Scaredy Cat: Thumbnails and Unseen Draft Ending

I'm going to take this opportunity to talk a bit about my creative process and general thoughts on the story.

About Scaredy Cat...

The story was supposed to be a quick 5 pages, but they were averaging around 7 panels per page and the pace caused everything to blur together. I decided focus on one major beat per page, and leave some space to pull back and show the reaction. This provided some variety in panel focus between close ups and interior shots. While I wanted to provide a few moments to breathe, my instinct is to trim down as much as I can. It's a balance, and I'm still working on it.

Originally, the story ended with the panel of Comic in a fetal ball (what became page 8). You never found out who was knocking and that didn't matter. Comic was alone in their room and the knocking came from outside of their bubble. It represented a reminder of unresolved tensions that Comic failed to answer. I didn't have an answer to give and so the reader would be left with lingering questions. By the time I finished page 8 though it was too much. I built up this tension throughout the story, it felt like a mistake not to provide a release. 

I had to invent someone to come through the door. To break down Comic's barriers and to provide a catharsis. I tried bringing back an old character from my high school days but that reference would only end up confusing people. 

I thought about breaking down the forth wall and just have me in a dress. A more exaggerated, angry me --I think I pushed the "gritty, semi-realistic" shtick too far. It felt way too "Woe is me". It would have been at least 3 more pages and the more I wrote the more it felt like I reading someone's journal. Pages of me, the artist, yelling at a reflection of my psyche. There was no promise of a satisfying end. This was still a story I wanted people to read. I wanted people to come away having enjoyed it.

Ultimately I invented a trio that represented our community --real people, not avatars. I was hesitant. It felt like corny-something-something-friendship, but their words weren't fake. This community has always been supportive to me. It acknowledged the tension that the story had built up without dismissing it. There are still unresolved feelings, but with the others around they seem much more manageable, and it feels like there is a path forward. In the end I was never going to provide an answer that would satisfy me, but there is hope in moving on in spite of those insecurities.

I don't think this is a great story. Comic doesn't exactly grow or learn anything that wasn't already there. They abandon agency when faced with external crisis and the resolution is thrust upon them. Comic didn't answer the door, the door was smashed open, and the story was brought to a grinding halt by the last-minute-additions. If I had infinite time to draw, this would be the opening scene to a longer story, and no one would answer the door for Comic. As it is, I've said my piece and I want to move on.

No Exit might have been a good book to go back and read while I was working on this. I think near the end I wanted to evoke that same kind of atmosphere. 

For now it's the best I can do. A reminder of how important it is to know where the story will end. On to the next project...