One of the questions we get most regularly from readers and those wishing to create their own visual narratives is how exactly you go from the written word to the final image. Below, you can see various stages of the writing and design process. All images used with the permission of Mara Wild.

Script:

The unique thing about a comic book script is that there is no standard way of doing it. Various models have become standard in the large companies (Marvel/DC), but any time you see a writer's work for this format you see their own idiosyncracies on full display. The script for Two-Week Wait reads much like a 'shooting script', which is usually created for the director after the regular screenplay is complete. It contains not only dialogue but also instructions on how many panels to use, what angle to show various images from, characters' facial expressions and other features that the artist might need to understand the intent behind the script. 

Comic Book Page (Sketch):

Mara was always encouraged to offer her own interpretation of the script, or to push back or replace images entirely where she could think of a more interesting way to depict the same information. This led to the creation of some of the book’s most visually dynamic pages. Mara’s first step in creating a page was to draw a sketch based upon the script, which would then be sent to the authors and their editor for approval.

Comic Book Page (Inks and colour):

With characters ‘blocked’ (a theatrical term meaning to stand in the right place), Mara created the inked version, focusing on character interaction and hinting at background elements. She also added colour when and where she saw fit. The booked uses a ‘spot colour’ technique, whereby not everything is coloured, and colour can be used to enhance or define certain visual elements within the scene, drawing the reader’s eye.

Note that speech bubbles have been drawn but not filled with words as yet, while sound effects - design elements in and of themselves - have been drawn in. Again, the results were sent to the Jacksons and their editor for approval before she could move on.

Comic Book Page (Lettering):

The final stage in the page-creation process was lettering. Initially, the team had discussed using a comic book font to save time, but after seeing trials of the font next to Mara’s handwritten words, it was decided that her handwriting brought just the right sense of ‘character’ to the letters.