wie man sich NICHT bewirbt

[Sascha Thau]

Folgt man dem Link sollte man sich zuerst mal die message des Künstlers durchlesen und dann die Antworten von "jimmyvee" (Jim Valentino - IMAGE central headmaster).

Da kriegt man mal nen echten Einblick wie das so läuft.

auf englisch:
http://www.imagecomics.com/cgi-bin/w...&vc=1#Post7953

Und hier noch ein Beispiel wie man scheitern kann. man beachte die treffliche Analyse (unterlegt mit grau):
http://www.houseofcoc.com/brenz/badcomics/badbat.html

bye Sascha

[Fighting Sausage]

Mann, das is wirklich dumm.

Aber cooler Link.

[Yann Krehl]

Die beiden Links decken wirklich ein breites Spektrum von ziemlich seltsam bis unglaublich furchtbar ab.

Und dann die Antwort des Künstlers auf die Kritik...

[Sascha Thau]

Ja ich find's auch erschreckend. Ist glaube ich keine Seltenheit. Und am ende gibt's immer das Lied vom unverstandenen Künstler.

Oder man vergleicht sich gleich mit Jesus.

bye Sascha

[Abulafia]

Die Wahrheit erkennt man am besten an den Dementis.
Jean Cau

[Fighting Sausage]

Don't say I didn't warn you...

Wait! Before you send that artwork or writing submission, look at it! Do you REALLY think it's good enough to be published? No, really. I know that your mom always talks to her friends about how good your artwork is, and about how you should be published, but are you TRULY that good? I know your creative writing teacher says your stuff is some of the best work ever written by a student, but does that mean you understand exactly what goes into writing a good comic book? Well, as my friend Clayton would say, I'm here to drop some serious science on everyone: You're probably not as good as you think you are. Now, before you accuse me of being an egotistical fool and send mail bombs to Top Cow, allow me to explain myself...

About 11 years ago, I became an assistant editor at Marvel Comics. After being an intern and editorial assistant for a while, I was so happy for the promotion that it didn't bother me to only be working on reprint books, special projects and...submissions. Back then, it was traditional that the newest-hired assistant editor would be the one receiving all mail addressed to the Submissions Editor, and I was that person. It sounded so cool to be able to handle that stuff. I was awed: I could be the guy that found the next big thing in comics. Quite a responsibility was on my shoulders, I thought, as I rolled up my sleeves and got to work looking for the next Jim Lee. It was then, and over the next few weeks, that I learned the awful truth: Nearly EVERYONE thinks they're good enough to draw comics. I mean, there were boxes and boxes of submissions. There were more people sending submissions than READERS, I think! Many from people that couldn't even draw STICK FIGURES. Okay now, let me stop for a second. Know that I'm not a totally heartless guy. A lot of the submissions were from elementary school kids and those samples were cool because there were no expectations from them. Those weren't the kinds of submissions that bothered me. It was the ones from teenagers and adults that bummed me out, and continue to make the life of all submissions editors a LIVING HELL. Strong words, you might say, but the truth, nonetheless.

Why is it a living hell, you may ask? Well, I'll tell you, since you're being so patient with me. I call it that because IT NEVER ENDS. It seems like when people hear you have a job in comics, they come out of the woodwork looking to show samples. EVERYBODY has a friend who has spent his/her whole life drawing comics and he/she's just the best, but he/she's never gotten the chance to show him/herself. Could I look? Sure, I say, so I don't sound like a total bastard. Have I ever seen good work from a friend's friend? NO. It may be out there, but I haven't seen it yet.

Okay, I can go on and rant about this for hours, sounding like a bitter old editor, but that's not why I brought up this topic. Actually, I wanted to say some constructive things about submissions. I know getting into the comics world seems next to impossible, and if you're one of the people who actually does good work, these OTHER people, the ones that aren't as good as you are, are RUINING things for you. So here, for everyone's benefit, is some information that I've picked up over the years, that may help someone out there:

THE BEGINNING

Okay, so you've sat and written or drawn pages and pages of stuff. You've drawn in class while the teacher was talking about medieval Europe, you've drawn at home while avoiding homework, you draw ALL THE TIME. And now, after reading loads of comics or hearing friends' advice, you think you're ready to make the big leap to professional work. Well, before you do, I want you to go over certain parts of your work, with me by your side for moral support. This, by the way, is the stuff I look for. Other editors may look for other things, but I think most are in agreement on this when it comes to super-hero type comic work:

--Anatomy: Look at the bodies you have drawn. Do they look proportional? Are the legs nine feet long? Do they have WAY too many muscles? I don't care if you've looked at Image art and they draw like that. You have to be BETTER.

--Faces: How do your faces look? Do they compare favorably to professional-quality ones out there? I know that for me, faces are a good way to see how far along an artist is. It is very difficult to transcend amateurish-looking (ugly) faces and do good-looking stuff. Be hypercritical of yourself, here. If you're trying to be realistic, do these faces you've drawn look real? Do they have actual, believable human expressions, or are they dull and lifeless? Work on them.

