In my early days as a junior designer. I had the good fortune to work under a talented graphic designer and I remember looking at her work thinking, “Oh wow! She’s so clever!” She saw me struggling with a piece of artwork one day. Leaning over, her voice conspiratorially ...
LavenderTowne and the good type of stealing
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, May 8, 2020Building a character
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, May 1, 2020
A key aspect to creating a strong story is having believable characters. They are, after all, a key backbone to your narrative. So here are three tips that can help you put together a well rounded character.
1. Create a backstory
If you’re naming a character then you got ...
All is Lost
Banes at 12:00AM, April 30, 2020
I've talked many times about story structure. Even with a structural approach, there are a lot of questions to be answered, struggles to be had, and hard thinking to be done to make a story work.
One big moment that I like thinking about early in the writing is ...
Buffering
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, April 10, 2020
With all this extra time on my hands, I now have the time to build up a buffer of pages. Many comic creators will tell you that building a buffer is an important and oftentimes coveted position to be in. However, life, uh, finds a way, and more often than ...
The silver lining of isolation
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, March 27, 2020
For over two weeks we have been self isolating. My work is now done remotely and we have only left the house three times to get food. Although, there have been times that I have been feeling cabin fever creeping in, for the most part, I have been more busy ...
Quarantine Needs Structure
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, March 21, 2020
The amazing Emma Clare got to it first and already has shared with us a set of pretty useful and even life-saving tips on how to manage and protect our mental health, especially in times of stress. If you haven't already, I urge you to read it!
In this ...
The Challenge of Obeying The Rules
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Feb. 8, 2020
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 ...
Writing Wise Folk
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Feb. 1, 2020
Wise men are like valuable spice for a story. They are also a wonderful plot device, or an extremely cheesy one, depending on how the character is used and written.
Wise men (and women) are often the moral compass to the main characters, or hold some kind of answer to ...
Writing an Alternate Universe
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Nov. 2, 2019
An alternate universe (AU) is, in case anyone isn't aware, a story taking place in a fantastical, alternate historical timeline that usually kicks off from a specific event in actual history that takes a different turn from the one that it did in reality.
Alternate universes are fascinating. From ...
Star Wars' Rey May Be a Problematic Character
Tantz_Aerine at 12:00AM, Oct. 26, 2019
I know you are probably rolling your eyes right now, thinking I'm about to rant about the Star Wars sequels again. I'm not.
Ok, I might a little, but not in the typical manner. And I'm inviting you to hear me out because this isn't a ...