It may be easier to do this if you’re familiar with the topic already and can use things or people around you as a model. If you decide to do a comic strip about the secret lives of cats, you may use your own cat as inspiration and imagine what she may be thinking or feeling throughout her day. If you decide to create a comic around your relationship with your best friend, try to think about a specific event or situation that illustrates your relationship well. You could then base your comic on this event, using you and your best friend as characters in your comic.
You may also have personal experience with a current event or issue that you want to use as the set up for your comic. Perhaps you have personal experience with abortion or are a refugee and want to address political issues around refugee status through your comic. Tapping into your personal take on a political or social issue can make the comic feel more intimate and engaging.
You may notice that there are certain characters or concepts missing from comics, such as female superheroes that are of color, or characters who are queer. You could then use an existing comic character and adjust the character so it better represents a certain group that is missing from mainstream comics.
“Zorphbert and Fred”, a kid friendly comic about two aliens who disguise themselves as dogs. [2] X Research source “JL8”, which focuses on Superman, Batman and other popular super heroes when they are children going to elementary school. [3] X Research source “Calvin and Hobbes”, a popular adult comic about a young boy and his friend, a talkative tiger. [4] X Research source “Cyanide and Happiness”, another popular comic for adults that explores current events and age old issues with a dark sense of humor. [5] X Research source
Some comic strips, like the popular adult comic “Bizarro”[6] X Research source , use only one panel to tell a story or create a joke. You can also create a comic strip that uses one long panel, with lots of characters and text. [7] X Research source You may decide to start with a three panel comic, where you have three panels to tell a short story or a joke in your comic strip. Limiting yourself to three panels can help you to get a better sense of your story and keep the joke in the comic short and punchy. [8] X Research source
Most gag-a-day comics consist of three panels: the introduction, the build-up, and the punchline. This structure is very similar to the structure of telling a joke, which is why many gag-a-day comics are funny or humorous. An example gag-a-day structure may be: Panel 1, Introduction: “My cat has a secret life,” Character says. Panel 2, Build-up: “I think it consists of searching for catnip, rubbing against my furniture, lounging on every spot in my house…” Panel 3, Punchline: “And scolding foolish humans who try to guess what she’s up to. ”
The three act structure consists of three acts. These acts can occur over multiple panels or even multiple comic strips, which may become part of a comic book. Act 1 is the “Beginning” section, where information is given to set up the story or provide context. Act 2 is the “Middle” section, where your characters try to achieve their goals and deal with conflict. Act 3 is the “End” section, where your character changes or shifts in some way and there is a resolution to the conflict.
You may have a good idea for a fun character who is going to be the main focus of the comic or several characters who will interact in the comic. Or, you may use yourself as a character in your comic as well as individuals you know well, or use completely made up characters. Consider the key attributes and traits of your characters. Are your characters all the same age, gender, or color? Maybe one character is a grumpy old man or a beautiful witch. Maybe you have two characters that appear the same physically but have different perspectives on a subject. Write down physical details of your characters, from their hair color to eye color to the clothes they are wearing in the comic. You should also write down personality traits of your character, describing your characters as happy, upset, angry, confused, or argumentative. It may also help to sketch out your main characters on a piece of paper. Try to be detailed in your sketches and include the key attributes of your characters in the sketches.
You may decide to have one character who is “normal” or has no special abilities and one character who has a cool, special ability. You could then have these two characters bounce off each other and explore their differences or use their differences as the punchline of a gag in your comic.
You may decide to have a more character focused comic, with very little setting in the background. Or, if your comic is more world focused, with an elaborate storyline, you may include details of the setting. If your comic is set in medieval times, for example, you may have backgrounds of castles, rolling hills, and lush vegetation.
Standard 8 ½” x 11” white paper A pencil and a black pen A ruler A stapler An eraser Colored pencils, pens, or paints A foam board 20” x 30” x 3” An X-ACTO knife Wite-out or correction fluid If you decide to use a computer, you can use a computer program to create the comic. There are online comic generators you can access as well as sketching computer programs that you can access on your computer. [11] X Trustworthy Source Read Write Think Online collection of reading and writing resources for teachers and students. Go to source
Start by measuring a 10” x 5” (25 x 12 cm) rectangle on the foam board. Then, use the X-ACTO knife to cut out the rectangle. Make sure an adult does the cutting, as X-ACTO knives can be a hazard for small children. Then, use the ruler to measure a half-inch (1 cm) inside the edges of the rectangle and cut out another rectangle that is 9 ½” x 4 ½” (24 x 11 cm). You should have a ½” (1 cm) wide frame, which will act as your template. Place the template lengthwise on the piece of white paper and use it to create the panels. If you are doing a three panel comic strip, for example, you will use a pencil to trace the inside border of the template on the paper three times, including a small amount of space between each panel.
Starting at the top of the panel, lightly trace horizontal lines about a quarter-inch (. 5 cm) apart with a pencil. Make enough lines to fit your text. This will be based on how large you write the text and how much text you are including. If you are not sure how many lines you will need, you can include extra lines and erase them later. Repeat this in each panel that is going to have text so you have lines to refer to when you put the text in the panels. Once the text is in the panels, you can add word bubbles to them.
Some comics will put the text bubbles in the panels first, before they put in the actual text. This is done because that way, there is enough space in each panel for the characters, the setting, and the text bubbles. You can decide if you want to add in the text first, and then the text bubbles or do the text bubble first. If you write in the text first, using the grids, make sure you leave enough room around the text for the text bubbles.
To color the comic strip, you should outline inside the pen lines first and then color in the details. Try to use the same colors in each panel for consistency. For example, if a character’s shirt is green in the first panel, make sure it is green in the second and third panels. You may decide to use surreal colors to add some interest to your comic. For example, making the sky purple instead of blue and making your main character a magical creature who has red skin. This kind of approach to color is a great way to add some unique elements to your comic. Just make sure you keep the unique elements consistent throughout the comic so it appears consistent and well put together.
