Whether you’re writing a novel, a screenplay, or a comic book, it turns out many of the same elements are required if you want to create a successful product.
This was underlined by Karrie Fransman when I attended her half-day workshop on “Creating and Selling Comics and Graphic Novels” as part of the recent BD and Comics Passion event at the Institute Francais in London.
She is the author of the adult graphic novel, “The House That Groaned.” Here are some of the tips she shared:
- Come up with a concept that’s easy to summarize and that’s different from the norm. She cited the examples of a book that contained clues to a real hidden treasure, a comic in which a boy had to battle the six ex-boyfriends of the girl whose love he wants to win, and a book that looks like an auction catalogue and uses objects to tell the story of the ups and downs of a relationship. In movies, we refer to ideas like this as being “high concept.”
- Create an emotional journey for the reader or viewer. That’s what we’re really looking for when we read fiction or go to the movies.
- Try to come up with some element that will capture attention immediately. “The House that Groaned,” has a cover that pictures a house with lots of windows and each window is a cut-out through which you can see the characters on the page underneath. This was a gimmick she used on the website (www.thehousethatgroaned.com) and the mock-up of the book that she sent to publishers.
- Use the internet to promote your project before and after it’s published. For her book Fransman and her boyfriend created a clever book trailer (you can see it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tiha_y4nCBU)
- If you are hoping to get a commission, do as little as possible to get a commitment from a publisher; leave enough open for them to have input. However, there has to be enough to show them the potential, and (this is my comment) the less demonstrable success you’ve had, the more you’ll have to do upfront to make the publisher confident that you can execute your ideas. In Fransman’s case, she had already done a considerable amount of work for major publications like The Guardian and the (London)Times that served as proof of her ability.
- If possible, show that there is a market for what you are offering. For instance, if you put a comic strip or a few chapters of a book online and they develop a significant following, a publisher will be more likely to be interested.
- You’re more likely to get an agent if you can show that a publisher is already interested in your work. Yes, this seems backward—after all, it’s an agent’s job to approach publishers and make a deal for you. However, agents don’t want to spend a lot of time handling work that may not appeal to publishers. One way around it is to approach publishers yourself and if one of them is interested us that as bait to get an agent who will make the deal and then also represent you for your next projects. (The same is true for screenwriters: if you can get a producer interested, getting an agent is much easier. However, it’s more difficult to get to producers directly than it is to get to publishers.)
The general take-away: start giving thought early to how you can market what you are creating. Build in the elements that will make it appealing to the publisher or producer as well as to your final audience.
(If you'd like friendly guidance on how to go from an idea all the way through to publication or production, see my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available now from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller. Why not help ensure that your local independent book store stays in business by ordering it from them?)