# Speech bubbles , what NOT TO DO



## mapdark (Aug 19, 2011)

So you got a comic , you're done with the drawings , now you want to put the text.

There are lots of GOOD ways to do it , but let me actually tell you about WHAT NOT to do with speech bubbles.


1- Use random fonts for the text.

http://www.blambot.com
is your friend.

Don't use any sort of font because most of them ARE NOT made to be easily legible. 
Comic fonts need to be clean and simple because an overcomplicated font in the middle of illustrations 
will make the whole thing WAY TOO BUSY and can actually turn you off from reading more of it.

My favorites in terms of simplicity and cleanliness are the fonts "Digital strip" and "webleterrer" 

Also , comic fonts often have extra characters for effects and coughs and such. And while they're always in capital , the lowercase and uppercases 
letters are different , permitting some variety in the text. As well as making it possible to differenciate a normal I and the pronoun I.


DO NOT USE COMIC SANS! 

Ironically , while having the word comic in it, comic sans is UGLEH and has many issues . Such as uneven spacing .


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2- Do not place your speech bubbles randomly in the panel. 


An area to avoid is for example close to the face , of RIGHT OVER the face , like I've seen in especially bad comics.

Unless you want to imply a low voice or whispering , do not make HUGE bubbles for tiny text.
You waste space in your panels , and make the characters look like they're being eaten alive by their words.
Poetic , but not very good looking.


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3- Transparency 

Transarency is somethign to avoid , it can look interesting in CERTAIN very rare conditions.
But most of the time , you should have fully opaque bubbles. 
Putting text over an image in transparency will only make it harder to read.
Even if you use a good font. 


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CONCRETE EXAMPLE of what NOT TO DO!


So I thought I'd give you an example of what not to do that can be found in ACTUAL media.
It actually breaks ALL of the previous rule I just talked about and still got published.

Unsurprisingly , it's the graphic novel adaptation of Twilight :







There you have it all , 
HUGE BUBBLE , Times New roman for the text and transparency.


And one just wonders WHY .

There's a huge space to the left of the character's head , and yet the letterer chose 
to obscure half of his face. FOR NO REASON.






This is WHAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE.

Smaller bubble , out of the way of the art. 
Decent font and NO transparency.

Don't be a Twilight , kids. 
Follow these three simple rules.


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## BRN (Aug 19, 2011)

Thanks! I'll be using this information to my great advantage. It's really opened my eyes; I can't believe I didn't see it before. You've really helped me, and a lot of other people, out to a huge degree by making this thread. Thanks so much!


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## Thaily (Aug 19, 2011)

Just when I thought I couldn't hate Twilight even more.

Thanks for the tips.
I'd like to add one my friend told me, which seemed kind of "duh" after he said it; leave space for the bubbles.
And you don't have to draw in the space where the bubble will be, save yourself the work.
It's not lazy, it's efficient. Drawing comics is a shit ton of work regardless.


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## Ley (Aug 19, 2011)

Whats sad is that I know that's the first book, and what happens after, 's before lunch..

...god I regret reading those books..


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## Zydala (Aug 19, 2011)

http://webcomictriage.blogspot.com/2007/08/dialogue-balloons-users-guide.html

click the 'balloons' tag for more. Basically this is some of the best examples I've seen on the topic on how to use them


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## Greg The Cat (Aug 20, 2011)

This is information I already know, but thanks for the refresher course!


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## Volkodav (Aug 20, 2011)

A good example of font/text I like would be CheapThrills
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/6350104
I believe the artist does the text themselves by handwriting.


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## mapdark (Aug 20, 2011)

Clayton said:


> A good example of font/text I like would be CheapThrills
> http://www.furaffinity.net/view/6350104
> I believe the artist does the text themselves by handwriting.



It totally is handwriting.

I just couldn't do this , my hand writing looks like shit XD


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## RayO_ElGatubelo (Aug 20, 2011)

Another thing... make sure the speech bubble tail leads to the character's face. Please. Otherwise you get the idea that the character's elbow or shoulder is talking.

Chick tracts are one of the worsts offender in this kind of thing. You not only get talking elbows and shoulders but talking houses and window panes!


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## LizardKing (Aug 20, 2011)

Like this?

(She really doesn't look too pleased)


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