Downloadable MS Word comic book script template!

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If this kind of info is helpful to you, please feel free to check out my Patreon, which is packed with practical articles about the craft of comics writing!

From time to time, folks have asked me for a format template for writing a comic book script. I finally took a few minutes to prep one — so download the MS Word template here!

This is the format I use every day, a variation of the version the great Fred Van Lente introduced me to when we were co-writing Incredible Hercules back in the day. It’s a simple MS Word document with two custom formats — ACTION and DIALOGUE. The dialogue in the script is formatted using the “DIALOGUE” format, shockingly enough. Everything else is formatted using “ACTION.”

I wrote up some thoughts and examples of other formatting things I do in the body of the template.

Hope it’s helpful, and all the best! And for an another example of a great template, please feel free to check out Fred’s original version here!

And while you’re at it, please do consider picking up MAKE COMICS LIKE THE PROS, the how-to book written by yours truly and Fred Van Lente with illustrations by the great, Eisner-award winning cartoonist Colleen Coover.

#makecomics

2015.09.09 – ACTION COMICS #44 and BATMAN/SUPERMAN #24 in stores this Wednesday!

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ACTION COMICS #44, featuring the reveal of Superman’s shadowy opponent and the shocking climax of the Kentville storyline, hits stores tomorrow! Written by Greg Pak and Aaron Kuder with art by Aaron Kuder and Howard Porter. Check out the preview here!

BATMAN/SUPERMAN #24, also hitting stores Wednesday, features the showdown between Superman and Aquaman and a final page reveal that will reverberate throughout the Superman universe. Written by Greg Pak, art by Ardian Syaf. Check out the preview here.

The Totally Awesome Hulk… is Amadeus Cho!

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Entertainment Weekly spilled the news on Friday — the new Hulk is Amadeus Cho!

Check out the big news here.

“The Totally Awesome Hulk” #1, written by yours truly with art by Frank Cho and colors by Sonia Oback, hits stores in December. Amadeus Cho was created by me and artist Takeshi Miyazawa way back in 2005. Totally thrilled about this totally awesome book and hugely grateful to everyone at Marvel to pulling us on board!

Here’s a quote from me from the EW article:

When [editor] Mark Pannica gave me a call, he said three words: “Amadeus Cho Hulk” and my head popped off. I said “I’m in! Let’s do it!” And Axel and Mark and I sat down and talked it all through, and it was immediately clear that we were all on the exact same page about this. I love Banner, I wrote Hulk stories for five and half years, and I loved writing Banner. Those stories mean a huge amount to me. At the same time, there’s a long tradition in Hulk stories of different people taking on that mantle, and with Amadeus in particular, it just set up a really great dynamic. Like Axel said, he’s going to be a very different kind of Hulk. He’s 19 years old, he’s on top of the world, he thinks he’s right about everything…and he might be. Or he might not be. But this is a kid who’s got a ridiculous amount of confidence. A lot of it has been justly earned, but he may be in over his head, and he’s going to come in here and he’s determined to be the best Hulk there’s ever been. He loves being the Hulk. And that may cause massive trouble for everyone else in the Marvel Universe. It’s just a great recipe.

Scroll on for some more glorious art from Frank and Sonia.

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2015.09.15 – Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa sign at the Beguiling in Toronto!

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Thrilled to reveal that artist Takeshi Miyazawa and I are signing at the Beguiling comic book shop in Toronto on September 15 from 5 to 7 pm! Full details here.

Tak and I have collaborated on a million projects, from co-creating Amadeus Cho (now the new Hulk!) way back in 2005 to working together on “Code Monkey Save World,” “The Princess Who Saved Herself,” and the soon-to-be-published “ABC Disgusting.”

The Beguiling will have copies of both “Code Monkey Save World” and “The Princess Who Saved Herself” for sale.

You can RSVP at Facebook here.

See you then!

Tuesday, September 15th, 5pm-7pm
The Beguiling, 601 Markham Street, Toronto (@ Bathurst TTC)
Free to attend

Big new interview about KINGSWAY WEST at ComicsAlliance! And check out this gorgeous new cover!

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Check out this gorgeous new cover by artist Mirko Colak and colorist Wil Quintana for KINGSWAY WEST #2!

And check out this new ComicsAlliance interview wherein I talk all about the book, the first issue of which arrives on November 11 and can be preordered at KingswayWest.com!

Here’s an excerpt from the interview:

CA: Let’s get into some plot specifics. Obviously, our main character is Kingsway Law, a gunslinger who just did a 13-year stint in prison.

GP: Yep. A wild man who came of age on a lawless frontier… but who’s determined as hell to stay out of trouble now and find his wife.

CA: How wild are we talking here?

GP: Dangerous, unpredictable, legend-in-his-own-time wild?

CA: And there’s also a “mysterious Chinese swordswoman” that we’ve heard about in earlier interviews.

GP: Yep. She’s on the cover. Her name is Ah Toy. She’s got a mission for Kingsway that might put everything he’s dreamed about for 13 years into jeopardy.

CA: So there’s magic, swords, guns, and what appears to be a Jackalope with a saddle. What else can we look forward to in terms of the story?

GP: Huge love story. Big action. Complex protagonists and antagonists, including a woman Buffalo Soldier turned scout named Strode. And an epic reimagining of America’s past and future. And of course gorgeous, gorgeous art from Mirko Colak and colorist Wil Quintana.

Read More: Interview: Greg Pak On Building The World Of ‘Kingsway West’

Would you buy a Spanish edition of THE PRINCESS WHO SAVED HERSELF?

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As a stretch goal for the Kickstarter for THE PRINCESS WHO SAVED HERSELF children’s book, we created a digital Spanish language edition with a translation by the great Carlos Mayor! And now we have a big question — if we made this Spanish edition available in print through a Kickstarter or another means, would you buy a copy?

Please take a minute and let us know via this survey if you’d be on board!

And read on to enjoy an eight page preview!

(And if you want to buy the current English language edition, click here!)

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Jack Kirby’s birthday! #WakeUpAndDraw! Kirby4heroes.com!

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Today’s the birthday of legendary comic book creator Jack Kirby, who would have been 98, which makes it a great day to donate to the Hero Initiative, an amazing non-profit that aids comic book creators who are down on their luck. Check out Kirby4heroes.com for more — they also have a list there of great comic shops which are donating a percentage of their sales today to the Hero Initiative or otherwise helping out.

Aaand check out the #WakeUpAndDraw hashtag on Twitter, where tons of artists are doing Kirby homages today (like my Kamandi musical sketch!).