Zwol.org

Hi! I am a 32 year old comic writer seeking a dedicated comic artist for an ideally an ongoing collaboration (although I am open to short term ones as well).

I am a film school graduate with extensive knowledge of film theory that I am now applying over to my love of comics! I only started reading comics 6 years ago but have since made up for lost time by throwing myself into them with a passion. I realized that comics are the perfect medium for the expression of my story telling ideas since it cuts through the red tape of studio bureaucracy and the need to organize massive funding (and not to mention the limitations of the film medium itself with its short running length restrictions etc)

What I am getting at is that I understand the nature of conveying a message through the world the frame, comics are a perfect bridge between the written word and the moving world of the frame for me. I have in the last few years studied the differences between the two and after a few false starts I'm ready to really dive into getting the story I have been developing for over 10 years onto the page in comic form...and it's going to be spectacular!

So here's the story...It's a superhero tale of two ordinary underachiever friends who gain super powers and are faced with the realization that its up to them to change the world for the better! The twist here is that their only powers are...One of them can create pies out of thin air, and the other one can teleport, but only when he is turned on and has "blood flowing" if you catch my drift.

Sounds stupid? Yes, it does and that's the point. It's a stupid concept and it's stupidity/ridiculousness is its shield it uses to convey various philosophical concepts and ideas relating to our world.

It will require many issues to tell the story in full, as it's actually an incredibly epic tale to be told. So this is a project that will run for years and have many various story arcs over different time frames that interlap with each other and will be challenging the reader's understanding of the characters motivations throughout the issues.

The story starts out about 4 years into the future from the point where they gained their superpowers (or stupidpowers if you will). It throws the reader in the deep end from the start and with each issue that comes out it will reveal more and more of the characters pasts and their motivations for their actions so that it will result in the most re-readability for the audience. They will enjoy re-reading past issues in light of their new understandings of the characters and their situations/motivations because it will change the way they are looking at what happens and viewing the characters as being heros or villians. You could say that they start out as an anti-hero type of protagonists and that viewpoint of them is challenged and changed as more information about their lives gets revealed.

There are several major plot arcs that come together as well as numerous one-shot type adventures that will make for fantastic stand alone issues or 3-5 issue length adventures, all of which that will play into and off of what happens with the major plot story arcs.

I have this very well thought out and I have designed it to be a contradiction of being simultaneously REALLY STUPID AND RIDICULOUS and equal parts REALLY THOUGHTFUL AND INTELLIGENT. It also plays up upon conventions of the comic medium from the superhero point of view but also the sunday-comic type format.

It will be a really unique voice in the comic world and will DEFINITELY be a cult hit at the very least, especially among the professional comic writers and artists because they will appreciate the extra thought and planning that I have put in. So it will be a great vessel to attach your name to and get noticed if that is what you are seeking, but you might end up having so much fun working on this title that you will never want to leave!

This will be a perfect title for any artist who wants to experiment as I have lots of areas and ideas where we can try out different things including variations of style/art and panels. But at the same time it will be conventional enough overall where it will resemble the more typical superhero comics structures (which can be quite variant in themselves too in their defense).

So the name of this game is "Hide behind a silly/ridiculous front and then BAM! Hit em upside the head by being an actual very intelligent comic".

Its called "The Fabulous F&#$'n Adventures of Pie-U and Ninjackoff!!"

I have the first issue and half already storyboarded out to the best of my ability, which initially isn't much as I am NOT an artist in that way, but by issue two it's much better drawn for you to see the vision I have for it for the style of the first issues...But there is a lot of room where we can mess around with how you interpret my pictures as I only had drawn them to the best of my ability to show what is in my head, so you won't be just coping my pictures (although some panels are much more "complete looking" than others due to various reasons).

But yea, I know this title will go on to be a successful milestone in comics history (or at least footnote) and will be a marvelous epic tale to see when its all done because it will essentially give its readers reasons to keep going back and rereading the issues as more and more issues come to light!

I'm really excited about where it all goes, including their origin story (which yes, will actually make sense and have a "scientific" type explanation to it all).

Now all I need to do is find a brave and talented artist who isn't afraid to draw a male superhero who is turned on. Yes their will be some "male parts" shown occasionally, but it's not going to be a big pour-no (purposefully misspelled as not to trigger the filters on this forum) or anything like that.

