@Creatornottraitor Oh I have some things to say. Obviously everyone will do this differently but here's my way!
Short version: I think about the arc of the page (is there a joke? a piece of information being imparted? a sweet fight scene? do two characters smooooch?) and decide how to use a few panels to setup and make the punchline, whatever it be land at the end. Think about how your gaze moves across a page- it is drawn by speech bubbles , as well as unusual colour and bursts of action. Then I do it again. and again.
Long version: Things that I want the audience to pay more attention to will be given larger panels, or they will break the bounds of the panels. I usually won't use more than like 5 or 6 panels (on a cs sized canvas, my max is or 9 on an 8.5 x 11) else things will get too crowded- less is more, especially if the comic is text heavy. Since we're all speaking English, I'm guessing your comic will be read left to right- so start in the upper right and go across, then down, just like a book. Beyond that just play with it. Erase and retry. Different panel shapes can add motion- like slanted panels will move a viewer's eye. Don't always show just character's faces (a problem I have lol), show objects and location to establish where they are and what they're doing. I also like to repeat panels with no changes small changes in expression or dialogue to add tension or help with comedic timing but that's much easier when you're using a digital program.
Specific version: Honestly I think it would be best to explain my process with an example. Recently i did a little 4 panel fanart comic for a show I like
here (Note: blood from a superficial head wound and spoilers for Star Wars Rebels). So the arc of this page is the kid, Ezra, discovering the blue guy, Thrawn, is alive. I started on the upper left with the setup- Ezra wakes up. Then, since I wanted to have a big reveal in the center, I decided to put the next panel below it. Ezra's wrist light helps draw the viewer's eye down there. Then the next panel, Thrawn is alive? whaaat?! For impact, to underline the dark and smoky atmosphere, and because
honestly the main reason i draw this was to show that i had a head cannon that this character has reflective eyes, I decided to dump the panel outlines altogether and just make the whole canvas the panel. The last panel is Ezra's reaction which i guess was not strictly necessary but it completes the arc. His shout also breaks the panel boundary to emphasize how loud it is
I hope that helps? Lmk if it was totally confusing and i'll try to clarify lol
I'm so glad you liked my comic! It'll be moving to tumblr but I'll drop a link when I do begin it again!
