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How to Plot a Comic From Start to Finish!
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- Опубликовано: 19 июл 2018
- This is a step by step guide to how I plot comics! It also works with novels, shorts, and many other forms of narratives.
(Thanks For Watching!)~（＾・ω・＾✿）
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I have always had a good imagination but I have personally found that sitting down and trying to write down my plot NEVER works for me. I personally find it really difficult to accurately think of things my characters would do - how they would act in a specific situation, etc. etc. Instead, i'll isolate myself in a room and walk around, talking aloud and acting my characters out (it can get quite embrassing). However, it makes it so much easier for me to thing of situations for my characters and I feel like on a strange level I understand them more. I can do this literally for hours on end and afterwards are lightly script down all the things i've been imagining. I've always loved using this method to get into the emotions of my characters so for anyone having trouble try that out!
I do this but I act my characters in my head, sometimes I also do this by whispering or humming while staring at my wall or ceiling xD
I totally do this. For more shy people, free-writing prose in the character's POV can be really good even when your goal is to make a comic. Helps you get in their head more.
I do that but I dont write it down after I just get into costume and into various characters in my room filled with mirrors, at times it gets emotional and I start crying.
I DO THAT TOO WITH MY CHARACTERS 😂😅😅
Glad to know I’m not crazy after all! Lol. I do this all the time, makes my writing a lot easier.
There's a few more elephants
Lol
I am a elephant
TRRRROOOOOUUUMMMPPHH
But just a few
And stir the pot
I’m a 23 year old artist and always worked labor jobs because it’s a “real job” but I realized last night that I’ll never be fully happy if I don’t do something with what I love. This explanation got me more excited than I’ve been in years. Thank you for the inspiration!
hey I know ur comment is a bit old lol but I am curious, how is it going for you? :D
I hope it's going well! :D
holy crap . hope your doing well !!! :D
@Douglas I'm a teenager and I'm rlly afraid of the future. Everyone expects me to become a successful doctor or something like that. But I've always loved art. I'm afraid that I won't be happy....getting a job I don't like and living in a boring routine.
@@briee3802 I think it’s great for people to pursue their dream to be an artist! My advice is to plan a back up career so that you can support yourself while working to build up your art career
Me: **sitting here, trying to learn**
Duolingo notifacations: "time to practice kilngon"
Someone help.
😂🖖🏼
Remembering me of myself so much :)
All I remember is bonne nuit, Paul. Help
Pluto The Planet same but Korean😖
Uni Mear - *bonjour mademoiselle/monsieur Uni Mear*
I looked up this topic and this video was at the top and my name is Gary McKay. And this channel is called Mckay and Gray. This was meant for me to watch.
Okay literally I just wrote my plot while listening to this video (I obviously paused while I wrote) but seriously this has been the easiest video to follow and it made me realise so many different things about my characters. Thank you so much for the help!!
Same
Same
Same lmao
Same 🙃
Same
Legitimately the only GOOD advice on plotting online. Thank you so SO much for this. Whenever I look for this advice, all I find is advice on styles of plotting - such as writing it all on notecards, or write a short blurb and build on it - but never actual advice on how you build up a plot line. So truly, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I finally have some advice that will help me get past the barriers and blocks I've had with plotting for so long
It seems to be based on a very famous concept called 'the hero's journey'. I learned this a while ago at university. It's very present in famous stories like Lord of the rings and many many game plots are based on it.
And suddenly I have written a roughly 3k plot draft for an adventure in necromancy
Honestly thank you!!!
*My protagonist:* Vincent, the son of a detective, wants to find the serial killer haunting his town in order to protect his younger sister, because she exactly fits the serial killer's victim type, and he wants to kill said killer. (The police force is stumped on this case.)
*My relationship character:* Wilson wants to help Vincent find the serial killer using his skills as a mercenary (because he's in love with Vincent), but he's advocating that the killer needs professional help rather than death, which Vincent does not want to hear because he's too angry and scared.
*My antagonist:* Thea is the serial killer...and the sister.
Thoughts on these character ideas?
(Also this video is super helpful and I love you for it -- just putting that out there. :) )
Interesting characters, but try to write down and flesh out them a bit more, the main problem i see is writing the story with such characters. I’m assuming that you plan to make a comic.
Try asking yourself questions about the characters:
Does it make sense for a mercenary to have more compassion than a detective?
Would Vincent find it strange as a detective that his sister which i assume is under his watch that his sister always disappears before a murder?
Does Wilson and Vincent’s relationship actually affect the story in an impactful way or is it romance for romance sake?
What is Thea’s motivation for killing?
How would the story end?
How would the characters react to knowing the truth?
You may want to also give characters well, character, like what are they like?
How do they act around others?
How do they speak?
Physical appearance, habits or mannerisms may add a lot of charm to your character if done well.
Just as importantly, i recommend reading books (yes, the standard boring ones) to spruce up your english and storytelling as there’s always more to learn. sure, writing comics have more visuals and less words so you can kinda cheat your way through, but if “too angry and scared” are your choice adjectives, you may want to read a bit more, so that you can not just only accurately convey a character’s emotion or personality, but add more spice to your story, play with words, there are people who may see english as a liability, but if you can see it as an asset, then you will be on your way to be writing marvelous stories.