Ideally the perfect artist for this would be someone who can make characters look good and smooth like in DC/Marvel (or my favorite, Invincible) but also do some manga type panels with goofiness and/or seriousness of the manga style, along with the generic cartoony type look of something drawn by an amateur (like you will see in my own drawn out versions of the first two issues).

But there is flexibility here so if you are more of a master of one style or the other, we can work something out, especially if you are looking to get on board for the long term! But I'm open minded about it all right now, I'm looking more for someone who is REALLY digging it and will put the energy into the art and appreciate what this story has to offer so that love I have for it is reflected in the art and the writing.

I have a few pictures I can show you of what a previous artist I had lined up before he had to back out due to previous work commitments that I could show you to give you an idea of what I'd ideally like to see, but that was his style of art and his intrepretation...but you will see what I mean when you see mine and his version of the character and stuff.

I am also fully set on making this a very profitable venture for the both of us. I am not able to pay an appropriately fair amount for a professional comic artist right now but I can pay something, and we can work out the details of it all...especially if you are flexible on when you get the payment haha. But don't worry I want this to be very profitable for us both, so just hit me up if you are passionate about this and I can give you more info and let you see what I got so far and etc.

Looking forward to all of your replies! Please no stupid one liner responses. I am seeking someone with energy, if you aren't intrigued enough, or don't have the depth of vision to sense the energy behind this project and where it is all going to bother to send a decent REAL reply to me don't even bother because you DON'T have what it takes for this and I'm not interested... I don't care how good your art may be! Passion and energy are more important than pure raw talent in this situation anyway...although talent never hurts haha.

Alright thanks for reading this!

I have yet to EVER say this as a reply to someone on this forum but this is WAY too big. I think you should condense this and also be a bit more accepting of an amatuer or ANY artist. When you don't pay you don't get the best response.

Sincerely,
Ruyei

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Thank you for your reply and concern! I appreciate it. Yet I must say that I consider this post to be barely long at all.

The artist I am looking for will appreciate having this information up front and will dig where I am coming from and hearing all of this so they can get a sense of how serious I am about this project in spite of it's seemingly ridiculous concept that sounds like a dumb stoner's idea or something.

Ideally as I am seeking a real collaborator for this project so I'd rather bombard them with info right away because it should get them excited about it all...although I do mention I am open to those only looking for a short term or even single issue project as well

Also this is a paying project potentially...personally I'd like to think of it more as an investment opportunity for an artist who is thinking long term more than short term financially. But that bridge will be crossed individually as it needs to depending on the artists who reply.

I consider getting through this post as hurdle one to ensuring that only the most interested will even reply. haha. Thanks again for trying to help though!

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Sounds good but has it got anything on

Class war

Economic collapse

Fires of fundamentalism

Freedom in Crisis.

Man I gotta give dicks a rest..Im not being taken seriously
http://trash-fiction.thecomicseries.com/comics/first/


x

twotontongue wrote: I am a film school graduate with extensive knowledge of film theory that I am now applying over to my love of comics!

snipzzz

Alright thanks for reading this!

Yes it does cover those thing among many others. It goes to what I'd consider the cause of the disease that produces those "symptoms" of inequality in our world. This is a very philosophical and deep comic touching upon many social, personal, and emotional issues of people...and that's why there is such a fun/silly/stupid/ridiculous element at the heart of the story so that it balances out all the serious issues and deep-thinking pondering elements.

How do Pies help a super hero ? Is he good at throwing them, I cant see Force feeding them to villains working too well. Do they come in cellophane? What I mean is do they have to be unwrapped and heated up. Is flavor important or are they just theatrical-you know made of saw dust and plaster. Why pie btw – Something substantial like a House brick and he could have a side line brick laying ..say why are they geezers, why not women or even inbetween.

As for the chap and his erections..lets not beat around the bush here. Im worried, Is this guy a danger to women.. I mean do all his dates mysteriously disappear while hes on the job

I think a link to the script would help.

twotontongue wrote:Yes it does cover those thing among many others. It goes to what I'd consider the cause of the disease that produces those "symptoms" of inequality in our world. This is a very philosophical and deep comic touching upon many social, personal, and emotional issues of people...and that's why there is such a fun/silly/stupid/ridiculous element at the heart of the story so that it balances out all the serious issues and deep-thinking pondering elements.

