March 22, 2011 | Creative Soulery,DA Series: The Graphic Novel,Draven Atreides,Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Series,Life in General,The 4-1-1 on Me,Writing Movements,writing workshops

So, as you all know, I’ve decided to turn the DA series into a graphic novel series. My homework was to take the first 5 pages of some comic books that he gave me and re-write them. I thought about that and eventually decided to change it up. I told Bryan that I wanted to script out the first 5 pages of DA Book One. When we met up last Thursday, Bryan had brought examples of his earlier scripts. He also brought sample scripts for X-MEN XENOGENESIS by Warren Ellis and a sample script from CATWOMAN. I tried reading those manga books I mentioned in the above link (for the teen speak) and couldn’t grasp the concept of reading left to right. Or whatever. Too confusing.

However, I did enjoy reading Richard Sala‘s CAT BURGLAR BLACK.

Trying to script the first 5 pages was extremely difficult.The first chapter in Book One is basically the agents heading up Y.I.D. going over the special “deal” with Draven and going over her first assignment. That’s it. The first 5 pages are the agents explaining the deal.

So, here I am, trying to capture all that.

When Bryan brought the first scripts he wrote, at the top, it said “What Not To Do.”

Basically, it was everything that I did in describing how I wanted the panels to look. LOL

I sent him what I did and here’s the first page with his comments (CLICK TO ENLARGE).

Once I get the hang of this script writing thing, I should be able to do it like this (CLICK TO ENLARGE):

See the difference between mine and the X-MEN script?

In regards to this first assignment, he tells me at the top that I need page numbers and asks me “How do you want pacing?” A typical comic book is 22 pages and the whole thing is scripted in 7-9 pages. The whole thing! My “homework” was 6 pages. Granted, graphic novels are different from comic books and I’ll have more leeway in telling the story, but yeah, I’m definitely a nube here. LOL.

In the left-hand margin he says “A lot of movement. Break it down to photos!”

At the very bottom he gives me a tip from Stan Lee: “Never use more than 28 words of dialogue per panel.”

Cutting dialogue and description is going to be hard for me. Especially description. I’m used to describing everything, from what a person wears to scenery to facial expressions. I mean, I’m going to have to cut out a lot of shit!

During the course of our 2-hr meeting, Bryan and I talked about a lot of stuff:

~ Breaking my novel down into 3 acts

~ Figuring out how long I want the novel to be

~ How many pages do I want my GN to be

~ How many panels per page should I have? The typical number is 4-6

~ Start thinking VISUALLY (very important)

~ Study more graphic novels, especially the ones being read by 13-18 yr olds (and hopefully it’s not those manga ones)

~ Read up more on the GN industry (because I need to know the jargon) which is why I bought Scott McCloud‘s UNDERSTANDING COMICS and THE COMPLETE IDIOT’S GUIDE TO CREATING A GRAPHIC NOVEL by Nat Gertler and Steve Lieber.

~ As a writer, I’m going to have to leave my ego at the door….because it’s going to be all about the illustrator, not the writer.

~ Illustrators and writers have a partnership and everything should be 50/50

What I love about working with Bryan is that he comes from the comic book world. Section 1138 is the first comic book he’s creating, yes, but he knows comics. He’s been reading them forever. I, on the other hand, have not. I’m coming from the novel world. We view my novel in two different ways and I love getting his opinion/impression/whatev of my novel. I see my novel as just words, he sees them visually and can tell me, “this could be one whole panel, no dialogue” or “you can show her facial expression here instead of saying this”. It’s going to be difficult, transitioning from novel writing to writing a graphic novel, but I know that there’s a light at the end of the tunnel: Bryan. He’s going to show me how to do this and we’re going to get through this together. He’ll help me create a graphic novel and I’ll help him edit his comic book. A win-win situation.

