Yes! Exciting post today! And our FIRST behind the paywall (which you’re gonna hit in a minute if you haven’t subscribed to a paid tier).

Oooooh. Fancy.

Yes, yes it is.

So I’ve been working on this one for a little while - and thanks to the generosity of some of comics best writers it’s turned into such a cool little post.

Art from IT’S JEFF comic, art and colors by Gurihiru

One of the big things that slowed me down when I was a young writer, was trying to figure out how the hell to format things. How to do it right and not look like a dum-dum…or just plain unprofessional. But back when I was a kid first figuring this stuff out, the Internet wasn’t really A THING. At least not like it is now (yes, I am old, let’s move on!)

In fact, when trying to figure out how to write scripts I finally had to get my hands on a “Hollywood Memorabilia” mail order catalog and ORDER a script THROUGH THE MAIL.

How did we ever survive?

Anyway, even though I eventually got my hands on that TV show script and it helped a lot, finding a comic book script was basically impossible for a cautious nobody like me.

And honestly? That hasn’t changed AS MUCH as you’d think. Because while I assume with the vastness of the Internet that there are a lot more comic book scripts out there - it’s still one of the most frequent questions I get from readers. So I’m going to do the best thing I know how to do for you guys, and that’s show you some samples of other writers scripts along with my own.

In Film & Television scripts have VERY clear rules. There’s a way to make your scripts look professional and read correctly and then there’s almost all the other ways, which, unless you’re already a name (that can break the rules whenever you want) it’s a quick ticket to looking like a rank amateur.

But comic book scripts, while they certainly have guidelines, there is very little “this is right” and “this is wrong.” Sure some script formats are better than others. Some are easier to read and/or prettier than others. And while we all have our favorite and less favorite things we do and don’t do, the truth is you’re still allowed the flexibility to make it your own, without being marked as unprofessional.

One of the coolest things - well after I had broken into comics - was getting to see other big time professional writer’s scripts - to see what they were doing the same as I was and what they were doing differently. It was both educational and super fun. I didn’t ever embrace someone else’s script formatting wholesale (I use mine for a reason - I like it!) but like other writers I know, I definitely borrowed cool things I found in other writer’s scripts and other times took things and changed them slightly to make them my own. And I thought…with the help of some awesome colleagues that I’d like to give you all a taste of that experience.

Interior art from Captain Marvel #11, art by Carmen Carnero, colors by Tamra Bonvillain. Very bad letters by me.

1979 Semi-Finalist

Process Junkie: Scripting Part 2

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