Throughout literature and modern media, many faults and drives for leads, damsels and villians have often been motivated by a tragic backstory so much so, that to employ one for your story may appear trite or cliche. There is, however, a way to use a tragic backstory effectively and can ...
Justifying the Tragic Backstory
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, Sept. 21, 2018White Hats
Banes at 5:04AM, Sept. 20, 2018
When Superman returned to the big screen ten years ago or so in “Superman Returns”, the movie was intended to be a direct sequel to the two original movies with Christopher Reeve. I was surprised at how mopey and depressing the movie felt.
Which is to say, the movie felt ...
Casting Characters in Comics - 123
Banes at 12:00AM, Aug. 2, 2018
Creating a Cast - in 1-2-3
One of the challenges…and maybe one of the greatest pleasures…of creating a series is populating it with a cast of heroes. I know I spend many weeks or months tinkering with characters and deciding who they're going to be. …And how many ...
Art and Propaganda
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, July 21, 2018
Soviet poster advocating atheism and science over religion
From the most ancient times, art has always been used by the ruling classes for purposes of propaganda, to propagate certain ideas about those commissioning it and their purposes: that kings are mighty, that regimes are for ever, that the enemy is ...
Quackcast 383 - Slow burn
Ozoneocean at 12:00AM, July 17, 2018 LISTEN!
The idea for this Quackcast came from a rant by the irascible PitFace. She was talking about how there's a trend in modern SciFi and horror movies to bash you over the head with constant action and it doesn't allow you time to relax and take in ...
Studies
Banes at 12:00AM, June 14, 2018STUDIES
Recently I began two training programs: one for writing and one for drawing. Both have teachers that are very impressive.
The art program in particular is cool, because I've done almost no study of art or drawing other than some lessons in elementary and high school classes.
I ...
The Sheet of Glass and Other Tropes
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, June 8, 2018
Tropes aren’t bad. In fact, they are a useful and, at times, necessary shorthand that creators, particularly in the webcomic field, can wield to enhance their work. J Hillis Miller posited a trope as, “… the use of figurative language, via word, phrase or an image, for artistic effect.”
Every ...
The Sizzle and the Steak
Banes at 12:00AM, May 10, 2018
For of all sad words of tongue and pen,
The saddest are these: “It might have been!”
Whether it's a webcomic, graphic novel, book, TV Show or movie, there is generally a “promise” made to the audience on some level. Maybe it starts with a thumbnail image and a ...