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First off, I want to note that there are LOTS of questions that come up when one starts thinking about the logistics of these superheroes and I just want to say that I have explanations for them all essentially that will be revealed in later issues.

I've been working on the story in rough drafts, and in my mind for almost a decade now so its very flushed out in many regards and almost any type of concern you could think of I most likely already have come up with...which is why I know this series is going to be so awesome and blow people's minds!

This is my creative baby so to speak and I have been putting lots of love and attention to it for years even though it's not even "born" yet. It had a long gestation period because there was lots of questions to be worked into the equation and I wanted to cover them all.

See I know where it's all going and how great its going to be! You will all one day be like "I remember seeing his posts on zwol and thinking he was full of sh*t! Damn I wish I got on board when I had the chance, but then again I wouldn't of been able to enjoy reading them the same way so it's all good!" The reason I can say things like this is because the story floats my boat, and I'm a very tough boat to float. I also am one who follows through til I get what I want. It's not over til I win.

As far as pay concerns go, I'm flexible on all of that, but right now at this specific moment in time the artist might have to be flexible on it too. I'd prefer to just pay someone straight up a set fee that makes them happy and then keep all the profits for myself but right at this moment I can't swing that upfront. But ultimately I think they would end up wishing they got in on the backend payments as I do plan on seeing this story finding its rightful audience...but depending on what arrangement we could come to I'm sure there is a way to work out a payment schedule or whatever too. But if the initial pay is such an immediate and pressing concern for the artist they would be better off looking for work elsewhere for now.


Let it be noted though that my time frame for when this needs to be done is also flexible so it's not rushing against a line work either.

Anyway.

Due to popular demand I'll share the link with ya'll to check it out.

BUT, be warned, the first few pages start off REALLY rough sketched version. This is because they were the first pages I drew of practically anything in over like 10 years and I was NEVER an artist. So they look really bad...fortunately I improve a lot and they get a lot easier to read and see as they go on...

So you have to solider through my hard to read writing for the first few pages especially. By the end of the first issues its much better and shouldn't be such a problem.

Also I must say that the first few pages are actually are going to be different in their flow and words (because they were a very rough draft version). I just don't have the new pages up online.

It also needs to be noted that these panels are only drawn to the best of my ability, and that many (but not all, as some capture the essence of what I wanted very well!) would be a lot different if I could even come close to doing them justice artistically.

So yea, with those disclaimers being said. I do have a typed out copy of the script (with adjusted dialogue where necessary etc) for any artists that are more seriously interested as well as lots of other information along with some other story information etc. Trust me when I say there is MUCH to be discussed about the story and characters etc. haha. Even though these posts are pretty wordy, I'm holding sooo much back! haha.

Anyway thanks for everyone who posted and contacted me so far. I'm still trying to get back to you all so if I haven't yet sorry for my delay in doing so! Hope you're all doing good!

Your brash self endorsement puts you head and shoulders above most suitors. [flutters fan]

I have instructed my maid to be on hand with the smelling salts to revive me should some token of a script appear..

See I know where it's all going and how great its going to be! You will all one day be like "I remember seeing his posts on zwol and thinking he was full of sh*t! Damn I wish I got on board when I had the chance, but then again I wouldn't of been able to enjoy reading them the same way so it's all good!" The reason I can say things like this is because the story floats my boat, and I'm a very tough boat to float. I also am one who follows through til I get what I want. It's not over til I win.

haha yes it might help if I actually posted the link. lol

www.flickr.com/fabadventures

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So I am starting to realize there are just a ton of really lazy people here who aren't even bothering to read my posts fully or closely but feel the need to say something stupid anyway...


Pay is negotiable, and I have lots more info about the story and characters for any artist who is actually interested in potentially getting on board.

As I've said I've been working on this FOR YEARS in developing it and as such that means I have lots of information about it built up that I'm not posting here for various reasons (like the fact that apparently some people can't even read or comprehend paragraphs and general statements)

I know how brilliant this story is and how much people will appreciate where it all goes and that any artist who works on it on any part will be glad they were apart of it in the end, financially and creatively.

