Computer Comic Tutorial

Alright, welcome to my Computer Comics Tutorial. I make my comics using "SuperBanjo Style" which is a unique and creative way that I invented. (To see examples of my work CLICK HERE)

In this tutorial, you will learn how to: 1. Get sprites. 2. How to make comics (SuperBanjo Style) 3. How to make sure your comics aren't blurry when you upload them. 4. How to upload them onto the internet. And 5. How to post them on the forums. This Tutorial is extremely detailed, so even if your completely new to computers, this will make things very simple. It took me about 3 weeks to make this tutorial, so I made sure that everything was perfect and precise. If you want to make comics, then read on.

If you have any questions or comments about this tutorial, ask them at the Official Thread on the N-Sider Forums.

A good comic takes, at the least, an hour to make so you need to have a lot of time. Some comics can take even longer (I've worked on some for 4 hours straight) so you also must have patience. Just a helpful tip, listening to music while you make your comics can really help. It will make the time pass by quickly, and it will help your mind think more clearly so that your comics are more creative. Your first comic usually isn't very good, so if people diss you off when you post it, don't be disappointed. To make really good comics, you need lots of practice, so the more comics you make, the better you'll get.

OK, here we go. To make a Comic, you're obviously going to need some sprites. A really good site for getting sprites would be The Sprites Resource. Once you're there, search around until you find some sprites you like. Save as many as you need, don't just limit yourself to one. When you see some you like "Right Click" on them and select the "Save As" button" as shown in the picture below.

Make a folder, and name it something like "Zelda Comics" then save your sprites in them. Make sure that you save them as BITMAP's instead of GIF's. Then click "Save" as shown in the picture below.

Next, you'll need to open up "Microsoft Paint" to continue. You should open several 'Microsoft Paints" so that you can jump back and forth between the sprites you saved and the comic that you're making.

If you want your comic to look good, you're going to need a background. Once again, head on over to The Sprites Resource and looks around until you find one (or some) that you like. Just like when you saved your sprites, "Right Click" on the picture and click "Save As"

Open a “Microsoft Paint” program, and open the background you just saved. Click on the dotted square box tool

and make a rectangle over the blue sky. Then “right click” on it and select “Copy” as shown in the picture below.

Now open another new Microsoft Paint and click “Edit” then click “Paste” so that you get your background. Just like in the picture below.

Now, click on the box button

and make a square lining around your background. This makes your Squares look better, and they’re easier to read. Notice that in the picture below, I left some white space at the bottom of the box between the last blue color and the black line. Make sure that you leave some space also, so that you can put ground in.

Next, we need to add some ground in, so go back to the Hyrule Castle sprites where you got the sky background. Click the dotted square box tool

and select the ground, just like in the picture below. Then “Right Click” and “Copy”.

Alright, you just copied your ground so now you have to paste it. Click the “Edit” then click “Paste”. You might have copied some of the blue around the ground, so just click the Paint Tool

and get rid of the blue by turning it white.

So, you’ve pasted the ground, but it’s smaller then the box you made. We want a perfect fit, so click the dotted square box tool

and select the ground you just pasted. “Right Click” and “Copy” it, just like in the picture below.

Like I said, the ground must be a perfect fit, so now that you’ve copied it, click “Edit” then click “Paste” Then place the ground right next to the first ground that you started with so that it is now twice as big as before. If what I said is confusing, just look at the picture provided below.

Now that your ground is big enough to fit into the box, click the dotted square box tool

and select the big ground, then move it into your comic box , just like in the picture below.

All right, you’ve placed the ground into the comic box, but we have a problem. The ground is to big, and it’s sticking out. It looks really cruddy, so we need to get rid of it. Click on the Eraser Tool

and erase the piece of the ground that is sticking out. Check out the picture below to see what it should look like when you finish.

Your comic box is almost complete, but there’s just one more thing we have to do before you can move on. You probably already noticed, but when you made the ground bigger, part of the box was covered up. We need to fix that, so click on the Line Tool

and make the bottom right part of the box complete, just like in the picture below.

Congratulations! You’ve finally completed your comic box, now we just need to make a bunch more. So, click the dotted square box tool

and select your box, then “Right Click” and “Copy” it just like in the picture below.

Now that you’ve copied your comic box, you need to “Paste” it a bunch of times, until you have 9 boxes, 3 across and 3 down, just like in the picture below.

Alright, you’ve made something that will be very helpful to you in the future when you make comics, so you’ll want to save your work. Click “File” then click “Save as”. If I were you, I’d name the file “Zelda comic ready to be made” or something along those lines, because it’s a blank comic that’s ready for sprites. Make sure that you save it as a PNG because they upload to the internet more smoothly and they don’t get all blurry. After that, click “Save” and your ready to start the fun stuff.

Now that were done making all of the background stuff, we can begin adding sprites to the comic box. Obviously, you’re going to need some sprites, so get into a blank Microsoft Paint and open up one of the sprites you saved. Click the dotted square box tool

and select one of the sprites. “Right Click” and “Copy” your selection, just like in the picture below.

Yup that’s all, just paste your sprite. Click “Edit” then click “Paste” It’s very simple, but incase you need help, there’s still a picture provided for you below.

