It’s the afternoon of Thursday 31st August, the cloudy grey sky is lackluster compared to the beautiful full moon of the evening before and you’re reading Frantic Scribbles and Senseless Ramblings, the monthly newsletter of Asa Wheatley.
Making progress
It’s been a mixed month of progress. When I sat down to write this I wasn’t sure I had actually done anything but listing them out for the newsletter made me realise that I had actually been fairly productive.
I got a short anthology script finished and sent off to the book’s editors just before writing this. I left it pretty close to the deadline but I’m happy with how it came out. It's a fun little story so I’m excited to share it when it’s done.
I’ve also had the luxury of getting in a bunch of new Shield Maiden pages. Both letters and art. It’s looking fantastic and I’m incredibly proud of this book. It’s an important turning point in the story of the Shield Maiden so I’m constantly jumping between nervous and excited to get it into backers hands.
Last month I talked about a change in editors for Project Murder and this month there’s been an interesting new activity for me to dig my teeth into. Editor Claire Napier asked me to put together some Pinterest image boards for the main cast of characters. While I found it difficult at first, not finding the ‘right’ images or even really knowing what to search, after a bit of perseverance I began to really enjoy doing it. It’s had a massive impact on the characters themselves, making me rethink how they are presented and what that says about their character.
I’d have liked to get more done this month but I’m happy with everything I have done and have plans for September that I’m gearing up for.
In other exciting news I will be attending MCM comic con in London on October 27th - 29th. I haven’t exhibited at an MCM since 2019 so it’ll be interesting to go back and see how it has change. I know it’ll be an exhausting three days (it always is) but I’m looking forward to getting back to it.
Sagas of the Shield Maiden Book Three - Interior pages 3/4 complete. Back up material started.
Project Queen - Next steps undecided.
Project Ichor - Thumbnails have begun.
Project Murder - Character image boards done. Awaiting editorial notes.
Project Hollow - 1st Draft of script read and notes made.
Anthology Submissions - 1 script sent to editors. 1 script to finish drafting.
Q & A(sa)
On last month’s newsletter Eóin Byrne left a comment asking about my writing process and I thought the question deserved a fully fledged answer so I’m going to split it into two maybe three longer answers to really delve into what Eóin is asking.
“Hey Asa. Would love to hear more about how you write/how you came to writing/how you juggle the rest of your life around it. I've a few ideas and drafts for pieces but I've no idea where to begin.”
I figured I’d begin with what I would find most useful to learn about and coincidentally what Eóin asked about first. How I write.
The actual process of me writing is a fairly convoluted one but the important message to take from this is that it doesn’t really matter how you get the words on the page, just that they are there. I normally start with a very broad idea. This can be anything from a character, a genre I’d like to work in or a time/period. I’ll jot that note down in one of my notebooks or on my phone and normally leave it until I incidentally think about it again. Then by the time I’m thinking about it again I’ve probably thought of a few connecting ideas (no matter how tangential they are) and this is where I begin to flesh it out. Normally I’ll decide on what format I’m writing for first, short comic, mini-series, self contained graphic novel and use that as a basis for working out how much time I’ve got to tell the arc of my story. Now that’s not to say this has to be set in stone, I’ve had a multitude of unsuccessful anthology pitches I’ve begun turning into full length stories. Even Shield Maiden just started out as a single short self contained story before it became an anthology. But having an initial structure to work within helps me get to the actual writing.
Once I know how much page time I’ve got to tell the story I’ll work out the main beats of it. I tend to always do this by hand. Something about the permanency of putting pen to paper helps me not overthink and worry about getting everything right the first time. If I change my mind or make a mistake I just continue rather than spending hours trying to perfect one sentence and ending up staring at a blank page.
When I’ve got the basics of an overall plot/character arc planned out I continue by hand in a notebook and break down each page. It’s all still fairly brief and vague at this stage. I’m working out my timing here mostly while at the same time getting a bit of a better feel for the characters and their arcs.
Then I finally move it to the digital page. I’ll take these page breakdowns and transfer them into panel breakdowns. Working out how those pages will look broken down into panels. For the most part I do this without proper dialogue. I’ll write the idea of the conversation if there is one but unless I have a very specific section of dialogue already thought out I’ll miss that step out in favour of getting words on the page.
