Episode 3 - On Early Drafts

We had THREE topics that were somewhat braided together:

1. A thought Jess had: Become more interested in DOING what you're doing than KNOWING what you're doing.

2. A quote I wrote down: "I often find myself writing long meandering first drafts, that drift around a bit before settling down into a state of baffling indecision." - George Saunders

The Terrible Anvil: Episode 2 - Lean into the worst. In the Comics FLOW + PUBLISH group we asked around: how do you lean in when the going gets weird? What parts are EXTRA UNFUN, and how do you navigate it?

We spoke on all these topics, as well as the role of ritual and community in answering these three questions. We cooked up ideas on how to make a home there in the ruins, being okay with badly-drawn hands, what to embrace when we're working.

Our next Pro-Call is with Tessa Hulls! Come join us in our most affordable, online ongoing-community SAW FLOW + PUBLISH MEMBERSHIP GROUP (comes with a two-week free trial) to join in on MONTHLY PRO-CALLS!

We bring in comic professionals from all walks of life to guest speak (virtually) at SAW. These guest speakers give SAW students/members some insight from their personal experiences throughout their comics career and welcome questions at the end of each session. Come join us!

Conversation is a part of life. Let's bring readers into the life of our comics. It comes up a lot where people think maybe they have too much dialogue, too many “talking heads". It can happen, but it doesn’t always happen.

The famous way out of this is Wally Wood’s “22 panels that always work when some dumb writer has a bunch of lame characters sitting around and talking for page after page…”

Sowing, reaping, and resting in our art. A post by Jess Ruliffson.

One thing I seem to be thinking about a lot lately is how to make an "art budget" for a long form comic. Or even a short comic! In the SAW weekly meetings, sometimes we do short exercises.

Our next Pro-Call is with Jamila Rowser! Come join us in our most affordable, online ongoing-community SAW FLOW + PUBLISH MEMBERSHIP GROUP (comes with a two-week free trial) to join in on MONTHLY PRO-CALLS!

We bring in comic professionals from all walks of life to guest speak (virtually) at SAW. These guest speakers give SAW students/members some insight from their personal experiences throughout their comics career and welcome questions at the end of each session. Come join us!

I’ve been thinking about the ideas of Getting Seen and also Getting Good, and why we tend to worry about doing it in the “right” order. That is, we are so certain we have to be GOOD, BEFORE we are SEEN.

For anyone working on what feels like (or is) a "big idea" and not knowing how to start. OFTEN, a creator will make a small piece, not realizing it is about to become a bigger thing. This is great, and it's encouraged! Here are some examples:

I like to think that we can TRAIN the inner critc, first to become a NOTICER, and then, a SUGGESTER.

The Critic likes to ask, WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

But the critic has no idea who you are. The critic only knows who you're not. 

We're so excited to have cartoonist, Shelly Bond, for our next PRO-CALL! Join us in our most affordable, online ongoing-community SAW FLOW + PUBLISH MEMBERSHIP GROUP (comes with a two-week free trial) to join in on MONTHLY PRO-CALLS!

This fall we're bringing you some new and returning online classes from now through until December including Bootleggers Guide to Story Jess Ruliffson, Build Your Own Labyrinth with Matt Madden, Story Structure Basics and How to Use Them with Beth Trembley, and more!

If you missed our most recent *WE BELIEVE IN COMICS* Friday Night Workshop, catch the replay below! We had a great time with creator Nick Francis Potter who had us making comics without the bounds of reality.

Come check it out, and thanks for coming to the SAW Friday Night Workshops!

Don't miss our next *WE BELIEVE IN COMICS* SAW's Friday Night Workshop: Against the A.I. with Tom Hart @hutchowen this Friday August 25, 2023 @ 7PM EST. https://bit.ly/saw-tomhart

Come join us in our most affordable, online ongoing-community SAW FLOW + PUBLISH MEMBERSHIP GROUP (comes with a two-week free trial) to join in on MONTHLY PRO-CALLS! Our next Pro-Call is with Joan Reilly!

Come join us in our most affordable, online ongoing-community SAW FLOW + PUBLISH MEMBERSHIP GROUP (comes with a two-week free trial) to join in on MONTHLY PRO-CALLS!

We bring in comic professionals from all walks of life to guest speak (virtually) at SAW. These guest speakers give SAW students/members some insight from their personal experiences throughout their comics career and welcome questions at the end of each session. Come join us!

Come join us in our most affordable, online ongoing-community SAW FLOW + PUBLISH MEMBERSHIP GROUP (comes with a two-week free trial) to join in on MONTHLY PRO-CALLS! 

We bring in comic professionals from all walks of life to guest speak (virtually) at SAW. These guest speakers give SAW students/members some insight from their personal experiences throughout their comics career and welcome questions at the end of each session. Come join us!

If you missed our most recent *WE BELIEVE IN COMICS* Friday Night Workshop, catch the replay below! We had a great time with Elizabeth Haidle who had us making book reviews in comic form. We mixed up characters and made animals tell the story of our favorite childhood books and even made up some books! It was a lot of fun. Come take a look!

Catch the replay of our most recent Friday Night Comics Workshop with Will Betke-Brunswick! We had a fantastic time with Will, who had us drawing birds, and having us reaching our goals with our little bird characters. It was so much fun, what a delightful time. Come join us for the replay or the next workshop! 

An article by SAW Instructor, Jess Ruliffson, going over a recent PRO-CALL we had with REIMENA YEE on how to make a webcomic; tools to make webcomics; webcomics vs. print; and more!