Finding A Creative Team
Finding a creative team for a comic book project can feel daunting. If you’re new to the industry, it can be confusing - who do you start with? Who can you ask? What rates are considered “normal”? What’s the process?
Allow me to be your guide. If you have questions, please reach out for additional clarity.
Step One. Your Details
This might seem rather obvious, but you need to know the details of your own project, even if you’re looking for a writer. I would recommend writing something down, even a single page of a word document. I have a PDF of a template to get you started.
Here’s a precise list of information you will want to include. See template for examples:
Your contact details: Name, email, phone number
Working title for your project
About. A section for you to write down a general idea about your project. Write it like you’re telling a friend or co-worker about this great story idea you have. This does not have to be super in-depth right now.
Comic Details. Page, issue, or series length. Type or genre of comic. Intended audience.
Creative Team. List who you have on-board. List who you are looking for. What do you need from them?
Budgets & Planning. Do you have a working budget? Do you have a plan for publishing?
Step Two. The Great Search
Once you have your details worked out, which I recommend keeping on google drive or some other cloud storage system so you always have access to it, you can begin your search for a team.
Ask yourself: where am I at with this project? If the answer is: I need a writer to help me with a story, then start with a writer FIRST. If the answer is: I have a script, but I need art, then start looking for a penciler/inker FIRST.
Most of these people can be found on Linked In, Instagram, TikTok, or most other social media platforms. Other places to look are at comic book conventions, art schools, portfolio websites, and recommendations from people. Don’t start with trying to fill every spot on your list of needed team members. Start with whoever you need first, usually a writer or an artist. Find the other team members as you need them. If you want a separate artist on the cover, then make sure you have your pages done first (at least to the “finished pencils” stage).
When you look for people to be part of your creative team, make sure their style is what you want. If you're looking to make a comedy/action comic, you might not want to hire the romance writer in your home town or an available crime/thriller author that has availability unless they can prove they can handle comedy/action. The same thing goes for pencilers/inkers, colorists, and letterers.
Here's how things generally tend to work with a creative team. As you can see in the workflow chart, you start with writing. You need at least 1 issue before you can get a script over to your page artist for pencils and inks. Once the pencils and inks are done, you can pass those pages over to the colorist AND you can get started with the mock cover.
When you approach a writer or artist (the first people you need on a project), you will want to follow this checklist:
□ View portfolio or writing samples. Be picky. You want a great team on your project.
□ Ask about their availability and rates. Are they too busy? Can you afford their rates?
□ Ask for a quote and have them include total cost, payment breakdowns, proposed schedule (length of time to complete the work).
□ Use your project details page - you can even send it when you contact them. Give them an idea of your project.
Step Three. Securing Your Team.
When you’re ready to secure your starting team, either a writer and artist or an artist if you have issues written, you’ll need to be ready for contracts and payments.
It’s not uncommon for people to have payments broken down in a way that reflects their scope of work. A writer might have a retainer and the rest of their work broken down into scheduled billings based on progress. An artist (pencils/inks, colorers, letterers) will generally have their work broken down into scheduled billings based on progress. This should be clearly defined by whoever you contact.
Images: Examples of rough pencils in blue, finished pencils, and finished inks from different comics.
What sort of costs can you expect?
Costs are going to be based on experience and/or notoriety. This is why you ask for rates, availability, and a quote. Note that these rates are subject to change with the ever-changing economy.
Beginner Writers - $50-80/page [For a 22 page issue, $1100-1760]
Experienced Writers - $100-200/page [For a 22 page issue, $2200-4400]
Expert Writers - $250-500/page [For a 22 page issue, $5500-11000] - This is also pending on notoriety.
Beginner Pencils/Inks - $75-150/page [For a 22 page issue, $1650-3300] - Less for only pencils, then you will need to search for an inker as well.
Mid-Level Pencils/Inks - $175-250/page [For a 22 page issue, $3850-5500]
Professional Pencils/Inks - $275-600/page [For a 22 page issue, $6050-13200]
Colors, Flatting - $10-30/page [For a 22 page issue, $220-660]
Colors, Mid-Range Dynamic - $50-150/page [For a 22 page issue, $1100-3300]
Colors, High-End Dynamic - $200-300/page [For a 22 page issue, $4400-6600]
Lettering, Beginner - $5-15/page [For a 22 page issue, $110-330]
Lettering, Standard - $20-50/page [For a 22 page issue, $440-1100]
Don't be afraid of these costs. You might hire an experienced writer for 3 issues, but only hire the artists for the pitch (let's say 7 pages with mid-level pencils/inks, flatting colors, and standard lettering). For that scope of work, it would come out to:
Component | Low estimate | High estimate |
Experienced writer, 3 × 22 pages | $6,600 | $13,200 |
Mid-Level Pencils/inks, 7 pages | $1,225 | $1,750 |
Colors, Flatting, 7 pages | $70 | $210 |
Lettering, Standard, 7 pages | $140 | $350 |
Total | $8,035 | $15,510 |
Be aware that this isn't set in stone. You might find an artist who is willing to do pencils/inks/color at a great rate. Then, all you have to do is find someone to do lettering.
