Jan 13 2009
Six Fonts That Kill Webcomics and Comic Books
Hello, I'm an assistant editor providing writing advice. SN specializes in superhero writing advice, obviously, but most of the advice here applies to fantasy and sci-fi as well.
These fonts are poison.
- Comic Sans
- Times New Roman
- Helvetica
- Arial
- Chronicles of a Hero
- Anime Ace
I like Verdana and Book Antiqua for normal fonts, for more decorative stuff like titles I use Papyrus or Broadway. Broadway is my hands down favorite font.
Word 2007’s default is Calibri, which I quite like. I use Broadway a lot for titles, and Century Gothic for school because those computers don’t recognise some others that I use.
Hmm. Do you have any favorite comic book fonts? I think that Bronic and Bronic Expanded have a similar feel to Broadway but are a bit more suitable for comic books. (Then again, I’m not that into lettering. Your mileage may vary).
hey question for B.mac in the comic scripted we did u said put Valkrigs words in a speheal font witch font should i use?
I don’t really know much about comic fonts, some of them I’ve never heard of like Anime Ace or Bronic.
Well, if you have a letterer he’ll probably suggest a few. If I were your letterer, I’d suggest Elder Gods, Ravenscroft, Flat Earth Scribe, or one of the three following samples.
Dark Crystal feels sinister and is a little easier to read than Tribal Two.
Coolio, I didn’t know there was a site where you can download fonts.
Ack. I had a lot of good fonts on my old PC. If you’re looking for some decent fonts for an evil character, try browsing dafont.com.
Of the three above, I prefer Valhalla but the caps-only is a problem. Of the linked ones, I like Ravenscroft.
i do like dark crystle im still thinking god i hate makeing desisions its these ones that will make or brake a comic
Well, the good news is that this is a pretty low-stakes decision. Lackluster lettering is almost certainly not a deal-breaker. Even if it were, this font only comes up in one panel fairly deep in the book. Your default font will come up a lot more often, and earlier. If readers like the default font, they won’t mind whatever you do in a random panel a third of the way through the book.
If it makes you feel better, I was working today on my cover. That’s got me on pins and needles.
Ok, cool.
I just realized that I know very little about you guys and vice versa. Is there an introduction thread? If not, why not?
Well, I’m a very private sort of person, but I guess I can give it a try. I used to work for a DC think-tank and am finishing up my political science degree. At that point, I’m probably going to teach, preferably in northern Florida, GA or the Carolinas.
cool well im from scotland moved around alot im 21 i love reading and writeing i do hope to make it as a writer or at lest get publishedv
I’m from England, studying for my GCSEs. I’m a history geek masquerading as a writer with some vague hopes of being published. Other than writing, though, I’m not sure what I’m going to do after University. If only reading was a profession.
I’m from Jacksonville, Florida. I’m 16, but don’t knock me… I know my stuff. I’m an aspiring actor/model signed with a relatively big starter company Model Productions. I also dream to be a comic writer and artist. I really don’t know what I want to do as a real job. I hope to go to NYU for college and my entertainment career. I’m relatively new to committed writing but I feel I have improved tremendously. I’m studying for my SAT’s and ACT’s.
I’m bipolar and have antisocial personality disorder that still intrudes on my day-to-day, but it’s all good. I’m pretty much a casual psychopath.
I’m also a vegetarian and a heavy dreamer.