Comic Review - Astro City Volume 1

Ok, I know. I'm a bit behind the times. As I've said before, I didn't read comics growing up. As a result they are all kind of new to me. This week I read the first volume of Astro City which was originally published in 1995.

Astro City is a superhero comic completely different from anything in the Marvel or DC universes. Astro City is the name of the city where the comic is set. It was written by Kurt Busiek and illustrated by Brent Anderson.

Astro City starts off pretty slow. Each issue is told from a new viewpoint (sometimes by heroes, sometimes by average people), so each feels like an independent story. The reader is also introduced to a slew of characters from the very beginning. Because of these things, it can be hard to get into Astro City. I was kind of bored by issue 3, but I kept going and I am glad I did. I really enjoyed issue 4 because I think it accurately reflects the expat experience. You can read my in-depth analysis (with spoilers) over on my other blog. I was also very surprised with issue 6. Issue 6 spends most of the time with two heroes, Samaritan and Winged Victory, talking about the fact that women matter. Imagine that, two comic book characters discussing the fact that women are people. It's really a surreal read.

Even though Astro City has a slow start and it can be hard to get into, it is a unique take on the superhero genre, both in terms of storytelling style and substance. The first six issues were surprising enough that I plan to keep reading them until I'm finally caught up.

Have you read Astro City? What did you think about it? What comic would you recommend I read next?

Bruce Boxleitner's Lantern City Seeking Content

I was recently talking to my husband about how television has yet to jump onto the steampunk bandwagon. There are plenty of period dramas out there (Copper, Hell on Wheels, Ripper Street), but none that cross into steampunk. I'm not sure why this is except that a steampunk series would probably be pretty expensive to produce. But Bruce Boxleitner, someone who knows a thing or two about good genre TV, has decided that television is ready to take a leap into the world of steampunk with Lantern City.

While a steampunk TV series will be different enough, Boxleitner and his team are going a step further. They know that steampunk is basically a fan-generated genre, so they want to include the fans in the show's development. If you have an idea for steampunk-related items, clothes, or props, you can send your concept art or pictures to Lantern City through it's website. Your creations might actually be used in the show. How awesome is that? I can't wait for this show to premier. It's still in early development so no premiere date or network information is available yet, but I will be following Lantern City on Facebook to keep up on the news. There is also a "prequel" to Lantern City in the form of an illustrated novel (this is a novel with illustrations throughout, NOT a graphic novel!) that looks interesting, but kind of pricy (almost $40 including shipping!). I'm interested in getting it, but it's not in my budget...for now. You can find out more about the illustrated prequel, Rise, also on the Lantern City website.

Writing Terms, Illustrated by Disney

For nearly a century, the Disney corporation has successfully followed the rules of great writing to produce some of America's most iconic stories. Disney didn't invent the art of storytelling, but Walt and his followers studied the art and knew exactly when and how to use them to their advantage. While breaking the rules sometimes can have amazing results, you first need to know what those rules are.

Buzzfeed (yes, again with that time-sucking vortex!) has a great list of literary terms illustrated with Disney films. If you have been wondering what exactly a denouement is...

or if you haven't quite figured out that deux ex machina....

then head over to Buzzfeed to learn all about these and other literary techniques. 

Book Review - Stan Lee's How to Write Comics

Even though I have been writing for most of my life, I'm very new to comics. Before this year, I don't think I ever read a comic all the way through and I certainly never tried to write one. My Emily and Renaldo adventures are stories I have been working on for at least four years in various forms, and I think they will work best as a comic, but I need to learn all I can about comic writing before I can bring them to life. Who better to learn from than the legendary Stan Lee?

I really enjoyed Stan Lee's How to Write Comics and finished it in about 4 days. I have been researching for months about how to write comic scripts and I found all the information out there a bit overwhelming. I picked up this book with hopes that Lee would share insights into the process of scripting comics and really break the process down. I was amazed (and delighted) to learn about the "Marvel style" of scripting, which is actually plotting. He does also talk about scripting (or lets other writers talk about it), but his experience is, obviously, with Marvel style so that is what he talks about most. I really enjoyed learning about Marvel/plot scripting because that is what I have actually been doing as opposed to full scripting. I think that panels and layout are part of the art and artistic effects. If I was an artist I would draw it myself, but I'm not. I don't think I'm qualified to write a comic script with detailed artistic directions when that is not my strong suit. Lee helped confirm that the way I was doing it wasn't completely off-track (generally, I do need to make some adjustments, but I wasn't totally wrong in my way of thinking). In fact, there is no 100% set way to write a comic script inspite of what you might read online. It's more about the writer's relationship with the artist and how the two communicate to make the writer's vision a reality.