Contracts
Everyone you work with should have a written contract in place before work begins. Some freelancers provide their own contracts, while others may expect you to supply one. Either way, make sure the agreement clearly outlines the scope of work, deadlines, payment schedule, revisions, and ownership or licensing of the finished work. It should include the scope of their work, deadlines, and payment details. Read it over and make some notes on anything you want clarification on or think needs revising. Discuss it with them.
Unless both parties sign the contract, things are negotiable; so don't sign right away. Even if you are super excited about it, give it a little time if you have any doubts. It CAN wait until tomorrow or 48 hours or 72 hours. However, once both parties sign the contract, work can begin!
Step Four. Be Available.
For the work you want done, as the client and creator, allow yourself to be available. I suggest having some sort of chat option available, like through Google Chat or Signal, with everyone that you’re immediately working with.
If you hire a writer, the writer will need to pick your brain. This is when you send your more detailed information to them - character information, story details, any story arcs you want to have incorporated, etc. As the writer gets started, they should be coming to you about big concepts and little details.
If you have a script and hire an artist, the artist is going to pick your brain differently than a writer will. They will still want to know about big concepts and little details. If you have some sort of visual aids for your characters or for the mood of the comic or the feel of the city, consider putting these together somehow. I’m going to suggest a Pinterest board or Google Drive (or other cloud platform) Folder, organized in some manner and shared with the artist.
General etiquette suggests that you make yourself available, but allow these people to get the work done. A good writer or artist is going to send you stuff as they go along, including questions. The worst thing you can do is attempt to micro-manage or ask for daily progress notes/photos - it's too much. Instead, feel free to ask questions, provide answers to their questions, ask for revisions or alterations, and trust the process.
The BEST time to ask for revisions or alterations is during the rough draft or rough pencils stages. When you see a finished rough draft or rough penciled page, ask yourself: am I happy with this? Maybe you would prefer a different angle on characters in a certain panel. Maybe you’re not super thrilled with the script from pages 7-10, but you like where it's going. Let your artist or writer know. They want your notes. This end product is going to be all yours once the contracted work is complete.
Major DON’TS For A Client:
Don’t micro-manage or ask for daily progress notes/photos.
Don’t expect big changes to happen during final inks or the final draft of the script.
Don’t cut off communication. These people WANT to talk to you at least once or twice a week at the minimum.
Don’t hold back payment if you received the scheduled deliverables. If you were waiting for rough pencils and you received them happily, pay your artist for that portion of work! Holding back payment will make people stop working for you.
Don’t stop participating. This is your project, so you need to be part of it. If you’re concerned about this, ask for a weekly progress check in with your team. Make it part of your contract.
Step Five. Is It Pitch Perfect?
As your creative team is working on scripts and art, you need to be getting your pitch ready for publishers. This means you need to know what the publishers want to see in a pitch. Publishers who accept solicitations will have this outlined on their website.
You’ll find that the typically (check websites for additional details because these are not uniform) want to see:
A pitch letter
A mock cover
5-7 pages of consecutive art
A brief synopsis of each issue for your story
It’s great if you can make sure all of this stuff is ready to go. I would strongly recommend drafting up an email message that you can send along with your work. Basically a quick email that tells them what you’re pitching, maybe has a logline, and what is enclosed in the email. Don’t be afraid to tell the publisher how things end or how the first major story arc ends.
Pre-Pitch Documentation is one of the services I offer [see Commissions] as a standalone or as part of a Story Development Package.
When you check out publishers, check out what books they’re selling to make sure you’re a good fit. If they specialize in horror comics or mystery/crime comics, they might not want something outside of their preferred genres. Also, double-check their submission guidelines. Make sure you tailor your pitch to them.
Something else to consider when looking at publishers is how they handle money. Not all publishers pay creative teams upfront. Some creator-owned publishers expect you to cover the costs of producing your comic and will instead distribute revenue according to their publishing agreement. Make sure you understand the financial side of any publishing deal before signing anything.
One thing to keep in mind is that you're not just pitching your story. You're also pitching your creative team. Publishers want to know that the people who created your sample pages are capable of producing the finished comic book or graphic novel. Make sure everyone on your team understands what you're planning to do, what their continued involvement might look like, and what will happen if a publisher accepts your project.
The Long Wait
When you are ready to start pitching, it’s perfectly acceptable to pitch to different publishers. Also, be prepared to wait for responses. Most of the time, you may not hear back unless your work is accepted. It sucks.
Here are a few tips for pitching:
Send individual emails - one per publisher or through the publisher’s website form per submission guidelines.
Always tailor each submission to each publisher.
Some publishers require a printed copy for submissions. Print out what you would send in an email, put it in a large manilla envelope, and drop it in the mail.
Always follow the publisher’s submission guidelines.
Keep track of who you send submissions to and when. The general rule of thumb is after 4 weeks of no communication, assume it's a ‘no’.
If you've made it to this point, congratulations! You've taken an idea, assembled a creative team, and turned that idea into something you can put in front of publishers. That's no small accomplishment.
Now comes the hard part: waiting.
You might get a yes. You might get a no. You might hear absolutely nothing. Don't let that discourage you. Keep creating, keep making connections, and keep working on your next great idea.
Good luck, and go make some comics!
If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment or send an email.
If you're interested in my services, please see COMMISSION.
Comments