If your an artist with the ability to use your depth of vision and can see the "massive forest and houses" that will come from this "acorn" please contact me. If you are only able to comprehend "food for squirrels" from these acorn posts then please don't waste my time with your inane comments and knee-jerk questions that arise from trying to imagine an epic and uniquely complex story.

Send any messages directly to me if you are an interested artist. I will be ignoring all other comments on this thread from the people who just can't comprehend this story and opportunity.

Thanks and best of luck to all who are reading this with all your endeavors, some of you are going to need it! The rest of us will just create our own luck.

Could not make head or tail of your script offering. You also seem to be in need of a volunteer writer.

Im a little puzzled by your lack of ..I dunno..self awareness ?. You have made your self more interesting then your story. - Something in the vein of 'frustrated wannabe auteur berates comic community for luke warm response to his self declared genius'

Anyway Good luck.

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Look people, I don't expect the average person on here to "get" how awesome my comic is and call me a genius. Im here to find an artist, not seek the approval of the people of this forum.

I know what rocks my world from stories and comics and I know my story has those elements going on because I took the time to study the elements of my favorite works to try to capture what makes them so magical so I could utilize those story telling techniques in crafting my own story.

So your opinions don't matter to me at all, feel free to think it sucks if you want. Millions of people listen to the junk on the radio and actually think that's the best music out there, and if they actually do hear some of the really good music out in the world it can bore them. That's how it goes for some people. But plenty of people get where the great stuff really is!

And yes, I am a self declared genius in some ways. It's called having self confidence and pride in your work. Get over it already and join the club! It's where you should want to be at! There's plenty of room for anyone who has the guts to invite themselves in and mean it! Besides, why should anyone else like or love your art, if you the creator of it, can't really love and appreciate it even?

I'm just here for one thing and that is to find an artist who wants involved with someone with tons of passion and energy for their project!

And as I have stated, I have lots of written and typed information for artists who are actually interested not just browsing message boards half heartedly. I have real script typed versions of the issues as well!

The version I made was purely to get my artists own imagination seeing the story so they can take my script and the knowledge from our discussions we will have about the story, characters, and panels and take it to the level that only a real artist could take it to!

Is it kind of frustrating to deal with you lot here for constantly trying to spin my posts and comments into something they are not, sure a bit, but its worth it for the one artist who comes by and who sees through to the heart of what I am actually meaning. But it's also very encouraging because rs are always a sign of greatness...if you got no rs you are doing something wrong. So thanks for the encouragement.

To all the interested artists, please contact me directly on here as I won't be following the comments on this particular post. Thanks!

Look... I rarely post replies on other people's threads. This is a great forum where I come every so often and find an artist for one of my projects. But I just have to say... Lite Relief and Emocourt are right. You come across as arrogant, not confident. Believe me, there's a difference.

I'm a writer. I've been doing this seriously for one and a half years and finally got a miniseries of mine published by Coast Comics. Also have four other miniseries in the works each by a different artist with two shorts appearing in the Vivifica Studios' anthology "The Midnight Candle". I know I have a long way to go and a lot to learn, but hey man, I love my works and I will take confidence in how easily I can get artists to work with me. Like you said, it's a good thing to have confidence.

But see, thinking that you're a genius isn't going to effect anyone else (at least not positively). I think I'm a genius, but in my posts, I keep that to myself. I make my pitch by offering a stable writer who will not leave a project, someone who has experience dealing with publishers, and someone who acts professional and writes original stories. I then pitch my story and show them any previous work I have done. You see, you must sell your story and yourself to a potential artist. And well, to be honest, saying "I know this rocks", "Studied my inspirations", "Definitely be a cult hit", etc. Really? You can guarantee your comic will be a cult hit? You can't do that. And every artist with half a brain or old enough to draw with something other than Crayola crayons know that you cannot possibly guarantee that. Even if your story was great, do you know how hard it is to get recognized? You simply cannot guarantee anything except your own commitment and belief in the project. You're not displaying confidence, it's pure arrogance.

