Feb 15 2010
I submitted my comic book script today…
Rather optimistically, I will put this in the “Getting Published” category. I’ll let you know how that goes. If you’re interested, you can read the cover letter I sent below.
SUBJECT LINE: Please represent “The Accountant Must Die”
Dear [AGENT NAME],
Gary Smith is a clumsy IRS agent having a normal day, besides the car-bomb. And the US Marshals threatening to send him on a one-way trip to Alaska. And the revelation that he can only survive by joining a top-secret police agency and partnering with mutant alligator whose crimefighting skills make Scooby Doo look like Batman.
The Accountant Must Die is exactly like a typical office comedy. With death rays.
I’ve included the script for the first issue below. In addition, I’d also like to offer five sample pages illustrated and lettered by my pencilist (Rebecca Gunter) and my colorist (Emily Oldroyd). You can see them at the following links:
- [I’ve removed the links, but you can see the pictures
- ]
I envision this issue as a pilot for a five-issue arc that recounts Gary’s first major case as a Special Investigations agent. A routine body-in-refrigerator case quickly escalates into a bid for global supremacy by a deranged cosmetics creator.
I run Superhero Nation, a superhero writing advice website with hundreds of thousands of readers. In addition, I’m an assistant editor for [COMPANY NAME], an imprint of [PUBLISHER Y].
Thank you for your time and consideration. I can be reached at [PHONE NUMBER] or [EMAIL].
The letter looks great, B. Mac… Good luck! 😀
I think it sounds excellent, especially as I am chortling to myself in the middle of science over this letter… Good luck to you.
– Wings
I wonder whether I should have mentioned that prospective customers have expressed interest in 150 copies. I didn’t, because 150 copies strikes me as too few to excite editors/agents. I’ll include the sales figures if customers put themselves down for 500+ copies.
PS: If you think you might be interested, please sign up for my comic book raffle today!. The winner gets a free, signed copy and everybody else gets one polite reminder to buy a copy.
Looks awesome, B. Mac! Couldn’t see how it’d be better.
Hmm. Here are some things I’d like to include in later versions of this letter.
–More details about the characters. And maybe a sentence about the adversarial relationship between Gary and Agent Orange. (The sample pages did a pretty good job explaining their relationship, but even so I need to make it clearer in the cover letter).
–More about the plot.
–I need to make the issue structure more definite and less tentative. I should probably include an issue-by-issue breakdown of the plot, like 1-2 sentences describing what happens in each of the five issues.
–I should have made it much clearer that the characters are essentially superheroes. Ack. I may have created ambiguity about whether the characters are Scooby Doo-esque detectives or Batman-with-badges.
–Sales figures? If I get above 500, sure.
–A sentence or two showing that I’m familiar with the agent’s lineup.
Ah, so you’re calling it “The Accountant Must Die”? Awesome. XD