I have encountered problems with this. When you get down to it, the original volume 1 of Sea Princess Azuri was nothing but set-up. Then volume 1 got cut, LITERALLY, into two books. Somehow, amazingly, chapter 4 (out of 8) ended on a note that could conceivably end a book, so I didn't actually have to change any script for that. But the fact remains that volume 1 of Azuri is quite literally half a book.

Then, I had to change the original cliffhanger ending (which is now the ending to volume 2) to a NON-cliffhanger ending... which... means I pushed further set-up into a future volume that may or may not ever even happen. o_O;;

I've been getting a lot of complaints in reviews that Azuri plot is far too predictable and cliche. All I can say is, I didn't even finish with the set-up yet. Just, read volume 2 when it comes out and then tell me whether it's cliche...

Also PS to the people on the internet who think I'm an 11 yearold kid..... this book was actually supposed to be written for 10 year old girls, it was supposed to have a new kids line label on the cover and be in the children's section. I don't know, does that mean reviewers should look at it differently?... sorry, tangent there XD

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If you slashed off "The Dreaming" v1 at chapter 4, it would have been a note that could end the book 2. But it would have been a dumb thing to do, and I'm sorry to hear that they did that for your book. Personally, I think it's a dreadful idea to suddenly slash a book into two - for the love of god, that will always require rewrites!

Hopefully the nay-sayers will read volume 2 and adjust their attitudes accordingly. :|

the people on the internet who think I'm an 11 yearold kid.....
Are these people nuts? Who on earth thinks you're an 11 year old? Perhaps they think you're 21, and they did a typo?

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"Just, read volume 2 when it comes out and then tell me whether it's cliche..."

If we didn't like volume one, why should we bother with volume two? Sorry, but I think volume one is your first and possibly only chance to catch the reader's attention.

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Solipherus, It's obvious you're writing for a younger audience. No prob there. It works. (The big problem is with most other Tokyopop OEL books that are supposed to be for older readers but end up seeming like they were written for 10-year-olds.) Honestly, I think you're the only creator so far in the TP OEL corral who has a talent for visual storytelling. Azuri is the first TP OEL book I've bought *because* of the quality of the art instead of *despite* of it. It's also the first that left me interested in buying the second volume. Keep it up. I'd like to see you do a book geared toward older audiences someday though.

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I know from writing pitches it's indeed an awkward structure to come up with plotlines for. You have to make sure everything's pretty tight. I hope in the future, TP creates some kind of venue for serialization [mabye even move into experimenting with monthly comic books again]

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Oh, boy is it awkward... for the three-act structure. You don't have to apply the three-act structure to the three-book format though - there are other ways to do it.

But I'm pissed because I prefer serialisation. :)

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You are so right on so many levels. There are many choices we have to make in that. Sometimes I like the challenge, other times it is hard to kill off the parts that you want in, to trim or streamline the book to fit the format. Nice essay and examples!

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Thanks. :D

And I think you'll always have to streamline and trim the story regardless of what format you're writing in. Personally, if the story was serialised, you'll still have to trim and streamline it (unless you want to devote 30 volumes to a single story). :P

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Hmm, this has gotten me thinking, because to be honest, I care much more about how the story will be when seen in completion than how it's viewed on the road there. Like, to the point that I almost wish I could it could just be published all at once or just a few months from each other. Because once it's complete, it's complete FOREVER. Ever watch an anime series on DVD and they review what had JUST HAPPENED? Like that--I don't want to do that, or worry about whether people remember little details and have to remind them of it. So now that I think about it, having these books so far apart is so damaging.

