick, who I know knows exactly what to do from having worked on a two series together. Those are notes to myself for later. When I do this, I begin the script with this note:
Please note that the dialogue is not finalized. I have very rough dialogue fill-ins below the panel in italics, but I will be writing the actual dialogue over the finished art.
This is largely also how I write for Zenescope Entertainment these days due to their busy production schedule and my hectic writing schedule. It wouldn’t work on Destiny, NY but works perfectly for these. The only time I’d do it on a title like Destiny, NY is on a short comic.
There are so many ways to script. Finding what works best for YOU and the other creators involved is all that matters.
NIPPY #1 ON KICKSTARTER
A quick moment of celebration. I launched Nippy #1, an NSFW parody comic about an ice queen who struggles with the fact that she freezes everything around her, on Kickstarter this week.
It was my best first day ever, breaking the previous record that Private Dance #2 set earlier this year by a whopping $14K. We made $43K on Day One and I am still in disbelief.
You can see what all the hype is about right here.
SPACE BETWEEN TOUR 2024
April 26 - 28: C2E2 featuring Pat Shand & Anthony Stokes (Writer of Tap or Die)
May 3 - 5: Fan Expo Philly featuring Pat Shand & Chris Halton (Operations Manager of Space Between)
May 18 - 19: Cradle Con featuring Pat Shand & Team Space Between
June 28 - 30: EXXXOTICA Miami featuring Pat Shand, guest TBA
July 12 - 14: Florida SuperCon featuring Pat Shand, guest TBA
July 25 - 28: San Diego Comic-Con: Find Pat Shand at the Zenescope Entertainment, Black Mask Studios, and Devil’s Due Comics booths
What’s Next?
ON KICKSTARTER APRIL 15th: Originally launching earlier, Wild Wisps #1 will now launch on this date as my new ongoing series from Space Between Entertainment. Kingdoms clash in a fantasy world where magical creatures serve as companions to warriors & their secret ambitions. It’s Pokémon meets Game of Thrones. Follow it here.
IN PREVIEWS: Fairy Tale Team-Up: Robyn Hood & Van Helsing from Zenescope Entertainment, Club Nephilim #0 from Devil’s Due Comics
ON KICKSTARTER NOW: The new Cheeky Comics title, a parody comedy and erotic love story called Nippy, launches with the lead character designed by the iconic Leirix. Meet Ellie, a magical ice queen with a huge problem... and she just can't let it go. Back it here.
SHIPPING NOW: Amorini: Amateur Cupid #1, Cheeky Comics Annual 2024, Azza the Barbed are all shipping right now. Emerald Fantasies: Space Between Annual 2024 is arriving in days.
DIGITAL DELIVERY: Next up is Private Dance #2 and Destiny, NY Volume 6.
Super helpful breakdown! I knew beforehand that there's a lot of dialogue between writer and artist, but now being in the thick of an issue, you really see how much of a collaboration it is and that the "final" version of your script is anything but.