CV3200 Create a Comic--Assignment 2

[Erika]

Write a script or outline of your story. Include if your comic is a strip or a page, how long you envision it running, what your intended schedule would be like, and if you imagine it as a webcomic, print book or newspaper strip. This can all be hypothetical if you do not plan on actually doing a comic, or can be a summary of work you’ve already done if your comic is already launched.

This is a creating/short answer assignment.

[rypperd0c]

Not much of an artist, I would work in the serial format, more in the tradition of the old pulp fiction stories from before comic books.

I First story arc
    A Introduction to major character for the story
        1 character is young female adult
        2 character is new to her position as an investigator for a newspaper
    B Character discovers the lead hero
        1 character follows rumors of a local criminal that the police are looking for
            a criminal is connected suspected of being a drug dealer
            b criminal is suspected of recruiting teens through drug samples to get them to work for him
            c criminal is wanted for questioning in relation to missing persons cases
        2 character finds criminal
            a criminal has base in vacant strip mall
            b criminal is building a cult
            c character makes mistakes
                1) character decides to get more information for story instead of calling police
                2) character decides to try to infiltrate new cult
            d character gets caught
        3 Character meets Hero
            a character finds out why some of the cult have gone missing
            b character is set up to be the next victim of the cult
            c Hero shows up.
        4 fight between criminal and cult vs hero
            a Hero delivers ultimatum to criminal and cult
            b criminal refuses ultimatum
                1) threatens cult members, using fear of himself to keep them from being afraid of Hero
                2) Orders cult members to attack hero
            c Hero kicks ass... a lot of ass.
            d Hero wins the day
                1) criminal is taken down
                2) character is rescued by Hero
II Second Arc
    A Hero is introduced
        1 Hero gives character a chance to ask questions
        2 partial back-story is shared
    B character gets world view shaken
        1 character learns about aspects of world she previously had been sheltered from
        2 character learns that knowing the 'truth' comes with a price

If you want to know more.. you will have to wait until it is launched.

Grade: Double points for excellent use of Outline formatting. Question: Who is actually the protagonist, here, the "character" or the "hero?"

[Twitch]

Although my art skills and supplies are up to the task, Sanctuary Apartments would make a great graphic novel. It would have a set beginning and end with each 'arc' being a volume. 

In the first arc the reader would be introduced to the world of S.A. through the eyes of Changeling.

• As the protagonist, Changeling is struggling to function as a person. His interactions with the other residence - especially Betty - start transforming him from a submissive recluse to happy young man.
• The conflict of the story would be a group of human cultists trying gain favor with the fey by taking Changeling back to the Seelie Court. As the story progresses their methods get more and more aggressive - smooth talking, harassing Changeling in the street, attacking the complex, bribing his case worker to hand him over. 
• The finale is the rescue. Betty rallies the other tenants to leave the safety of the complex to go get him back. Meanwhile, Changeling fights back because he final has something important to him. The arc ends when he claims a new name that nullifies the power of the one the fey had.

The second arc is viewed from Betty's perspective. The theme is about the consequences of magic. This is a slower more story with some comedy about Betty not 'acting her age.'

• Betty's story about why she sold her youth is gradually revealed while she goes about her day.
• Background points - local laws, new safety procedures, people's conversations - hint that while society is adapting to magic, people are still trying to use it as a cure all.
• The finale is a grocery run for Karen. During this run, Betty stops someone from making the same deal she made. The arc ends with a quiet conversation with the home-bound Karen.

The third arc is about Karen. Through out the first and second arc its been explained that Karen doesn't leave the complex, doesn't age, and understands any language. It should come as no surprise to the reader that she is a survivor of being 'spirited away.' It is a thriller/suspense as Karen must go get a protective charm renewed, outside the complex.

• I don't have the whole plot figured out from here. However, I want to explore the theme of 'what price do I put on my own life?' Karen's 'monsters' are such that they could use her relationships in the apartment as weapons. If you have friends that really would die for you, could you stand it?

Grade: buncha points. How do you think you would deal with the challenge of having a very action heavy first book, and subsequently less actiony second and third books?

[Twitch]

Aug 6, 2014 16:34:59 GMT -5 Twitch said:

Grade: buncha points. How do you think you would deal with the challenge of having a very action heavy first book, and subsequently less actiony second and third books?

Oh, just because people aren't fighting doesn't mean there's no action scenes. In the second book, I can demonstrate how police Swat teams react to magic threats, what people do when someone shouts 'Fey!' in a crowded room, and how people with any magic in their aura are feared (yes, I'm stealing from X-Men.) Since Betty is also going to be 'stopping a deal' there could even be a chase scene. 

As for the third book, well, Karen's a magic user with justified level of paranoia. I may cheap out and use some flashbacks, but I think a 'what if?' story could work. What if this is a trap and I have to fight? What if someone trails me back to the complex and kills the others? What if that shadow isn't just a shadow? Since she'd had over a hundred years to come up counterattacks, the 'actiony' quality could be raised by sacrificing a linear storyline.