{"id":1903,"date":"2018-04-17T09:29:00","date_gmt":"2018-04-17T16:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comic-con.org\/toucan\/?p=1903"},"modified":"2023-12-21T09:31:09","modified_gmt":"2023-12-21T17:31:09","slug":"devourer-of-words-054-sometimes-the-going-gets-rough","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comic-con.org\/toucan\/devourer-of-words-054-sometimes-the-going-gets-rough\/","title":{"rendered":"Devourer of Words 054: Sometimes, the Going Gets Rough"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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MARC BERNARDIN’S DEVOURER OF WORDS<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Devourer of Words 054: Sometimes, the Going Gets Rough<\/h1>\n\n\n
Marc Bernardin<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Toucan<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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There will come a point in your career, if you are lucky, where you will have something to write that you don\u2019t really want to write. Sure, you might be the kind of comics scribe who does only creator-owned work. Or you might be fortunate enough to be writing the character you\u2019ve loved since you were nine years old. Even in the best of circumstances, there might be a scene you know needs to be in there which you hate or an issue you\u2019re not in love with that\u2019s still gotta be there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And if those circumstances aren\u2019t the best, you just might be confronted with a story you just can\u2019t get invested in. The reasons can be legion. The character doesn\u2019t speak to you, but you can\u2019t change it. The parameters of the story don\u2019t leave you with any room for creativity. The content of the story is reprehensible, but you\u2019re stuck with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Writing is, for many of us, a passion. But it\u2019s also a job. And not every day or week or month or year on the job is going to be awesome. So how do you make the words flow when they absolutely don\u2019t wanna?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Find something.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

It might be difficult, you locate some aspect of the gig you can find interesting. Maybe it\u2019s not gonna be a big thing. Maybe it\u2019s not gonna be an important thing. Maybe it\u2019s a single character. Maybe it\u2019s the tone. Or the world. Or whatever. But there have to be a couple of redeeming qualities in the job, even if they\u2019re covered in excrement. Find \u2018em and rally behind them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make it adversarial.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

This isn\u2019t a long-term solution, as this kind of motivation burns hot and fast, but the same way boxers can convince themselves to hate their opponent in order to win, you can do the same. Make the story something you need to conquer, defeat. Make it personal. Put the story in the ground and move forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remember what the money is for.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

In other words, pull a stalemate from the jaws of defeat. Maybe you can\u2019t win if you make it adversarial. Maybe you can\u2019t find something to rally behind. Maybe you just have to write it because you\u2019re being paid to write it. So write it as fast as you can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have the conversation.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Talk to the person who assigned you the job and explain your problems. Maybe she or he can help you find your way through. Maybe they\u2019ve got an idea that can help make the work easier. Talk to some trusted contemporaries\u2014if they\u2019re pros, they\u2019ve been in the same boat before, and if they\u2019re still floating, they can help you navigate the waters. Ask for help, maybe help will arrive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walk away.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

A.K.A. the Doomsday Protocol. Make no mistake, this is the choice of last resort. Because if you do quit, that\u2019s likely an editor you\u2019ll never work for again, and a publisher that won\u2019t line up to get you paid. If you\u2019ve done everything above and you still can\u2019t find your way\u2014or if the subject matter has shifted into a zone that goes against everything you believe in\u2014it might be time to nuke the site from orbit. But, again, only if you\u2019ve exhausted every other avenue. Word will spread and you\u2019ll have to explain your decision. Some will understand, others won\u2019t. But if this is the only way you can live with yourself, so be it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Writing can be a ton of fun. But you\u2019ll know that you\u2019re a writer if you can do it when it isn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Marc Bernardin\u2019s Devourer of Words appears the third Tuesday of every month here on <\/em>Toucan!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Written by<\/p>\n\n\n

Marc Bernardin<\/div>\n\n\n

Published<\/p>\n\n\n