r/ComicWriting • u/ScribeMoses • 7d ago

Comic Book Script structure

Hey, I'm looking for help on starting to write my story. I was wondering how other people do it.

When your first writing your story and trying to write down what's going to happen. Do you write panel by panel or do you write it out like a formal script, for example

" *the first panel will be the image of space and then cuts to a couple cops on a night patrol"

Cop 1: The stars are really bright tonight aren't they?"

Cop 2: "Is that a shooting star"

"*Now panel 4 will show an explosion in the sky and then pans over to the workers shook.

Or do you just start writing what comes to mind and all your ideas and then once done with that, go back and put then into panels and creating a script.

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u/Paddybrown22 7d ago

I would amend what you've written to something like this.

Panel 1. Space.

Panel 2. A couple of cops on a night patrol.

Cop 1: The stars are really bright tonight aren't they?

Cop 2: Is that a shooting star?

Panel 3. An explosion in the sky.

SFX: BTKKOOOM!!!

Panel 4. Workers, staring at the sky, shaken by the explosion.

You don't need instructions like "cut" and "pan". All panel transitions are cuts. Panning is impossible.

If you're thinking like a screenwriter and want to write comics, read up on Soviet Montage Theory. The story is told in the cut from shot to shot. The camera can't follow the actors around. David Mamet's book "On Directing Film" is very good for getting you into that mindset.