peoplewhodrawstuff.com

Different mediums call for different storytelling strategies.  Novels can go into deep detail about a person’s thoughts.  Graphic novels can have slow pacing and meaningful pauses.  Comic strips (particularly of the 3-4 panel variety) tend to need a really specific style of brief, precise storytelling that can be difficult to get used to writing.

I tend to be a very long form writer as well.  When I try to write short stories they end up always being a first chapter in a much larger narrative.  I think that may be from how I think in mostly long form modes.  My thoughts generally aren’t in modes of hours or days, but months and years.  This can be a pitfall at times personally but it’s served me well with directing my life.  Brevity however, is often at the heart of good storytelling (Which I am obviously utilizing here).  Not just making it short, but being precise and cutting the fat from the story’s flanks.

This is why when people tell me that I should put something in the comic I often can’t find a place to insert it, even if it is funny in its own context.  Whether the setup would take too long or if I’d have to draw the likenesses of several more people I know or it’s just not in my vein of personal humor, I throw out more ideas than use them.  While I hope these ideas don’t have hurt feelings I’m always happy to dodge the bullet of being half way into a comic and realizing it’s not gonna work.

-Sean