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As a comic book writer, I'd be telling a narrative through a visual storyline. To be a comic book artist, there would be a lot more to just simply detailing a story through words. I would be putting pictures with them to help my readers with envisioning the storyline.

It involves planning, I would need to pace myself properly, there needs to be character development, structure to the narrative, and collaboration. Being a comic book writer could provide me with many opportunities, such as travel and it could build community.

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Writing is an important part of being a comic book artist, obviously. I would need to consistently plot my stories, and shift the plot points around as need be. There's a lot that comes with this as a career besides just the writing, as I need cover ideas, the creative layouts for strips, outlines, contracts, etc.

It would not be a consistent work schedule though, because the writing and art industry is much different from a regular get up by this time and leave by then sort of career, as stated in the article, I found the man who wrote this is literally a night owl. I would still need to attend meetings and travel though. Over the years I've found from other comic book artists that some of them tend to have more flexible work schedules despite having deadlines and other stuff to attend. I find a flexible schedule with the occasional deadlines would be great for who I am as a person, I've been drawing and writing since I was a kid so I've been deadset on this my entire life.

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(I've been paraphrasing/explaining everything I've gathered from these links in my own words, so no I did not use the cussing in this article since it's not school appropriate.) - https://jasonaaron.substack.com/p/a-week-in-the-life-of-a-comic-book

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What sort of environment would I be responsible for working in? How many hours are in a typical work week? Would I work nights and weekends? Would I work alone or as part of a team? Am I inside, outside, sitting, active, etc?

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Freelancing in the industry of comic artists has become much more extensive over the past few decades. The majority of today's comics are actually produced by freelancers.

I would like to be a freelancer because my hours would be flexible, I can work during the day, at night, inside and outside, sitting or standing, alone, and I can get input from others such as friends or other collaborators.

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Is the job physically or emotionally demanding?

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It is somewhat physically demanding, as I would constantly need to work around my posture because sometimes I hunch over when I'm writing or drawing and after a little while my hands start to hurt and I get tired.

It's also very emotionally demanding, I need the mental motivation for writing and drawing. Sometimes when I'm struggling mentally, I lose my creative flow and motivation to work on my art and storylines. I can't just force myself to write or draw, that takes the enjoyment out of what I love so much and I want to be proud of my work because I take a lot of pride in what I do.

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No citation link, based on personal experience but this goes for a lot of other artists/writers and not just myself and you may find this depicted in stuff like writing, documentaries, movies, and other material about people working within either of these industries.

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How many people hold jobs in this field in PA? What businesses or industries employ most of these workers? Where are the jobs most likely to be located in our state? In the country?

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The comic book artist industry is not very active in Pennsylvania due to not many companies hiring. Pennsylvania is ranked 50/50 out of all 50 states for salaries, with Philly being my best bet at anything and Allentown being the 2nd.

(I wasn't planning on staying in PA for the rest of my life, and I plan to someday set up an online shop anyways. I post my work on social media and will sell stuff at conventions because comic cons/anime cons are definitely going to bring people in after they have a look at my booths.)

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How much money can I expect to earn in this occupation in PA? Would I be paid an hourly wage or a yearly salary? What types of benefits are common? [Benefits: healthcare, dental, life insurance, retirement benefits, sick leave, vacations (paid or unpaid,) profit sharing, educational benefits, etc.]

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Being a comic book artist, I would not be generating a profit-so I would be heavily reliant on book sales and I'd be getting paid upfront. (Because of this, I will not be limiting myself to only my books and will need another job outside of that. I plan on going into cosmetology school after I graduate so I can be a stylist and I would like to instruct classes for aerial silks, but my career as a comic book artist has always been my main focus.)

Productivity is important to being a writer and an artist. Efficiency earns more compensation. Self employment as a freelancing comic book artist also means I would be able to deduct expenses as needed from my own taxable income.

Everything would be out of wallet, so I'd be paying for trips myself due to the self employment, I would not need any sick leave though as it is something I would mostly be working on from home as I please. I enjoy art and writing, so I would like to work on it even when I'm not feeling too good.

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What type of degree would you need to pursue a career in this field? What kind of personality traits, skills and training should you have? Which high school courses or extracurricular activities would be valued?

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It's achievable even without extra educational means beyond high school unlike licensed careers like being a doctor or a lawyer. Everyone has unique experiences that have led them to this lifestyle today. It involves skills such as talent, determination, and connections.

The hours would be flexible, I could work by the hour or the day, and from anywhere - preferably a workspace in which I can focus.

I do still need some education obviously, but I'm good with the writing skills I've developed from language arts and English courses over the years, and even though I enjoy drawing and a lot of people really like my art style, everyone has different art styles and that doesn't always seem to be an important factor in comics, because you'll find that there will always be people who appreciate the art style. Some people-like me enjoy manga, which are Japanese comics basically, some like comics like DC/Marvel, or like my dad likes this one adult humor comic series called Cyanide & Happiness, they all have VERY different art styles. Every style takes skill though, and every comic book artist is talented in their own respectives.

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Five post-secondary schools that have prestigious educational programs in this field-attempt to find ones in PA

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Creative Writing:

Carnegie Mellon University

University of Pittsburgh

Pennsylvania College of Art & Design

Moore College of Art & Design

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List 2 benefits to this career/list 1 downside to this career

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Creative freedom

Flexibility

Finances

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No citation, just experience and from what I've gathered from my research for this entire project