Creating Your Own User-Owned Comic

It's the age of do it yourself, be it producing music or creating video games from scratch. As technology has advanced, many people are working on projects independently from home. Comic book creators are no exception to this shift in independence.

So let's say you're an aspiring comic book writer or artist, but you don't have the first clue on how to enter the industry. You know you have the talent and drive for it, but you don't know who to talk to or where to start. Robert Kirkman was in this same boat when he first started out as a comic book writer. His first published work was called Battle Pope, created in 2000 with his friend Tony Moore. Battle Pope was self-published under the Funk-O-Tron label. From Battle Pope, Kirkman began writing a mini series for Image Comics called SuperPatriot, which led to him meeting Cory Walker. Together, they pitched the idea of a super hero comic titled Invincible to Image and it was accepted in 2003. Image is the company that Kirkman still works for today and since joining, he has also become a partner to the business.

The basics for starting up your own comic are basically to have an idea, find people to work with you and help develop that idea, such as writers and artists, and then to get the comic out into the world. As far as the idea goes, it's completely up to you. With the increasing popularity of comic books, there is pretty much a comic for every genre. During a panel at the Los Angeles Festival of Books (below),

Kirkman gave advice to those entering the comic book world, "Try to make your book as original as possible, but not too weird. I mean, that's very important. Don't do something that's already on the racks. Nobody wants to read another story about a barbarian that's like Conan or a superhero that's like Spider-Man. You have to have some kind of hook."

Whether you have the idea yet or not, one of the biggest issues people have when they first start working on a comic book is finding what I will refer to as "the other half." Some folks have so much talent that they can writer their own stories and illustrate them. But for most people, you have one or the other. You can use websites to find artists like DeviantArt.com or a site that combines the community all in one, writers, artists and the like, such as PencilJack.com. Generally speaking, a comic book can be completed, start to finish, with just a writer and the artist. Often times there are more people that add to the mix to speed up the process and make deadlines, such as colorists and letterers. These sorts of people are used especially in bigger companies. Although, if you're limited with your on-hand staff, like many people who create user-owned comics, then you are likely to just have your writer and artist. 

Many people that create their own comics start up their own website or find publishers to print their work. This is definitely a good way to get your work out there, especially with comics being so reachable on the internet. This method requires a lot of effort and knowledge, such as knowing how to do web design (or paying someone to do it for you), finding a publisher and printing on your own dime, having the ability to market yourself and also just placing your comic in the right place at the right time. In the video above from the Los Angeles Festival of Books, Kirkman gave several very strong tips on how to pitch your comic book to an established company. His example was  with the company he is most familiar, Image Comics. He suggests that you pitch your comic in a very succinct manner; five pages of the actual comic and a one page synopsis. You want to make sure that the 5-pages of the comic aren't just the first five pages, but rather, the most crucial, most captivating or most important 5 pages that you can use to display how the comic will carry in its series. This is very important because just as Kirkman mentioned, everyone wants to find the next best comic, but no one actually wants to look for it.

So be sure to grab your other half, sit down and plan this all out in a very calculated manner as you plan to pitch your idea or start up an independent web comic. You want to establish yourselves in a very profound way that will set you apart from every other creator, writer or artist trying to squeeze their way in. Keep it original, but have fun. Work diligently, but work smart. Remember, comic books are a form of expression, just like music or dancing. Let your ideas bleed out onto the page, because this business, just like most things in life, is a risk. In the words of Anais Nin, "And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." Put yourself out there or you will never know if you have the opportunity to become successful in the comic industry!