One could say that it is a very trendy thing in writing, be it for movies or for graphic novels, to subvert expectations. Often, unfairly, a plot that subverts expectations is equated with ‘good, quality writing’. Tons of essays and articles have been written to refute this association, including here ...

The suspension of disbelief happens automatically in readers and audiences if a story does its job.

Audiences WANT to believe in a story when they start reading or watching it.

I mean, you can' t count on everyone. I remember going to see the Benjamin Button movie and my friend ...

Rules are meant to be bent, or broken.

Of course they are- if it's a one time thing. If it happens all the time, the stakes collapse, the story comes apart, and the experience is ruined. I'm talking about stories, of course…

As we've talked about time ...

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Storytelling styles change over time for various reasons: fashion, audience expectations, competition for audience attention due to increased choice and availability of media, technological limitations and abilities ...

Considering how many steps there are in creating comics, planning, plotting, writing, scripting, sketches, pencils, inks or colours and everything in between, it’s important to build in some time for review. Now this seems like a logical step. But when deadlines, self-imposed or otherwise, loom, this step is often ...

Unreliable

Last week we talked a little pov basics.

This time, how about we talk the fascinating device called the Unreliable Narrator. For anyone who doesn't know, this type of narration (usually first person in prose, but not necessarily) tells the story in question…but is not necessarily giving ...

Ozoneocean suggested this topic, and I am intrigued to explore it.

I've made a good few posts about assorted drama in the comic world, especially between different factions and concerning different approaches to the art. Often that is addressed from a strictly ideological point of view. But today I ...

When you're creating the look of your fictional world what can really help you in the design of the look and feel of it is coming up with a “Design Language”.
What I mean by this is the theme of the overall look of things and the reasons for ...

Recently I saw a performance of the Muppets' band “The Electric Mayhem” from 2009. Pretty great!

It occurred to me how many years have passed since the heyday of the Muppet Show in the late 1970's. The fact that this young-ish audience was so excited about this show said ...

The Sleeping Satyr, the Barberini Faun

Last night, a distressed friend contacted me after a rather dreadful experience. She had just been on the most awkward dinner date with a man she thought was a gentleman based on his good looks and charm, but he turned out to be the ...