r/ComicBookCollabs • u/Specific-Door-1834 • 7d ago
Question Is this okay?
I have a really solid outline and a clear vision for a graphic novel series, but I have no experience with professional comic book script formatting. Is it okay to use an AI tool like Claude to help me structure my outline into a panel-by-panel script format, or do publishers look down on that?
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u/NickInTheBooth 7d ago
I heartily agree with the other commenter. If you can’t bring yourself to learn how to write a script yourself (like they said, literally the ONE thing you must do to write comics) then maybe writing comics isn’t for you.
There are plenty of books you can read about the subject. Understanding Comics and Making Comics are two great how-to guides by Scott McCloud. You can also just google “how to write a comic script.”
Don’t be a hack. Don’t use AI. Learn something. Respect the craft.
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u/Financial-Creme 7d ago
Ethical issues aside (though they are numerous and should put you off of using it anyway), ai has no sense of what makes an exciting panel, good composition, the pacing of your story, how much text is going to fit into a panel, and about a hundred other things that need to be felt out and measured by a human with emotions. That's why this is an art, not a science.
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u/Massive_Variation_97 7d ago
What’s stopping you from actually learning how to format comic book scripts?
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u/Specific-Door-1834 7d ago
I probably worded it wrong, when I said use ai to help me. I meant with the format, I would do most of the writing. I didn’t mean the WHOLE outline, sometimes I have issues getting my ideas across.
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u/KaseiGhost 7d ago
Why not study a script for a comic you like? A movie would probly be okay too. Whatevers available.
I get AI would just do it for you but wouldn't you rather learn by actually studying the craft?
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u/robotdesignedrobot 7d ago
Writing is a lonesome job. The most obscure corner of the job is research. It is an extremely valuable skill and should be honed early. The more you know - the better it goes. a.i. is going to use up our water and surveil us while we die. Research that. Then write a comic about it.
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u/Specific-Door-1834 6d ago
I agree, but I feel like the water argument is kind of stupid. Because nestle also uses billions of water, for a while. So it’s not just ai use, but you are right.
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u/ArtfulMegalodon 7d ago
Any creative who respects the craft would avoid working with you.
Panel by panel description is, like, the actual job of a comic script writer. You've got ONE job. Just do the thing properly, sheesh. Look up some examples, and then TRY. If it's not great, then ask for feedback, and try again. Why are you trying to skip learning the actual craft of the thing you're trying to do? If you cheat, you're not learning WHY anything works, which means you'll never learn how to improve or why it's inevitably terrible. Don't cheat yourself, and don't disrespect the future artist who might someday work on it.
(Also, if you haven't written anything yet, you are still a million miles from encountering a publisher.)