When I first started to write and try my hand at putting actual stories together, my paragraphs were way too short for my taste and the pace was too fast. It should go without saying that my writing at the time was also, to be quite frank, absolutely terrible. Whether or not anything has changed about might be for debate, but I did start to become more satisfied with my writing as it became noticeably more elaborate, dwelling on things for long paragraphs at a time. As a result, I had been equating the original lack of quality with brevity, and seeing how many beginning writers start with shorter paragraphs (a lot of amateur writing and fan fiction on the internet seems to be short), it did seem to imply a connection. But is it true?
The book I'm currently writing got me thinking about length. It's a radical departure from my published books in style, being a collection of several self-contained, relatively short stories about the same characters (Vellisia and her friends, for those familiar with Ssalia and the Dragons of Avienot). Unfortunately, I'm finding it extremely difficult to write these stories, which seemed illogical to me for a while. These are a lot shorter than what I'm used to writing; why have I been having so much trouble finishing each? Shouldn't it be easier? I believe the answer is quite simple and is actually right there: they're shorter than what I'm used to writing. Writing good short stories is proving to be more than an "easy mode" of writing longer ones. When I began to find my style and (hopefully) become a better writer, I focused on an elaborate style. Writing in a concise style is an entirely seperate skill and I keep being surprised by how hard it is to transform one into the other. It's not a downgraded version of my natural style; it's a different one and it's no easier to master than any other, as proven by the huge problems I'm encountering in handling it. It's easy to underestimate how difficult it is to optimise a story for a short length while still living up to my own quality standards rather than just writing short paragraphs due to lack of skill and I've been starting to feel that.
A brief writing style is not bad by definition. I believe that writing for different lengths requires different skills, just as writing for different genres and formats in general does. Being compact and still delivering a high quality story is more than just taking out a pair of scissors and cutting a longer story apart. If concise writing is what you do best, do it. Long form is apples, short form is oranges. Neither is comparatively superior, either can be a strength or weakness.
Saturday, 4 July 2015
Monday, 22 June 2015
Providing Some Background
When working on sketches for some buffer pages for my comic (Tails of Lanschilandia), some thoughts occurred to me while drawing panel backgrounds. I've heard from someone recently that they don't draw them as often as I do, and I've noticed of myself that I often add them as an afterthought and focus on the more important elements first. So why have them at all, and what level of attention do they deserve? "Expressive", abstract backgrounds can be used to affect the mood of the panel or story. But is there ever any need for "real" backgrounds of actual places? What do they add to a comic, in this humble author's opinion?
Backgrounds set the scene. They make the comic's world feel more complete - or rather, actually present. For without them, what world is there other than a blank void? Backgrounds can also provide context. Where are the characters? What might they be able to do there, where might other elements come into play? And in the almost words of Cotton-Eye Joe, where did they come from, where do they go? Backgrounds give the impression that things are happening outside of the panel; what leaves the panel goes somewhere, and what enters it comes from somewhere. It's not just there because it has to be, for the limited time it has to be. Everything exists within a setting and can move to other locations within that setting to interact in and with. Even the basic implication of a room lets one assume so much more: the characters are most likely inside a building and able to move around within its boundaries, interact with elements in other rooms and also leave the building. They don't wander a featureless plane, and when a character isn't present, they may be in another room or somewhere outside the house, pursuing their own activities, not inexplicably absent from reality because they aren't needed.
Does this mean that backgrounds need a great deal of attention? Absolutely not, I would say. From my experience, panel backgrounds are something that I - as a reader - pick up subconsciously and retrieve information from about general location and an impression of the setting. They are not something I analyse or gaze upon in awe (unless the particular panel deliberately invokes awe-inspiring scenery over actual action - which is also fine now and then, most obviously for establishing shots). My focus will be elsewhere: on the characters, their actions, their speech. Backgrounds add to the comic, as stated above, but under normal conditions, they are not the comic. They should be there and convey that information, but there is no mandatory reason to go beyond that in most situations as the vast majority of readers most likely won't go beyond picking up the basic information unless what's happening in the foreground cannot hold their attention (in which case there's a bigger problem at hand that's harder to fix than by polishing backgrounds). Here's an example from a story by the late Carl Barks that I love to cite on this topic:
Clicky link to image hosted on Comic Book Resources
Let's look at the panel backgrounds here. Do they convey information? Very much so - the characters are interacting inside a room, mayhap an office, and it's in a building within a city, as the window illustrates. It sets the scene and provides a context for an approximate location within the setting - anyone with experience should be able to tell that the characters are inside Scrooge's money bin, information that can be retrieved even from these few basic details and lines in the background.
