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Here’s a thread on some common mistakes/ patterns I’ve noticed in comic writing. I am a writer/ artist so do both and this is only my opinion!! It’s better to write the dang thing and fix it later, people care more about a good story than technical perfection 
So who am I and why am I telling you about comic writing? Ultimately, I am no one and this is purely to share what I’ve seen from the writer’s submissions I've got on my project (my last post)/ stuff I’ve noticed in my own work! I really really love comics too.
1. My submission brief was 1-5 pages and nearly EVERYONE said it would be 5+ pages.Making a short comic is hard,I get it but I had to be harsher with those submissions because it takes longer, if you can communicate the same idea in less pages, do it !!! Some comics need to be...
...longer and I get that. Generally you want to come into a story as late as possible and get out as early as possible, trust that your audience will fill in the blanks of basic things !!
2. We don't need a ton of exposition, especially for shorter comics, world building can happen in other ways- this falls into a big thing of 'show don't tell'. This is a little easier for an artist/ writer than a writer because generally artists are more visual...
...Even if you're not an artist, there's a reason you want this to be a comic, not a novel- play it in your head as a film or even draw it out for yourself ! word build via visuals and props, body language can replace words. People don't usually announce what they're doing
3. This leads into my next point...think about what you want to see !! This sounds really obvious but think about props, what do these tell us about the characters? Maybe they have a weird keyring, they don't need to be plot points but little details that prompt the artist...
...to know the aesthetic. A lot of writers said 'I want the you to have fun!' but if you give me NOTHING I might interpret it differently to what you want ! You don't have to describe everything but any details can help, 'trendy outfit' 'messy desk' 'cutsie handwriting' etc.
4. IF something is really really weird, like something that doesn't exist...draw it! Really anything you have a specific vision in mind for composition of whatever, draw it!! Here are my exquisite examples, I've seen people use stock photos too ! You don't have to be an artist !
It can actually be helpful to know film language sometimes and art is the original cinematography. Here's a list of some terms and an article that explains different shots too: https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/ultimate-guide-to-camera-shots/
5. Again, even if you're not an artist, you're writing for an artist so don't try cram everything into one page, generally 1 script page=1 comic page (roughly). Try thumbnail it or look at other comics. 10 panels with full monologues will not fit on a single page and be readable
A lot of writers didn't split things into panels or tell me what they wanted the panels to look like, comic scripts vary but figuring out the panels is the lamest part (for me) so if you've done that...write it down !!
6. Only write what we see, if you say 'she knows he's lying'- how does the audience know that? Does she pull a face? Does she have a thought bubble? a lot of writers left out stuff like this...
...I don't really know how to word this but write the basic acting, if someone is sitting down, write that they get up- or in a conversation- if they roll their eyes, throw their hands in the air, sit up etc. etc. how do you represent it visually ?
7. A lot of people said 'I want you to have fun' and that is a lovely sentiment but the art bit is the fun bit, being told to 'do whatever you want' isn't always fun. Creativity thrives in limitation, tell me if you want it all b&w or all pages must be 4 equal panel etc.
It's also easier to build on a solid idea, being flexible is a great thing but if you're constantly saying 'it doesn't have to be exactly this' 'you can change this' 'I don't mind' it's hard. Collaborate with your artist to create something you both like, they'll have notes too !
8. Generally when you pitch a story, don't be vague 'Two kids save the world', even in a short pitch tell me about them, 'kid 1, a massive loser, and kid 2, an EVEN BIGGER loser, must take down their evil headteacher who wants to get rid of summer vacation'; even if your...
...characters are saving the world, from what, from who? Why them? Why isn't anyone else involved? Explain it like you're talking to a 5 year old who will just ask 'why?' to everything
Those are all the biggest things I can think of, genuinely all of the submissions (so far) have been great, and this isn't meant to insult anyone ! I'm a comics writer too and I do a bunch of these all the time !! We all got this ! If anyone has advice/ resources please share !!!
