Before You Write a Comic Book Script: An Essay for Writers

Writing comic books can be a career for those talented and lucky artists who find the right markets and their voice. There are some lessons to be learned before you write a comic book script. Writing a publishable script proves how hard the profession really is, so let this article be a guide for you down the road of being published.

Where do comic writers begin? Just like a piece of fiction the possibilities are endless. We can start out with a single scene, or a hero, or even a mystery plot. What matters is that we develop this initial thought to work in building a story with merit. Many top publishers of novels do not accept unsolicited submissions (meaning you cannot submit your work unless they want it) and the same is the case with comic book publishers. Marvel and DC comics will not even look at anything you send them. There are plenty of markets for a new script writer to break into, and the next point will lead into this.

Some smaller markets get inundated with submissions, and this makes it hard for someone with talent to get noticed. It is usually easier for an artist because whether they have talent or not can be seen by glancing at one drawing. A comic book writer's talent takes a few pages to see, and many editors will only give a page. The trick is not always to be original, but finding something from the company's history that could be done again. For example, publishers like Dark Horse have plenty of alien creatures fighting, or futuristic worlds like "Akira," but few signature super heroes like a Batman or Spider-Man. This is not to say it would be easier to publish the one over the other, but it points out that publishers will give something a chance if they do not already have several titles focused on it.

If you do not want to send a script to a publisher and wait months (or forever) then there is always the opportunity of self publishing. This is controversial-many writers, of novels or comics, think self publishing is pointless. This is simply not the case. Many top writers started out self publishing, even comic book writers, and once they were noticed they received steady work. The list includes Brian Michael Bendis (who wrote "Ultimate Spider-Man").

We still have to write that script. Perhaps we have a hero in mind, or something different. A few books to note on writing scripts would teach you better than I ever could. Alan Moore and Peter David both have books out on writing comic book scripts. When you do write that script, especially if its your first, do not submit it until you've at least received an opinion from one other person. Many forums are available for comic writers, or you can meet a friend at a convention.

We can all become comic writers, but success is a matter of going down a long road. We may never see our name on a Spider-Man comic book, but we can find the journey as fulfilling as any other.