@@isaaclim8290 Thanks for the advice! You're right in that I'm wanting to make this into a comic, as well as the fact that I desperately need to flesh them all out more. However, what I wrote here was just my most basic summaries of their characters - I have more planned for and about them. Still, I'll take what you said into consideration. I do read a lot, but it's mostly the dreaded fanfiction. Lord knows I should read more legitimate books.
Thanks again! :D
BoredomIsAnUnderstatement No Problem! I’m glad i could help. If you have any difficulty thinking of aspects of characters, try using the myers briggs type indicator to help yourself to identify and fully understand your character. I find it extremely helpful in keeping my characters personality grounded and sometimes brings up an interesting aspect of them which i otherwise wouldn’t have realized.
Im assuming you are still schooling, and if writing stories is something that you enjoy, if your school offers, i recommend taking up literature. (Don’t take my word for it. If you are keen, and its an option, google up the curriculum which your country offers and discuss about with your parents or a trusted adult.) Some of my favorite books are from my literature class. :P
That sounds amazing as a first concept, I'd read that but If I were you I would try to make the reader draw conclusions to who the killer is like introducing characters that are highly suspicious to take them by surprise!
Ohhh now i really want to see the terrible conflict the brother has in finding out that his sister was the killer all along! and the whole explaining her side of the story and what makes her tick and started all the killing in the first place! MUAHAHAHHAHA Hope you're able to executing it (lole get it ;) )and have fun doing so!
This does help a whole lot! I always have trouble figuring out overall plot / strong character motives. It’s something I need to work on.. Also I think the review idea would be really cool to do!!
Bro I never realized and learned so much in 20 minutes
Midway through the video I had a whole epiphany of how people structure plot in the first place and how creators build their storys + how to start.
Lmao I've been wondering for a while how to create stories and I this really helped me think about it, so thank you
I've had this idea for a comic about a journalist, who can use photos to go back in time, and a photographer/cameraman who can, well, take pictures. I want then to solve some sort of crime/killer/whodunnnit thing, but had no plot. Thanks for this!
getting some life is strange vibes
i like it
Thats a great idea ... maybe keep it secret haha
sounds like the anime Link Click
It does sound like life is strange, like when max and chloe try to find out what happened to rachael...but don't let that discourage you, as long as you make it your own you're good
That was the most straight forward and clear explanation I’ve seen on the internet that did, in fact, explain it and I’m looking forward to rising action.
Thank you and a big high five.
I'm currently trying to write my story for making a webtoon and this really helped!! Thank you, your tips helped me figure out where i was doing wrong and which steps i should take!
Meru【める】 oo how is it going?
@@itsjuupiter The story is pretty good but drawing it takes looots of time, which is why i cannot draw it while studying :(
what is your webtoon called?
What's the name?
@@cabbageman2184 Hello! It’s still in development sadly haha 😂 But it’s a romance webtoon!
This was actually amazingly helpful!! I've been thinking about "what if i made a webcomic?" for a little while now, but the whole writing part has been a little intimidating and is the roadblock that has kept me from really starting anything. But this explanation really simplified things in such a helpful way! OOH I'm so inspired!!! THANK YOU!!!
jagbdkfhakdhfadkjsghk the videos tags are: "Hello" "I see you have a tag reader" "that's cool" im shooketh
lmaooo
I'm going to be trying to make a webcomic next year.... I've been inspired by your videos and I think it might be a good challenge for me
I'm probably going to start writing and planning it soon.... I started a small comic in art class that is two pages and it's ok..... there isn't much plot but I think it's good for a first try XD
Oh I'd love to know what its called and where its published!
How did it go?
Hey, if you ended up going through with the idea, let us know. I’ll check it out.
How 'd it go?
Raven probably didn't do it
I always like to get the beginning of the story made first, what the rest will be about and what we’re getting into. I tend to skip the middle because I like to think of the end next and ask myself “how do we get here?” to fill in the middle. This helps me make scenarios I wouldn’t have even thought of and good jokes had I not though of such a wild ending
Elephant rights!! Elephants deserve clarification too!!!
(Though seriously, this video helped me a lot!! Thank you!!
this really helped a lot! ive been struggling with plotting recently, especially keeping the plot moving, and its been making me lose interest in the stories in writing. also, the excersise thing sounds super fun - i’d like to do it :0!
Funnily enough, I actually started my story from writing the climax, that later became a midpoint, and then became the connecting point between act 1 and act 2. In the end, I planned out a completely different plot that still includes my first idea and right now I need advice: my story ends up being divided into 4 acts. After my climax, it seems like the resolution is on it's way, but 2 characters do something stupid and bring everything back to what it was beforehand. After that, the second antagonist comes into play and only then there is a second climax and a resolution. So is the first climax a connector between act 2 or act 3 or is the entire screw-up an act on it's own?
