"I Thought It Would Be Impossible!" - Creating a Comic Book; #1 - 7/12/2017
Blogging The Creation of a Comic Book
Welcome to the inaugural edition of "I Thought It Would Be Impossible." This column is coming into existence to document the creation of my comic book "I Thought It Would Be Zombies..." from this point forward. And yes, at times the creation of a comic book does seem to be an impossible task. You are cordially invited along for the ride. Fair warning, I don't know how this ride ends. It may be a fun filled roller coaster, a relaxing afternoon tubing down a gentle river with friends, or possibly a cruise ship that catches fire at sea, it's passengers wracked with dysentery acquired from a poorly maintained buffet, as the disabled ship awaits rescue, drifting along with the ocean currents.
Sure, it's an odd metaphor... but perhaps an apt one. It's probably fairly comparable to how this journey is starting out. Creatively I've been adrift, at times disabled, awaiting rescue. I've lacked clear focus, drifting from project to project. My engine room has surely sustained damage as sometimes days or weeks go by without any forward propulsion in the pursuit of my goals. And the dysentery? I'll spare you those stories... for now...
I Thought It Would Be Impossible is here to fulfill many roles. This regular blog column will provide a behind the scenes look at my process and progress in the creation of the comic, "I Thought It Would Be Zombies..." For comic and art fans it may provide a peek behind the curtains at the rather mundane wizardry that brings comics to life! For fellow creators and artists it may provide tutorials and inspiration, as well as support and commiseration. And for me it provides focus, reflection and accountability, as well as promotion and support for the project as it progresses.
Years in the Making
Most comic books are a collaborative effort that take hundreds of hours of work to produce a single issue consisting of a couple dozen pages. Completed stories may stretch for dozens of issues, equating to hundreds or thousands of pages.... and therefore thousands or tens of thousands of hours of effort. In the arena of independent comics, this workload frequently is not handled by a full creative team, but rather by a single individual, or perhaps a collaborative pair.
As if these thousands of hours alone aren't a steep enough hill to climb, the vast majority of creators do not have the good fortune of working full time on their stories. Alas a day job is all too often a necessity to maintain food, shelter, and the ever important internet connection and art supply budget!
Oh yeah... It's also commonly accepted knowledge that if you actually want your comic to be successful, then an equal amount of time needs to be spent on marketing, promoting, and just plain running the business of being an artist and frequently publisher. So let's just multiply that workload, those thousands of hours, by a factor of two.
- That's the challenge I face.
- That's the challenge many creators face every day, whether creating comics, paintings, musical scores, or novels.
- Some people are beating the challenge.
- Some people are getting it done.
- Currently I am not, and I want that to change.
(Things like building and maintaining a website add to the workload! You can see the framework of the content to come over at ithoughtitwouldbezombies.com - where all ITIWBZ related Steem content will be embedded as soon as it's technologically within my grasp!)
Why "I Thought It Would Be Zombies..."; Why Now?
I've had the idea for "I Thought It Would Be Zombies..." for close to a decade. In that time it has continued to develop in my head and in a growing collection of notes and sketches, thankfully for the better. I have a number of different stories I want to tell, but of them all ITIWBZ is the one that excites me the most. As it does with so many people, Steemit is inspiring me to be more productive. The exposure to the work of other artists, the accountability of others (admittedly few!) reading my blog, and the potential for monetary funding of the project all combine into a perfect storm of motivation. Now I just have to harness the lightning of that storm and get to some serious work...
So What's Next?
Good question. Good question. I'll be doing my best to log my time and process on "I Thought It Would Be Zombies..." from this point forward to share with all of you out there on teh internets!
Watch for a running tally of my timecards... make bets with your friends on how lazy I'll be!
Dig deep into the resources and tools I'm using in my quest as I share them with you. Enjoy the sneak previews so that you can proudly gloat to your friends, "I've been reading this since 2017," as you stand in line for the feature film in some far flung future!
If this column premise is of interest to you, please follow me and keep your eyes out for more! You'll be treated to weekly blog posts documenting my process and progress at the time. As the Steem ecosystem continues to develop you'll also see more regular short form content through Zaapl and Steepshot. If you're an artist, welcome to a course in comics creation... I don't know everything, but when I don't know something we'll learn together. If you're not an artist, but a fan of comics, fantasy adventure, and illustration... consider this your backstage pass. Tuition and admission are free of charge. You just have to show up.
More importantly, I'll have to show up... and BRING IT! After all, you can't half ass the apocalypse... or maybe you can with this motley crew!
(The core crew of "I Thought It Would Be Zombies..." This artwork was previously shown early on in my time here on Steemit. You can see the old posts here, here, and here!)
In the next installment we'll explore the basic concept, or "pitch" of "I Thought It Would Be Zombies..." and take stock of exactly where the project stands at present...