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Sophie writes...
Hi there Greg!
How are you?
I just wanted to ask a few questions that have captured my curiosity, and I have spent the last hour searching through the archives to make sure they haven't been answered already. Still, I'm so sorry if they have been asked before!
1. Did Bart really go to school in the future? He talks about 'not being a good history student' but for some reason, the state of the future he lived doesn't make it seem like he would be able to attend school.
2. Did Bart live with both of his parents in the future?
3. What was Bart's life like in the future? For some reason, and I'm not sure why, I figure human-kind would be enslaved, and Bart would be living in a crappy house somewhere in a polluted world. (Yeah, I'm pretty much thinking Dystopia). Of course, I don't think it would be a Utopia by any means, but am I over-elaborating and over-thinking how bad it could be?
4. When writing and creating characters, do you create elaborate back-stories, with even little bits of un-needed info (like fave. color, food, stuff like that)? I've heard that it is a very helpful way to get to know one's characters. If not, how do you 'create' such believable characters? Do you draw from experiences and people you've met in real life.
Many thanks!
Wishing you all of the best!
-Soph
Greg responds...
1. He's clearly had some SCHOOLING. He knows how to read and write for example. Beyond that, I'm not committing.
2. NO SPOILERS.
3. It was very dystopic, for sure.
4. Yes, though I don't have rules as to what I do and don't have to figure out in advance. I figure out what I feel I need to. For one character, that might include his or her favorite color. For another, what they had for breakfast on their last birthday. For a third, who their biological parents REALLY are. And etc.
Presto writes...
What does it take to get to a position of showrunner like you? How can an aspiring writer like me get started?
Greg responds...
Most folks have to work their way up through the ranks, starting as a freelance writer, etc.
You get started, frankly, by writing. Write a spec script to a series you like. Send it as a sample to agencies, because representation is very useful as a calling card. Remember to not send anything unless it's really good. You don't want to poison the water by sending something with your name on it that isn't your best, most mature work.
Shola Akinnuso writes...
Greg, do you have any plans to post ANY of your scripts online? Your writing is clear, and structurally, they're a fantastic resources for writers trying to break into animation. The way you use sfx as action is a illuminating!
Currently, the ONLY way to see one of your scripts is to go all the way to The Writer's Guild in Los Angeles, and even there, you're not allowed to copy the script. Even if you feel uncomfortable showing the whole script ( just an act or two is all we need), posting it as a media resource on the site - perhaps as a .pdf so it is difficult to copy - would give peace of mind? It doesn't matter if the script is from YJ, Gargoyles, or Spider-Man...
Greg responds...
There's no way to post a script here at ASK GREG with the correct formatting. I know. I've tried.
Presto writes...
Need some advice because I just became a screenwriter for a Television series based in Hong Kong. How much should I charger per 24 minute episode?
Greg responds...
I'm not sure how to advise you. The short answer is get as much money as you can squeeze out of them.
Animation Guild Union minimums are just over $7K per 22-minute episode, if that helps. WGA minimums are much, much higher.
abnormal matt writes...
Hey Greg I was wondering where do you feel you've stepped most out of your comfort zone as a writer. sorry for not using a question mark my keyboard doesn't seem to have one.
Greg responds...
What kind of keyboard doesn't have a question mark? That's just... bizarre.
Anyway, I try to challenge myself all the time. Writing the novels was WAY out of my comfort zone, and even in that, I challenged myself by creating a fairly unique narrator.
Shola Akinnuso writes...
Greg,
Are any of your Young Justice, Spider-Man, or Gargoyles scripts available online? I attend an Animation Writers group in Burbank, and the guest speaker showed one of your scripts as an example. It was a revelation. I've never seen sound effects used as action before. Every line had momentum, the script read was super clean and efficient.
Since then, I've been emailing everywhere to obtain a copy, I had to go to the WGA to read one of your YJ scripts, which again, was incredibly helpful. You noted where every SFX goes, how man characters speak, and to my surprise, people rarely had over two lines of dialogue at any given time. Everything was TIGHT, and was something I really want to study. Even the formatting.
Obviously, I couldn't copy anything from the WGA, and there's NO trace of your work anywhere online. How can I get a copy of a script? Even just the first act would be helpful. Would you consider putting a .pdf online via your website? I have read other books on animation writing, but your script was a big jump for me.
Greg responds...
I don't have the capability of posting a script here in the correct format.
Are you able to come to any of my many convention appearances or signings this summer? I have in the past sold signed copies for fairly reasonable prices. I wasn't planning on bringing any this year, as my focus is on selling my books, RAIN OF THE GHOSTS and SPIRITS OF ASH AND FOAM. But if I know there's an interest, I can bring some scripts too.
