This is why no one ever asks me to cook.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day. To see all my comics, click here.
This year, for the Slice of Life Story Challenge, I set a goal to write a comic per day.
So far so good.
Today, to mark the 15th day of the challenge (halfway there!) I’m looking back at what I’ve learned so far.
I’ve learned that generating ideas for comics is similar to generating ideas for written stories, but also different. When I’m thinking up ideas for stories to write in words, all I have to do is have a memory, and write it down. When I’m thinking up ideas for comics, I first get the memory, but then I have to ask myself, “Can I draw this?” I’m not much of an artist, so that narrows down the possibilities of what I can create.
Not being able to draw something doesn’t necessarily stop me, though! Instead, it’s more of a puzzle to solve. I tend to think, “Well I can’t draw it that way, but what if I….”
It has helped me a lot to think about problems as a starting point, and then use exaggeration to create humor. I take something small, and make it big. Or something boring, and find the surprising part of it.
It’s been helpful to me, as a writer, to actually SEE the topics that I go to most often. Family, the outdoors, and housework are big themes for me. I think they always have been, but as you can see below, it really stands out when it’s in graphic form. This simultaneously gives me more ideas to write related to these same topics, and also helps me to see the topics I could be writing about that I haven’t tapped into.
Lastly, I’ve learned that comics may look incredibly simple, but they take as much, if not more drafting, revision and work to create than my typical writing. They definitely take more time! I have even more appreciation now for the talent of real graphic artists, and the masterpieces that create.
I’m excited to continue the challenge and keep my learning curve just as steep as it’s been!
Here are all the comics I’ve created so far, in order of oldest at the top, to newest at the bottom. I can see a difference between my first ones, and my most recent. Can you?
This one is a metaphor for my life.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day. To see all my comics, click here.
It’s a constant struggle to resist the urge to do things for my kids. I really do want to teach them to be independent and do things for themselves. But when left to their own devices…. how would we ever get out of the house?
Click on the image to enlarge.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day. To see all my comics, click here.
It’s never ending!
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day. To see all my comics, click here.
Motivation to go to the gym has to come from somewhere, right?
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
I know I’m not alone on this. Am I?
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
Getting my kids from place to place is always a challenge — but none more so than getting ready for skiing!
@BethMooreSchool
This is officially the tenth comic I have ever created. I’ve been using the app Procreate and have learned so much! Here is a time lapse video that gives you a peek into the process of creating a comic.
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
I’m becoming an old lady! Broken wrist, nerve damage, carpal tunnel, cubital tunnel, trigger finger, poor circulation. Bedtime is an actual ridiculous joke now.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
There are so many things I never thought I would do as a parent. I never thought I would allow pretend fighting. There was once a time when I would go through every package of Legos and remove all the tiny weapons before my kids would even know they were in there.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
My kids had their last day of winter vacation today. We celebrated with a trip to the “Fun Zone,” an arcade/climbing gym/play space at our local ski area.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
Our dog benevolently rules over our house. He is the guard of the yard. The watcher of children. The vacuum-upper of crumbs and drips. He demands our attention at all hours of the day and night. He drives us crazy with his late night cries, and his never ending stubborn streak. But his dog parties when we come home and his constant snuggles are worth it.
My son, who is five years old, has taken to calling Indie, “King Indie, Ruler of Our House.” I tend to agree.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
Some days are really, really icy on the ski slopes. I have a weird affinity for icy skiing. If you’re not a skier, you need to know that most people hate skiing on ice, or just plain won’t ski on ice. I can only recall a handful of days in nearly forty years of skiing that I’ve actually let icy trails stop me from skiing. Once was last week—though I am skiing with a not-quite healed broken wrist—so I let myself wimp out slightly one time. I think my love for icy skiing has to do with it being a kind of hidden talent. It’s a not-very-useful hidden talent, but it’s my hidden talent.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. Visit www.twowritingteachers.org to join.
This is officially the fourth comic I’ve ever created. It’s part of my goal to create a comic a day for the March SOLSC. I’ve already learned so much. I’ve learned how to different pens for different kinds of lines and lettering, how to use layers, and fill color. The process of choosing and planning ideas for comics has been a learning experience as well. I’ve learned already that some ideas work in my mind, but are REALLY hard to draw (for me). Also, some ideas seem really cute and funny in my mind, but then fall a little flat once I see them sketched out. I kinda like this one though.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
My husband and I each learned to ski when we were three and four years old. Skiing has always been a huge part of our lives. Now we’re passing it on to our son and daughter.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
Every Thursday night, no matter, what my girlfriends and I go on a night time outdoor adventure. Night skinning and skiing followed by dinner is our favorite.
@BethMooreSchool
My Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I are hosting the 12th Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Hundreds of teachers participate in creating a story per day. My goal is to create a comic per day.
I’m learning to create comics! This is my first comic ever, right here.
In March, my Two Writing Teachers colleagues and I will host the 12th Annual Slice of Life Story Challenge. My goal is to create a comic per day.
@BethMooreSchool
Each Tuesday and throughout the month of March, my colleagues at Two Writing Teachers and I host the Slice of Life Story Challenge, where hundreds of teachers practice their own writing.
To learn more about the Slice of Life Story Chalellenge, click here.
Each Tuesday and throughout the month of March, my colleagues at Two Writing Teachers and I host the Slice of Life Story Challenge, where hundreds of teachers practice their own writing.
To learn more about the Slice of Life Story Chalellenge, click here.
