Hi Guys!I was working on a chapter of my comic when I realized something potientally career ruining: my series seems to be very strongly inspired by three other works I'm a pretty big fan of: the 1983 TV show "Manimal," the late 90's series "Lois and Clark," and the "Ace Attorney" video games. How can I make my comic unique from those three! PLEASE HELP!
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The main reason I feel my series is a little too much like "Lois and Clark" is that the romance is the main focus of the story.
Mike Jacobs said:
Dear Miss Adams:
To begin with, welcome back. I'm happy beyond words that you've decided to continue. "There may be pain in the night, but JOY comes in the morning."
To deal with your question, It's okay to be inspired by what's gone before, but the challenge is to put your own spin on things, so you may want to look at characterization, especially in the realm of motivation. For example, Clark Kent was raised by a farmer and his wife, both caring and nurturing people, to use his powers for the greater good, with a fair amount of the Bible used in his upbringing if I know my farmers. What if that weren't the case? What if his kind and nurturing parents were killed by a thief? How would that change him? He would still be a hero, but he might be a bit more ruthless. What if Lois Lane, the love of his life, were African-American? What would her motivations be to go into journalism? How would her relationship with Clark change? They would still get together, perhaps, but the path would be a bit different. I have used a book in the past, "The Complete Guide to Villains", part of the Dungeons and Dragons line, to help to that end. It might be out of print, but if you can find it, it might be able to help you in that area.
I'm looking forward to the final result.
God bless you
Mike Jacobs
Giving my work the "little extra" it needs
Hi Guys!
I was working on a chapter of my comic when I realized something potientally career ruining: my series seems to be very strongly inspired b…
To begin with, welcome back. I'm happy beyond words that you've decided to continue. "There may be pain in the night, but JOY comes in the morning."
To deal with your question, It's okay to be inspired by what's gone before, but the challenge is to put your own spin on things, so you may want to look at characterization, especially in the realm of motivation. For example, Clark Kent was raised by a farmer and his wife, both caring and nurturing people, to use his powers for the greater good, with a fair amount of the Bible used in his upbringing if I know my farmers. What if that weren't the case? What if his kind and nurturing parents were killed by a thief? How would that change him? He would still be a hero, but he might be a bit more ruthless. What if Lois Lane, the love of his life, were African-American? What would her motivations be to go into journalism? How would her relationship with Clark change? They would still get together, perhaps, but the path would be a bit different. I have used a book in the past, "The Complete Guide to Villains", part of the Dungeons and Dragons line, to help to that end. It might be out of print, but if you can find it, it might be able to help you in that area.
All stories, except the greatest story, are recombinations of other stories; so in an absolute sense you can't be completely unique. As you well know, Fan-derived stories and complete sites devoted to fan-fiction are very popular.
Drawing from three different works, two of them games, sounds pretty unique to me. But if you're still worried about uniqueness, tell me:
1) What is your main reason to want to be unique? Personal drive? Worried about copyright infringment? Worried about what friends or future fans might say?
2) In what areas do you want to be unique? Main Characters? Setting? Sub Genre? Plot tension? Plot resolution?
Replies
Mike Jacobs said:
Dear Miss Adams:
To begin with, welcome back. I'm happy beyond words that you've decided to continue. "There may be pain in the night, but JOY comes in the morning."
To deal with your question, It's okay to be inspired by what's gone before, but the challenge is to put your own spin on things, so you may want to look at characterization, especially in the realm of motivation. For example, Clark Kent was raised by a farmer and his wife, both caring and nurturing people, to use his powers for the greater good, with a fair amount of the Bible used in his upbringing if I know my farmers. What if that weren't the case? What if his kind and nurturing parents were killed by a thief? How would that change him? He would still be a hero, but he might be a bit more ruthless. What if Lois Lane, the love of his life, were African-American? What would her motivations be to go into journalism? How would her relationship with Clark change? They would still get together, perhaps, but the path would be a bit different. I have used a book in the past, "The Complete Guide to Villains", part of the Dungeons and Dragons line, to help to that end. It might be out of print, but if you can find it, it might be able to help you in that area.
I'm looking forward to the final result.
God bless you
Mike Jacobs
All stories, except the greatest story, are recombinations of other stories; so in an absolute sense you can't be completely unique. As you well know, Fan-derived stories and complete sites devoted to fan-fiction are very popular.
Drawing from three different works, two of them games, sounds pretty unique to me. But if you're still worried about uniqueness, tell me:
1) What is your main reason to want to be unique? Personal drive? Worried about copyright infringment? Worried about what friends or future fans might say?
2) In what areas do you want to be unique? Main Characters? Setting? Sub Genre? Plot tension? Plot resolution?