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NOCC: Storytelling with Michael Golden |
Company: Wizard World
Product: New Orleans Comic Con 2012 Coverage
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Of the panels I attended at last year's Con, the one that still resonates with me is Michael Golden's talk on storytelling. A commercial artist by trade, Golden has enjoyed a great career in the comics industry. Though best known for his work on Marvel's Micronauts, Golden was also the co-creator of Rogue ( X-Men) and Bucky O'Hare.
Golden's return visit to New Orleans Comic Con was just as influential. Since hearing Golden speak, I've already worked a lot of his panel into my own lectures, and is usually one of the first things I mention when anyone asks what I saw.
Before jumping into the meat of his talk, Golden offered two initial caveats. First, everything he said was solely his opinion based on his experiences. Though the advice has always come through for him and others he's mentored, it is just one approach to many. Additionally, given his commercial background, Golden's thoughts were primarily directed towards the production of commercially available art (like comic books, animation or film) and not towards art for social reasons or self-gratification. The difference between the two being, art for art's sake is personal; art for commercial practices is to communicate to a wider audience.
Golden framed the art of storytelling as a bit of a paradox. When telling a story, you want to keep things simple, but at the same time achieving simplicity is complicated. In achieving simplicity, Golden offered one rule: Who, What, When, Where, How, and Why. For Goldman, covering those six bases is what storytelling is all about. For every page or scene you write, it is important to make sure you keep those questions in mind. |
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Golden also offered up the related rule that, "People are stupid." However, he was quick to point out that, despite the connotation of the word "stupid," it is not meant in a negative or derogatory way. Instead, storytellers should always assume they are the only ones who know what their story is; everyone else is completely ignorant of the story you are telling and the characters you are working with. Not only does this go for your own creations, but also if you're working with well-known characters like Spider-Man, Superman or Batman. While it is incredibly easy to fall into the trap of thinking "Everyone knows Spider-Man..." you always have to work from the perspective that no one else knows who these characters are. For every piece of dialogue you write, or image you use, you have to offer information.
When asked about common mistakes he's seen in new storytellers, Golden said they usually don't cover all of the bases. As an example, Golden said many new writers and artists are taught to write stories using the "Marvel Method." In short, the method was devised in the 60's as a way for the editor and chief writer Stan Lee to write several titles. In order to keep up, he would simply give his artists a basic synopsis of the plot (usually a beginning, middle, and end) and let them plot and pace the story visually. After turning in the penciled pages, Lee would then write dialogue to round out the story. Though successful, the approach only offers a bare bones story structure and can easily work against writers if they aren't actively aware of how to tell a story. Again, Golden pointed to always keeping the 6 story questions in mind.
Additionally, storytellers need to know basic story structure. Everything needs to be a part of the story and relate in some way. Otherwise, it can cripple a story either by becoming too simple or overly complicated. Another trap Golden pointed out was the idea of creating never-ending, epic stories. Although writers, especially comic book writers, want to tell long form stories, they need to always make sure every story they tell is its own self-contained entity. Otherwise, you run the risk of losing your way through the story and ruining your structure. Although you want to keep an audience coming back, they won't if the individual stories aren't interesting unto themselves. In Golden's view, it is unfair to constantly expect people to come back for the next part of the story. If you want to keep an audience hooked, they have to stay interested and feel like they're not being strung along. In other words, questions are great, but an audience doesn't want to feel like their enjoyment hinges on getting answers. |
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Finally, Golden's talk switched to the idea of character creation, another bump in the road hit by many inexperienced storytellers. As background, Golden talked about the creation of Rogue in Avengers Annual #10.
While an artist working for Marvel, Golden was offered the opportunity to draw an Avengers book with comic legend Chris Claremont. Golden jumped at the chance to draw Iron Man, Captain America and Thor, though the big three were immediately knocked out in the first few pages, leaving him with a group of "unknown" characters and a new villain created just for the book named Rogue. In what could be considered a break down in the Marvel Method, Golden had one vision while Claremont had another. To Golden, Rogue was a pure villain - literally someone who could absorb you and wipe you clean - while Claremont saw her as a pawn in the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants' grander schemes.
When it came time to develop the character's look, no one at Marvel had any idea of who the character was, she was simply a character created as a plot device. The only information Claremont could offer as a guide was he envisioned her as Grace Jones. Golden had no idea of who Grace Jones was; only that she had a white stripe in her hair, leading to the character's trademark white streak of hair. The experience was enough to convince Golden that the Marvel Method's "plot first" style wasn't the way he wanted to work.
When creating characters, Golden suggests sticking to the old adage, "Write what you know." It's writing Galactus as your mom. Base characters off people you know and look at what is happening around you.
According to Golden, you're ultimately producing stories that can be told around campfires. If you're looking to make your way into the business of storytelling, you can't be an artist; you have to understand who you're dealing with and know how to write to that. |
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-Starscream, GameVortex Communications AKA Ricky Tucker |
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