Episode 225: Story Structure (with Gary Hodges)

This week, we talk about finishing production work on an anthology title (4:15), a record week of reading (19:40), using the SLAC method to finish a story (28:45), designing the mystery in your story (37:30), and a discussion on creation and commerce (50:20)

This week, we begin with a recap of WonderCon (5:20) and discuss convention do's and don'ts (20:25), then talk about coloring pages (42:00) and when subgenres break formula (45:10).

This week, we sit down with Scott Serkland (The Young and the Dead) to give big picture thoughts on AZCAF (3:15), the right amount of information to share on upcoming projects (17:00), and craft versus promotion (37:15), among other topics.

This week, we talk about found footage when it comes to comics (3:20), knowing the right amount of work and detail for talk-heavy pages (21:50), getting a book back from the printer (28:50), when crowdfunding campaigns offer pleasant surprises (34:45), when the universe does strange things (45:45), and stages of cover assembly (53:20).

This week, we discuss the framing of an unorthodox story (3:10), the challenges some background elements provide (13:30), how changing POV can make a story smoother (25:00), and managing your crowdfunding campaign mid-stream (33:15).

This week, we discuss rarities you can include in your crowdfunding (3:00), a different kind of convention (12:00), making free stuff work for you (17:25), densely paneled pages (26:20), taking the first swing at a change in story structure (35:40), a conversation with a colorist (45:00), and the decision in staking a claim on a story idea (51:25).

This week, we welcome Gary Hodges (D vs. M) and discuss editing an anthology (5:20) and naming conventions for the volumes of your work (9:15) before we open up the conversation on story structure (17:00), keeping the energy of a rough version in later versions (35:00), the rhythm / music of stories (51:50), and more!

This week, we discuss the maddening part of PDF assembly (5:55), the maddening part of PDF formatting (12:00), making a future editing promise to yourself (24:30), settling in to those productive moments (30:25), the right level of detail and quality for books within your story (37:45), finding the right format for your story (48:00), and stylistic choices for voiceover text (55:10).

This week, we discuss character references for your story (5:00), staying on an artist pace for interior pages (16:00), continuity among your comics (26:40), riding a creative wave when it happens (32:45), working through a coloring style (38:45), before we get into the main topic: the hand-drawn element of logos and lettering (45:30).

This week, we talk about drawing a Kickstarter backer into artwork (2:30), locating yourself on the learning curve (13:00), putting the promotional work into your crowdfunding (25:20), when PDF formatting goes wrong (28:15), when a workshop tells you something you didn't see (36:30), working on a letters column (46:50), and getting the complete art to Keith's superhero story (53:45), which he actually names! Then Scott reveals the secret project (63:00) he's been working on!