Now I’ve got a fairly good idea of what’s happening throughout the whole story, I go back in and add the full dialogue. I take the ideas I have in the brief notes I’ve left myself and expand on them. The key here, and to every step really, is that I’m willing to change things if they need to be changed. Just because I’ve written something down doesn’t mean it’s set in stone. If a character becomes more complete when I start putting the dialogue in but it means some of the panels/pages are going to have to change then I work out how to change them.
For me the most important thing is having something already on the page to work from. Even if the end result is different, the fact that I didn’t have to work it out from square one means I’ve likely gotten straight to it and not wasted time looking at a flashing cursor.
But just as I said at the beginning, the lesson to take away isn’t copying exactly my process (although if you think it’ll work for you, definitely give it a go), it’s to not be precious about what you’re writing. Get something on the page, anything to get you started because once you’re started it’s much easier to continue.
I hope that initial insight helps and we’ll continue this series of mini articles next month as I answer the rest of Eóin’s questions. In the meantime if anyone else has a question about writing, comics or anything you’d like me to answer then drop a comment below and I’ll be sure to look into it in a future newsletter.
All consuming, consuming all
Extraction 2 - I remember enjoying the first Extraction film but not enough to remember a lot of it or have watched it a second time. When I heard about a sequel I figured it’d probably be entertaining but when I caught a clip of the making of the film I got really excited. On the surface Extraction 2 is a fairly simple action film where Chris Hemsworth is good at guns. But the execution of Extraction 2 is what makes it great. The highlight being an over 20 minute continuous shot as Hemsworth breaks into and then back out of a prison. The scene is phenomenal and the film is worth watching for this bit alone. It only becomes more impressive when you see how they achieved it. You can see a couple of interviews with Hemsworth and director Sam Hargrave talking about it here and here.
Nightwing Vol 1 - I finally got around to picking up the first volume in this highly rated series and I was not disappointed. Tom Taylor gives Dick Grayson a brilliant new purpose with absolutely gorgeous art by Bruno Redondo. It’s fun, it’s heartfelt and I can’t wait to read more.
The Beautifully Nostalgic Game
My Dad was always a big football fan. He played a lot when he was young and watched even more as he got older. He loved a lot of sports but football always had the majority of his attention. While I spent some of my childhood years going to games with him and enjoyed nearly a full season of attendance at West Ham one year as I got older I fell away from it. My interest shifted to more in depth enjoyment of films and comics. I also thoroughly disliked, and still do dislike, the distaste that comes with football in the form of many of its fans.
After he passed away last year I watched the odd game here and there. As a way to remember him through something he loved. Seeing West Ham win the Europa League earlier this year was a highlight I know he would have revelled in. And then shortly afterwards the Women’s World Cup began. Something I honestly didn’t even know existed. I had a vague knowledge of the Women’s England team winning the Euros in 2022 but that was about it. So I sat down to watch the second England game of the tournament and I was immediately hooked. It may have helped that in their third game England won 6-1 with an astounding performance but it just reminded me of how much I had enjoyed watching those games with my Dad all those years ago.
As the tournament went on and I got more and more invested in the England team and their progress (so much so that I inadvertently got Sammy into it as well) I realised the women’s game lacked something the men’s game had in spades. The awful toxic fandom. At least as far as I could tell anyway. The openness, welcoming atmosphere and inclusivity of the women’s game does absolute wonders for it. The England team played like a family and every team was sure to console their opponents after a loss. It was refreshing to see.
So now the world cup is over and although the final was heartbreaking the experience for me was one that I will treasure. Now I’m back into the game, both versions of it this time, I've given myself a weekly connection to my Dad that although isn’t the only one, is one I know he would have enjoyed.
You like it, you link it
Always the Same Story Issue 1 - Sammy and I have a story in this anthology and it needs a bit of a push to help it reach its goal. It’s a great premise and I’m looking forward to writing up our story so make sure to back the campaign and get yourself a nice little collection of comics from a plethora of great creators. There’s only 7 days left so don’t miss out.
No painting updates this month as we’re already going pretty long and I haven’t done enough to warrant a write up but I did get to visit the amazing Warhammer World earlier this month so enjoy some of the fantastic painting done by the team there.