COMICS

Ah, comics! The perfect blend of art and writing! Whether you're an old pro or a comic novice, come have a go at PXFIRE's comics section! It's more fun than you might think!

Rules
  1. Entries must be your own work and made during the event. You can't use something you've made previously.
  2. Entries may be made using sprites, images, brushes, fonts, patterns, etc. not made by you, but please post credit when submitting your entry if credit is required by the person who made the stuff you're using.
  3. Comics using official sprites or artwork edited by you are allowed, but will not get marks for the art section of the judging criteria. Even if you can't draw, we still encourage you to have a go if you'd like to! This is just as much about storytelling as about art! Comics made using sprites you have made yourself or heavily edited may still receive some art points at the judge's discretion.
  4. Entries may be drawn by hand and scanned/photographed or be drawn/put together digitally on the computer.
  5. Everyone who submits an entry will receive at least 1 point, provided the rules above are followed. PXFIRE points will be distributed based on the judging criteria below.




Judging Criteria
WEEK ONE:
Character artwork (/10):
Amount of effort and skill put into the artwork itself. Is there nice linework, colouring and shading? Are the features in proportion? etc.

Character description: (/10):
Are all aspects of the character fleshed out?

Originality and interestingness (/10):
Does this character seem interesting and unique? Are common cliches avoided?


WEEK TWO - FOUR:
Comic artwork (/10):
Amount of effort and skill put into the artwork itself. Is there nice linework, colouring and shading? Are there backgrounds? Are features in proportion? etc.

Technical skills (/10):
Are the panels and text boxes of a reasonable size? Is the flow of the comic easy to see and not confusing? Do the fonts and colors used work well together?

Fits the Theme (/10):
Does the comic fit all the requirements and the theme of this challenge? Was the character designed in week 1 included in the comic?

Story (/10):
How engaging was the story? Is there enough detail to get your character's personality across? Does the text have any spelling errors?

Overall feel (/10):
Was the comic interesting overall? Did I leave wanting more? Were the characters engaging?


WEEK 1 THEME
Spoiler:
It's time to design a character! Each comic needs a great main character! Your character can be anything at all, human, Pokemon, animal or inanimate object! The key is to make a unique and interesting character and try and avoid cliches. If you participate in week 2-4, you will get bonus points for using this character in your comic, so make it a good one!

To enter, you must submit a drawing or sprite of your character as well as fill out the form below.

Image of design: A picture of your character. See rules for what's allowed.
Name: Your character's name
Species: Bulbasaur, giraffe, toaster... etc. Can be a made up species.
Personality: How does your character interact with others? What are they like?
Background: What major events have shaped your character's life so far?
Special Abilities: Does your character have any unique abilities that one of their species might not normally have?
Likes: Things your character likes.
Dislikes: Things your character dislikes.
One interesting fact about them: What's something we should know about your character?
Notes: Anything else you want to include. Optional.



WEEK 2-4 THEME
It's time to make a short comic! If you entered last week, your comic should include the character you made as the main character. You don't have to do this but you will lose points for following the theme. Likewise if you didn't enter last week, you can use whatever characters you want but again will not be able to nab those bonus theme points!

Your comic must have at least 3 panels. There is no maximum number of panels but try and be efficient and get your story across with as few as possible. I'd like you to only submit ONE page (but it can be as big as you like, NO SIZE LIMIT! I just don't want people submitting multiple images). It can be clear that the comic is supposed to continue or that things have been happening before and after, but that one page should have a little self contained story or joke or whatever you're trying to get across. For example, maybe you could go for a funny page showing off an aspect of your character's personality or likes/dislikes, or maybe you'll explore a life-changing moment in your character's past. Perhaps you'll write a suspense-filled prologue to a longer comic! Whatever you choose, try and stick to one event and make sure you get enough "story" in there for the reader to get an idea of your character's personality. Short one-shot type comics or comic strip style comics are fine as well!

For theme points, I'd also like you to incorporate at least one of the following elements in your comic:
-one of your character's likes or dislikes
-your character's "interesting fact" submitted in week one
-your character's special ability

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I'm totally find with anything really. As long as your comic fits the grading criteria, you'll get points. Feel free to be creative. :)

You will have three weeks to submit your comic, so you have until the end of PXFIRE to work on it!

Good luck!