CATHARSIS
from the Best of Banes Collection
A writing instructor once gave me brief advice on how to write a story, structurally speaking. It was 1/4 Act One setup, 1/2 Act Two complications and rising stakes (I think), and about 1/4 An Act Three “cathartic ending”.
I ...
Catharsis
Banes at 12:00AM, Nov. 1, 2018Character and subtext in horror
Banes at 12:00AM, Oct. 18, 2018
The Haunting of Hill House is masterfully done horror with humanity
The Drunk Duck Awards, 2018 are underway! Check 'em out here:
https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/Drunk_Duck_Awards_2018/
In the movie “The Innkeepers”, two clerks in an allegedly haunted hotel work on the last night before the place closes down. They ...
The Benefit of Trauma
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Sept. 22, 2018
Trauma is such a delicious thing in writing- it gives characters their backstories, their motivation, their special slant in a narrative wrok, from novels to webcomics.
However, it's usually considered in the context of how it has made a character ‘damaged goods’. Why they are grim, why they're ...
80 Years of Superman
Banes at 12:00AM, Sept. 13, 2018
2018 marks the 80th birthday of the big guy himself - the OG superhero.
Superman first appeared in Action Comics #1 in 1938.
Actually, there were precursors to Superman. But he popularized and defined the ‘Superhero’ character-type and genre. He was the template for countless characters who came later, with his ...
Quackast 389 - Intimidating Baddies
Ozoneocean at 12:00AM, Aug. 28, 2018 LISTEN!
What makes bad guy intimidating? Tantz Aerine made a great newspost about the question, carefully outlining various key bad-guy properties like confidence, composure, efficiency, and amorality. Banes, Pitface, Tantz and I stomp ALL over that, traipsing about like drunken, muddy rugby players, as we blather on about our opinions ...
Making Bad Guys Intimidating
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Aug. 4, 2018
Every hero goes up against a villain. Every protagonist against an antagonist. This is the main clash that drives your story, any story, forward be it slice of life or epic drama.
One of the elements that can make this driving force compelling, that will make the clash interesting and ...
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 ...
Politics in Fiction
Banes at 12:00AM, July 19, 2018There was recently a Provincial Election in the part of Canada where I live, and there's a Federal Election coming up in about a year.
With the brouhaha going on in the world these days about politics and the divisions between many people that are resulting from it, I ...