As stated, however, the panel backgrounds are extremely basic. A few straight lines outline a room (which consists of plain surfaces devoid of texture in the line work); there are money bags to clarify the location, as these are recurring motives in Scrooge's office (and in association with him in general); the window provides a view of Duckburg; the telephone is there because it's being used. Apart from a lone picture on the wall, the background is suspiciously lacking in details, and it's also inconsistent: Where's the picture outside of panel 2? Where did the window go in panel 4? Why does the telephone table change size? In panel 3, there is no background at all (apart from the gradient added by the colourist).
Is the reader going to be bothered by any of this? The answer, for the majority of readers, is most certainly "no"; there is too much important action going on in the foreground for anyone to question the absence of texture on the carpet. Without deliberately focusing on the background details, their lack is hardly noticeable when reading the story, and neither are the inconsistencies. Many comics I have read are ridden with them if one is specifically on the lookout for them; the reason no one cares is that they tell interesting stories and convey the important aspects well, which the reader is going to pay more attention to than whether or not the tree in panel 5 has disappeared by panel 7.
So, in closing, should a comic utilise panel backgrounds? Most definitely, at least enough to convey the information touched upon above. Should a lot of time be spent on them? It's hardly necessary, I would say. An entertaining story, even with only the basic implications of a setting for it to take place in, is worth so much more, and when working on a schedule, time can be precious.
Backgrounds set the scene. They make the comic's world feel more complete - or rather, actually present. For without them, what world is there other than a blank void? Backgrounds can also provide context. Where are the characters? What might they be able to do there, where might other elements come into play? And in the almost words of Cotton-Eye Joe, where did they come from, where do they go? Backgrounds give the impression that things are happening outside of the panel; what leaves the panel goes somewhere, and what enters it comes from somewhere. It's not just there because it has to be, for the limited time it has to be. Everything exists within a setting and can move to other locations within that setting to interact in and with. Even the basic implication of a room lets one assume so much more: the characters are most likely inside a building and able to move around within its boundaries, interact with elements in other rooms and also leave the building. They don't wander a featureless plane, and when a character isn't present, they may be in another room or somewhere outside the house, pursuing their own activities, not inexplicably absent from reality because they aren't needed.
Does this mean that backgrounds need a great deal of attention? Absolutely not, I would say. From my experience, panel backgrounds are something that I - as a reader - pick up subconsciously and retrieve information from about general location and an impression of the setting. They are not something I analyse or gaze upon in awe (unless the particular panel deliberately invokes awe-inspiring scenery over actual action - which is also fine now and then, most obviously for establishing shots). My focus will be elsewhere: on the characters, their actions, their speech. Backgrounds add to the comic, as stated above, but under normal conditions, they are not the comic. They should be there and convey that information, but there is no mandatory reason to go beyond that in most situations as the vast majority of readers most likely won't go beyond picking up the basic information unless what's happening in the foreground cannot hold their attention (in which case there's a bigger problem at hand that's harder to fix than by polishing backgrounds). Here's an example from a story by the late Carl Barks that I love to cite on this topic:
Clicky link to image hosted on Comic Book Resources
Let's look at the panel backgrounds here. Do they convey information? Very much so - the characters are interacting inside a room, mayhap an office, and it's in a building within a city, as the window illustrates. It sets the scene and provides a context for an approximate location within the setting - anyone with experience should be able to tell that the characters are inside Scrooge's money bin, information that can be retrieved even from these few basic details and lines in the background.
