Episode 3 - On Early Drafts

We had THREE topics that were somewhat braided together:

1. A thought Jess had: Become more interested in DOING what you're doing than KNOWING what you're doing.

2. A quote I wrote down: "I often find myself writing long meandering first drafts, that drift around a bit before settling down into a state of baffling indecision." - George Saunders

The Terrible Anvil: Episode 2 - Lean into the worst. In the Comics FLOW + PUBLISH group we asked around: how do you lean in when the going gets weird? What parts are EXTRA UNFUN, and how do you navigate it?

We spoke on all these topics, as well as the role of ritual and community in answering these three questions. We cooked up ideas on how to make a home there in the ruins, being okay with badly-drawn hands, what to embrace when we're working.

Our next Pro-Call is with Tessa Hulls! Come join us in our most affordable, online ongoing-community SAW FLOW + PUBLISH MEMBERSHIP GROUP (comes with a two-week free trial) to join in on MONTHLY PRO-CALLS!

We bring in comic professionals from all walks of life to guest speak (virtually) at SAW. These guest speakers give SAW students/members some insight from their personal experiences throughout their comics career and welcome questions at the end of each session. Come join us!

Your Idea(s) Will Change Over Time

Nail down some thoughts on paper or a napkin. Everything counts. Gather everything together and look at it. What are the napkins telling you that you don't know? Sometimes we project a structure onto something early on that falls away later in service of the narrative. That is normal and good!

Jess Ruliffson and I are starting our live discussion series, The Terrible Anvil, tomorrow , Jan 11, 2024 in the Sequential Artists Workshop Flow Community and this post is an invite (you can sign up for a free 2 week trial here: https://learn.sawcomics.org/courses/comics-flow-group )

Conversation is a part of life. Let's bring readers into the life of our comics. It comes up a lot where people think maybe they have too much dialogue, too many “talking heads". It can happen, but it doesn’t always happen.

The famous way out of this is Wally Wood’s “22 panels that always work when some dumb writer has a bunch of lame characters sitting around and talking for page after page…”

SAW's favorite novelist on drafts, failure, and limitation as gift.

As a maker-writer, you may have a story in mind, the beginning of a story, the end of a story in mind—but rather than emphasizing the narrative arc, she places importance on the process of a “continual thickening until right shape emerges…”

Sowing, reaping, and resting in our art. A post by Jess Ruliffson.

One thing I seem to be thinking about a lot lately is how to make an "art budget" for a long form comic. Or even a short comic! In the SAW weekly meetings, sometimes we do short exercises.

For anyone working on what feels like (or is) a "big idea" and not knowing how to start. OFTEN, a creator will make a small piece, not realizing it is about to become a bigger thing. This is great, and it's encouraged! Here are some examples:

The first mistake everyone makes when writing for comics...

Taking the chance to celebrate SAW online Alum, Angeli Rafer! The middle grade book she drew, 'Ghosts Don’t Eat Potato Chips came out this week withScholastic! Woo! Don't forget to let us know about your comics wins in the big, bad world outside the network! We want to hear about it!

This will be a virtual roundtable discussing the possibility of graphic literature from the frame work of The Field Guide to Graphic Literature: Artists and Writers on Creating Graphic Narratives, Poetry Comics, and Literary Collage, Edited by Kelcey Ervick & Tom Hart

If you missed our most recent *WE BELIEVE IN COMICS* Friday Night Workshop, catch the replay below! 

"We had an amazing time with November Garcia who had us writing out our problems, but drawing the opposite expressions.  Very therapeutic! We went deep, had fun, dealt with some real woes. Thanks to Ms. Garcia for helping us work this stuff out!"

Find SAW's table at the Massachusetts Indie Comics Expo (MICE) this weekend, table 59!

This Weeklong Comics Retreat is designed to break you out of your regular routine and drop you into a room alongside other cartoonists and comics lovers. We will be prioritizing time in the studio drawing and workshopping projects in small groups.

Recent success from SAW Artist Resident Alumni, Andi Santagata!

FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY'S: FAZBEAR FRIGHTS Graphic Novel Collection #1 is #1 in hot New Releases for Teen and Young Adult Comics and Graphic Novels on Amazon and a Bookseller Favorite. Published by Graphix.

Get your copy wherever books are sold and keep making comics!

The SAW Year-Long Intensive Program students recently created Photo Comics projects for their 3rd quarter assignments. Shown below is just one of the many examples from our students. Check out this Photo Novella by student, Betsy Hudson! Have you created a photo comic, or, Photo Collage, before? Why not try it out? Even if it’s just one panel. Check out this Youtube video of Tom Hart going over Photo Novels.

Do you ever have trouble celebrating your milestones? Your achievements? No matter how “small” they may seem? See what SAW Instructor and friend, Jess Ruliffson, shared about her thoughts about these feelings.

A personal comic by SAW member and Alumni, Kevin Curley, regarding process, growth, and identity as a cartoonist.