are you an artist or a writer?

So as most of you know, I am a writer first and a manga artist and illustrator second. I can write in my sleep. Writing comes easy. It is the art that I find difficult. When I created the two graphic noiz manga it was both impossible and a labour of love and it was fracking hard. When I completed the 48 page graphic noiz manga 1 that was a feat but when I think a few months later went on to create the 100 page graphic noiz manga 2, I literally thought there was no way I could do it. When I accomplished it in about 5 months I was both shocked and overjoyed that I had been able to create it.

I then took a break and threw myself back into my writing and have been writing since January with only one or two pieces of art done back in January and none done since. Would you say that is an art block like a writer’s block, well I don’t know as I have not actually tried to create any art. I just wanted away from it for a while. Sure I started working on the script to graphic noiz manga 3 but then determine that the script I was writing and I had about 40 pages was not going to work. I just as recently as yesterday have decided to scrap the idea of doing book 4 as a manga and move on to book 5 which I think will be easier for me to draw. I have limitations in my drawing and I need to be able to execute what is in my head.

attacking your planning

So now that I have the plan to work on the manga from book 5 that means I have to go back and read graphic noiz 5 again to understand really well the story. This is a yaoi story and I told myself that I wanted a little bit of a romantic feel in the next book and that I was going to stretch myself a little as an artist. This will require that I use reference materials possibly and that I research yaoi manga so that I can make mine fit the genre. In no way will it be hard yaoi but i want to have some romance in this third volume of graphic noiz which means I need to work hard.

So what are my planning stages:

1. find reference materials
2. determine drawing style (references: black butler, saiyuki, gravitation)
3. determine yaoi style (references: sekai iichi hatsukoi, junjou romantica)
4. read graphic noiz 5
5. outline the manga plot
6. determine length (one-shot, 48 pages, or 100 pages)
7. develop the script for each chapter
8. determine panel style
9. work new character designs

working character designs

We already have character designs for Shiro Ijima, Keita, Megumi and Noiz in the series. I want to update their clothing and their look in graphic noiz manga 3 which means new concept art and new drawings. I will want to get these done before I start work on the script and I think if I want this done at all I need to do a script chapter by chapter and then draw between each chapter script that way I am actively working on the manga in between the scripting otherwise I will not get to work on this for a long time and will not be drawing.

This update is going to require some series planning and concept art drawing. Now I have Noiz’ look down and can draw him over and over again but it is Shiro who ends up looking different across panels. This is an amateur thing and I am definitely an amateur as I am a writer who is drawing not an artist who is writing. So I will need to work on honing in on the character’s signature style before I start drawing any manga pages. I will also need to determine a cover and it is definitely true that the cover with both Shiro and Noiz on it was definitely a hit.

so what is the soggy middle?

the soggy middle is the middle of the story that needs to carry the plot from the beginning into the conclusion. Some writers can lose steam in the middle as they try to drive to the conclusion. The soggy middle is act 2 of the play where the characters mature and learn revelations that will lead them to the conclusion and resolution before the climax. The characters need to mature and come to terms with the inciting factor that lead them on the journey in the first act of the work.

Artists like writers can also have that same soggy middle happen as they draw and it is important that you understand your story completely to not have the action fizzle out in the middle of the story. This is also when you cut exposition and description down to the basics of what is needed to advance the story and increase the speed so you can get to the end. You also may introduce an enticing factor that changes the character even more from the first hints at revelation in act 1 and they grow to act 2 to the climax.

Since graphic noiz book 5 is the “middle” as book 6 is the conclusion that means that we need to drive the action forward and ensure that we can get there to book 6 for volume 4 of the manga.

so what’s next in your mangaka journey?

well now that I have 3 manga under my belt and am getting ready to gear up for number 4, I have some concept art to do and I also have to make sure that I can execute the new looks for my characters. It has been about 7 months since I have drawn anything and I have some other projects like drawings that need to get done. Right now I best just read graphic noiz 5 and get back into the story as I am not ready to start working on character designs and honing Shiro’s look yet. I will need to gear myself up for that. I will also look at scripts for each chapter doing them one at a time and then planning out the manga. book 5 has 9 chapters so that means the manga will have at least 9 chapters. Also since doing manga 1 which was 48 pages and manga 2 which was 100, I have learned trying to tell the graphic noiz story in a volume in 48 pages runs too fast and needs to slow down, so I need to look at that in the script and the pacing and timing.

Will I do storyboards? Probably not. Which I tried in graphic noiz 1 and it was just a whole bunch of extra work. I just threw myself into it which is how I write as well like a pantser so I will take the same approach. The script will guide the panels and the layout and camera moves. And I also will challenge myself to have backgrounds in this work and some yaoi content like kissing. This could work if I plan it right.

busy writing: when will you have time to draw?

So yes I do have a lot of writing projects going on with the grydscaen: darkness web series, the beta of The Seer of Ice and Sky, edits on grydscaen: retribution and production starting on grydscaen: beginnings. All this is in play right now so where is the time to work script on graphic noiz 5 you wonder? Well, we can do a chapter at a time and write the script and we can work on character designs on the weekends when not editing retribution. beginnings production will happen in spurts so that should not be a problem and the beta is coming in consistent and that is winding down as we are almost done with that project.

We will just have to make time. I can write a script easily so that is not an issue. I usually hand write my scripts anyway so I can do that in my free time when I can. Drawing does not come naturally to me. I can do it, yes but it takes time and work when I get down to it. I am a writer who can draw a bit not an artist who can write. Both of those talents are needed to be a mangaka. Sure I write manga and I have had a few people read them and I would like to have another version of graphic noiz for comicon in January of next year but that is an ambitious claim that I may not be able to meet so I may need to do a one-off short like 10 pages or so and work like that until we can compile a bigger volume. That might be the way to go actually.

making a one shot graphic noiz manga

I definitely like the idea of a one shot yaoi manga for graphic noiz which I could actually probably do for ComicCon by January. If I work on a few short 10 page volumes then I can have that compiled into a larger volume 3 if I go chapter by chapter. That is an excellent idea. It will get me working script and also get me drawing ten pages at a time which is a goal that I can handle definitely. This sounds like a plan. I can work on the script over the weekend for the first volume in the set and I can work on getting that storyboarded which I might actually do that to ensure it hits ten pages. I can also in the next month work on the character designs and possibly have the manga finished at least one ten page volume by January. Keeping a small goal will make this a lot easier for me and a lot less stressful. I like it.

I guess we have a new plan.