As stated, however, the panel backgrounds are extremely basic. A few straight lines outline a room (which consists of plain surfaces devoid of texture in the line work); there are money bags to clarify the location, as these are recurring motives in Scrooge's office (and in association with him in general); the window provides a view of Duckburg; the telephone is there because it's being used. Apart from a lone picture on the wall, the background is suspiciously lacking in details, and it's also inconsistent: Where's the picture outside of panel 2? Where did the window go in panel 4? Why does the telephone table change size? In panel 3, there is no background at all (apart from the gradient added by the colourist).
Is the reader going to be bothered by any of this? The answer, for the majority of readers, is most certainly "no"; there is too much important action going on in the foreground for anyone to question the absence of texture on the carpet. Without deliberately focusing on the background details, their lack is hardly noticeable when reading the story, and neither are the inconsistencies. Many comics I have read are ridden with them if one is specifically on the lookout for them; the reason no one cares is that they tell interesting stories and convey the important aspects well, which the reader is going to pay more attention to than whether or not the tree in panel 5 has disappeared by panel 7.
So, in closing, should a comic utilise panel backgrounds? Most definitely, at least enough to convey the information touched upon above. Should a lot of time be spent on them? It's hardly necessary, I would say. An entertaining story, even with only the basic implications of a setting for it to take place in, is worth so much more, and when working on a schedule, time can be precious.
Tuesday, 16 June 2015
Huh? I have a blog?
Oh, right! There was something like that. I haven't been updating this in a while, but I should probably get into the habit again.
So, what's been happening since I last posted? Not much, really. My comic has been trailing along and had its first print edition released while my Fantasy writing that I mainly started this blog about has been slowing down to a crawl and my life has had all the ups and downs of watching paint dry and wondering if mayhap you should have used a different colour.
So what will I be talking about? I'm not really sure yet, but I'm hoping to be doing enough interesting things to at least keep the blog on life support for now. There's a short story collection about Vellisia from Ssalia and the Dragons of Avienot in the works as well as a few potentially neat developments related to my comic, and I've been fleshing out Pelsatia's home on the web a little as well, so there may be things to report, or not.
If you have stumbled upon this for the first time, please do check out my older posts about writing, as I feel I managed to put some helpful bits together back then. The ramblings about my individual comic pages that I used to post here will largely be going on my Patreon in the future once I actually have a patron who will read them.
So, what's been happening since I last posted? Not much, really. My comic has been trailing along and had its first print edition released while my Fantasy writing that I mainly started this blog about has been slowing down to a crawl and my life has had all the ups and downs of watching paint dry and wondering if mayhap you should have used a different colour.
So what will I be talking about? I'm not really sure yet, but I'm hoping to be doing enough interesting things to at least keep the blog on life support for now. There's a short story collection about Vellisia from Ssalia and the Dragons of Avienot in the works as well as a few potentially neat developments related to my comic, and I've been fleshing out Pelsatia's home on the web a little as well, so there may be things to report, or not.
If you have stumbled upon this for the first time, please do check out my older posts about writing, as I feel I managed to put some helpful bits together back then. The ramblings about my individual comic pages that I used to post here will largely be going on my Patreon in the future once I actually have a patron who will read them.
Wednesday, 11 December 2013
Goblins Can't Dance, But They Can Print Paperbacks
he called back into his mind all the wondrous things he had read about the world; about kobolds and snakes, knights and beasts, dragons and cities made of gold. He recalled the adventures of the young wizard Agrathoth; Thanathin the Silent; Mirebeth the Dragontamer; Alena of Phingog Mor; Sir Thethin, who saved the children of Griphendia from the ravages of war... All these heroes and heroines of legends were goblins, just like he. They all had accomplished things that he could accomplish as well. Maybe, one day, someone would read about Pondorath of Thobog as well.
Belated surprise! Exciting news! Gophirith of the Mountains is out in print form, a tiny bit prior to the ebook, as I have hinted at in the past! It's on Lulu here! Yes, it's finally out! (Pre-orderers of the eBook will still need to wait a bit - sorry about that!) If you don't know what it is yet (though if you have been following my postings here and elsewhere, you should), here's the book's info page on Pelsatia's home! I'm happy with how it turned out, which is very rare for me, and I'm really excited to finally have this published.