I think there can be several climaxes. Your plot surely sounds interesting and more complex than some!
@@luigraskullheart Спасибо ^^
Yeah there's nothing inherently wrong with having more or even fewer than three acts. Three acts is a tried and tested formula but ultimately it's your creative choice :)
@@somethingclever5 Okay thanks :3
@@toohopeful160 Just remember that each format of storytelling likely needs to be handled a little differently.
I recall, Jurassic Park 2 - Where I THOUGHT the movie was done . . . and then it turned out that the portion of the movie I had just watched was merely the first half.
And then it continued for quite a while longer than I expected. I've still mixed feelings about that "mid-movie turn around". :-)
Dude this was super helpful! I've been studying this story stuff a lot trying to wrap my head around it send bumbling through trying to put it to use. I've learned a ton but the way you just broke it down was really helpful and it is cool to see from somebody who has experience with a lot of stories and understands it much better than me but is also learning and figuring it out themselves. I would love to send you like a one-page outline sometime when I figure out one of my stories better and see if you have any helpful tips. Also it would be really cool if you came up with one more for example for something more along the lines of a romantic comedy or something less Epic. a lot of times people use these really epic examples and it's actually a little bit overwhelming. After hearing that it's hard to imagine what a less Epic story structure would look like. But yeah I got so much from this video thank you for taking the time to break this down I know it's not easy to break down a huge topic like story like this. Thanks man!
That sounds like a good idea, I might do this later. :)
my protagonist: Dan is a miner who just wants to mine.
my relationship character: Joe is Dan's best friend, also likes mining.
my antagonist: THE OTHER SIDE Dan is Dan from another dimension who tries to be the leader of all dimensions.
wow that was fast thinking
Lmao my protagonist's name is also dan
I've never finished a comic before and I have to admit that most of the time, it was largely because I never knew how to plot out my comic. I have never finished writing a story either but this video has been immensely helpful in helping me figure out how I should go about plotting my story. Your channel has always been a huge help to me and a great inspiration, thank you so much!
I would love that! I'm working on stories too, so doing sth like an 'excersice' would be great also feedback is always nice to improve on!^^
THIS IS SO HELPFUL THANK YOU !! I just posted the first chapter of my own comic last week and have been trying to utilize all of the information you two put into your videos. I had been struggling with how to function plot devices and now I feel like I know where I need to go. And I do like your idea of writing exercises! That would be fun! :-)
This is so well explained and thorough, I've read hundreds of comics and never had this kind of divine insight before, this is gonna be like my comic bible from now on what the heck
I've written one comic before, finished just yesterday. I had zero plot, other than 'they get together in the end' and 'bad stuff happens' but I was determined for my next volume to have a plot. This video is SOO helpful! I feel as though I have an actual plan and my goal is so much more achievable!
20:31 YES. That sounds so interesting not to mention helpful! I'm still new to the webcomic world and my comic is all over the place, this video kinda gave me tips on how to structure it a bit better, but because I have so many villains it's a bit difficult to structure it in a way that foreshadows the ending.
*high five* Heck yeah to writing exercises!
One way that’s helped me is observing people. Examples: Yourself, a celebrity, a classmate, someone working at a cafe or store, a friend, etc. Once you got a main character think of the other characters. Once you have all the characters think of a plot, then the storyline and go from there.
It’s definitely a short one, but it’s based off a reoccurring dream I have every now and then:
A mother and her two daughters, young, are stranded on a tiny tropical island. They live in a wooden lighthouse, and they seem to be the only ones left. The water is too dangerous to go into, as these so called spirits will lead you in and drown you.
I still have to work on character designs, might edit the comment later for this.
After the mother dies of an ailment, the two sisters are left on their own, the oldest being struck the hardest. She tries to provide for her sister, which encounters death multiple times.
Eventually.( huge time skip as this is only based off of the dream.)
They become sick, and the lighthouse catches fire after a broken lantern. The oldest sister becomes burned as she saves her sister, and they escape of a small piece of plywood as a raft, and drift across the water, and reach a green island, where their mother is waiting, and they step onto the island, which is the, entering the afterlife. The comic ends with two sets of bones next to each other, the bigger set clutching the smaller set in comfort.
Kind of gruesome, but I like the idea
i would definitely read that
sounds amazing tbh, how's it going?
Those excersices sound like a good idea, and I would be happy if you actually did them! Also, I love yours videos. They're really helpful!
Very informative, and clear. Demystifying plot building is a hard thing. Great job and great video!
Thanks for making this video! I'm always coming up with comic and story ideas, but I'm a horrible writer. Your explanation of the plotting process is great! Also these videos are always a good reminder to work on my projects
12.26 that dark twist though
Also the character motive stuff really helped me with the book I'm writing. I didn't have a clear solid motive for my main character, so she just didn't feel finished, but now I have a lot of good ideas for stuff to deepen her character.
*gives water* this was very helpful. I have trouble with my plots and usually just make one or two characters that have some sort of relationship and try to go from there. This structure will help me build my stories before I make the characters which will help with back story and their traits and such. Thanks for this!!