--Storytelling: Now, say you actually can draw bodies and faces. Is that all you can do? I hope not, because the LAST thing the industry needs is another pin-up artist. I won't even look at people's stuff unless there is sequential storytelling there. That's what comics are all about. And when you DO tell a story, be sure it makes sense. Hopefully, you don't have to explain to people what they're looking at. The next important facet, after actually telling a story, is making sure it's dynamic. You have to GRAB the reader with your art--not your hands. Make the stuff DYNAMIC! That means big and alive and fluid. If something important is happening, make sure you show the reader how important it is. On the other hand, don't make everything big and brash--it's exceptionally hard to tell a story that way. Have your big moments, but don't sacrifice the story. Again, I know there are artists out there who don't do this and they still get professional work. I don't care about them. I'll never hire any of them.

--Miscellaneous stuff: Make sure you plan your pages in advance. Do a thumbnail sketch or at least a layout on the page. That way, you'll know if you're going to end up cutting off the foot of your page's central character. That kind of stuff will make your work look unprofessional. Also, make sure you have backgrounds in your work. Some really hot books may come out with no backgrounds because the penciler had like ten days to finish and decided to cut corners and it didn't really bother anyone, but that doesn't matter for you. You have a lifetime to put these samples together, and they deserve backgrounds. As a matter of fact, one of OUR artists, Mike Turner, was hired based on the fact that he showed us submissions with cool-looking backgrounds. And now he draws a hot book, I think.

SHOWING YOUR WORK

All right, you think your work has passed the above tests, and you're ready to show it at a convention. In almost ALL of your cases, I kind of doubt you're REALLY ready, but all right, it's your ego that's about to be shattered--not mine. Here are some tips to make your convention experience a slightly less frazzling one:

--When preparing your samples for the show, put your BEST work first. Editors don't want to see your life history in artwork right off the bat. I know I like to see where people came from, but only AFTER I see where they are. You should have between three and five pages of your newest stuff--the work you're most proud of. Then you can have more behind it that the editor can look at if (s)he chooses.

--When showing your samples at conventions, DON'T come up to the table ALREADY expecting to get work. If you are, try to hide that fact from the editor. They won't appreciate it. While you're up there, expect to be criticized. That's why editors think you're showing them your stuff. When I look at people's stuff, I ask them in advance if they expect to be criticized or they are just looking for work. That saves me a lot of trouble because I can just shoot them down fast and get on to the next person, who hopefully is more open to criticism. I DREAD doing portfolio reviews at conventions. Really. And the main reason is that people get so belligerent if you don't immediately offer them work. Get that stuff out of your mind. Expect to have to WORK for it!!!

--I may have sort of mentioned this earlier, but I now have to rephrase it in a different context. When you're showing your work and someone has problems with it, don't defend every point by talking about how OTHER BOOKS have that in them, so the fact that it's in print somehow justifies your shortcomings. I didn't hire whomever you're talking about, so I don't care if Mr. X draws ugly faces or Madame Y. has bad storytelling--and neither should you. If people draw badly and still get printed, that doesn't make YOU any better!

--And lastly, if you've shown or sent submissions and haven't heard back, you probably didn't receive the call because you're not good enough yet. Believe me, if people like your stuff enough to give you work, they'll call you rapidly. Keep sending it, because it is possible they've lost it or never received it (since we all get boxes of submissions daily), but also keep trying to improve if you haven't yet gotten the call. And if you think you can't improve any more, it's probably time to choose a new line of work.

And here's my one paragraph devoted to writers. I'm sorry, but writing submissions are the hardest to talk about. First of all, make sure your grammar and spelling are adequate. I won't even begin to look at a writing submission if it doesn't look professional. Secondly, try to do straightforward stories with conflict and resolution. Your sample story shouldn't be some offbeat Batman adventure. Save that for after you've gotten work. Also, keep sending your writing samples. Writers have to be the most persistent of all because their work is so rarely looked at. I know I'll always need lots of time to look at writing submissions, so I don't do it too often. But when I do, I want to see your newest and, hopefully, best work.

[Fighting Sausage]

Wow, I feel better now that all that's off my chest. What I really mean by everything I'm saying is that most of the people I encounter just aren't objective enough about their own work. You need to step back all the time. Look at it. Examine it backwards and forwards. Be your own staunchest critic. Even though I sound so jaded, it still thrills me when I look at artwork that is promising enough to become professional. But, without exaggeration, I can safely say that out of the 50,000+ submissions that I've looked at, I've probably seen less than 500 that were actually of a nearly professional caliber. Scary, isn't it?

Don't show your work prematurely. Be objective and harsh on yourself. It will save both you and me, and my fellow editors lots of anguish.

[shinjinrui]

I can safely say that out of the 50,000+ submissions that I've looked at, I've probably seen less than 500 that were actually of a nearly professional caliber.

Und wieviele dieser 500 haben wohl einen Job bekommen?

Die MARTYR "Diskussion" geht noch im Spawn forum weiter...
http://www.spawn.com/board/ubb/Forum1/HTML/008390.html

[Sascha Thau]

Wahrscheinlich haben nicht alle einen Job als Comiczeichner bekommen. Aber es gibt ja auch andere nette Jobs für Geld: Trickfilm, Computerspiele...

BTW Am grusligsten fand ich das er davon träumt mal Zeichner anzustellen die seine Stories zeichnen wollen. Ich weiß nicht, aber ob da so spaßig ist mit jemand zusammen zu arbeiten, der sich gleich mit Jesus vergleicht, wenn du ihn mal kritisierst?

bye Sascha

[Fighting Sausage]