You got hired to write a comic, now what??

A new project I'm working on is an interesting gig. I am usually either approached with a script (like for short non-fiction comics) written by someone else that I illustrate, or I pitch a comic idea to editors in hope that they pick me to write (and sometimes illustrate) the story.

An editor approached me with a loose concept of a young adult graphic novel and asked if I had any interest in writing the comic. I thought I'd share the process with you all as I chew through it!

The first image is their loose concept. It isn't really a story I'd ever write. I'm not particularly interested in science and I debated about turning the project down. But then I thought about why this editor approached me versus any other cartoonist in the world. They probably wanted this comic super gay. They probably wanted queer characters. They probably wanted a story that emphasized friendships and fun characters and wanted something humorous. That I can deliver on.

I used their original ideas as a jumping off point for the characters but really just thought about what characters would make an interesting dynamic and what sort of characters would be fun for me to write. I decided to draw them up which helps me visualize them/their personality. While sketching I also think about their motivations and what stakes they have in the plot. I think about who would instantly like who and who wouldn't and why. I love clashing personalities and tried to make sure these characters wouldn't get along from the start, but did think about what it would take for them to endear themselves to each other as well.

From there I wrote a loose Beat Sheet. This lays out the potential plot and outline of the comic. I'm using a basic plot structure here, not trying anything wild. In this stage I can see a little more clear how everyone's interacting, how to up the stakes and what can potentially get shuffled around or pushed further.

And that's where I'm at! I think the next stage is taking a scene from the beat sheet and expanding it into a script so I can