One of things Bryan mentioned was the fact that my novel should start somewhere else within the story, like an action scene. Which makes sense if you think about it. The majority of the t.v. shows me and my husband watch start out with an action scene. And then the rest of the show is piecing together what happened. I want all the books to begin with a debriefing and end with a psyche eval (it’s part of Draven’s gig and she has to have one at the end of each assignment). So for instance, in Book 2, it would begin with a little recap of what happened in Book One and then segue into assignment #2. By the end of our meeting, Bryan was able to condense the first chapter (10 double-spaced, typed pages) into just 3 GN (Graphic Novel) pages! Three, peoples! I even got a little giddy when he gave me the suggestion for the back cover: a file showing her case. Hah! How awesome sauce is that?

So, in between working full-time, school, and taking non-school related courses like grant writing, I’m going to turn my novel into a graphic novel. This is going to be my way of giving myself some “me” time and not be so consumed with school all the time. We plan to meet a few times a month, and take it slow: 5 pages at a time. Yeah. This. Is going to be interesting. Hope you all stick around for the journey.

Lessons Learned:
~ GNs will be 126 pages long
~ GNs will have 4-6 panels per page
~ Be less descriptive
~ Watch word count

Technorati Tags: X-MEN XENOGENESIS, Warren Ellis, Richard Sala, CAT BURGLAR BLACK, Stan Lee, Scott McCloud, UNDERSTANDING COMICS, THE COMPLETE IDIOT’S GUIDE TO CREATING A GRAPHIC NOVEL, Nat Gertler, Steve Lieber, Section 1138

March 22, 2011 | Draven Atreides,Sunday Scribblings,The Fiction Project

I’m participating in the The Fiction Project. This project is sponsored by The Art House Co-op and is an opportunity to tell stories in a different way by fusing text and visual art. After traveling across the country, the Fiction Project will enter into the Brooklyn Art Library‘s narrative collection, archiving my story to share with the public. My chosen theme is “It Must Be”. In light of this project, I’m allowing Draven Atreides, the MC from my YA series, to take the lead each week via word prompts from Sunday Scribblings.

This week’s topic: free

I mentioned in a previous post that I live by myself. I like that kind of freedom. My friends know a different story, of course. They think my parents are archeologists and are on some dig in Egypt and that a friend of the family checks in on me on the daily. If they knew the truth (which can never happen), they would both think it was totally siiiiick. LOL. And then my place would become par-tay central.

The more I think about it, though, I could be free of this gig. Any time I say, I could be free. Me or the agency could cancel the deal for whatever reason and I would be just a typical teenage girl. Going to school. Living a semi-normal life.

I remember the life I had before.

I look at the life I’m living now.

And I think…I’m free of “before”, so I can freely enjoy “now.”

So I do.

Technorati Tags: The Fiction Project, Brooklyn Art Library

March 16, 2011 | Dance Jam Productions,Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Series

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #58:Who have you written into a book? Be honest.

My niece and my BF: The DA series. I created the series for my niece. She is Draven.

My BF during my senior year in high school: Dance Jam Productions. Click on the link to read The Story.

After I’m done with the series, I’m taking a step back from the YA genre to delve into the adult arena. With all the jobs I’ve had and the people I’ll meet as I open my nonprofit, I have a feeling I’ll be writing some of the outside world into my inner world. LOL

March 8, 2011 | 5th Semester,Life in General,Mentors,Prescott College,Spring 2011,The 4-1-1 on Me

As much as I’m enjoying the one-on-one instruction my degree program provides, the tough part has been finding mentors. Even while I’m working full-time and trying to get through the current semester, the search for mentors is never-ending.

And something I can’t not think about.

Time seems to go by so quickly and before I know it, damn, it’s time to troll for more mentors?

Needless to say, the spring session is almost over. Summer starts in May and I was hoping to have Marketing and Program Planning mentors locked in.

One out of two isn’t bad, right? Found someone for Marketing but summers seem to be the busiest time for program directors/managers/coordinators.

Or they don’t have graduate level degrees.

Another downside to this innovative program. I get a lot of “wow, this is great, I would love to help, BUT…I don’t have a master’s degree.”

*sigh*

That makes it a little more daunting.