This video is very helpful. I have ideas but i didn’t know how to start, now I do.
I’m going to start by writing events i want to happen. Like origin story, moments and a small part of the ending. Put them in order, then creative a plot
i thought watching videos wouldn't help but once i was at 15 mins then my plot for my story finally came through- thanks
My story is kind of strange. Like, complicated with a lot of fantasy stuff, the power of love, friendship and family, where the good can become the evil and the evil may be good.
Adina Denisa same here my story is about a werewolf that has his family murdered by another werewolf for being to kind and nice to humans, so only he and his baby brother survive the massacre and decide to move to the city and disguise themselves as humans, so the main character decides to go to school to learn more about the human world, but he also makes friends like Issac, Jessica, Bryce, Ahmir, Brian, Tommy, Maricio, Val, and of course he has a crush on a girl named Lizzie who has short blonde hair and blue eyes, not to mention almost all the boys have a crush on this girl and she has a boyfriend named Sammy who is the school bully, and regularly bullies Mario( the main character). So to try to be the best guy, he goes to his younger brother Kevin to help him be really impressive to catch his friends and Lizzie's attention and also to make Sammy jealous. But one day 7 of the High schoolers which are mentally disturbed decide to make a mass shooting at the school to gain fame as serial killers, so they attack the elementary school where Mario and the rest of the school are, during the shooting, Lizzie's boyfriend Sammy decides to murder Mario for being more famous than him, so he steals the teacher's box cutters and slices Mario's throat in front of Lizzie and Mario's friends and classmates. But since Mario was born a werewolf and is immune to silver, Mario stands up still bleeding and grabs Sammy on a chokehold and tells his best friend Alex to take away the box cutters before he hurts someone else. One of Mario's friends Bryce starts beating Sammy with a broken chair, but Mario intervenes and stops the beating, to which Bryce responds, "he just tried to murder you and you still let him live", to which Mario responds, " killing him won't make things any better, and he is a human being just like us", then Issac notices that the wound on Mario's neck has healed by itself and thinks he's panicking, then all of a sudden Joe one of the shooters breaks the door and starts shooting, killing Sammy and injuring Tommy and Bryce. As Joe is about to shoot Lizzie, Mario grabs the gun and wrestles him but Joe being taller and older defeats him and shoots Mario in the gut, Lizzie witnessing the apparent death of Mario starts crying, as Joe loads his next magazine to finish the kids off, Mario gets up and bites Joes neck, taking a piece off and lets Joe bleed to death. He rescues Lizzie and the others from the burning building, but still needs to take out the 6 remaining shooters, now with his injury healed, he takes the gun from Joe's corpse and goes to face the shooters himself, but his best friend Alex decides to go with him just in case. They locate Jordan, one of the shooters and strangle him with his own golden chain, Moe finds a dead Jordan and gets ready to shoot, but Alex slices his leg with the same box cutters that Sammy tried to murder Mario with, and then Mario shoots Moe in the head with Joe's gun. With only 4 of the shooters left, Mario decides to grab a grenade that Moe had around his chest and throws it at the remaining 4, but only kills Keion, the plan backfires getting Alex shot in the wrist, Mario decides to use Jordan's car to run over Julius, and hit Will. Will dies on impact and Malachi shoots Mario in the chest twice but again since he's a werewolf he heals and decides to claw Malachi's eyes out and lets him burn in the destroyed car. Then using his werewolf powers, he blows the fire out into nothingness, saving the survivors, but the damage was done, 26 died during the shooting including Even, a 7 year old to which Mario was mentoring and teaching to be a good kid so his parents could take him to see the beach, and also Lizzie moves to a different school, along with almost all his friends, leaving just Bryce and Maricio and his old friends in the school. Mario is devastated and can't help to have his other friends back, when he gets home his little brother Kevin comforts him to no avail, Mario then tells Kevin that having his friends away feels like the time his parents and whole family were murdered. Mario decides to take his own life but since his Werewolf powers heal him, he is left to cry in his pool of blood. If you want to hear the rest just comment back saying I want to jear the rest
@@wolfguywerewolfchannel2099 That...is something=)))
pls i was planning to make a comic with something really similar shdhdhsjjd !! and i keep coming up with new characters without a proper plot 😭😭
@@sookieedits827 omg I completely forgot I commented here. Let me give u an update: The plot I came up with 2 years ago is NOTHING like the official plot I have now and it's kinda amusing, I feel great that I waited and not rushed things
@@sookieedits827 btw I love your edits!!
Alright so, I've been taking a lot of notes from these videos that I've been using as a guide for my writing and I've found it really helpful having a written guide on what to do, so I thought I'd share it with you all. It's basically everything said in the video, hopefully it helps anyone who works better with visual stuff rather than auditory stuff.
Act 1
(2) Intro (the state of the protagonist before the change happens. Opposite of how they are in the end (e.g. stupid and never thinks things through to cunning and mature):
E.g. Protagonist lives in a run-down town under the oppressive claw of a dragon. Food and wealth are scarce, and the protagonist’s remaining family is ill from the smoke that fills the air.
