Fabian Nicieza
Credit: Fabian Nicieza
On Saturday, May 16, aspiring comic book writers and editors will be able to sit on a Zoom webconference call with veteran writer/editor Fabian Nicieza for a “Comics Writing and Business Boot Camp.” Over an hour 20 attendees will get drill sargeant Nicieza’s insights on “the nuts and bolts for devoloping your craft as a writer or editor.”
Topics will include “Plot First vs. Full Script,” and “Brand and Intellectual Property Management.”
The live event – Nicieza’s second – is part of the Hero Initiative‘s series of Live Pro-Fan Experiences, with proceeds going to comic book creators in medical or financial need.
This one is slightly different, however. Instead of a conversation between four or five fans, this will be more like an interactive classroom experience.
Newsarama recently connected with Nicieza about this event, the tweak in format and for an update on what he has coming up.
Newsarama: Fabian, this is now your second live pro-fan event for Hero Initiative. Can you share some thoughts on why you’re supporting Hero Initiative‘s mission right now and can you share any stories about how you’ve seen the organization make an impact for yourself or your peers?
Fabian Nicieza: I’ve worked with Hero Initiative for a few years now doing an exclusive signing at East Coast Comicon where all the proceeds go to them and we’ve done well in that venue. Because the cons are being canceled, when they reached out for other ways to help, I was all for it. Whatever little things we can do add up.
I think Hero Initiative is a great cause that services needs in our industry that most companies and other charities don’t address.
Nrama: Why’d you decide to go the larger online class route this time around?
Nicieza: For the smaller chat session, I had prepared several documents to share on the screen should questions of craft arise during the hour. The conversation veered in different directions, but I had the files and documents all neatly prepared for display, so I suggested to Hero Initiative that we try a lower cost classroom structure that can squeeze more people into it.
Nrama: You’re probably experienced in fielding questions online or at cons by people wanting to break into the business. Given your knowledge can you talk about some of the questions you anticipate coming up and the issues you plan to cover?
Nicieza: For me, I would like this to be less about “how do we break into comics” – which honestly, you can Google right now and get 242,000 results – and I want it to be more about “how do we write.” What are the different formats, structures, how do we modify our thought process to fit the platform or the intended audience, etc.
If someone is spending $30 to ask me how to break into comics, they’re going to get the same answer from me that everyone else does, “Get a full time job on staff at Marvel Comics in 1985.”
I hope I just saved one person some money, even though, you know, it’s for a charitable cause!
Nrama: How would you describe the prospects for aspiring comic book creators in 2020? Is there work out there to be had for the person who’s never been published before?
Nicieza: I think there is no better time in history to have the opportunity to present your creative work to an audience in a low-cost manner that gives you an opportunity to be seen and heard. Now within that sentence, there are lots of variables and details, which we’ll discuss during our session!
Nrama: Finally, while we have you on the line, what do you have coming up in the foreseeable future?
Nicieza: Season 2 of Outrage on Webtoon will be coming out soon. I know I’ve been saying that for a while now, but it’s been scientifically proven that sequestration seriously impacts the productivity of your creative team who have small kids in the house!
Meantime, Season 1 of Outrage is still available for free on Webtoon, so the few remaining dopes on the planet who haven’t read it should give it a look.
The status of the Juggernaut mini-series from Marvel remains up in the air right now. I hope it comes out, since we had gotten a good chunk of it done and Ron Garney’s artwork deserves to be seen, but all the publishers understandably have a lot of juggling to do.
The kids animated series I developed for Genius Brands based on an original Stan Lee/Arnold Schwarzenegger concept, Superhero Kindergarten, was picked up for development by Amazon TV with Alibaba. I don’t expect to be too heavily involved in the actual episodes, but I generated the characters and story world for the project.
For me, my main focus and my big news was having sold my first novel last fall in a two-book deal. Suburban Dicks is a “sarcastic mystery” which will be published in 2021 from Putnam Books.
I finalized the manuscript to the editors notes over the last couple months and I am now getting started on the second book in the series, which would come out in 2022.
There may also be some TV-related announcements regarding the soon, but we’re not quite ready for any official announcements. Hopefully, the books and TV will be the majority of my creative life for the next ten years because it’s been an absolute pleasure to see the reaction the book has received and to be on this wonderful rollercoaster ride over the last six months.
But my most pressing work for today is pimping the Hero Initiative classroom session! Just a few spots left, so sign up now!
Nicieza’s classroom session has since sold out. But for more information on the Fan-Pro events, visit www.heroinitiative.org or www.heroinitiative.org/merchandise/.