Chapter 5: Chapter 5 - Moving forward part 2
After one and a half years, things were going extremely well. My first two books were a big success, and my third one was about to be released at any moment now, with great anticipation of the public I'm told.
Besides, the 'power puff girls' cartoon had it's premiere just yesterday. And to celebrate it, I and my sister had our friends at home to watch it together. All of us loved it, especially me who couldn't stop grinning when I remembered the deal we had made with the studio.
"How about this?" Alex said after a long time of trying different approaches to the characters I was describing to him.
Alex Dawn was the profesional artist I chose when Clark gave me his 'ok' to progress with my comic.
He was young and had a 'modern' style of drawing, somehow gloomy but stylish at the same time. Definitely perfect for the image I have on mind.
"That's perfect. With that character done I believe we can now make a quick draft of how the story goes for the first chapter" I replied once I saw his drawing.
"Finally" He laughed a little, "Honestly I didn't think that a kid could be so demanding"
"Hahaha, I'm sorry. But you know it has to be perfect for us to even have a chance of making our way up in this business" I said in a relaxed manner.
I wanted to be respected by him, so I never tried to act my age as I usually do in front of others. It was weird at first, especially for him, but it worked out well at the end.
"I know. I know. You have already told me all about it. Now let's get going with the story" He said in anticipation.
At the beginning he was skeptic about me. That changed a little when he was aware that I had written two books. And all was fine when he started to draw the characters. I noticed that he was already anticipating how they were going to interact on the story.
"Well the story begins with 'Batman' ..."
I could've started with other character, but at the end I decided that the lack of powers and the detective aspect of him, will be the key to introduce organically certain events in the future.
"So the 'Penguin' was a mafia inspired character, I expected him to be a business kind of guy, but I like more your idea" He said when I presented the villain of the story.
"Yeah, we need to introduce the dark side of 'Gotham' early on. So I thought that this was a good way of doing it" There were better villains in my opinion, but he was definitely the best for the story I wanted to tell.
"It really works... For the first chapter this is really good. I'll prepare a draft for next week so we can see if there's need for any changes"
"That sounds good to me" I was satisfied with the story, but if he has any suggestions about the art, I would be a fool to not consider his thoughts.
"Sam, your mother has arrived to pick you up" Clark said once he entered the room we were in.
"Perfect timing. We have already finished the details for the first chapter. Now it all depends on Alex to do the first draft" I said with a big smile. I was happy with the quick progress we had today.
"That's good news. Probably we are going to be able to be ahead of the new wave of young creators, if we continue at this wonderful pace" Clark said with a smile of his own.
"What's this 'new wave' are you talking about?" I asked with curiosity.
At this time, the overall sales of comics were shrinking. Mostly due to the endless quantity of storylines with the same old characters, and the over use of especial editions to entice collectors.
And until this day, I haven't heard anything about new comics from any of the big publishers. Which was weird, as they usually promote their work when there's a big release coming up soon.
"It was an exaggeration" He started jokingly, "I just know of a couple of friends that are in the same situation as me. They found their own talented kids to help them save their business" Clark said while ruffling my hair.
"Oh, are you saying that there are others kids like Sam?" Alex asked.
"I don't think there exist someone one like him. But, at least he's not the only talented kid his age" Clark teased. I usually would joke about it in this kind of situations, but my mind was a mess after hearing Clark's words.
The possibility that I wasn't the only person reincarnated in this world was something I never thought of. And now that was all I could think about.
"Do you know what kind of project are they doing?" I asked with what I hope was a normal tone of voice.
"Mmmm. I know that one is doing something about zombies, and the other something about space, 'Star wars' I think my friend called it" He said. And to my grief, it's confirmed. I'm not the only one here.
'Star wars', and maybe 'The walking dead' were the projects the others were working on. Fortunately, those were not projects I thought of making myself. But I still wasn't 'safe', because if there are two, there could be others too.
The possibility that there could be someone else doing a project I had in mind for the future, makes me incredibly nervous. My only comfort is knowing, that until now there hasn't been any other projects like those that I'm aware of.
"I'll be going then. I'll see you next weekend" I simply said. And with new found determination, I went to reunite with my mother.
We were in the building in front of the the one used by the publishing company. My mother parked close to the entrance, and she was waiting for me in the car.
She was reading a version of my fourth book to be published. She's in essence my personal editor, so she's looking for all the errors I've made.
For my third book I decided to go with 'How to train your dragon', which I believed was a good transition from princesses stories. And for my fourth one I went with 'Kung fu panda', a different kind of story, but safe at the same time. Which made sense, considering that my original plan was to advance slowly towards more mature stories.
"Mom, do you remember that one big publishing company that wanted to work with me?" I asked her once I entered the car and greeted her. I should've been more patient, but I couldn't waste any time now.
"Yes, they have been constantly communicating with Clark. And because you are a minor, we have been maintaining your identity a secret...
... And now it seems that you want to publish a book with them" She finished with a tired sigh.
"Yes... I know what you think about overworking myself. But I just have this big idea, that will result in many books, and I think that a big company is the best place for it to be a big success"
"My son, your two previous books were an enormous success. And you have other two books on the way, one of which is really good, while the other, well it could get better" She said with a teasing smile, while pointing the 'Kung fu panda' book... "I know I've told you before about going with a bigger company in the future, but does it really matter where do you publish your book? Especially with the success you have had"
"Well, not really. I just REALLY think that it will be more beneficial for me if I do that" I looked at her pleading for a positive answer.
What I said was the true, but not by the instinct nature I conveyed. I needed the book to be released quick, before someone even thinks on making the same one. And a big company was the better alternative for this situation.
"... Ok, it's not a big deal after all. So stop with the puppy eyes" She relented. "But I'm curious, what book are you planning to write?... That bit of information will be my condition to help you" My mother said with a smirk on her face. And I just smiled back, I knew that she was just joking around after all.
"It's called 'Harry Potter', and is basically about a secret magic school for wizards" I finally said when I failed to resist my mother pressure. I'd swear that she has some kind of power, if I didn't knew better.
"That sounds interesting... Your imagination never cease to amaze me my son" She said with a pleased tone.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
felmend
felmend I have not thought of a schedule, but I don't think that I'll publish a chapter a day for long.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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