(4) Inciting Incident/call to action (Shorthand for three smaller events):
-Call to action (event at the beginning of the story that shakes up the status quo. E.g. a dragon destroying a town. The call to action would occur when a stranger comes to town and talks of a way to defeat the dragon.)
E.g. One day, a traveler comes to town and they remark that they have a way to kill the dragon.
-Refusal of the call (Quickly follows the call. E.g. the notion of being able to defeat the dragon is too outrageous for the protagonist to believe.)
E.g. Protagonist brushes this off as ludicrous and returns to their daily life and activities, but things get worse as their mother eventually passes away from her illness.
-Acceptance of the call (conditions get worse and the protagonist is forced to accept the call. E.g. the protagonist’s mother dies due to the poor living conditions and he’s forced to accept the call.)
E.g. The death is the last straw for the protagonist and they chase down the traveler, demanding that they help kill the dragon. The traveler agrees reluctantly, worrying that the protagonist might not be thinking things through.
Act 2
(6) (Between Act 1 and Midpoint) Rising Action (patches where the protagonist will fail a lot. Stakes will be raised, things get worse, action is added. Look at LACE plotting method. Hard to add to a plot graph)
E.g. They begin towards the dragon’s mountain. The protagonist continuously messes up tasks like hunting due to impatience. They nearly get everyone killed because of their brazenness and while they manage to survive through these and not really learn much, their travel is made worse by these continuous mistakes regardless. The protagonist rushes past clues that would help them defeat the dragon, much to the chagrin of the traveler. When they finally make it to the dragon’s lair, the protagonist begins to realize they may be a little unequipped. However, they say screw it and go on to fight the dragon without knowing anything and doing the same thing that they always do.
(3) Midpoint (divides second act into two parts. Usually exactly in the middle of the story but can be wiggled a little bit. Represents a shift in storytelling. Before this point, your story raises questions and after that it begins answering them. Goes from a passive form of storytelling to an active one with the protagonist. Where the protagonist shifts into action. They can see the full breath of the problem and now want to fix it. Often a huge revelation, doesn’t have to be. Reveals the answer to the conflict, but the hero doesn’t have the skills or the mindset or all the answers needed to put it all together. Remember that above all else, midpoint stirs plot. It’s okay to make exciting things happen.):
E.g. Without a worry, the protagonist jumps into battle with the dragon demanding that they give up their whole dragon-y thing. Any strength that the protagonist thought that they had is immediately squashed by the dragon. As the protagonist struggles to stay alive, they realize that this was a terrible idea.
(6) (Between Midpoint and Act 3) Rising Action (patches where the protagonist will fail a lot. Stakes will be raised, things get worse, action is added. Look at LACE plotting method. Hard to add to a plot graph)
E.g. They hide away in defeat and the dragon continues, leaving the nest and setting a fire across the land, decimating the village and anything else in its path. The hero returns utterly defeated. As they return to the village, they’re rejected by the village because of what has happened and because it’s all their fault. At a loss for what to do, the protagonist decides to continue and think things out a bit more. They decide to undo what they’ve caused. The protagonist follows the dragon’s path of destruction, learning slowly about its weaknesses. It becomes clear that the dragon’s aim is to strong arm the entire kingdom, unimpressed with its human fights so far. The protagonist then decides to cut the dragon off at the pass with a clever trap. All seems to be going well, but things don’t go well.
Act 3
(1) Climax (when everything has clicked into place. The protagonist has finally learnt what they need and is putting it into action. With this, they’re finally able to overcome the antagonist.)
(Here's a good place to just write down everything you want to happen at the end, you can shape it more later)
(5) Climax: Come back to shape the climax even more. Before it may have been vague.
- Low point (lowest point in the story. It’s the absolute defeat of the protagonist. The harshest, saddest thing we can put them through, even worse than the midpoint. In the lowest point, the protagonist reflects and finally realizes (in our example) what the traveler had been telling them all along. They need to slow down and think. Finally using the information from the midpoint onwards the protagonist is finally able to see what they were missing and the climax-y parts we already wrote ensue from here)
E.g. The trap fails once again, and the hero is defeated. This time even greater and worse than before. The dragon takes over the entire kingdom, filling everything with deadly smoke.
- Revelation
E.g. Waking up among the rubble, the protagonist finally begins to put everything together.
-Climax
E.g. Using some sort of clever method based on all the knowledge that they’ve attained, the dragon is defeated by surprise. The dragon completely overlooked what the hero was doing.
(1) Resolution (Completion of the goal and getting their dream. Protagonist obtains what they want and reconcile with the relationship character. All loose ends are tied up.):
E.g. Once the dragon is defeated, the protagonist thanks the traveler for helping them realize what should have been obvious. They high five or something, and all the wealth is returned, and they rebuild the kingdom.
Tip: Figure out the end first. Think of what cool ending bits you want to happen. Try to think out the final conflicts first because it helps make a story that is inherently based in conflict and conflict is interesting. When you figure out what the protagonist needs to overcome this conflict, it will help to determine what type of story it will be. The resolution helps to determine what the character wants and what they need.