I mean, I DID wrap things up in my mind--in book one, Penny beat the system (or did she?). But still...ergh. *starts drawing really fast*

What's the point if all people read is book one and don't get through it all anyway? And I have to rely on good sales to even FINISH the series because I'm sorta in need of four books instead of three. *is frustrated*

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Oi...
*hugs for Tento*
I'd buy at LEAST a dozen copies of everyone's book if I could afford it. =(

But it does make me wonder if OEL publishers could maybe take a page from American comics' playbook: waiting till the second (or maybe be working on the third?) issue of a title before even releasing the first volume? A lot of the complaints I've heard about OEL pacing seems to proceed the complaint of the wait between volumes, as if the two were somehow connected (???WTF?); holding off on the release until more is under the artists' belts instead of over might help to quell some of it, and readers might be more conducive to the first volume being set-up.

Serialisation would be the ideal alternative, but it seems as if that's a long way off...

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I think setup is generally over-valued.

I'm going to refer to episodic series here, but a recent example I can think of was the first episode of Teen Titans. Being an episodic series, every episode is essentially an entry point. However, after watching the series for a while, I spotted what was quite obviously the first episode.

For some reason, the creators felt that a first episode entailed a large amount of "dramatic posing" and "dramatic dialogue". Mostly, it was just pointless exposition. I was happy to watch the series when it was half-way through without being told explicitly about their powers, why should I need one special episode to tell me? It all becomes obsolete knowledge, anyway.

I remember in screenwriting class, we had to make a pilot episode for a TV series. But we shouldn't use the first episode, she said, because there's too much introduction and you don't really see what the series is truly about.

If people don't need all those introductions in order to understand a pilot episode, why should they need them to understand the first episode? And if the first episode is so weak, then how are you going to pull in your audience in the first place?

A story isn't something that needs to wait on the starting blocks, waiting for the pistol to fire. Just get it running.

On a side-note, the first couple pages of Vol 2 were absolutely awesome. The dialogue was particularly lovely.

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The reason why you don't need introductions for a pilot episode, is because the whole POINT of a pilot is to compress the main plot points of a 26-episode story into a SINGLE episode. A pilot episode is meant to be self-contained for that reason, it's PURPOSE FOR EXISTING is so you can SHOW this episode to the TV execs, who'll say "I like/hate your idea".

So OFCOURSE the pilot episode for a TV series shouldn't be about introductions. Your target audience is TV execs. As for whether set-up is important, ofcourse it is. Your TV series is for ordinary TV viewers. If you start a setup without introducing anyone, how are you going to bring an audience into the main plot point? In a TV series, that should be established by episode 2. In "The Dreaming", it was established in chapter 2.

And why are you using a TV series to compare this to? You write for 30-min blocks for TV. I'm ONLY talking about the 150-180 page, 3-book format, where a single, self-contained story fits into it. If "The Dreaming" was written for a TV series with 26 episodes, it'll be written completely differently.

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Hi there,

Just wanted to say I liked this article a lot, it really clearly articulates your position. I disagree with much of it and I'll probably write a response to it, but I do understand where you're coming from. I assume this is meant to be a public post and won't be made 'friends-only' any time soon? I'd like to reference it.

Best,

- Christopher

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Oh, sure, go ahead. :) I'd like to see what you write. I don't see what there is to disagree about it though O_O, since it's just about the difficulties I had in applying a MYSTERY-HORROR story to the three-act structure to the three-book format TOKYOPOP gave. Other people probably don't have the same problems if they work in different genre, and it's perfectly achievable (applying the three-act structure. But it just doesn't make the story as good as it could have been - that's just what I feel about "The Dreaming" (and only "The Dreaming" in particular).

It also doesn't mean there aren't other ways to do it. You don't need to apply the three-act structure for a three-book format, and in the next story I do, I'm not going to do it. There are ways to make the three-book format work in your favour moreso than using the three-act format, and I hope you'll remember that when you write your response. :)

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Dear Queenie Chan,
The second book is soooo frightening, that I'm having nightmares? It must be really hard to write magna.

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Thanks! :D Second person to be given nightmares by the book! XD

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I don't understand why the three acts need to run parallel to the three books.

