There must be dozens of books on how to draw comics, but even the best artists need to tell a good story. Who can teach them? Dennis O'Neil. A comics writer and editor for more than 20 years, O'Neil oversees DC Comics' Batman titles--one of the most successful comics franchises ever. In addition, he's a bestselling novelist, a screenwriter, and a writing teacher. So when it comes to storytelling, O'Neil knows his stuff. In this guide he delivers his knowledge in a succinct, no-nonsense style.
O'Neil explains three-act story structure and examines subplots, characterization, and methods for developing drama and suspense. He then applies these concepts to comics' specific forms: graphic novels, miniseries, maxiseries, and the rare megaseries (such as Batman: No Man's Land, a year-long über-narrative played out across five comics titles). As in good comics, words and images work together in this book. Every idea is illustrated by panels or pages from great moments in DC Comics lore. Especially illuminating are the script excerpts that come paired with the comic book pages they describe.
Strangely, the book ignores the visual side of comics writing. Modern comics scripts specify shots, angles, and blocking in movie-director fashion, but that craft is never addressed. (DC has a good opportunity here for a second volume.) However, what this book sets out to teach--storytelling--it does quite well. Aspiring comics writers won't just learn theory, they'll be empowered, because O'Neil provides a framework for crafting new tales. --J.B. Peck
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
One of the best books in a great series:
The DC Comics Guides are great. And this is one of the best in the series. It gives clear cut practical advice alongside inspirational examples and hints. The structure of the book makes it easy to find that one thing you need, and this book has lots of information an aspiring writer needs. Compared to other books on the same subject, this one stands way above most.
good, but limited in scope:
I read this book because I'm interested in making comic books for fun, and while there was a lot of good stuff here and it was easy to read, there was a lot more that I would have liked to see covered. O'Neil limited his instruction to the traditional super-hero style comic book with lots of action and so forth. While I learned some valuable things about writing, especially from the examples of comic scripts shown in the book, a person like me who'se more interrested in graphic-novel style literature is... more info
good stuff:
I thought the book was very informative, provided excellent examples, and gave great tips on writing. Many of the writing tips could probably also crossover into other mediums as well. In addition, the book is actually fun to read. If you are thinking about scripting your comic idea, read this book.
Beyond Comics, This is a GREAT book on the principles of writing!:
Whether you write comic books or novels, there are powerful nuggets on the writing process that if applied, you will experience growth in your craft. The book is well organized, easy to read, and easier to digest. This book is a more than a "must read"... it's a "MUST OWN" for ANY writer.
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