Bonus tip for rising action: When you’re writing an action scene ask the following questions. What is the main characters goal? What is in the way of that goal? Do they achieve that goal? And finally, the million-dollar question, if yes at what cost and if no then what is the consequence? (learnt from McKay & Gray’s How to Write the Middle of Your Comic video)
Hope this helps you guys as much as it's helped me, because honestly the notes I’ve taken from this video have been a real life saver!
This helps me a lot! thank you so much!
@@ashifazahra9388 Awww no problem, I'm glad I could help
I have a question: I want to make my own webcomic; and I want it to have alot of lore and multiple arcs. But is that too unrealistic for a beginner? Should my first comic be simpler?
My advice isn't exactly professional and I know this comment is old but I'd personally do a more simple comic to begin with. You shouldn't have to create a new idea just for that purpose but if you have an idea that is simpler and you enjoy, focus on that first. It'll help give you experience in what works and what doesn't. It doesn't mean you should abandon that idea. I have a really ambitious story with a huge array of characters but I know for a fact that I'm going to ruin the ideas I have in my head due to lack of experience. (In the end it is up to you but it's also okay to leave things in drafts and come back to it later) :))
@@nyxx8275 Dude Thanks! Lol, it was a year ago but I still have the same problem!
@@deadmeme1296 just make simple comics first just to understand the industry itself and then workload and everything and learn cheats and new techniques and have a following, and then write your big story
Idk how your comic ideas are spanning rn, but some good advice I've gotten is to start with a simpler comic inspired by your complex ideas. Maybe a spin off for a character, some that takes place in the world or history... Etc
@@noelle3780 Start off small, huh... I see
I myself am also planning a big comic, but... I guess I _should_ do simple ones first
This was an extremely helpful video and I wish I had seen this before I wrote my book a bunch of different times! You give very good points and very understandable examples which help even more. Thank you!! :)
I would totally love another pair of eyes on my project!!
It's like a art baby now. I've poured so much unnecessary world building into I cant let it go
Your channel is the only one I actually take notes from because the advice is so helpful. How do you guys not have more subscribers?
Thank you for this! It really helped! Before this I knew the very basics of plot building, but I didn't have the best grasp on it.
Still very helpful. Haven't thought about the mid point and raising questions/ answering them afterwards until now
All this time I needed a comic artist to show me how to write book plot. I never would have guessed
For some reason, in most of my stories (even if I never write them) the antagonist is either some part of the protagonist they aren't willing to address or the government. Dunno what that says about me lol
Update: It's 2 years later. I started working on my first actual webcomic. This is still true.
Im sitting here at my computer, trying to figure out how a plot should be structured and I've watched dozens of videos, then I come across yours. I am elated at the discovery of this video! You have somehow managed to go into detail without making me want to fall asleep at the keyboard, yet it was at a pace that was in the goldilocks zone! I now have a very good understanding on how to structure not only the plot of my comic idea, but also the heroes journey. IDK if you meant to accomplish this, but you did! I am so very grateful for your endeavors in this video because it has answered all of my questions, to include ones i didn't even realized I had! I had almost given up on trying to understand the inner workings of writing a comic books plot due to the lack of in depth resources, youve taken a very practical approach to something, for a first timer like myself, that seemed extremely daunting! From the bottom of my heart, I Thank you!
these videos are very helpful for me too cuz i'm a beginner aswell, i'm actually making my own comic on my channel, u wanna give it a watch?
This is really helpful! Even if my comic is a comedy and therefore has less drama it helped!
omg, I've never had this explained to me so concise and clear. a lot of creative teachers just tell you to "have ideas" and "feel it" but that just doesn't work for me, I need analysis!
I come back to this video every time I think I wanna start a comic but for the 80th time don’t know where to begin and this has helped me so many times so thank you
You have saved a life. I knew this stuff, but your explaining of it was just the best. You may think it's basic, but when you look at really nice and famous plots, the majority of them are just a basic premise, a basic sketch and lots of the author knowledge on how to make things really fun to the reader.
this is probably one of the best breakdowns of this kind of plot structure i've seen, that actually makes it make sense for me! the idea of breaking down the climax and the inciting incident into multiple subpoints is super helpful and has me really thinking about my plot now.
This is like... the best advice ever. Thank you. Definitely sending these to my co-author
I’m 14 right now and I promised myself that I would try to improve my art as much as I can once I get into high school. I’m going into 9th grade this year, so I’m thinking about making a webtoon to keep me motivated for drawing and help me practice digital art.
Right now, the basic concept of my story is the protagonist has an unknown terminal illness and has been looking for a place or someone who can treat him. He meets this man who runs his own hospital and says that he can help. Thinking that he has nothing to lose, the protagonist goes to his hospital but soon finds out that The hospital is turning its patients into half human- half monster creatures so they can overtake the population of regular humans. (I might change that motivation)
The protagonist is told that the only way he can be cured of his illness is if he turns into one of the half monsters and they won’t let him escape from it. He meets other patients in the hospital who want to escape with him, but they need a plan.