I made my first one-piece book cover for this; if it prints right, which I do hope it will, it should look really neat with the custom spine and all. The illustrations are all in here as well, though they're in greyscale as the costs of printing on-demand in full colour are astronomical! It was a pain to format, and golly, am I glad it's finally out!
Well, what are you waiting for? ;3 Check it out on Lulu, there's a reading sample! If you have a Goodreads account, you will also be able to add it there now :3
Belated surprise! Exciting news! Gophirith of the Mountains is out in print form, a tiny bit prior to the ebook, as I have hinted at in the past! It's on Lulu here! Yes, it's finally out! (Pre-orderers of the eBook will still need to wait a bit - sorry about that!) If you don't know what it is yet (though if you have been following my postings here and elsewhere, you should), here's the book's info page on Pelsatia's home! I'm happy with how it turned out, which is very rare for me, and I'm really excited to finally have this published.
I made my first one-piece book cover for this; if it prints right, which I do hope it will, it should look really neat with the custom spine and all. The illustrations are all in here as well, though they're in greyscale as the costs of printing on-demand in full colour are astronomical! It was a pain to format, and golly, am I glad it's finally out!
Well, what are you waiting for? ;3 Check it out on Lulu, there's a reading sample! If you have a Goodreads account, you will also be able to add it there now :3
Friday, 29 November 2013
Gobblin' and Goblins
A happy (late) Thanksgiving to anyone who celebrates it, and a happy late November to the rest! A lot of things have been happening in Pelsatia and outside it, as those who follow my Twitter account probably already know. There's pre-orders and games and all kinds of fun things! Well, maybe not all kinds, but there certainly is a game and pre-orders.
Gophirith of the Mountains is now on Barnes & Noble and on Apple's iTunes/iBooks for preordering in EPUB format; all that's missing is Kobo, but I have no hopes that they will list it any time soon, so these will likely have to do until the launch. Said launch is still going to happen on the 12th of December for the eBook, though as Lulu has been making their holiday hsipping deadlines fairly clear lately, I am strongly considering releasing the paperback a couple days earlier so people can still profit from that (people who pre-ordered the eBook will likely still have it earlier due to instant downloads vs. mail delivery times, and the paperback also will have greyscale illustrations to make it more affordable to print). I'm personally can't wait for the launch, though I may be a tiny bit biased here.
“what other strange things do you think we’ll find?”
Pon shrugged. “Let’s wait and see”, he replied. “The greatest wonders often lose their charm if you know about them ahead of time.”
So, what's that game I have been talking about? Well, it's the vaguely hyped-up super-secret surprise following the start of the preorders! Gophirith's Mirrors is a freeware game I made, which is remotely Tetris-like and even more remotely related to Gophirith of the Mountains (the author still approves of it). My tester also assured me that it's fun and unique, so mayhap you should check it out (and share it with people! People like free stuff!).
Well, I still can't properly end a blog post. So, um, toodeloo?
Gophirith of the Mountains is now on Barnes & Noble and on Apple's iTunes/iBooks for preordering in EPUB format; all that's missing is Kobo, but I have no hopes that they will list it any time soon, so these will likely have to do until the launch. Said launch is still going to happen on the 12th of December for the eBook, though as Lulu has been making their holiday hsipping deadlines fairly clear lately, I am strongly considering releasing the paperback a couple days earlier so people can still profit from that (people who pre-ordered the eBook will likely still have it earlier due to instant downloads vs. mail delivery times, and the paperback also will have greyscale illustrations to make it more affordable to print). I'm personally can't wait for the launch, though I may be a tiny bit biased here.
“what other strange things do you think we’ll find?”
Pon shrugged. “Let’s wait and see”, he replied. “The greatest wonders often lose their charm if you know about them ahead of time.”
So, what's that game I have been talking about? Well, it's the vaguely hyped-up super-secret surprise following the start of the preorders! Gophirith's Mirrors is a freeware game I made, which is remotely Tetris-like and even more remotely related to Gophirith of the Mountains (the author still approves of it). My tester also assured me that it's fun and unique, so mayhap you should check it out (and share it with people! People like free stuff!).
