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Comic artists and writers, what's your process for planning pages?
I'm sure there are multiple comic artists and writers on Tildes, so let's talk process for designing and planning pages! Hopefully this fits here, but if not feel free to move it.
I've only drawn a few comics myself, and I like to make a script first for longer projects. It can be detailed and break it down by panels, or just give an overall summary of the page. For shorter comics though where I can clearly envision it (e.g. 4 pages), I like to kind of wing it. Someone else I know likes to go right into roughs, and then figure out what to cut as he goes along.
How about everyone else? What are your preferred methods and steps?
I usually write an outline, then a script alongside rough thumbnails. I think it's the best way to get a feel for how the beats will land.
You've probably heard of Scott McCloud's book Understanding Comics, which is mandatory reading as far as I'm concerned for anyone interested in the medium. But a lesser known, psuedo-sequel is his title Making Comics. It's outdated in many ways as it was published just as the Internet and digital art were taking off and McCloud is a traditional artist, but his insights on the creative process are timeless. You should look it up if you have the chance.