I’m not even sure if I’ll continue this story or if I’ll just make a webtoon about a completely different plot, but this is the story that I’m thinking of right now.
oh god i know this comment is a year old already but if you're still considering this idea (or even if you're not) i HIGHLY recommend making your antagonist sympathetic. For example, maybe he genuinely cares for his patents and wants them to be cured, but the only way he knows how to do that is to turn them into monsters, so he just does what he feels he needs to do. Maybe he wants to replace regular humans because these monsters are immune to human diseases and he wants to eradicate that suffering. This may or may not help, but I've said it just in case! Good luck with writing whatever you end up writing!
@@briankai4936 thank you!!! Even though this comment is a year old, I still haven’t made the web comic 😅
I’ve been wanting to improve on my anatomy, colors and backgrounds before I take on a big project like that. But I really like your idea! I think it’s good that he’s not evil on purpose, he’s just doing what he thinks is right!
Really great advices here!!
Please make one about how would you make a plot with the Ki-Sho-Ten-Ketsu sections of the Eastern narrative style too! Would be awesome to complement this one.
These sound like Nen techniques from HxH lol
This helped me a LOT with plotting my comic, thank you!
Thank you so much for explaining each part of making a plot! I had no idea what they were or how to fully understand them. Sitting down and writing out a plot sounds so boring, yet a bit exciting at the same time. Thank you again for making this video! 💖💖
You just frigging save my life! 😭 It's been YEARS since I've been creating story without being able to structure it (structure is a generally issue with me but anyway) thanks to you I've been able to figure out my plot more precisely so just for that THANK SOOOOOO MUUUUUUUUCCHHHHH😭😭
It went from music to game plays to comic dubs and now I'm here, so I'm laying on the floor and just listening to this, I didn't even realize I was coming up with a story in my head this was fucking amazing. I need to actually write down my ideas while listening, I wasn't even interested at first thank you
YO! You helped me so much with this video, I literally followed along and just wrote the entire plot of my comic. Before I couldn't even think of what I want to happen in my comic or how to even write the plot, but this helped so much, thank you!
i think the writing exercise is a very good idea, it would probably help in keeping my work steady while improving at the same time. working on your given prompts sound interesting as well haha
Sir, this was a very well done description of plot. You explained this so well and tied a few crucial elemnts together. Your video was recommended to me by an aspiring writer and it did not disappoint. Thank you so much! We'll definetly be refering to this video for our writing group.
This has been very helpful, thank you so much. I've had trouble trying to get a middle and an end for my comic story. I have also had troubles with filling in characters that are needed to fill a 'party' that would travel with the protagonist.
Dude I appreciate you! I been struggling to get my Concentration under control to sit down and write out all the story ideas I got. Your work helps me motivates me!
This is such good advice The start with the ending and the beginning is the opposite. Thank you so much
This helped me toooo much, I knew I was missing something for my story, but I didn't know what and now I have everything I need thanks to this!
I've been writing ever since I could hold a pen. It's taken me my entire life up until about 6 years ago when I finally learned how to plot a story correctly and actually finished one (that was back in the sixth grade). Before then I would just write aimlessly. I guess my point is that, plotting and getting down how to plot takes time but when you get it, its like golden, but you can't give up. I gave up for about a year in the 7th grade, but then in the 8th grade I decided to start again and here I am now having learned how to plot as a senior in high school. I use note cards and a million documents and sheets of paper and am not organized but none the less, I've got it. It's weird now because its like the story writes itself as soon as you get the stuff in-between. (I personally do ending, beginning, and middle and this works for me). My only problem now is, that I can't draw.
As an artist I believe that everyone, as long you have arms and hands that you can move without problems, can draw! I believe that you can get better at art even if it's not a "natural talent" that you were born with as long you have the will and drive to. Everyone starts somewhere so it doesnt hurt to try^^
If you want I can get you some advice on where you can start and focus on if you're a complete beginner :)
This isn't even relevant to the story I'm writing, which is nonlinear, but I keep listening because you're just too precious!
This is the most helpful video I've ever seen regarding storyboarding thanks so much for explaining so well!!!
I took scriptwriting in school so I already understood basic structure but I've been feeling uninspired and it's nice to have a review of things. I also really like that you start at the end of the story so you know how to set things up. I always feel like I'm just throwing things randomly together and I struggle with having a beginning but not knowing where to take things from there. I feel like looking at the story backwards makes a lot more sense because I will start plotting while already knowing the goal
It was credibly helpful, especially identifying the characters' goals and structuring the plot. I was taking notes throughout the video.
