Broken Frontier

The comic book industry offers one of the most unique story telling platforms in our civilization. The comic book is a deceptively simple product: a collection of printed pages, bound together with staples.

A story told in a perfect symbiotic duet, where words and pictures create a symphonic movement of thrill and emotion.

Creation doesn’t happen in a vacuum.

In order to create, we need support. To fuel our imaginations, we need resources.

This is truer for some creators than for others. For those of us, like me, who are new to this industry, support is vital.

We have passion, we have imagination and we have will power, but we need the resources and the tools to focus these abilities so that we, like the generations of creators who came before us, can deliver the most wondrous thing known to humanity:

Story.

As I wrote earlier, creation doesn’t happen in some nebulous vacuum. There are countless websites and written guides on writing, inking, colouring, penciling, lettering, etc. You can read these guides, study them until you are an expert, but that won’t necessarily give you all the tools to tell the story.

Wearing the hat of a creator, I can say that the aspect of creation that I most enjoy is the jam. When the writer, penciler, inker, colorist and letterer are jamming like a well-oiled machine, it is as close as you can get to creative Utopia.

At this point, I am going to apologise for writing a column that is slightly writer-centric. I sort of can’t help it: I am a writer. I also have no experience as a penciler, inker, colorist or letterer. I still view all of those skills with an appropriate reverential respect, almost akin to something best offered to those who create magic, which is, after all, what these creators do.

 

Digital Webbing

Much more than just an indy publisher, Digital Webbing is an invaluable resource for the newbie creator.

The site features an awesome Talent Search classifieds section, where you will find job ads for pencilers, inkers, writers, colorists, letterers and submissions. Occasionally, you will also find ads offering payment for your services. Your breakthrough could be on its way, if only you check the classifieds!

As you sweat it out preparing your submission, spare a thought for the poor person who posted the ad in the first place. Their email box is going to be as clogged as my arteries after a meal at my Mother-In-Law’s. They will receive gushing fan boy pleas for a chance, preschool standard scratching, and occasionally, the poster may discover the next Joe Madureira or Alan Moore...

If you are replying to an ad in Digital Webbing, it is best that you take the approach that I have adopted: assume you are never going to hear from the person who placed the ad.

Assume that the poor guy has received 2.7 million applications and that his email box has suffered a hemorrhage. That way, if you are contacted and offered the chance to participate on the project, it will be a pleasant surprise. If you are really lucky, you might even get paid too!

However, for my money, the best service that Digital Webbing offers to a newbie creator is the chance to meet other creators of differing quality, professionalism and experience.

I know from personal experience that the posters who inhabit the Writer Showcase forum are positive people, keen to share their skills and to learn from each other.   It was here that I posted my first ever scripts for critique, and it was because of those critiques (and feedback received from friends) that I ended up turning in a stronger submission to Ronin Studios. The story was Tiki’s Phayrie, which is due to be featured in an anthology produced by Ronin Studios this year.

The other aspect that I really enjoy about Digital Webbing is the sense of community at the site. This often transfers to other places on the net when you bump into fellow creators you know from the Digital Webbing site.

The last comment that I will make about Digital Webbing relates to their anthology publication Digital Webbing Presents. The website describes DWP (as it is affectionately known) as:

The Internet Collaborative Anthology showcasing the talent of tomorrow and today, right now.

Each issue is jam-packed with short stories and serials to melt your eyeballs and cook your brain.

A number of creators have gotten their start in these pages. I am keen to check out new issues to discover the new talent that is coming through the ranks. One day, I might see your work in there!

 

Scryptic Studios

Scryptic Studios is a website run by Ryan Scott Ottney, Jeffery Stevenson, Dre Melbourne, Jim “Kep!” Keplinger and Brant W. Fowler (where have I heard that name before?). The site was founded in 2004 to act as a “place where they (writers) can easily access story references and resources, as well as discuss ideas and techniques with other writers.”

The site offers a huge range of resources covering books on writing, the business of writing, journalism and media, organizations, story research, tools for writers, writing terminology and writing tips and advice.

In addition to this comprehensive list, the site also hosts examples of comic scripts, pitches/treatments, prose writing, radio scripts, screenplays and television scripts.

These tools are invaluable for new writers hoping to hone their craft.

But, wait! There’s more!

The site hosts columns offering expert insights into the process of writing and crafting story, as well as a wonderful message board, where you can interact with columnists and a huge gaggle of other writers, all of varying degrees of expertise.

If you are a writer working to break in, you must bookmark this site!

 

Pencil Jack

Lastly, I want to cover this site that I have only recently discovered. Pencil Jack is more of a discussion forum than a website, and tends to cater more for artists than for writers, but it is worth a look, especially when you have advanced far enough in your craft that you begin to search for that perfect artist to bring your stories to life.

As always when discussing internet resources, I have only just scratched the surface of what is available to newbie comic creators. The internet is a boundless realm and while 99 percent of it is porn and junk, you will find some great resources, especially if you know where to look!

The best thing about all of these sites is that they are open to us all, whether we are just starting out, or have a book in the Diamond Top 20.... The internet has proved to be the great equalizer, making a wealth of knowledge and resources available to everyone.

Knowledge is power. New creators have access to endless information, resources, advice and support.

The most exciting thing is that the tools are starting a revolution, thousands of personal evolutions that will unleash the next wave of creators.

These resources will all play a vital role in the evolution of this industry.

Jump on board Digital Webbing or Scryptic Studios right now. Right at this very moment, the next Kirby, Mcfarlane, Moore or Casey might be online.

It could be you.