Of course, that was only one good thing I got out of this book. There were many things I enjoyed such as the history of comics and how they have evolved over the last century. I also appreciated how the book wasn't totally Marvel-centric. He does his best to involve writers and publishers from various comic producers so that aspiring writers can have a composite picture of the industry.

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in comic writing. But I would also reccomend it for anyone interested in drawing comics. Comics are collaborative and it's impossible for people to work together if they don't know each person's role. Artists should also read this book just as writers should read Stan Lee's How to Draw Comics, which is also on my to-read list. In fact, this book is more of a primer (Lee's words) and is only the first of a long line of books about comic writing and creating that anyone interested in the comic industry should read.

The Perfect Zinger

We've all been there. Someone says something rude, snarky, or inappropriate and you think up the perfect comeback...10 minutes later! Who hasn't lost sleep over the things we should have said? Thankfully, when it comes to writing clever comebacks for your characters you have hours, days, weeks, even years to phrase it just right.

But, just in case you are having trouble coming up with just the right zinger, Buzzfeed (that amazing internet time-sucker) has published a hilarious list of famous comebacks. Here are a few of my favorites:

Be sure to check out all 25 hilarious comebacks over at Buzzfeed. Which one is your favorite? Have you ever written a really good zinger? Share it below!

Historical Disney Princesses

It is amazing how an image can inspire a story. Reimagining fairy tales is a hot writing topic right now inspiring comics like Fables and TV shows like Once Upon a Time. One of my favorite Broadway shows of all time (and the first play I saw Bernadette Peters in) is Into the Woods, a fractured fairy tale. 

Aurora, this one is my favorite.

Artist Claire Hummel has done a visual reinterpretation of Disney princesses wearing more historically accurate clothing. This could be a great launching pad for another literary interpretation. Disney tales are very multi-cultural, but they don't usually exist in a specific time or place. For example Belle is French, but when exactly did she live and in what part of France? How would her story change if you did know? Does it matter? Tiana, though, is clearly set in 1920s New Orleans, but pretty much all political and social issues from the time are completely scrubbed from the story. How would you write her story if you actually took Jim Crow laws into consideration? Then you have princesses like Rapunzel and Ariel who aren't really set in any realistic location or time period. Where would you put them? How would that impact their stories?

Tiana

Those are just a few writing prompts for today and here are some of my favorite images from Hummel's Historical Disney Princess Series. Be sure to check out her whole series. Which images are your favorite? 

Mulan

Emily and Renaldo make an appearance

My husband and I first created Emily and Renaldo for a one-shot LARP about 4 years ago, so we have been mentally creating and discussing these characters for a long time and they are kind of based on us (very loosely, though :) When we go to cons in steampunk, it is usually as some variation of Emily and Renaldo. This weekend I tried an Oriental bend on Emily and wore a fun red wig. Emily actually has dark brown hair, but the costumes for them and the official art are still works in progress so they don't have a specific style yet. One day, though, we hope to go to a con as Emily and Renaldo and people will actually recognize us as more than just "generic steampunk."

What is this blog?

Hi,

my name is Amanda. I am an eclectic writer doing everything from academic essays, vampire romances, cookbooks, and more. My new dream, though, is to write a comic series. I can't tell you much about it, but it is a Victorian/Steampunk universe starring Emily Winters and Lord Antoine Renaldo III. When I talk about "Emily and Renaldo," that is what I am referring to.

I think it is important for writers to have a blog to share news and to talk about the art and struggles of writing, so that is why I made this blog. I'll talk about a lot of things on here, but mainly the adventure of writing a comic and Steampunk/Victorian related stuff. I hope you enjoy it!