I’m thinking I’m going to have to scrap the Program course this summer and go with something else. With that being said:

I’m looking for a professional to mentor my Multicultural YA Literature course this summer. In order to be considered, you have to have a graduate level degree. As a mentor, the time you give will be considerable but valuable. And, as a thank you for your willingness to inspire and guide a student, you will receive a small honorarium fee from the school. If you’re interested, please send your resume to acolston [at] prescott.edu and I will be happy to provide additional details.

February 25, 2011 | Boob Tube,Follow Fridays,Life in General

This week’s question: What’s your current favorite T.V. show?

It’s been a while since I’ve participated (lately, it seems like nothing but school, school, school is occupying my time), so I thought I might jump in this time because I love talking about TV shows. Babendude and I watch a lot of shows. I’m surprised we can keep up with them. Needless to say, we do a lot of recording. Since GLEE is one of my favorite shows, and was already talked about by the blogger of the week, I’m choosing SUPERNATURAL.

Maybe you’ve heard of it? Two hot guys—who happen to be brothers—traveling around the states in a black 1967 Chevy Impala laying waste to all things, well, supernatural? No? For those of you clueless people out there, this series follows the de-gorgeous Winchester brothers—Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles)–as they hunt demons and other figures of the paranormal variety. They also get a little help from fellow demon hunter, Bobby (Jim Beaver) and an angel named Castiel (Misha Collins). This show first aired back in 2005 and I’ve been tuning in from the beginning. We’re in the middle of Season 6 right now and I think it’s going to be the last one. I’ll be sad to see it go, but I’m sure J’n’J are ready to move on.

From the get-go, Sam been my favorite character.

Do you blame me? With abs like that, I can’t help but tune in each week to see if he’s going to have a shirtless scene. LOL. It’s been interesting to see him grow as a person—physically—and as a character. He’s gone from wanting a normal life and giving up the job to being a balls-to-the-wall demon hunter. Dean Winchester was the jaded, hard-edged one and Sam was the one who still saw the positive side in things. They’ve both been brought back from Hell (not at the same time, of course) and since then, their roles have been reversed.

Some things I love about this show:

~ It can be both serious and funny – This time, Sam was brought back from Hell, but we soon found out that he came back without his soul. For a few weeks, Dean wondered if he could ever trust his brother again. Personally, I was wondering the same thing and it got me to thinking about the whole “soulless human” aspect. And I look forward to the FBI alias names they concoct. Hi-larious.

~ Jared Padalecki

~ The music – Dean has this thing for 80’s music, particularly Journey and/or Foreigner, so they’re always playing stuff like that, or 70’s rock. Thanks to this show, I now have a need to download “Carry On My Wayward Son” by Blue Oyster Cult. During the first few seasons they would play this song while they were recapping what’s been going on so far.

~ It’s all about family – Blood is thicker than water and Sam and Dean live by this creed. These brothers have proven over and over that they would do anything for each other. Because really, all the family they have left is each other.

~ Jared Padalecki

~ Castiel (aka “Cass”) – I have yet to see this dude smile, but his scenes can be hilarious.

~ The Impala – That car is like a Timex watch: it can take a licking and keep on ticking. It’s the ultimate man toy and it’s so damned sexy, it’s not even funny. I can recall a few eppies where this thing got totaled, but it’ll be back like new in the following eppie. Nice!

~ Jared Padalecki

~ They do a lot of reading – That may seem like an odd sticking point, but for a bookworm like me, I think that’s pretty awesome. They use their father’s journal as a guide most of the time, but whenever they hit up a new town, they’re always doing research—the Internet, the town library, etc. They really need to come out with a READ poster of these guys. I would so buy it.

~ And did I mention, um…Jared Padalecki?

I’m gonna stop now. Really. So, what’s your favorite current TV show right now? What else are you watching?

Technorati Tags: GLEE, SUPERNATURAL, Jared Padalecki, (Jensen Ackles, Jim Beaver, Misha Collins, Journey, Foreigner, Carry On My Wayward Son, Blue Oyster Cult