We speak at conventions, colleges, and comic shops across the country. We both taught for ten years before making comics became our full time job, and running panels/seminars is part of how we continue to give back – and bring fun, excitement, and knowledge to the next generation of fans and creators. We run full panel series as well as a set of various stand alone panels on a variety of different and fascinating subjects.
All descriptions are below, read through and let us know what you like us to speak on at a convention, college, or store near you.
Panels about making comics – from concept to publication!
Interactive panels where we and the audience create stuff together.
Panels covering a range of topics from creating diverse characters to good comics to read or full portfolio reviews.
We speak at conventions, colleges, and comic shops across the country. We both taught for ten years before making comics became our full time job, and running panels/seminars is part of how we continue to give back – and bring fun, excitement, and knowledge to the next generation of fans and creators. We run full panel series as well as a set of various stand alone panels on a variety of different and fascinating subjects.
All descriptions are below, read through and let us know what you like us to speak on at a convention, college, or store near you.
Panels about making comics – from concept to publication!
Interactive panels where we and the audience create stuff together.
Panels covering a range of topics from creating diverse characters to good comics to read or full portfolio reviews.
The Complete Guide to Creating Comics/Manga: Panel Series
This section of panels are all built off our award nominated, critically acclaimed series – The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing Comics. We use our years of teaching experience to bring attendees though the ins and outs of concept design, writing, drawing, coloring, and lettering for comics, manga, and webcomics. Art and descriptions for the one day and three day versions below.
The Complete Guide to Creating Comics/Manga (one day version)
Seven-time Harvey Award nominated husband and wife creators Comfort and Adam teach you how to create your own comic. This panel covers the entire process – concepting, scripting, thumbnails, pencils, color, digital and printing publishing, and marketing!
The Complete Guide to Creating Comics/Manga (a 3-part course)
Seven-time Harvey Award nominated husband-and-wife creators Comfort & Adam have literally written the book on self-publishing comics with the acclaimed The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing Comics. Now they’re bringing their years of expertise in concept design, writing, drawing, coloring, and lettering comics, manga, and webcomics to you. Over the course of three panels in three days, they will teach you how to make and sell your own manga. This trilogy series will sharpen all your tools and ready you to get out there and start creating.
Day 1: Concept Design, Writing, and Marketing
Every comic and manga starts with a story. In this session, you’ll learn how to refine a concept and how to turn that concept into a fully-fledged script ready to be drawn. We cover the whole writing process, from the initial idea to research, working through multiple drafts, working with editors, collaborating with artists, and how to take the comic you’re making and connect with an audience. The writer is the team-leader – learn how to lead, starting here!
Day 2: Designing Characters and Drawing Pages
Anybody can draw a picture – we’ll teach you to tell a story with your art. The second part of our trilogy series is all about creating interesting characters and then bringing them to life in your pages. We’ll cover character design (good and bad), laying out comic pages, how to keep those pages fun and exciting, and how to be the “director” of your story.
Day 3: Digital Color and Lettering
The purely digital sides of comics creation, the final session of our trilogy series teaches the fine art of using Photoshop and Illustrator to color and letter comics. Learn about color separations, how to apply tone in a simple three-step process, how to color efficiently to meet deadlines, and the art and value of good lettering. Color can change everything about how your story is seen, and lettering impacts everything about how it is read – start on the path of mastery here.
Let’s Make A…: Panel Series
Our most entertaining and unique series of panels. The ‘Let’s Make A…’ series combines a 10-15 minute slide-show presentation with an interactive section where we, the panelists, and the audience make up a character/story and which we draw live! All descriptions are below…
Let’s Make a Character
The seven-time Harvey Award nominated husband and wife action faction Comfort Love and Adam Withers will not only talk about how to make a great character, but will create a new character on the spot with the audience’s help. The seminar will be broken into two halves: first, Comfort and Adam will take you through the concepts of what it takes to make an awesome character. In the second, they will invite audience participation in creating a new character which will be concepted and drawn on the spot.
Let’s Make a Comic
The seven-time Harvey Award nominated husband and wife action faction Comfort Love and Adam Withers will not only talk about how to draw a great comic/manga page, but will draw a new page on the spot with the audience. The seminar will be broken into two halves: first, Comfort and Adam will take you through the most important basics of drawing great sequential art pages. In the second, they will invite audience participation in creating a short 1-page story which will be designed and drawn on the spot.
Let’s Make a Hero
Everybody loves a hero – they’re the characters you root for and the people you want to be. Seven-time Harvey Award nominated husband and wife Action Faction Comfort Love and Adam Withers lead this seminar in two parts: first, you’ll learn what makes great heroes in both writing and in art. Then, Comfort & Adam will invite the audience to participate in creating a new hero which will be designed and drawn live.
Let’s Make a Villain
Creating great villains is essential for making great stories – whether you love their every appearance or just love to hate them. Seven-time Harvey Award nominated husband and wife action faction Comfort Love and Adam Withers lead this seminar in two parts: first, you’ll learn what makes great villains in both writing and in art. Then, Comfort & Adam will invite the audience to participate in creating a new villain which will be designed and drawn live.
Let’s Build a Team
Making one great character is challenge enough – but what if you need to create an entire team of characters? Whether building a team of equals or just building a supporting cast for your protagonist, there is an art to fleshing out a complete roster of characters. Join Comfort and Adam to learn the basics of team building and design. Then, we will invite the audience to help in creating a small team which will be designed and drawn live.
Other Awesome Panels: Individual Panels on Various Fun/Educational Topics
Along with our panel series’, we run a ton of other panels on various fascinating topics with cool and unique audience participation aspects! Descriptions below.
The Science of Shipping
“Shipping” is when a fan imagines possible romantic relationships between two characters in a story. Shipping is big, but why do we do it? Join husband and wife creators Comfort and Adam as they talk about all the reasons we love our ships; from biological drivers to emotional and intellectual hooks, from the vast history of literary fiction to the present day. But that’s not all! In the second half, panelists and audience will be creating a new couple that Comfort and Adam will draw live!
Drawing Diversity
Diversity means a lot of things to different people, but we can all agree comics are best when they feature a wide range of personalities, backgrounds, and bodies. Award-nominated creators Comfort and Adam join special guests (names coming) to talk about how diverse characters enhance your story and how to build and utilize them, culminating in working with the audience to create a new character which will be drawn and presented in three totally different ways to show diversity in action.
How to Make Comics and Not Suck
There are a whole lot of mistakes you can make when starting out making comics, but you don’t have to! Join award-nominated creators Comfort and Adam as they teach you all about writing and drawing comics by examining the missteps they made early in their careers. Come see a fun (if potentially embarrassing) presentation of all Comfort and Adam’s rookie comic creation flubs and how they grew and improved, learning to be your best by avoiding their worst!
What to Read
For new, old, and lapsed readers. The first half of the panel is a slide-show presentation of 10 must read comics and manga from different genres! In the second half, the audience and panelists will make a living document of the greatest comics ever made according to you!
Portfolio Review
The seven-time Harvey Award nominated husband and wife action faction Comfort Love and Adam Withers are here and want to review your art portfolio! Whether you’re looking to do your own Manga, work for a company, be a penciller, inker, or colorist – Comfort and Adam are here to help you!
Sign up at Comfort and Adam’s Artist Alley table Friday-Saturday. Each review is 10 minutes long will be held in room of the conventions choosing on Sunday. Please make sure to sign up early, there are only 12 spots for this portfolio review.
