Adventures in the Impossible
Wondering what happened to Wanted Hero? Wondering why the novels haven’t come to pass?
It’s nothing more than life.
The baby was born, I got a new job and opportunities opened up to use every skill and talent I had to improve the lives of others around the world. Truly. It has been a whirlwind of a ride and it has taken all of my strength to hang on.
Working for Crocodiles International and Roger Anthony is wonderful and the relationships formed have opened doors to publication resources unavailable before. That means Wanted Hero is MORE of a probability now than ever. It does mean Kathi and I need to get back to completing the editing of the first book, but that was only put off due to the new baby and the wedding. Those are past and complete now. We are settling in with the papers before us, so know that Wendell, Dax and Chuck are soon going to be on your doorstep once more.
What is the current project at work? The CROCademy. What one of our programmers says will be the very first TRUE social network on the planet. He explained the comparisons, but I think that when they rushed me to the hospital with blood flowing form my ears. I don’t understand the technical definitions, but it sounded cool.
So life moves on, we are getting back on track and the big hopes and dreams of this author are soon to come to fruition.
Read MoreGoogle Yourself
I met with a potential client last night and they asked if I knew much about the internet. Well, I have been around for a little while, mainly since I started Wanted Hero (learned from scratch). But to have some fun, I decided to Google myself (kinda like making muscles in the mirror first thing in the morning in your underwear….not that I do such things) with him sitting right there.
“Jaime Buckley” is not, I found, an uncommon name. I got 453,000 results. However, the fun part was we had to get to page 7 before anyone else but me came up in the results (only 2 on page 7, the rest were mine), and I had a firm sanding in every page up to #16.
I seem to be battling now because of a movie (Hero Wanted), but it was eventually going to happen. I’ll just keep plugging away and build up readership again. =) It was fun to look myself up on Google and to see such good results.
Read MoreDo you have an idea for your eComic?
This may sound like a simple matter, but trust me when I say it deserves a measure of time for your consideration.
Do you have an idea for your eComic?
Sure, Brit-Boy is a Superhero from the UK, who has the phenomenal power of mind-over-cheese. He can also flip nunchakus of Leafield at deadly speeds, and slide under doors by transforming into liquid Lincolnshire Poacher…but will that be enough?
‘Enough?’ you ask, flinging your body over your sketches of Cheese-boy, like a protective parent.
What I mean is: ‘Will your storyline hold the interest of your readers?’
Yes Melanie, this even applies to your project, because anyone who draws a cartoon to entertain or convey an idea needs to consider what needs to be conveyed. From a simple one frame comic to a full blown comic book, will it be of interest to your readers. Now that you’ve decided to plug into the electronic center of the Universe (the web), what is it about your story that will set it apart? What have you created which will grab a readers attention…and KEEP it?
This is not a subject to take lightly. This question can actually help make or break your success. Simply being able to draw dynamic heroes, who can shatter meteors in a single blow, will only get you so far. Ok, you can also draw the bodacious babes wearing liquid clothes, but that won’t solve your problem, either.
Wendell soon learns no everyone is interested in "peaceful" negotiations.
In WANTED:HERO, many of the characters were developed over a period of nine years, some even longer. Now, you certainly don’t need that much time…but how well do you know your characters? How detailed is their background? Could you do genealogy on the people in your story? Yes, your Hero can rip apart the world with his bare hands…but what would he say in a normal conversation? Or, how would he react when he finds out his widowed mother, now has cancer and can’t taker care of herself??
In your case Melanie, what is the story about? Do you want people to laugh, cry, or send the author hate mail? Is there a main character that can be used as the center of attention with supporting characters as the ‘landscape’?
That might sound silly to you—but knowing the past of your characters, help you shape a believable future.
Another point to consider–is creating a storyline people can relate to.
Wendell P. Dipmier, the lead character in WANTED:HERO is just an average kid, fresh out of high school, who finds himself mistaken as the last in a royal line of heroes. Many readers write to me and tell me they actually relate to the simple guy who used to live with his mom and was a complete outcast of ‘normal’ social structures (read Wendell’s journal to get an insight into the character). The guy who had an opinion, but was never in a set of circumstances which allowed him to share those views. The guy who loves the band Keane…just like millions of other youth in the US and UK. They watch Wendell’s development through each issue (or reading his personal blog) and see how becoming a ‘hero’ may actually be possible for people like us, after all.
…and yet, all I was doing was telling the tale of my buddy, Wendell.
Asking this question may be a simple matter….but it’s an essential one.
Do you have an idea for your eComic?
Read MoreWhat is an eComic?
Cover #8 of Wanted Hero eComic.
“eComic” stands for ‘electronic comic’ (or comic book), and usually refers to the internet. However, eComics can be placed into two general categories, even though technology and innovation continue to progress:
The first is a purely electronic experience, which means the comic is viewed and enjoyed exclusively on the computer screen. Most are made to fit the parameters of the screen itself (the various resolutions) and are viewed page by page. Depending upon the company and comic, ‘creative’ navigation features are included—one of the most complicated (and fun) is used by Marvel—which lets you read not only page by page, but by each single frame.
This class of eComic can be viewed online, some may be downloaded from online…and a few are even available on disc or DVD, which you can purchase. Regardless, this class of eComic is based upon “on screen viewing”.
The second category of eComics combines both worlds of the growing comic field: digital AND print, of which WANTED:HERO is an example.
The latest title logo used by Wanted Hero.
WANTED:HERO is a traditional comic book in every sense of the word…written, drawn by hand with pencil/pen and ink, and then it was simply scanned into a computer, formatted for print, and then a copy was placed online for purchase. What made WANTED:HERO unique, is that the reader could purchase the eComic, download it immediately to their computer and then print out a high quality copy to hold, sit back, read and share with others.
Can WANTED:HERO be viewed on your computer? Sure. In fact, there were also live ‘links’ in issues, which allowed the reader further opportunities to expand on the storyline experience, by visiting sites connected to the storyline (sites which unfortunately no longer exist—which is a risk you run when working with others). Because the printing cost is non-existent (being electronic), WANTED:HERO was able to keep the price of each individual comic to .99 cents or less—even AFTER PayPal took a major chunk! The price eventually settled at $.97 an issue, and with Paypal’s cut, the house got $.63 each, the whole process once uploaded became automated.
What set WANTED:HERO apart from other eComics in the same category at the time? Once a comic was purchased, there was no limit to the copies which could be made and the publisher actually encouraged the readers to share copies with others! In fact, i even told people to steal them from me!! As long as you did not change the content in any way, or attempt to sell the eComic, your copy could be freely shared with others.
Another aspect which made WANTED:HERO fun and unique was it’s involvement of real-life people in the storyline. People of deep and noble character, which brought aspects of the story to life, as well as making further research a joy to do. The ‘Universe’ of the storyline ended up expanding into other aspects of life and to other sites not normally associated with comics, giving the backgrounds real ‘flair’.
Read MoreMy Latest Book
