Graphic Novel

So you want to make a comic or graphic novel?

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So you want to make your own comic or Graphic Novel or comic book, but you really suck at drawing. No worries. Here is some basics information to get started.

First off a computer is a must. Below are some graphics software, resources and photo manipulation software. Some are free, some you pay for. You can use software like Daz3d or Poser to make your characters if you can't draw, or some of the other software if you can. Write your story and layout your novel or comic. I personally use Daz3D myself, and it is freaking awesome.

Once you have created your graphic novel, then you must decide on how you want to publish and distribute it. For beginners you are most likely going to self-publish and self-distribute which is OK because there is more money potential for you, but more work. It is better anyway because it forces you to network and understand the business.

There are basically four ways to self-publish. The first is through electronic publishing or e-books. At this point some e-book readers don't take pictures, so research your market.

The second way to self-publish is on the Internet. Allow fans to read your comics directly from your website. This is slowly starting to become popular, however it is harder to make money this way, unless people pay to subscribe or maybe pay to download your comics.

The third is Print-on-Demand printing. Basically you sign up with a POD company, upload your graphic novel, then they print a copy of the book as somebody orders it. Print-on-Demand companies usually have a distribution outlet, like Amazon and Barnes &Noble. When it is purchased, it is instantly printed and then shipped to the customer, and you get a percentage of the sale.

The fourth way is probably the most risky, but the most profitable. You hire a publisher to print a number of books for you, then you go out and sell them. This way you get most of the money, but may lose your shirt if you can't sell them.

Most of what I have presented will probably have some cost over time. Take Daz3D software. You can easily end up paying thousands of dollars for the software, but once you have it you have it, so the next novel will cost very little. Click the company names in red to go to their sites. Check them out and understand what they do, and if you have any questions YouTube has tons of tutorials.

Graphics software