How I outline and write scripts for Webtoon
As always, YMMV!
This is the second in a series of four posts about my experience adapting RE: TRAILER TRASH for Webtoon. These posts will cover how I got hired as a Webtoon writer, how writing comics is different from writing novels, and my thoughts on adapting a pre-existing IP. If you have questions, please leave them in the comments and I’ll do my best to answer them. And if you want to read RE: TRAILER TRASH on Webtoon, here’s the link!
I’ve been writing books for over twenty years (that’s weird to say). When I started writing in elementary school, my books were mostly rambling scenes scribbled into hot pink composition notebooks. In middle school, I graduated to Word documents, but I never outlined a thing, so my stories were all over the place. It wasn’t until my twenties that my process for writing and revising books took shape, giving me structure and confidence in a process that is inherently chaotic and sometimes terrifying.
When I got hired by Webtoon to write RE: TRAILER TRASH, my structured writing process was suddenly irrelevant. How was I going to write in a completely new format? How would I keep track of various plot threads in a comic that was going to have fifty separate episodes? And how was I going to tell a story in a visual medium with limited space for dialogue?
During initial calls with my producers, I had a million questions for them. But now that I’ve been doing this for over a year, I’m familiar with Webtoon’s expectations and production cycle. Here’s a quick primer:
Step One: First, Webtoon asks you to write an episode-by-episode outline. I submitted this outline with a paragraph (sometimes a very LONG paragraph) devoted to the plot of each episode. Each of my episodes includes 1-2 scenes with a hook at the end to keep readers coming back. Most seasons are 50-60 episodes long, and my outline was 19 pages. The producers will revise this outline, and you’ll go back and forth until you’re all satisfied. Then, they’ll give you the greenlight to start writing scripts!
Step Two: You’ll begin turning in one full script per week. For me, it was tough to adjust to this schedule. It’s easier now, though I still get overwhelmed, mostly because I also write books and have a full-time dayjob. But if (unlike me) you’re a master of time management, you can game your schedule and frontload a bunch of scripts, and then just turn them in week by week. The max number of panels in each episode of RE: TRAILER TRASH is 55, or 56 if you include the title card (this is the panel where the series logo lives). My scripts are usually 1500-2000 words long, depending on the length of each panel description. Unless you’re a very seasoned comics/Webtoon writer, you’ll likely workshop the first few episodes several times as you get to know your producer’s editing style. I wrote nine drafts of episode one of RE: TRAILER TRASH; now that I’m writing episode 40, I complete two drafts on average.
Step Three: If you’re writing an original series, you’ll get to see the art and make edits before it’s published on Webtoon. If you’re like me and you’re brought on as a contractor to adapt a pre-existing story, your producer will be the one reviewing the art before publication, though you can log into your Webtoon portal to see each episode before it goes live.
Step one took me about a month. I spent a long time studying the source material and having occasional discussions with my producers about what needed to change in order to adapt this story faithfully (more on that in a future post).
Even though the outline took forever, step two was the real challenge. I had already written my first episode when I was auditioning to write this series, but now I was writing a script per week. If you read my post last week, you’ll know that I was studying scripts written by Keryl Brown Ahmed (one more shout-out to Big Ethel Energy! It’s great!), and I’m so glad that I had these examples as a resource. You can find sample comic scripts online, but Webtoon scripts have some key differences. First, regular comic scripts have the panels separated into different pages. This is because the layout is a crucial part of print comics, and authors get to decide how each page will look in the final version. But Webtoon uses a scrolling format without pages, so you forgo page numbers and go directly to panels. I also use “fade to…” or “cut to…” in my Webtoon scripts to signify the passage of time or the beginning of a new scene. This is because I write my Webtoon scripts in a film/TV style. I also use “one shot”/”two shot”/“wide shot,” etc. to indicate what kind of panel we’re looking at. This isn’t common in printed comic scripts, but to be honest, I don’t think many Webtoon writers use this format either. You can tell I’m friends with screenwriters.
When it comes to technology, I use Scrivener to write my comic scripts. They have a built-in comics template that you can use, which looks similar to this template that I found in Google Docs. I’ve also seen scripts formatted like this, and you can use either format depending on your preference or your producer/editor’s preference.
Step three is where you dig into the nitty gritty details of an episode, refining it before you release it publicly. Do you dislike the placement of a sound effect? Does the art feel too confusing in a certain panel? Does a character’s facial expression portray an emotion that doesn’t suit the scene or the dialogue or their character arc? This is when you can give those notes to the artist so they can make changes as they’re finalizing the episode. I actually don’t work directly with my artist; my producer interfaces with her instead. But if you’re writing an original Webtoon rather than adapting someone else’s story, you’ll be in closer contact with your artist.
If you’re still unsure how to start writing comic scripts, the best thing you can do is study other people’s series and scripts - which is why I’m very excited to share the first two pages of RE: TRAILER TRASH Episode One! (Shout-out to my producer, Reed Sights, for agreeing to let me share this publicly!) This was the first comic script I ever finished, and I’m excited to make it available to other writers. It’s only a snippet, but since it’s the first episode, we established a lot of details in these panels, so I think it’s a good reference episode for other comic writers who are just starting out!
If you’re writing a regular print comic, you can find sample comic scripts online that will give you a sense of what to include in the descriptions (though you can and should develop your own style, so don’t feel pressured to include ALL the same details as other writers). And if you specifically want to write a Webtoon, I also recommend writing a practice script based on an episode of an existing Webtoon series that you really like. It will take some time, but eventually, you’ll get the hang of it!
In my next post, I’m going to delve into how writing comics is different from writing books. I had to rewire my brain in order to write a Webtoon, but it made me a better, more concise writer overall, even when I’m working on books. I look forward to sharing what I’ve learned!
P.S. Here are a few links that I’ve found helpful over the last year of writing for Webtoon:
Here’s a comic script template in Google Docs, designed by Ed Valiant. If you’re writing a Webtoon script, you’ll forego the page numbers.
The Comic Book Sound Effects Database - I use this a lot!
This is amazing, thank you so much! I am a writer myself and can´t wait to get into writing for webtoons. Your insights are very helpful, I will forever cherish them. I wish you the best on your journey!