How to Write a Manga Script

Video Transcript

"Hi, my name is Laura and today I'm going to talk with you about how to write a manga script. Writing a script for a manga or a Japanese comic is a lot of course like writing a play or a film script because you're going to be writing according to images in order to make images come alive. But what is different of course is that there are no actors who are going to be acting out your script. So whenever you're writing for a manga or a comic in any other you know, genre, you really need to pay attention to making your language sound like you want it to sound, so making very visually pleasing language and also thinking about putting language together with the pictures. I have an example here from the Kari kano manga. And as you'll see you actually have a lot of room to write a lot of dialogue. It's not jut pictures you know, it's going to be a time for you to really explore the characters with their dialog. So you're actually going to have a little more space you know, to sort of go around and be free with that. But of course you also want to keep in mind that you are writing for pictures. You don't want to make. You don't want to make it too talkie. Kari Kano is kind of a really talkie manga and anime so, and most are not going to be quite as talkie. So what you also want to think about here, I have a picture from the Acura manga. You're going to want to think about making your words actually really make the pictures come alive. So think about the auditory meaning of your words and how you sort of make those words come alive on the page. So, that's how to write a manga script."