Comic Concept

[Dorkandproudofit]

I was looking through a site called http://conceptships.blogspot.com and was struck by the sheer massiveness of some of the artwork people have posted there on spaceships, futuristic cityscapes and so forth. Some of it was utterly mind-boggling, enough so that, somehow, inspiration struck. All of this happened less than ten minutes ago, and I'm writing down the initial concept for you guys just in case I've stumbled on to something with potential.

Basically, the general concept takes place as far into the future as numerically possible (no aliens!). Humans have advanced, technologically speaking, as far as possible. However, even at this advanced stage, we are still humans, and therefore still as prone to self-destruction as we are now. I have not yet figured out a protagonist, but there will likely be two distinct antagonists: One, the establishment that governs the entire human race (absolutely NOT a cliche "evil empire", though; just a human government with the same pros and cons as today, only much, much more technologically advanced), and two, a terrorist organization that seeks to bring an end to the entire human race. NOTE: again, this is not some cliche thing; these are just otherwise ordinary humans who believe that we, as a species, have advanced too far and therefore must be not just destroyed, but erased. I don't necessarily mean from existance, but in such a way as no trace whatsoever will be left to indicate that we were ever here. Both antagonists should be sympathetic in their own way, yet show the entire range of human flaws. Basically, the whole theme I'm going for here is, no matter how far we go, we'll still be just as human as we are now.

The reason I want to use a comic format is because the entire concept requires the use of visuals to show 1.) how staggeringly advanced humans have become, and 2.) how brutal and violent we will still be capable of being at that stage. In terms of style, I'd prefer a style akin to near-photorealistic paintings/watercolors. In other words, more like that art in some of the "The Other" Spider-Man comics (I cannot, for the life of me, remember the name of the guy who did that, but I hope that you know what I'm talking about).

I definitely need some help in taking this past the concept stage. If any of you guys who have experience in writing can help me, please let me know exactly what you think of this concept and what could be done to improve it.

[Krispy]

I'm definitely not a writer but my advice would be to start making some characters. Figure out what they look like then jot down what they would do on an average day. What kinds of meals they eat, who they talk to, what they say, how they dress, how they walk and then see if these people can breath a life of their own.

[muddi900]

It seems like you're doing some hard sci-fi, like Asimov,Clarke and BSG. All I can say, those things work because they've a analogues in the real world.

EDIT: Now that I think of it, your terrorist sound like Al-Qaeda if they were rational.

[Dorkandproudofit]

It seems like you're doing some hard sci-fi, like Asimov,Clarke and BSG. All I can say, those things work because they've a analogues in the real world.

EDIT: Now that I think of it, your terrorist sound like Al-Qaeda if they were rational.

Huh. I never thought of that whole Asimov/Clarke thing. I might have to look some of that up.

[Dorkandproudofit]

Umm... I need some help on this. Please keep the suggestions coming!

[Dorkandproudofit]

Sorry about the triple-post, but seriously. I really need feedback on this! Please, at least give me tips on how to improve the concept!

[DoctorFinger]

First off you need a protagonist. You can flesh out the details later but you need a character who interacts with both the govt and the terrorists, and who is probably in some sort of conflict with them both. You need the Why and possibly How of the character first, with the Who of the character TBD

Second, I would try hard to make the govt as faceless as possible. It's not a person driving it, but almost a force of nature at this point.

Third, if you really want to do this as a comic, try looking up some comic scripts and see how the pros do it. I know Warren Ellis, Bendis, Waid and others regularly post scripts online, so you can get a sense of format, pacing, and drama.

[muddi900]

You should at least give us something more than vague descriptions. Again, the best inspiration you can have is reading similar stuff. Since you want it to be in Comics format you should try some of good hard scifi comics. I do not know any, but you can PM DoctorFinger, or create a thread in the Screen, page board.

Also, I would recommend you to read Understanding Comics. At worst it is an extremely entertaining read.

[DoctorFinger]

One more thing. What is the conflict behind the story? You have sketches of the "bad guys", but why are we seeing this story at this time? Is it a day/week/year in the life of the conflict, or is there a catalyzing moment which changes everything?

[alienmastermind]

The violence angle: It could be that we've become so 'advanced', through passive weaponry. Like the military's heat-based mob deterrent. Guns that interrupt delta brain patterns putting people to sleep rather than kill. The establishment uses those weapons, but with the advent of this 'terrorist' organization, the use of firearms, knives and blunt objects has come into fashion again amongst those caught in the middle.

Your Protagonist: A Jack Burton-type. A regular Joe in irregular circumstances, even as far as making him one of the laborers out there keeping the hives of people running. Or, if humanity has advanced so far as to get automata for the menial labor, the repairman of the robots. ...I like this concept.

The terrorists: Well...eradication of humanity isn't any terrorist's goal; terror is. The terrorists at the top of the food chain would be moving against BILLIONS of years of evolution. However, if you could bend on the alien thing, you could make it a super-evolved strain of a disease, or a protozoan element introduced into humans that makes us so nihilistic. Anyway, I like the idea of a super future comic.

[crazyD]

When I write comics, I generally come up with skeleton characters, and outline a story around them. If you have an artist in mind, I would recommend getting some character art, as it helps to see the characters in your head as you write. As the story gets more detailed and I start working on dialogue, I get a better feel for the characters, and then have to re-write all my dialogue. I then start story boarding the comic, and writing out the script along the way. I find story boarding to be very important in maintaining a good flow.

I also find that I can only write under certain conditions. The best scenario for me is after a full night of drinking and smoking, maintained with a steady intake of coffee. Then, I get little to no sleep, and am in the perfect mood to write at around 6AM the next morning. I try not to write too often, as it will probably kill me one of these days.

[DoctorFinger]

Your protagonist is some sort of reporter/investigator. They stumble on the plans of the eco-terrorists (which is how you seemed to couch them), but the plan is so huge that no one in the faceless bureaucracy believes. So he has to take matters into his own hands: either find proof the govt would have to act on, or stop the plan himself.

[crazyD]

Here's another suggestion that would have saved me a lot of time and effort in my comic writing. Don't shoot for something too big for your first project. When I tried to write my first comic, it was based on a huge world with a big multi-issue arc. I ended up with a few pages, a disjointed story, and a lot of stress. I would recommend starting with something small and simple, maybe a 6-12 page mini comic. This will give you a lot of grounding in what it takes to make a comic, and will get you the end result a lot faster.

From there, you can move up to a contained single issue book, 24-26 pages or so. Try writing a few of these before you attempt any multiple issue books.

From what it sounds like, you have more of a world in mind than a story, and that can really hurt you when you are starting out. My suggestion would be to write down what you have in mind now, box it up, and hold off until you get a good feel for writing comics. You don't want your magnum opus to be the first thing you rush out with. You will keep getting better the more you write, so save it for later when you are ready to do it right.

[OUX]

Basically, the general concept takes place as far into the future as numerically possible (no aliens!).

Read that 12 times and then shoot yourself in the leg.