And indeed, in some of the OEL that I've read, they do not.


I would hold up Snow and ECR as evidentiary proof that the problem can be circumvented.


Have Act One end somewhere in the middle of Book One. Then get onto the main conflict and dramatic escalation of action. I've seen first volumes of comics (both OEL and other types) that tell near-complete stories and in the last two pages, introduce Menacing Bad Guy. At this point in a book, new characters are not of interest to readers, so it falls flat. But by simply getting the expository set up down pat about midway through the first book, the author moves on with the plot and has time to introduce the conflict as something important which carries weight. Then, when the book ends on a cliffhanger (but not an act-ender), the reader cares enough to want to continue.


I wouldn't end Book Act Two until the early part of the third book.

The structure of the actual publication doesn't need to mirror that of the story components.

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Woah, you and I seem to have different interpretations of the three-act structure. I know you're a stickler for definitions, so maybe you take a textbook approach to the whole screenwriting thing too. Me, I play fast and loose with terms, and the same goes for ideas like the three-act structure. And besides, writing for the OEL thing isn't like writing for a screenplay.

I would hold up Snow and ECR as evidentiary proof that the problem can be circumvented.
And ofcourse the problem can be circumvented. I ran into problems with "The Dreaming" (though I fixed them), but it doesn't mean other people will run into the same problems, especially when they're doing something in a different genre.

I've seen first volumes of comics (both OEL and other types) that tell near-complete stories and in the last two pages, introduce Menacing Bad Guy.
Ummm, I did that for both volumes of "The Dreaming". Didn't introduce bad guys, but had a cliffhanger ending. So I don't know, perhaps our interpretations of the three-act structure really is very different.

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I LOVE it and I can't wait for the 3rd one to come outand I can't wait to see what Millie said to Amber. its so suspensful and I think you is a genious and I have read so many of your books and when is the third one coming out?

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Thanks. :D The third one will probably be coming out in November 2007, just like this year. Hopefully it can come up earlier, but at this stage, it's unlikely. :( Hope you'll enjoy the conclusion to this story when it comes out. :D

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Hi!This is Chelsea if you still remember me.Just to let ya know that I loved The Dreaming 2!It was very surprising and exciting!!!!When will vol.3 come out?Catch ya later.

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Heya, thanks. :D Sure I remember you. Glad you enjoyed "The Dreaming" 2! I think vol3 will come out same time in 2007 (aka. November). :D

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THE serialized format has long been the traditional model for American comic books and this format is perhaps what inspired filmmakers like George Lucas and Steven Spielberg to come out with their own film series styled after serials like “Star Wars”, “Indiana Jones” and the short-lived “Amazing Stories” TV series.

The appeal of this format lies in the possibility of coming out with self-contained stories that don’t need a part 1 or 2 for readers to fully understand and grasp the story. The 3-book format may have been done to further expand the characters and their universe for first time readers or readers who’ve been following up the series.

At any rate, the book may simply be a start of other books on the series to follow. A little patience and enthusiasm might help.


Samael09

http://www.findmypaydayloan.com

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Actually, I love serialised stories. Manga itself is utterly suited for serialisation. I certain don't have a problem with the concept of serialisation. If I have an issue with the 3-book format, it's largely that the books come out only ONCE a year. That's a 1-year gap waiting for the next in the series, which wouldn't be a problem if the shelves weren't already bulging other manga.

The 1-year gap is the problem. People have short attention spans and tonnes of other entertainment options these days. Most people lose interest as they can't be bothered to wait that long.

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Hey guys, there's another English person about, :)
I'm a new on queeniechan.livejournal.com
looking forward to speaking to you guys soon

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Is there a preview for vol.3 of The dreaming?

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Sorry for the late reply... totally didn't see this message.

It's unlikely I'll be posting a preview... because there's a HUGEASS spoiler in the first chapter. I may post a few pages, but that's all I can post without spoiling it for folks.

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