And that link... God help me it would have been one hundred times better just to post a neatly written script than... That. I strongly suggest you revise your post. Hell, create a new username, delete this post, come back under a new alias, and try again. Because... Just, no.

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For a long time I was fighting the urge not to post a reply, but your self righteousness has made me too irate.

Its good to have self confidence. As a writer, you have to believe win yourself and your work to an extent. I understand that. And if you genuinely believe that your work is incredible, that's okay too. But please do not continue to reiterate how fantastic you are. It sounds as though your boasting is your way of adding another incentive to your project. I genuinely don't believe that its, and that you just think indcreidbly highly of yourself and feel the need to mention it (numerous times).

I still can't understand why you couldn't just throw down a link to a script. The writing is mostly illegible and the drawing is pretty terrible. I'm a writer not an artist and my artwork is probably only slightly better than this, but I really don't see why you had to show us this. A script would have been far better.

I'm sorry, but plotting doesn't always go to plan. And dialogue that sounds perfect in your head often ends up reading as a clunky and bland sentence. I often have ideas for what seem to be witty sentences that I'm happy with, and then when its on paper it often doesn't work, and I'll have to go back and rethink it. That's just with dialogue. As a strong believe of the quote by George R. Martin, I would consider myself to be a 'gardener' writer, so plotting for me almost feels alien, especially when it comes to comic books. But plotting will never go 100%. Your character might sound differently then you wanted him to sound, and you might not be able to find a convincing way around it. Boom. All your work is finished. You might realize that your character wouldn't make that decision. Boom. All that plotting gone. As you write to character you grow to treat them differently, and this has to be reflected in your writing, no matter how much plotting you did before he and.

I only wrote such a long paragraph over plotting as you seem to treat it as a large incentive, in the way of actually writing anything.

My next problem is your social and political storylines that you want to weave into the storyline. I can't see this actually happening. In the past I have to admit I've felt incredibly proud of plotting out a polotical idea to reflect the real world and convincing myself that I would shame Transmetroplotian sorely in sales, reviews and reputation, and when I actually came it writing it everything just seemed to fizzle out. I was just writing to promote world issues. They weren't good enough. Maybe the message wasn't clear. Maybe I was making it too obvious. I don't know. While everything seems dokay, it just didn't fit with me, and in my heart I knew I had to stop writing.

My apologies if there are any spelling mistakes, but I'm far too tired to look over my reply to find any.

Also, Ninjackoff reminds me of Sex Criminals. Not exactly like Sex Criminals, but pretty damn similar.

Look, this just feel alike an incredibly unprofessional project, and I don't know if any artists have contacted you or not, but I would suggest that you delete this account, start a new one on them forum and maybe go over to websites like Digital Webbing or Comic Book Collaborations over on reedit or even Penciljack, while taking into consideration some of the responses. People have taken time to reply to you, and maybe if you don't agree with them, it doesn't mean you can't at least be thankful that they took the time to answer you.

Anyway, I wish you well on your writing endeavors.

If you have scripts, why didn't you send us a script of the first issue? And why don't you do it now.

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Look, I get the guy made some rookie mistakes. I recently skimmed over his first post and what I get out of it is that he's very excited about his project. He feels that it's something that isn't seen often in comics and hasn't been in a comic making scenario before. What do you do in this situation where someone makes a mistake in presenting themselves, you take a kind tone to them and simply state "This is what you need to work on." From what I've seen the responses people are giving are profoundly negative and accusatory. Yes the person is coming off as someone profoundly confident and demanding, however I believe this is purely because he feels like many writers do their first time which is that they have some leverage and that since they like their idea others will too. The truth is that people have to pitch their ideas. This writer needs to learn this, and also to know that the more information you give and the more work you have in advance to show what you have in mind the better your responses.

Yes this guy was wrong, but I feel his issues were blown a bit out of proportion.
Sincerely,
Ruyei

I will admit that I could have been less harsh in my tone. Its just the amount of praise he gives himself is astounding, and there were a number of problems with this pitch. I was too harsh, and I do apologize for that. The amount of praise you gave yourself felt like a tipping point for me, and due to where I live my eyes were barely open when I wrote the post.

Anyway, I do hope that you take away something from this experience, and I wish you the beat of luck on your writing endeavors.