Read, Write Jeremy

TL;DR (Too Long; Don't Read AKA Summary): I decided to go the webcomic route as you have probably guessed from visiting halfwing.com . :D Details... Should I pitch another publisher? I initially just pitched  Image Comics , because I felt halfwing fit in well with their current material (which I really like). Image is famous for taking the same fee for all books and letting you retain many of the rights to your series . Also, I follow  Jim Zub  and other creators that work with  Image Comics , and they seem to have a pretty good relationship with them. After my first pitch failed  with Image, I had to decide what to do next. Dark Horse Comics  looked promising, but they don't tell you the splits (I assume then it is different for every series) and their legal agreement scared me off a bit. You have to agree that you won't sue them if they have series come out after your pitch that is very similar to your series. I guess that makes sense from a publisher

I pitched halfwing to Image Comics a little over a month ago ( details ). As the submission page calls out, if they haven't responded in one month, you should consider your proposal declined (which means halfwing was declined). As you might guess, I was pretty bummed. I even pondered hanging it up... but... I reviewed  my Toggl reports , and I realized I have spent close to a 1,000 hours writing/producing halfwing . I don't want to just throw that time without something to show for it. Also, I really believe I have something with halfwing. The story is coming along and the art is great. ... so... during the second week when I was the most down in the dumps (and I was sure if I hadn't heard by then, I wouldn't hear... which I didn't)... I started thinking about what's next. By the way, if this has happened to you, let in all those sad feelings for a couple minutes (or days :D ) and then move on to what's next for your story. Overall, don't ge

If you are a writer planning to hire an artist to draw your comic, it's important to get a proper contract in place, so you retain all the rights to your story. Where should I start? You will need a Work for Hire contract ( also known as a work made for hire or WFH ). This type of contract allows you to retain all rights to the created work and do with those works as you please (pitch, webcomic, etc.). You are paying a worker (artist) to do some work (draw your story). Because you are taking all the risk (financial), you should retain all rights to it.  After you find/hire an artist , getting a contract in place is the next logical step. I spent a lot of time searching for a Work for Hire template contract I could use. There were a lot of good articles out there on how to put one together, but not many provided a dummy contract I could use. Some websites actually did, but I read through the contracts and I don't think they were completely correct. It's better t

After figuring out I wanted to write comics (graphic novels, manga, etc.) and writing several scripts, I knew I had to hire and pay an artist a proper wage before I had my comic . ... So... I knew I needed to start a company... maybe? Why? Well, for one thing, you can write off loses on taxes which can help the first couple years. Also, if you ever start making a profit, you can deduct expenses before you pay taxes as well... and... well, I had heard I should start a business for this stuff, right? I just had to figure out the structure for the business. I am in the USA , so I had a couple options: Sole Proprietorship Business Partnership Limited Liability Company (LLC) Corporation By the way, the U.S. Small Business Administration has a great site to guide you through this. I don't have any partners in my business and I don't plan on being a Corporation at this point (too big), so I threw out Partnership and Corporation. That left me with Sole Propri

If you are working as a writer for a publisher, they probably have guidelines to follow, so you will want to match whatever they request. *cough* *cough* (They are paying you.) There is even a book on writing DC type scripts  if you really want to master that format. However, for creator owned comics, the choice is more personal. Write whatever format fits you best. For me, I started off writing movie scripts in Final Draft  after reading a ton of books on writing. My main goal was to improve my writing while getting some of the ideas in my head out on paper. After all,  I needed to write 10 throwaway scripts  before I tried to make something. While I did this, I figured out the best movie style script format for me which was loosely based on William Goldman's style . I talk more about him in another post if you are interested. By the time I was at about 10 scripts, I felt I had one that I could turn into a comic ( halfwing ). Now, mind you, the first major arc of halfwing

How to pitch your comic I finally have my first issue in hand. Now what? If you are going the traditional comic route, i.e., trying to get the comic picked up by a publisher, you pitch editors. There are a lot of publishers out there , and it is hard to know which to choose ( especially since not all will treat you or your work fairly ). Image gives the same deal to everyone (small or large) and has a good reputation, so I figured I would start there. I was also told it's better to target one or two publishers rather than shotgunning it . By the way, make sure your comic fits the publishers, i.e., it is similar in style/stories to other comics they publish. Otherwise, you are wasting your time. Before you start putting your pitch together, you should read through all of Jim Zub's pitch tutorials: Here Comes The Pitch – Part One Here Comes The Pitch – Part Two Here Comes The Pitch – Part Three Here Comes The Pitch – Part Four How Do I Break In?  (more general)