Zwol.org

To make it clear, this is only a guide for what boom wants. I dont represent boom studios.please go to their facebook page and submit your art there.

https://www.facebook.com/BoomStudiosArt ... ns?fref=ts

Copied and pasted below are all of the tips of the week that boom studios has on their facebook page. Most of it is geared towards artists but there are some notes on what writers can do too.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Tailor your portfolio to let the publisher know what position you are submitting for, whether it be interior pages, coloring, or lettering.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Make sure that your scans are set to 300 dpi when you are submitting artwork.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Don't panic or worry if you have not heard back from us right away. Publishers receive a lot of submissions, and it takes time for us to word our responses back to you.

TIP OF THE WEEK
While character designs, pin-ups, and process work are always great to see in your submission packet, it is important that the focus be finished interior sequential pages.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Always double check your grammar in your submission cover letter, and in any overall correspondence with editors. Misspellings or comma splices could spell doom for your pitch.
TIP OF THE WEEK
No matter who you're submitting to, researching your publisher will help you tailor your pitch packet.

TIP OF THE WEEK
While having every detail of story idea planned out will help in the long run, it's always a good idea to have an "Elevator Pitch" in your pocket. This 1-2 sentences can be used to quickly explain your idea to an editor without losing them in the detail forest.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Know your pitch inside and out. Read and go over your submission components until you're sick of it! Catching all those little mistakes and nitpicking will result in a well thought out and polished pitch.
TIP OF THE WEEK
Make sure you check the submission guidelines before you send your pitch. We recommend making a checklist so you can double check and even triple check your submission packet prior to clicking send.

Hi everyone! Thank you for your continued interest in submitting your art for us to consider here at BOOM! Studios. We wanted to address a few questions and comments we've been getting.
DO YOU REALLY LOOK AT THE SUBMISSIONS ON THIS PAGE?
Yes! At any given moment, one of our senior editors or assistant editors is checking this page out for new art. So don’t despair. However, they only reach out to artists whose work catches their eye. Because of the volume of submissions, we are unable to answer everyone personally.
CAN YOU REVIEW MY PORTFOLIO?
Unfortunately, we can’t. There just isn’t enough time or manpower for us to do that for everyone, and for that, we are really sorry!
I’M A COLORIST /FLATTER/INKER/LETTERER. CAN I SUBMIT ON THIS PAGE?
Yes. If you’d like, in your message, put it as the first word in all caps. For example: INKER – Hi, my name is John Smith, and I’m an inker. Here is where you can find examples of my work.
I POSTED ON THE TIMELINE A FEW MONTHS AGO AND HAVEN’T HEARD ANYTHING. MAY I POST AGAIN?
Yes, but please don’t post every day. Once a month is acceptable!
DO I HAVE TO POST MY CONTACT INFORMATION ON THE TIMELINE?
We understand some of you are hesitant to do this, but it’s the easiest, fastest way for us to get in touch with you. If you don’t want to post your email address, create a new one just for this. Or post a link to your website/blog/DeviantArt page where your contact info is easy for us to find.
REMEMBER:
Please post your submission on the timeline and do not send it as a message.
Message us only if you are having technical difficulties or don’t understand the instructions. We will try to get back to you when we can.
Please be courteous, professional, and patient. We know for some, it is your dream to work in comics, and we are mindful of that. We wish we could work with all of the talented people on here but we can only publish so much!
Thanks for reading, and good luck to you!

TIP OF THE WEEK
Be confident and professional in your cover letter as well as your pitch.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Consider the placement of word balloons.

TIP OF THE WEEK
When submitting physical art samples at a convention please keep the printed pages no bigger than 8½x11. It will make traveling with them easier and also prevent them from getting damages on their way back to the office.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Make it as easy as possible for people to find samples of your work by building a website, Tumblr, or Deviant Art page that shows off what you’re capable of. Don’t just show pin-ups, show your storytelling chops with sequential pages. Those are the pages we’ll be using to gauge your skill level. It’s not a bad idea to include a link to one of your sites when you post on our Facebook page.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Thick skin and an open mind are critical if you plan on pursuing a career in comics. Criticism of your work isn’t a personal attack—it’s an attempt to be constructive and help diagnose the areas in which you can improve your work. Even the all-time greats have erasers for a reason.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Persistence doesn’t always pay off -- there’s a fine line between staying on an editor’s radar and becoming too overbearing. If an editor hasn’t returned your email yet, give it about a month before sending a follow-up.

