How a comic issue is shaped

You do not need to know any of this to use Komiks — the beat sheet it writes already follows the shape. But knowing the shape makes it much easier to edit.

The shape, in five moves

1. 1Open in the world, not on a face. The first page shows where we are and who we are following, usually mid-action — comics start late and explain later.
2. 2Give them a want and put something in the way. By the end of the opening pages the reader should be able to say what the lead is trying to do.
3. 3Escalate. Each page raises the cost of failing — this is the middle, and it is most of the issue.
4. 4Turn. Something changes that cannot be taken back: a reveal, a loss, a decision. In a single issue this lands two or three pages before the end.
5. 5End on a held image. The last page is one strong beat, not a summary — either the quiet after the climax, or a cliffhanger that makes the next issue necessary.

Per format

• ·4-panel strip: setup, build, twist, punchline. One joke or one reversal — the fourth panel is the whole point.
• ·One-shot (8pp): a complete story. Spend one page opening, five escalating, one on the turn, one to land.
• ·Single issue (22pp) and manga: open with a hook page, end on a cliffhanger if a next issue is coming, and give the middle at least one quiet page so the loud ones stay loud.
• ·Webtoon: one beat per screen — each vertical band should end somewhere that pulls the thumb down.

The beat sheet in the Story tab is exactly this shape, one line per page. Rewriting a line rewrites the plan; drawing is the only step that costs credits.