Well, I still can't properly end a blog post. So, um, toodeloo?
Friday, 15 November 2013
Sample is Here, Pre-orders Almost
It's my birthday, and because I have nothing better to do on my birthday, I got the pre-orders done for Gophirith of the Mountains! Well, sort of. As of posting this, it can't actually be pre-ordered yet, but it has been added to Smashwords and is going to pop up on various retailer sites over time once it gets approved for Smashwords's "Premium Catalogue" and (EDIT: Turns out it got approved while I was writing this! Yay!) shipped out (at a dollar less than the final price will be! *hint, hint*). And golly, am I glad this is done! Now I can almost sleep again. Here's the Smashwords listing - free sample in select boxes!*
You get a sample, and you get a sample. Everybody gets a sample!
This will be out (in ebook and hopefully print form) on the 12th of December, in time for the holidays. This book isn't quite as long as my previous one, but I like how it turned out (which is rare), and I hope you will, too! It's also my first attempt at including illustrations in a book (apart from that Ssalia scribble on the title page of Ssalia and the Dragons of Avienot), and they're in full colour. There's a bit of poetry in there as well, like my last book, but I don't want to spoil too much before it's even out.
Perhaps, one day, his tale would make its way far into the outside world[...].
*All boxes have been selected.
You get a sample, and you get a sample. Everybody gets a sample!
This will be out (in ebook and hopefully print form) on the 12th of December, in time for the holidays. This book isn't quite as long as my previous one, but I like how it turned out (which is rare), and I hope you will, too! It's also my first attempt at including illustrations in a book (apart from that Ssalia scribble on the title page of Ssalia and the Dragons of Avienot), and they're in full colour. There's a bit of poetry in there as well, like my last book, but I don't want to spoil too much before it's even out.
Perhaps, one day, his tale would make its way far into the outside world[...].
*All boxes have been selected.
Wednesday, 6 November 2013
News from Pelsatia
Hm, what's this again? A blog? Oh yeah, there was something about that...
I have been working a whole lot on my Fantasy book lately, Gophirith of the Mountains. I decided to go ahead and try giving this book some illustrations, even though I got no feedback on the idea when I posted it on the blog, so that's where most of my time is currently going. I already miss writing the actual text, as illustrating it is a lot more tiring than typing it up. Yes, yes, 'tis quite sad, the things I do to sell a book.
I recall stating on my website that I would be posting updates here, so here's an update: Gophirith of the Mountains now has its own page on the Pelsatia home with some information about the actual story, as well as information on where and how to pre-order it (hint: as of writing this, you can't, but this will change in the near future). It also has a shrunken version of this book illustration sneak peek here, with fancy transparent edges and what-have-you. Oh, and share buttons! Let's not forget those. Everyone loves share buttons.
Huh, what's that? A link the page? Oh right, take this:
Highly clickable link to the info page! (More clickable than links with only-sorta-above-average clickability)
Enjoy whatever there is to enjoy as of now, but be ready for exciting things in the not-at-all-distant future, coming to a neglected blog near you.
I have been working a whole lot on my Fantasy book lately, Gophirith of the Mountains. I decided to go ahead and try giving this book some illustrations, even though I got no feedback on the idea when I posted it on the blog, so that's where most of my time is currently going. I already miss writing the actual text, as illustrating it is a lot more tiring than typing it up. Yes, yes, 'tis quite sad, the things I do to sell a book.
I recall stating on my website that I would be posting updates here, so here's an update: Gophirith of the Mountains now has its own page on the Pelsatia home with some information about the actual story, as well as information on where and how to pre-order it (hint: as of writing this, you can't, but this will change in the near future). It also has a shrunken version of this book illustration sneak peek here, with fancy transparent edges and what-have-you. Oh, and share buttons! Let's not forget those. Everyone loves share buttons.
Huh, what's that? A link the page? Oh right, take this:
Highly clickable link to the info page! (More clickable than links with only-sorta-above-average clickability)
Enjoy whatever there is to enjoy as of now, but be ready for exciting things in the not-at-all-distant future, coming to a neglected blog near you.
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