TIP OF THE WEEK
It’s tough out there for aspiring writers -- most companies aren’t legally able to take unsolicited story submissions, and most editors unfortunately don’t have the time to read whole spec scripts. The best way to get your work seen? Commission or team up with an artist to create a completed comic sample that showcases both of your talents.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Hands and cars. Draw hands and cars. Draw them until you can’t draw anymore because you hate your own hands and you want to spit on every car you see. Then draw feet.
TIP OF THE WEEK
Comics is about relating images in a way that tells a narrative, you know that. This means we must be mindful of when images relate in a way we do not intend. I am talking about TANGENTS. Two or more elements meeting that form an image the artist does not intend. This can happen inside a panel, or between multiple panels (usually just two). Say you have a scene occurring on a WWII battlefield. Two panels on a tier. In the first panel, on the left, a soldier’s rifle extends into the gutter at the right-hand gutter. The following panel features a soldier on a building rooftop. MAKE SURE that the line that creates that rifle is NOT at the same height as the line that creates the rooftop. Don’t make it seem like the rifle “flows into” the rooftop. This a tangent, and the reader may not be sure they are looking at a new image. He or she may try to discern a connection between these two different objects. “Are those birds on his gun—oh no, it’s something else.” We can’t afford to confuse the reader, or create obstacles in their reading experience. You take them out of the story...you may never get them back.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Networking with editors is important for getting your work seen, but equally, perhaps even more important, is networking with other artists. Fellow artists can be an incredible source of encouragement, community, advice, and connections. Editors are much more likely to hire an unknown who comes recommended by an artist they’ve worked with before than someone who comes out of the blue.

TIP OF THE WEEK
If you’re hoping to meet with editors when going to a convention, always be sure to have a “leave-behind” of your most recent work and portfolio. Business cards get lost in an instant, big, unwieldy folders often don’t fit into the editor’s suitcase (checking in luggage is extra, folks) if you want to leave a lasting impression, a simple, letter-sized (8.5 x 11 inches) stapled collection of copies (never originals!) of the work you’re most proud of will do. Even better, if you’ve managed to get an email address, email 1-2 weeks after a convention to help ensure that the editor is not too frazzled with catching up to miss your correspondence!

TIP OF THE WEEK
When laying out your page, always consider word balloon and sound effect placement -- this means not only leaving room for the text, but also make sure to place characters inside the panel in a way that allows dialogue to flow naturally

TIP OF THE WEEK
If you’re working on a project and you realize that you aren’t going to make your deadline...let the editor know. It’s always easier to come up with solutions before it’s a problem instead of after the fact.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Always keep your portfolio site updated or linked to another site that you update more consistently. It’s important to keep your most recent stuff easy to get to incase we find your site and it hasn’t been updated since 2008...we’ll assume you disappeared.

TIP OF THE WEEK
If you’re working on a project and you realize that you aren’t going to make your deadline...let the editor know. It’s always easier to come up with solutions before it’s a problem instead of after the fact.

TIP OF THE WEEK
A lot of artists ask me how I came across their art, and honestly, a lot of artist searching happens on sites like Tumblr and Deviant Art. Never underestimate the power of fan art. That’s what’s getting noticed around the internet these days, and plenty of people are making a name for themselves that way. That being said, use fan art as a way of getting our attention, but once we’ve made it to your site, wow us with what you can do on your own.

We'll get the handle on these twice-a-week updates!
TIP OF THE WEEK
Never be afraid to show us your work even if we only know you as a certain type of artist. We recently had a colorist blow our minds the other day with their line work and now we’re talking about completely different types of projects.
TIP OF THE WEEK
Comics are a collaborative medium—it’s fantastic if you aspire to write, draw, color, and letter your own ideas, but for the most part editors are on the lookout for collaborators who excel at just one of the above. Master your craft before becoming a jack of all trades.

For all you U.S.-based folk, we hope you had a nice long, holiday weekend! We took the day off yesterday, too, so we're posting this today. Here's this week's first
TIP OF THE WEEK
The best way to get noticed by editors is to practice your sequential storytelling. Pinups and splash pages are nice, but cover gigs primarily go to established talent and a lack of sequential samples is a big red flag when editors are searching for new artists.

We're going to start posting TWO tips per week since response has been so great. We are looking over all of your submissions. Because of the sheer volume, we cannot respond directly to every submission. Please be patient, and good luck! And now, the second…
TIP OF THE WEEK
Always discuss rate before agreeing to take on a project. Never begin work without having the discussion of payment, and the particulars of how you get paid. This ensures that both you and your editor are on the same page (quite literally!)

