A superhero is someone who, at some point or in some way, inspires hope or is the enemy of cynicism.
Mark WaidRead
Comics are expensive. Don’t make me resent the money I spend buying yours. Every single moment in your script must either move the story along or demonstrate something important about the characters — preferably both — and every panel that does neither is a sloppy waste of space.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Comics should utilize every moment to enhance the story or character development, as wasted space diminishes the value of the work.
Mark Waid emphasizes the importance of efficiency in comic storytelling. Each moment in a comic, whether through dialogue or visuals, should contribute to advancing the narrative or deepening character insights. Wastefulness in storytelling not only affects the overall impact but also leads to reader dissatisfaction, especially considering the financial investment in comics.
Themes
ComicsStorytellingCharactersWritingEfficiency
In practice
Example use cases
During a comic writing workshop, this quote can be used to stress the importance of concise and meaningful storytelling.
More from Mark Waid
All quotes →I got taught a lot of great lessons by superhero comics as a kid about virtue and self-sacrifice and responsibility. And those were an important part of imprinting my DNA with ethical and moral values.
Mark WaidRead
By coincidence and not design, 'Everstar' is written and drawn by an all-female creative team, and it makes me smile to think that there may be young female readers out there, future writers and artists, who get to see that comics doesn't have to be a 'boys' club.'
Mark WaidRead
Super-heroes were created to represent the best in all of us. We should aspire to match their nobility, not their ability to shoot big chrome guns.
Mark WaidRead
Know what your characters want, know what they need most, know what they fear most, and don't be fearful of facing it, no matter how unpleasant it may be.
Mark WaidRead
I think there's a moral imperative when you're writing fictional heroes to give characters who somehow give us something to aspire to as opposed to dragging them down to our level.
Mark WaidRead
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