There are a lot of terrible comic script templates out there. This is not one of them.
If you have a lot of experience with Word and know how to navigate multi-level lists, then this template will be easy to learn and quick to master. Even if you don’t, all the instructions and descriptions of each section are in the template for you to review. You can choose to download the template with or without the guide.
See the layout and description of each line below. Not all of the lines are necessary, but all of them work great.
Template Breakdown
Comic Title:
Put the title of the comic series here (ie “The Totally Cool Awesome Man!”)
Issue Title:
Put the issue number and title of the issue if it has one (ie. Issue 5: The lost sunglasses)
Author:
Put your name, or you and the co-writer(s)
Address etc:
This should be self explanatory. While not necessary, this is good if you are giving your script to others to read and you want them to have a way to contact you.
Footer:
Feel free to remove the footer, but keeping it in is like giving us a warm hug, and it only shows up on the front page. It will also let others know where they can get this template.
Header:
This only starts on the 2nd page, your name and email as a reference to who owns the copyright to the work.
Next Page
After the Header, the rest of the template is in a multi-level-list.
When you are writing, you can navigate the different lines in the list with the shortcut Alt + Shift + (Back/Forward Arrow). This will cycle through the different list levels.
When you are finished with the page, just cycle a new line all the way back to “PAGE” and a new page will start.
Level 1) Page:
When you make a level a new “page” the document will automatically insert a page break and generate the new page number for you (so you’ll never lose track of what page you’re on).
Level 2) SCENE:
General Location of the panels that follow this. This would include the primary location, time of day, weather, etc. You can finish this line with “INT” for interior, or “EXT” for exterior (see examples in template with guides).
Level 3) Panel:
The panel number is automatically generated and resets to 1 for each new page.
Level 4) Description:
Describing the action in the panel. This will include who and what can be seen in the panel, and what actions are taking place. It could also include what the characters emotions are if there is no character dialogue where it would otherwise be put in the Parenthesis (see example in template with guides).
Level 5) CHARACTER/SFX/CAPTION:
Each character line will generate a number on the left which resets to 1 for each new page.
Level 6) (Parenthesis):
Parenthesis after the character line is ideal for describing the delivery of lines, such as yelling or whispering. It can also provide additional directions such as “interrupting” or if the discussion/topic is carried on to another panel “continued”. It is also good if the characters dialogue is “Off Panel” or “OP” or coming through a radio or phone. It can also be used to describe the character’s emotions when delivering the line.
Level 7) Dialogue:
Don’t forget to use CAPITALS, italics, bold, and underline when you want those added to the comic!