Fearless: From Script to Finished Page
I break down a completed page from the YA graphic novel FEARLESS that I created with artist Zach Wilcox and Scholastic/Graphix!
One thing I love about comics is seeing the process of a story going from script to finished artwork. I wanted to take some time this morning to share the creative thought behind one of my favorite pages from Fearless that Zach Wilcox and I created.
If you’re not familiar, here’s a little bit about Fearless, which came out this year from Scholastic/Graphix:
“Fearless is a touching graphic novel about growing up, accepting change, and finding a way to be happy when you miss your best friend.
Kara hoped to spend the summer re-enacting episodes of her favorite TV show, Shinpi Rider, with her best friend Alice. But when Alice moves to a new home two towns over, everything changes. Alice mysteriously stops answering Kara's phone calls and letters.In order to reignite their friendship, Kara hatches a brave plan to bike over to Alice's new school all on her own. After all, "A rider never leaves a friend behind!" Kara's bravery on the journey proves how strong she is but when Kara finally finds Alice, her bravado fades: Alice has found new friends and has left Kara behind. Can Kara be fearless when she feels so alone?”
From Script to Page
The page I want to talk about comes near the beginning of the book when Kara hasn’t been able to get in touch with her best friend Alice after she’s moved away. We knew we wanted to do a flashback scene of her walking through their favorite park together, so I wrote up the page for Zach as follows:
When we were putting the page together, we realized that the dialogue was holding the page back from its true impact.
Zach and I talked it through and decided it would be best to go with a completely silent page. Honestly, this is one of my favorite parts of the comic book creation process. When you look back at what you’ve created at the art stage and make the decisions that better shape your story.
It’s also a big part of why I love collaboration so much. I enjoy writing prose, but you don’t get that creative rush you get when you work with an artist and shape a story into what it was always meant to be.
Here’s what the final version of the page ended up looking like, and it’s one of my favorites from the book.
I would encourage anyone that’s working on comics, novels, film, or any kind of creative venture to always step back and look at what would work best for the story. Sometimes you can’t see it until you’re near the finish line, but it’s always good to give your project a fresh set of eyes.
More About Fearless
If you’d like to know more about Fearless, here’s a great virtual appearance that Zach Wilcox and I did with The Doylestown Bookshop! It’s a 50-minute conversation where Zach and I talk about the creation of Fearless and how we made some of the creative decisions.
Or, if you’d like to buy a copy of Fearless, here are some quick link buttons to shop from some of your favorite book outlets!
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