Monday, September 14, 2009

The Minicomic Project, Part 2

I finally got my sketchbook back, and with that, I can start...Part 2!
So, a couple weekends ago I went for a midnight swim with some friends. After this, feeling particularly revitalized, I wrote down the first five ideas that came to my mind. However, of those five, only one is really improvised; the other four are stories that have themes I've had on my mind forever, just dressed in different kinds of clothes.
As a disciple of Jesus Christ (man, that sounds weird, but just saying 'Christian' sounds too general), the themes of Christian living really appeal to me. The things that spiritual people are concerned with, deal with, and think about are as unique as a separate culture, and just like any culture, I find it interesting (and many times, frustrating). As someone who found Jesus and my faith during high school, there were a whole lot of things I had to wrestle with: insecurities both with myself and the standard I held myself to, a balance between being a loving and accepting person, being spineless and without a purpose to my love, and being a merciless douche about all the things I found right or wrong. Think high school, but times three for those who felt like they had to be saints in the middle of Las Vegas.
With that in mind, I came up with the character of Doug Willard, the quintessential uptight Christian freshman. He's not the stereotypical kind of Christian, who's 100% sure that whenever he verbally beats down an Democrat he's doing what Jesus would do. Doug  wants to be sure, and wants that kind of conviction, but isn't sure its the right kind of conviction he's seeking. There will be two parts about young Mr. Willard, both dealing with his introduction to a young woman with strong convictions and love for humanity...but not for God. And before you write it off, the conclusion will NOT be your normal Christian-bash-fiction, where the faithful kid questions everything and finds that God is in everyone (sorry, just ain't the truth), but it won't end with her seeing the error of her ways, either (that doesn't happen all that often either). Possible title for this will be "Doug Willard, The Monk of Santa Valle" (I'm trying to come up with a convincing name for a fictional Southern California suburb).

Another story will be a whole lot more off-beat, and lighthearted. For this one I'll be watching every classic Western in the filmmaker's library, and I'll also be reading about every Arthurian and/or English "dragon" story I can find. Why? Because, my friend, using these classic myths and legends, I'll be crafting my OWN "Knight Slays Dragon" story...set in a mythical Old West. I know, it sounds like an English project for underachieving seniors, but hear me out. I learned a whole lot about the "Hero's Journey" in my myth classes and readings, and since I scored a copy of "The Hero With a Thousand Faces," I'll be applying those principles to our classic Lone Cowboy. Yes, there will be a real dragon. But it'll be like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid...but with magic guns and an awesome-looking mythical creature. Look for sketches on this one. Our possible name will be "Johnny Stonewall and the Silver Mine Dragon." I'm doing this one for fun. There isn't any real depth of purpose behind this one, besides a quality story with some awesomeness.

This one has a working title of "Lamaze Class," only because I haven't discovered the title yet. This one finds some inspiration in the many ideas that my friends and I come up with in the middle of a town with very little to do once the sun goes down. Here, two friends (a guy and a girl) find themselves with a lot of quirky energy, but nothing to do. So they find a lamaze class (you know, for expectant parents) and sign up, just because they can. But what started out as an afternoon joke becomes a whole lot more as...okay, honestly, this one isn't all that developed in my mind yet. Feel free to help me out. The seed of the story is there, but I wanted to explore some of the awkwardness and sweetness that comes from your closest friend being of the opposite gender.

The last one is undecided as of yet. I wanted to do something that addressed the dynamic between father and son, and how so many sons become their fathers, one way or another. But that one might be a little too biographical for me to write anything worth reading. There's being close to a story to provide depth and accuracy, then there's being SO close that you can't bear to write the truth, because it may not be something you want. Then my friend Kristen suggested a story of her taking over Dublin whilst traveling in Europe. It sounded funny, but I have no idea where that would go.

Anyhoo, that's what's floating around in my mind! Comment, share ideas, gimme links of people who did it better! Come on now, people!

'Til next time,

James

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