This afternoon, HIGH MOON hit 40,000 views ...
Not a bad way to end 2007!
Monday, December 31, 2007
Happy New Year
As I right this, 2008 is about twelve and half hours away. While I'll be spending most of the day doing lettering placements for HIGH MOON, I wanted to take a moment to wish you all a very happy and safe 2008!
See you next year :-)
See you next year :-)
Friday, December 28, 2007
HIGH MOON Returns January 2008!
From Zuda-Editor, Kwanza Johnson:
Keep an eye out for January 2008 when the next competition begins and our first competition winner High Moon starts its regular run on Zuda.
Keep an eye out for January 2008 when the next competition begins and our first competition winner High Moon starts its regular run on Zuda.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Happy Howlidays!
See that? That was a little werewolf humor for you! I'm the the midst of scripting more HIGH MOON this morning.
Did you know that the paperclip that we commonly use today wasn't mass marketed until 1891? These are just several of the fascinating little details I'm learning as I'm putting together the next batch of scripts.
Anyway, I hope all of you have a fantastic winter holiday, Christmas, New Years, and the like!
All the best to you and yours,
David
Did you know that the paperclip that we commonly use today wasn't mass marketed until 1891? These are just several of the fascinating little details I'm learning as I'm putting together the next batch of scripts.
Anyway, I hope all of you have a fantastic winter holiday, Christmas, New Years, and the like!
All the best to you and yours,
David
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Saturday Morning Writing
This is a snapshot of my little nook in VoxPop waiting for my breakfast sandwich.
That's Page Fourteen with the doodle on it.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
HIGH MOON: The Slow Burn
So, I've been reading over plot breakdown for the first HIGH MOON story. The breakdowns are about 52 pages long - and insanely detailed. The notes for Pages 9-24 are the most detailed.
Telling a story in the Zuda format really requires a lot of planning.
Often editors will tell creators 'less is more' and 'comics are a visual medium' ... and as a writer it is essential that you keep the story moving, give the artist something interesting to draw, and use every scene to advance the plot, reveal character, or establish mood. Plus, you need to give the reader an incentive to 'turn the page' with every screen.
That's a lot of stuff to keep in mind going forward, isn't it?
(Especially, if you are like me and like to give your characters a lot of room to talk.)
I do believe that Zuda requires a certain degree of brevity. I think it requires you to go in, get your point across as awesomely as you can, and leave the readers wanting more.
When I wrote the initial prologue for HIGH MOON, I wanted to establish a threat and dramatic need from the start. On Page Two, I toss out some theories. By Page Five, I provide a little bit of fan service, because you can’t have a werewolf western and not have a werewolf. And, by Page Eight I take those theories and expectations I built and toss them out the window.
You don’t have to do it the same way I did. I’m going for a ‘slow burn’ the kind you’d find in older westerns. I’m trying to develop the kind of tension that slowly builds until it explodes in one form or another.
To accomplish this, I’ve structured each of my screens according to the Three Act format. Every crisis in the story builds upon another crisis, every page builds on the previous page, and contributes to the bigger picture. It requires a lot more economy of space and a whole lot more forethought.
Anyway, all of this is to say that the uber-plot for HIGH MOON has been written. The script for Pages 9-12 has been delivered to Steve. And, Pages 13-24 are being scripted now.
Telling a story in the Zuda format really requires a lot of planning.
Often editors will tell creators 'less is more' and 'comics are a visual medium' ... and as a writer it is essential that you keep the story moving, give the artist something interesting to draw, and use every scene to advance the plot, reveal character, or establish mood. Plus, you need to give the reader an incentive to 'turn the page' with every screen.
That's a lot of stuff to keep in mind going forward, isn't it?
(Especially, if you are like me and like to give your characters a lot of room to talk.)
I do believe that Zuda requires a certain degree of brevity. I think it requires you to go in, get your point across as awesomely as you can, and leave the readers wanting more.
When I wrote the initial prologue for HIGH MOON, I wanted to establish a threat and dramatic need from the start. On Page Two, I toss out some theories. By Page Five, I provide a little bit of fan service, because you can’t have a werewolf western and not have a werewolf. And, by Page Eight I take those theories and expectations I built and toss them out the window.
You don’t have to do it the same way I did. I’m going for a ‘slow burn’ the kind you’d find in older westerns. I’m trying to develop the kind of tension that slowly builds until it explodes in one form or another.
To accomplish this, I’ve structured each of my screens according to the Three Act format. Every crisis in the story builds upon another crisis, every page builds on the previous page, and contributes to the bigger picture. It requires a lot more economy of space and a whole lot more forethought.
Anyway, all of this is to say that the uber-plot for HIGH MOON has been written. The script for Pages 9-12 has been delivered to Steve. And, Pages 13-24 are being scripted now.
Friday, December 14, 2007
HIGH MOON: When Will There Be More?????
Good morning,
I get the the following question often enough that I thought I'd provide an answer:
When Will There Be More HIGH MOON?????
Soonish!
The truth is, we are working that out now.
Again you can imagine, there's a lot of paperwork involved - and with the holidays around the corner, that doesn't help. Once the paperwork is all squared away and I know for 100% certain our exact schedule, you guys will hear about it first.
Going forward, the High Moon team will be releasing a scene (3-5 pages) at a time (and maybe even more!), rather than simply a page a week.
So, when you do see HIGH MOON again, you will be seeing a whole lot more of it!
I get the the following question often enough that I thought I'd provide an answer:
When Will There Be More HIGH MOON?????
Soonish!
The truth is, we are working that out now.
Again you can imagine, there's a lot of paperwork involved - and with the holidays around the corner, that doesn't help. Once the paperwork is all squared away and I know for 100% certain our exact schedule, you guys will hear about it first.
Going forward, the High Moon team will be releasing a scene (3-5 pages) at a time (and maybe even more!), rather than simply a page a week.
So, when you do see HIGH MOON again, you will be seeing a whole lot more of it!
Thursday, December 13, 2007
HIGH MOON: Where the Hell Is Blest, Texas?
A couple of folks have asked about Blest and where it is in relation to the rest of Texas.
117 years after HIGH MOON takes place, Blest Texas might look something like this.
Monday, December 10, 2007
HIGH MOON: Balloon Placements
After I got the art from Steve, I would start doing lettering placements. I go through a lot of Post It Notes during this process. When it came to doing to 'prologue' for HIGH MOON, I printed out Steve art, cut up a bunch of Post It notes, placed them on the page ... wrote the scripty bits over top, scanned the art at 72 dpi B&W, and e-mailed it to out letterer.
This is where our letterer Scott O. Brown really stood out. Scott's experience in publishing, writing, editing, and lettering really helped transform my Post It Note Placements into something exceptional.
High Moon: Remember The Tartans
There are some of the things that Mac, the central character in HIGH MOON, wears. Each element of clothing serves a practical purpose - and relates to a greater sense of visual history for Mac.
Friday, December 7, 2007
HIGH MOON: It Came Out On Wednesday
Here's something to start off your weekend right, an exclusive podcast interview with me on
"It Came Out On Wednesday," presented by comiXology!
I may have dropped a few hints!
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Mac Style Sheet
Heya,
I bet you guys thought we forgot about you - well - that's not true at all!
While Steve, Scott and I spend the next couple of weeks putting together the next installment of HIGH MOON, I thought I'd take a moment to show off one of the style sheets that Steve developed for Mac:
I bet you guys thought we forgot about you - well - that's not true at all!
While Steve, Scott and I spend the next couple of weeks putting together the next installment of HIGH MOON, I thought I'd take a moment to show off one of the style sheets that Steve developed for Mac:
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