{"id":1202,"date":"2015-12-18T12:00:23","date_gmt":"2015-12-18T20:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/plugoarts.com\/blog\/?p=1202"},"modified":"2015-12-18T14:19:18","modified_gmt":"2015-12-18T22:19:18","slug":"solving-page-108","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/plugoarts.com\/blog\/solving-page-108\/","title":{"rendered":"Seeking its Sequential Art Solution: the case of page 108"},"content":{"rendered":"

On approach to the end of my long-in-the-works graphic novel Tiger’s Tale I have recently found myself caught between two writer identities, that of the Planner<\/em><\/strong> (or Plotter<\/em>) and the Pants-er<\/strong>. <\/em>As described to me by an accomplished NaNoWriMo participating friend, The Pants-er<\/em><\/strong> writes “by the seat of their pants” letting the story flow and unfold of its own accord, while The Planner<\/em><\/strong> works from an outline or even writes their script in advance. As an illustrator who occasionally delves into writing (as opposed to Story Telling which plays a significant role in all illustration) I find it difficult to imagine attempting to write a script for a story that I will allow draw, as so much of the story reveals itself in the choice of imagery and panel-to-panel action.\u00a0In setting out to\u00a0solve the layout for page 108\u00a0the dichotomy between planning<\/em> and pantsing<\/em>\u00a0leads to unexpected solutions.<\/p>\n

The Dilemma<\/h3>\n

Page 108 is a left side page that\u00a0sets up what I will call the “Death Star Reveal,” a couple of full-splash pages which depict the villain’s lair. \u00a0The Planner<\/strong><\/em> in me has already ready worked out what events need to occur on a given page to get to the story’s end and its epilogue. With-in that frame-work there is also the need\u00a0to\u00a0heighten drama and action as well offer information the reader while find useful as the plot of the story moves forward. The plot for this page is simple, previously one of our protagonists was\u00a0depicted taking the high road<\/em>\u00a0on the way to\u00a0his\u00a0vantage point, page 108\u00a0depicts his arrival at said point.<\/p>\n

\"128
A screen capture of the pages window reveals completed artwork as well as some thumbnail sketchs (in color) and general notations for plot-points which occur on future pages.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The\u00a0Process<\/h3>\n
Outside the need to make the page interesting there remains an informal list of loose-ends which\u00a0await resolution. With each page that brings us closer to the book’s end, pages like 108 become extremely valuable for the opportunity to tie up loose\u00a0ends or provide clues necessary to the story’s resolution.<\/div>\n
\"page108-109-thumbnails\"
The above thumbnail sketch provides the bare minimum in plot; Our hero arrives at his perch.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The serviceable 4-5 panel sequence get’s our character to where he needs to be but does little more. Looking back at where the story had left out character, is was clear smoke-stacks should be replaced with power lines and towers. Along with that realization the opportunity arose to answer a question about antagonists I had left unanswered earlier. The resulting series of thumbnail sketches made for a more exciting layout, though I found myself nearing a visual gag I had used already.<\/p>\n

\"Revised <\/a>
Revised thumbnail sketch featuring action atop power lines. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Tentative <\/a>
Tentative layout of page 108 combines thumnail sketch with pre-existing art.r lines. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Revised <\/a>
Revised action sequence leads to more drama. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Revised <\/a>
Revised Page layout for 108 offer more space for a dramatic establishing shot in panel 1. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

As work on the action sequences progressed I was able to make use of artwork generated for a previous scene in the story. Once the decision was made to have our hero perch on an electrical tower it was more important that have a closer look at our hero. The towers were introduced earlier in z series of tall panels, it was safe to assume the reader understood the heights and would be better off with a closer look. Printing out an enlarged version of that electrical tower I was able to work out the heroic shot on velium before digitizing and creating the final piece; panel 7 page 108.<\/p>\n

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Working out some movement sequences on a Vellum Pad I just excavated.<\/a><\/p>\n

A photo posted by P Lugo (@plugoarts) on

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