Manga page.

[shurikenMarch]

Hey.

Over the summer I'm looking to start my very  l o n g  project of making a manga. I'm gonna start to develop the main characters first but seeing as though the first 5 pages don't contain them I might do some of them while I'm developing the characters.
So, my question is how big do you make the pages? It's not a serious thing so it's not gonna be a book or anything, probably just be on the web, but I think A5 is too small and A4 is too big. Is there a rule of thumb or is it just what you feel comfortable with?

Thanks in advance. =)

sM

[Sir-Knight-lurk]

as big as you need... you're not submitting them anywhere... you can work in whatever size you want to.


though I would be more concerned about what happens to your characters more than the characters themselves. Take some time to flesh out what happens in the story before you get to your characters.

[Oni-chan]

If you're not submitting them then it's your personal choice. I always work on bristol of the medium size (I forget the measurements. It's bigger than 8x11 but I don't think it's as big as 11x17). Anyway, I find it's helpful to work bigger because then you aren't limited by trying to squeeze a character into a panel the size of a postage stamp.

[Professor Az]

If you're not submitting them then it's your personal choice. I always work on bristol of the medium size (I forget the measurements. It's bigger than 8x11 but I don't think it's as big as 11x17). Anyway, I find it's helpful to work bigger because then you aren't limited by trying to squeeze a character into a panel the size of a postage stamp.

Working bigger is indeed better, as you can work in a ton of detail, as opposed to having to leave stuff out becuas eyou are working too small.  However, I have been known to crank out comics/manga on regular old printer paper, so there ya go.  It all depends on the layout, if you really must know.  If you want lots and lots of details, bigger is better.

As for bristol, the medium-sized stuff is 11" x 14".  Personally, I use the smooth type, as it works best with nibs and quills for me.  If you send a couple of flying monkeys to the lab, and I'll have them drop some tablets off at the aviary for you, Miz Oni.

 

[caleb]

If you don't mind using a bit of paper, you could even draw each panel (or a couple of panels) on a page, scan them, and then arrange them on the computer. That way you can get a bit of detail into each panel and then resize them. I don't think this is common practice, but I've known some webcomic artists to use that method. It just means if you mess up a panel, you won't have to start the page again and also you can decide how big each panel needs to be and just resize them on the computer.

[mike_uk]

If you don't mind using a bit of paper, you could even draw each panel (or a couple of panels) on a page, scan them, and then arrange them on the computer. That way you can get a bit of detail into each panel and then resize them. I don't think this is common practice, but I've known some webcomic artists to use that method. It just means if you mess up a panel, you won't have to start the page again and also you can decide how big each panel needs to be and just resize them on the computer.

...just remember to do some page layout thumbnails before you do this, otherwise your pages could get too wide/tall/cluttered with panels.

[shurikenMarch]

Thanks for all your replies guys. =D
I've decided on a 16x25cm (roughly 6.5x10") page.

Take some time to flesh out what happens in the story before you get to your characters.

Aye, aye Sir. I've been wanting to start this since last summer and I've had a hazy kinda plot since before then. I know what happens at the very start, and I have a lot of ideas for making up big parts of the story, it's just the in-between bits that separate the big stuff that I need to focus on.

It just means if you mess up a panel, you won't have to start the page again and also you can decide
how big each panel needs to be and just resize them on the computer.

I'm kinda gonna do that. My plan is to roughly sketch out the panel on a rough layout of the page but do the drawings on a bigger sheet. I've tried drawing within a box and it just doesn't feel right. Like trying to do a close up of a character... I'd rather draw the whole head then trace the part I want into the panel.
And I'll pencil it all out on the page and ink it on the computer so I won't have to re-do it all if (when) I cock up.
I have Manga Studio 3.0 which I've yet to use but I've seen a few tutorials on the web and it looks awesome. I just have to learn how to do it... =/  *gulp*

...just remember to do some page layout thumbnails before you do this, otherwise your pages could get too wide/tall/cluttered with panels.

I do have layout thumbnails for the first five pages. =]  I won't post them in the Manga WIP yet though 'cause it'll probably be a month before I do anything else worth posting in there! =P
One of my characters is coming along though so I might have a page of him up soon. =)

Thanks again guys. =D

[Professor Az]

If you don't mind using a bit of paper, you could even draw each panel (or a couple of panels) on a page, scan them, and then arrange them on the computer. That way you can get a bit of detail into each panel and then resize them. I don't think this is common practice, but I've known some webcomic artists to use that method. It just means if you mess up a panel, you won't have to start the page again and also you can decide how big each panel needs to be and just resize them on the computer.

I use this method as well.  That way, if a page doesn't flow well, I can always the delete the panel(s) saved as layers that I don't like, without having to redraw the whole page.  Once I get it the way I like it, I print it out, and ink the whole thing on a fresh sheet of paper, or just make some very tight final pencils, and ink the page digitally by doing some oversampling.