TIP OF THE WEEK
Know your limits. The number one way for artists to flame out or tarnish their relationship with editors is by over-committing and blowing a deadline. Editors won't work with you if you don't come through for them. Be realistic -- editors will never get mad at your for being honest. But if they can't trust you, how can you expect them to hire you? Under-promise and over-deliver.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Composition can make or break a comic. When you're doing layouts, don't just focus on the composition of each individual panel -- make the composition of the entire page thoughtful and cohesive.

ignore

Ignore this.

I should write a post about how jumpy artists are on payment but then again...I've discovered that jumpiness in myself as a for pay writer. Scary how things are from the other side!

-Ruyei

Its true, you should. So many artists jump the gun and submit before they are actually ready to do so. Some either dont have the needed skills to go pro, or their portfolio lacks what the publishers want to see. Out of the above tips, what would you (the reader) say is the most important tip? What catches my eye is the tip that says Boom makes their decision on your sequential work. Right there they are telling you point blank what they want to see.

One tip they should have which they already do but need to be more direct with, is they should tell people not to submit marvel and dc pinups or anything like that. If you look on the submissions page there are a lot of people submitting work meant for other publishers. If you want a job with boom you need to show that you can draw or ink or color their characters. If you submit another companies characters it shows that you are either lazy or are picking this company as your 2nd 3rd 4th choice.

Now if you are pitching a story then thats a different game altogether which i cant comment on cause i dont really know enough on it. Thats another thread that needs to be started. "How to pitch, and how to do it right?"

At the risk of beating a dead horse, these jumped out at me, but that's just my bias of what's wrong with most of the webcomic community.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Comics are a collaborative medium—it’s fantastic if you aspire to write, draw, color, and letter your own ideas, but for the most part editors are on the lookout for collaborators who excel at just one of the above. Master your craft before becoming a jack of all trades.

TIP OF THE WEEK
Thick skin and an open mind are critical if you plan on pursuing a career in comics. Criticism of your work isn’t a personal attack—it’s an attempt to be constructive and help diagnose the areas in which you can improve your work. Even the all-time greats have erasers for a reason.

Um...This is my third attempt to write this paragraph. It keeps coming across as angry even to my eyes, and that's not my intention. If your skill is in art, work that. If your skill is in writing, work that. Don't try to do both unless you actually have skill in both. I've had a long time to develop skill in both, and while I am not satisfied with my work in either, and am not up to Pro levels in either, I'm not embarrassed by either.
But this is something I have been preaching since I got on webcomics forums, and maybe with a major publisher saying it too, maybe someone will listen. If you are wanting a career as a pro, heed this single word:

COLLABORATE!!!

If you are weak in writing, why would you not find a writer to team with so that you can show off your art skills? Same with writing (actually most writers are able to figure out that their art skills don't cut it, not so with artists and their writing skills). Publishers don't give a crap in a thunderstorm what your webcomic looks like if you don't show them the ability to collaborate and leave your ego at the door.

So if you're a writer, your job is to write something so amazing that an artist looks at it and thinks "I want to draw THAT!". If you're an artist, your job is to find a writer who understands visual story telling to a degree that allows your art to shine beyond anything that you have written yourself.

Now, if you're a webcomicker, and this is a hobby for you, ignore any of this post that you feel like. It doesn't apply to you, as you have different goals. Nothing wrong with this being a hobby. I do woodworking for a hobby and side income, and don't intend to ever be more serious about it, and don't feel at all deprived for not wanting to be a pro.
But even if that is your goal, consider doing some collabs. It's actually fun, and the results are usually better than anything you can do on your own.

The take away is that this is a collaborative medium, and only a few creators have been able to CONSISTENTLY do it all themselves. Take a look at Miller's The Dark Knight Returns and The Dark Knight Strikes Back for a perfect example of that. And even there, there are other people's names on the credits.

Eagle
(Sorry about the wall of text)

i think thats the problem with most of the people on this site, well the ones who post (sorry lurkers) is that maybe 1% actually want to go PRO, whether its becoming a cog in the publisher machine, or pitching and getting your own comic or graphic novel published. Even though everyone(or almost everyone) here says they want to go pro, I say 1% because you quickly see how the masses treat this as a hobby vs a job potential. how many of you watch tv or play video games or do basically anything else in your free time accept work on your comic book? for me, i get up in the morning and draw either with a pencil or in photoshop if i need to color, then i go to work,i draw while im on my lunch break, come home and draw some more, each day i spend more time drawing than i do work at my "day job". im not trying to brag but im pointing out where your time can be wasted.

If you are in college or highschool you need to study etc everyday so your drawing time is cut down, but in the summer time, if you are not working, you have 2-4 months to do some serious work. you can make it happen if you really want it to happen. your comic needs to be at the top of your priority list.