Among the conventions I know I'm attending:
Denver Comic Con http://denvercomiccon.com/
CONvergence (Minneapolis) http://www.convergence-con.org/
San Diego Comic Con International http://www.comic-con.org/cci
MechaCon (New Orleans) http://www.mechacon.com/
Long Beach Comic Con http://longbeachcomiccon.com/lbcc.php
Responding here isn't practical, however. But if you contact me, via Twitter at @Greg_Weisman, we can make arrangements. And if other followers are interested in purchasing scripts too, I'm game. Let me know.
Club Jade Interview
Had a great time doing a panel and signing at Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore this past weekend. Also took some time out to do an interview about Rain of the Ghosts (mostly) with Jawa James at Club Jade. Here it is: http://clubjade.net/?p=58532.
Also talked a bit about the writing process and my thoughts on diversity.
fallenlegend writes...
Hello Greg!
Just a quick question this time. The other time I asked you something about gargoyles and you said that you wouldn't write it for free... wich came as a bit of a shock to me as you have said before that it is your baby proyect.
It's understandable as this is your job and main source of income... But I have to wonder if you would ever have or if you have a personal proyect wich you would do for free.
You deserve every cent you get paid but.. Many (amateur/fanfic) writters write stories for fun and I wonder if this is the case with you. thank you!
Greg responds...
I don't write for fun anymore. To be honest, it's too much like work.
I don't write for free, though I do (occasionally) write "on spec". That is, I'll write something that has the chance of paying off later, even if no one is paying me for it immediately. For example, my first novel, RAIN OF THE GHOSTS, was written on spec. (And took over a decade to pay off - minimally.) The second book in the series, SPIRITS OF ASH AND FOAM, was not written on spec. My publisher, St. Martin's Press, ordered it. The third, MASQUE OF BONES, which I've barely begun researching, will also be written on spec, unless St. Martin's Press decides to pick it up.
But the big difference with those books, over something like GARGOYLES, for example, is that I OWN the RAIN property. I don't own GARGOYLES or YOUNG JUSTICE or WITCH or THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN. It would, frankly, just be foolish for me to invest my time (which is money to me) in something that isn't mine.
GARGOYLES is without a doubt my baby. I feel that strongly. But it doesn't change the hard, cruel fact that I hold no ownership in it at all.
Anonymous writes...
As a writer, what, in your opinion, is the reason that every child born to a major character in DC comics is killed-off, ret-conned into having different parents or out of existance entirly, or aged?
Think about it. Aquaman's son...dead. Wonder Woman's daugher...ret-conned to not even be hers. Batman's daughter...ret-coned out (albeit braught back, but now from a different reality). Batman's son...killed by his own clone. Arsenal's daughter, who had the potential to become a great character someday...dead. Flash(Wally)'s twins...first dead, then aged. And the list goes on.
Is it supposed to be common practice among comic writers so that they can maintain a static universe where the hero doesn't age over the years & a baby would force the story into progressing?
The main reason I quit reading comics is because it seemed that as soon as any characer was even beginning to progress, a new writer would come along and revert everything back to when they were a fan, including ignoring or killing off any other character that wasnt there back then, including children.
Greg responds...
I think you've basically answered your own question.
One additional factor: I know "writing" a baby or even a toddler or young child is tough. (Teens are relatively easy by comparison.) And weighing a character down with a child who is too young to fend for his or herself is always a challenge. The alternative of giving the lead a spouse or co-parent to help out, creates an entire family unit that imposes additional challenges for the lone wolf superhero archetype to overcome - once you've gotten past the endless "My family is in danger" stuff. So it's a writerly challenge, as well.
Now, that kind of content interests me tremendously. But when faced with pressure to keep heroes static and angsty and troubled, and couple that with the inherent difficulties of writing the character with ongoing familial relationships - and as you noted, the feeling that a new writer or editor might have that they want a shot at writing the character in his or her pristine, unencumbered form, and you can see why the trend exists.
But personally, it's a trend I despair of.
fallen legend writes...
Hello greg I have some questions regarding your writing style.
1.- Do you agree in" clarke's third law" aka "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic" in your fictional works?
For instance in Gargoyles/Earth 16/witch etc is all magic just advanced science?.
Titania hinted that magic and "human science" were one and the same in gargoyles. But Wally on the other hand... learned that magic is not just advanced science, hence my curiosity.
1b)if not How do you distinguish magic from "advanced science"?
2.-You have mentioned before that you wouldn't never give a "grand finale" to any of your works. But if you could... would you have write a "goodbye story"?
We know the story will never end but... we will be able to say goodbye?
Greg responds...
1. Depends on what "world" I'm writing for.
1a. No. Magical energy in all those worlds you mentioned exists. Doesn't mean it can't be tapped by advanced science, but it still IS.
1b. Source of power, I guess.
2. I might give a "grand finale" or "goodbye story" to an individual character or characters, but not to the world as a whole. My mind doesn't work that way.
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