Omg cant wait to start working and practicing on what I've learned
This was great thank you, and those writing/art exercises sound like fun
I TRIED SO HARD AND GOT SO FAR, IN THE END IT DOSENT EVEN MATTER
The comic i’m writing is about the backrooms and what you said about low points really struck me because its an often circulated piece of lore that the only way to escape is to accept your fate in the backrooms, which seems as if its purposefully setting people up to make intriguing plots
Thanks for this video! I have been working on one story for a long time, only watching it get more and more complicated and losing sight of my plot. So I decided two days ago that I would root around my piles of unused characters and make a new story and giving myself a time limit on writing before I For-Real-This-Time-I-Actually-Mean-It start my page sketches and first chapter. A more manageable project to finish as my writing develops to a point where I can take on and sort out that megastory mess. : )
Thanks. I really appreciated this vid. This explains plot so well. As you gave your example I had one of my own that I was plotting that till now has been a random hodgepodge in my head for about three years now.
This is really helpful. 👍
I wish I found this sooner!! This helped me SO FLIPPING MUCH for my comic's plot and my character's development. Thank you so much!!!!!!!!!
The best video on plots creating so far!! Huge thanks!!
This helped me so much with creating my comic. Before watching this video I had no idea what the plot should be. Thanks McKay & Gray! 😄
thanks this was super helpful - finally i found a video that didn't tell me to "uhh think of a story and eh yeah character are also important" - earned urself a new subscriber
An awesome video as always!! This really helped me A LOT!! Thank you so much! You are both amazing! Keep doing what you’re doing!!☺️✨
I love how he measures the plot by hype.
Thank you so much for making this video, I was looking for a video like this.
Thank you so much! This was so helpful and inspiring. This video made me realize that somehow, everything I thought was my plot was merely an inciting incident. Explains why I would get lost in my stories.
7:42 "and conflict is interesting"
I know this video is 6 years old but it’s very helpful. Here’s an outline of the notes I took for anyone who would like it.
Divided by 3 Acts.
ACT 1 - Beginning
Intro
Inciting incident
ACT 2 - Middle
Midpoint
ACT 3 - End
Climax
Resolution
Protagonist - has a goal to achieve in the story.
Antagonist - prevents the antagonist from getting to their goal. Not necessarily a villain.
The need - is what the protagonist requires to achieve what they want. Protagonist resists the need at first.
Relationship Characters - related to “the need” of the protagonist; advocates for “the need”. Can be the love interest, friend, family or a stranger.
The PLOT
ACT 3
Figure out the ending first because the ending informs the beginning of the story.
Climax - occurs when every single thing has clicked into place for the protagonist. Protagonist finally understands what they need and has put it into action.
Low point - lowest point in the story; absolute defeat of the protagonist. Protagonist reflects and is finally able to see what they're missing.
Revelation -
Resolution - protagonist get what they want, other loose ends are tied up.
ACT 1
Intro - introduce the characters and goal; world building
Inciting incident -
Call to action
Refusal of the call
Acceptance.
ACT 2
Mid-point - where the protagonist shifts into action and starts working on achieving their goal. Stirs the plot. Protagonist fails a lot.
I'm 13, I want to put my art skills to use and make a comic about me and my best friends in an alternate universe. I have no idea how to start.
Thank you so much, this explained everything perfectly
I can finally work on my story without getting lost!!
So, 1) This video is awesome, I watched it like 2-3 times in a row and tried to make some conspects. It was really inspiring and I ended up with a new story idea right away!
2) It's been 2 years I see since you posted it, but writing exercises are something I'm highly interested in, so, let me know if you're doing that. Would be awesome!
Thank you so much again I feel like it shoud've been a part of paid course (so I guess I'm gonna go look for your patreon). Keep doing it, you're awesome!!
the #1 thing I've found to help me both learn my characters and my plot is to write a 0 draft using prose (so writing like I'm writing a book) and treat it like role-play. in role play I Neve have an outline or clue where the story is going I just go and come up with things on the fly.
I'll usually start with some characters and a premise (maybe an opening scene) then I just write. Writing in prose gives my brain more time to come up with the story as I don't work from an outline (ruins the process for me). Treating things like a role-play takes away a lot of pressure and allows my to explore strange ideas because if they don't work I can just cut the out later. it also means I can retcon things. Doing this can feel like a waist of time because this prose work isn't going to be published, it'll be used to guide the script later. but it is the best way I've found to get really immersed in my world, plot, and characters. and its more fun to me than just writing a barebones script.
just my two cents ;)
This was super helpful!
I've been binging your videos to help me start my story! It's been so helpful, and I'm so proud of how it's coming! Your videos are so easy to follow and I honestly love watching your speedpaint too! These are awesome!
You literally gave me an idea
It's 4 am
Thanks
Oof I feel you!
Really eye opening. A flaw in the script I am writing seems to be character motivation. As it stands my characters may come across as being fully fledged psychopaths, when at most I wanted only one of them to be openly psychopathic and the rest varying from mildly to slightly psychotic.
This video helped me soooo much! I'm going to take a break and watch the plot 102 video tomorrow. But i feel like I'm finally onto something with my story!
this is amazing! your advice gives me ideas and inspires me to keep writing/drawing my same comic instead of making a whole new one! thank you bunches ^^ also, are you still doing the writing prompts? i don't really know anyone that is an artist or fiction author in-person for quality advice..i've always wanted a mentor of sorts...