So, you’ve pasted your sprite, but some of them come with an ugly background color. You want to get rid of this so that it won’t show up in your comic, so click the Paint Tool

and turn that nasty green color white. It may be easier to do this if you zoom in, so clicking on the Magnification Tool

isn’t a bad idea. If you want a visual helper, look at the picture below.

All right, you’ve got a sprite that’s ready to roll, so click the dotted square box tool

and select your sprite. Carefully place it into a position that you desire in one of your comic boxes. Make sure to look closely at the feet of your sprite, so that they’re touching the ground. Also, whenever you move a sprite, you’ll see two boxes at the bottom of the tool box. Make sure that you’ve selected the bottom one. If what I just said is confusing you, look at the picture below to clear it up.

Occasionally when you place sprites over color, the white parts of the sprites will become see through. This can make your comic look very… unappealing, so we’re gonna have to fix it. Simply click the Magnification Tool

for a better view, then click the Paint Tool

change all of the see through spots back to the color white. Remember to get all of the spots on your sprite, like eyes, arms, neck legs, and anything else. For more help, look at the picture below.

If you’ve already forgotten what we’ve just covered, feel free to look back on the stuff I’ve previously mentioned. Anyways, now you just need to add more sprites, so remember, open up a page full of sprites, copy your sprite, paste it in your comic page, get rid of the green, and move it to its final destination. For more help, look at the picture provided below.

A comic is made up of three parts. A background, it’s sprites, and the words you add in to it. Make sure that the words you add fully explain the current situation the help the reader understand what’s going on. Also, feel free to throw in humor wherever it’s necessary. So, to add words, click the Word Tool

and a text box should pop up. A good font to use while making comics is Comic Scan MS, also, make sure that your font is always close to size 12. Remember, there will be circumstances where you will want to make the font larger, but for now, just keep it at 12. Make a box where you want your words to appear then type away. Just like in the picture below.

When you use words in your comic, the reader needs to know who’s talking. Some people solve this problem by using different colored fonts, but I find it easier to use lines. That way the readers eyes are directed to exactly where you want them to. So, click on the Line Tool

and make a line from your sprites mouth to the words you’ve written, as shown in the picture below.

There several different types of comics, and it’s up to you on which methods you use, but here are a few tips on making good comics. First off, one way to make comics is to have yours leading up to something and then ending with humor. Humor is a very, very important key factor in comic making. Make sure that you have funny, creative ideas in your comics to continue to hold your readers attention. Try lots of different approaches to creative humor and see what people are more attracted to. When you find out what your readers enjoy most, try to focus on that.

Another way to make comics is to use the suspense factor. Not all comics have to revolve around humor, you can make really serious comics full of emotion and excitement, then end at a point where your reader is full of suspense, dieing to know what’s going to happen next. Either approach can help you make good comics, just try and find which one you’re better at, remember, focus on your strengths, not your weaknesses.

Anyways, there are many other approaches to comic making besides the two I’ve mentioned. I’ll provide you with an example of a humorous comic below. Notice how at the end of the comic I didn’t show link getting ripped apart. When you make comics, you can end at certain parts and the readers imagination create the ending. This is just another one of the millions of ways to make comics. Use your imagination and be creative.

Now that you’re done, you’ll want to save your work. Click “File” then click “Save as” and make sure that you’re saving your work as a PNG. After that, name your comic something and click “Save” As shown in the picture below.

The forums at Nintendo won’t let you post pictures on them unless they’re already being hosted on the internet by another site, so we’ll have to get them on-line. Head on over to Photo Bucket and register. After that, click on browse, search your computer and find the comic you want to upload. When you find it, click it, then click open. Then click “Submit” Use the pictures below as visuals.

If you want to upload your picture, highlight the URL and “Right Click” then “Copy” You want to copy the URL and not the TAG or the IMG because to post a picture you just want the URL. If you don’t know which one the URL is, then look at the picture below.

Well, this is it, we’re at the end. All you have to do now is head on over to the forums at Nintendo, make a new message, click “Graphical Editor” and click the little picture box. The paste your URL and your done. All you have to do is post your comic. Look at the picture below for help, if you need it.

Ending

Well my friends, we’ve come very far together. I wish you all good luck on comic making, but before you leave, I just have one favor to ask of you. If you used this tutorial to make your comic, please give me credit when you post it. Say something like “This comic was made SuperBanjo style” or “I’m giving credit to SuperBanjo’s Computer Comic Tutorial”

I’ll be very disappointed if you don’t even acknowledge that I helped you make your comic, so please remember to give me credit. Also, if you used sprites from The Sprites resource, please give them credit to, I mean it’s just plain rude not to give credit, so please be mature and respectful to those who helped you make your comic possible. I hope this Computer Comic tutorial helped you make your comic, and if you have any further questions, feel free to ask.

I'd like to thank TheBlackDevil16 for inspiring me to make comics, and I'd also like to thank all of the people who read my comics and encouraged me to make more. It just goes to show that even the smallest comments can make big differences. I'm still going to make comics, but someday, when my comics are no more, I hope that by passing my skills on, someone else will be able to master them and keep the legacy going. Please use these skills to the best of your ability. Thank you.

-SuperBanjo