All about the books
A graphic novel is “a story
told in words and pictures ordered sequentially, in book form” Will Eisner is
reputed to have coined the phrase in late 1970s, though this is disputed.
Even as early as the 1940s there were some
comic books in libraries.
1968 Bill Katz recommended
adding comics to libraries (‘Magazine’ column in Library Journal)
1980s – more libraries and educators began to use comic
books in education
1983 Cartoons and Comics in the Classroom : A Reference
Guide for Teachers and Librarians by James L. Thomas
1990s more articles appearing in Booklist, Library
Journal and School Library Journal
1994 VOYA offered regular coverage of graphic novels
Review column named “Graphically Speaking” in 1994
1992 Pullitzer prize awarded to Maus, Volume II by
Art Spiegelman.
The graphic novel started
appearing in American libraries 2002
2003 Booklist started
publishing a ‘Graphic Novels Spotlight’
Note, the graphic
novel is a format rather than a genre.
Some classic
examples:
Marjane Satrapis: Persepolis
Brian Talbot The Tale of One Bad Rat
Judd Winick’s Pedro and Me
Note the great
tradition of French graphics - not just for struggling readers, e.g. Tin Tin,
Asterix. Picture books for adults are also popular in French-speaking
countries.
Manga
Manga literally means “humorous pictures”
It covers all genres except superheroes
It contains casual nudity and toilet humour – even in books
for children.
It comes from Japan – hence you tend to read the books
backwards.
In Japan, it is read by most people but in the Western world
it is more popular amongst teens.
Anime is the film version. In the west, manga is based on
anime, in Japan anime is based on manga.
Some characteristics of graphic novels and manga
There is an etiquette and a grammar that comes from the
comic tradition.
The pictures may help less fluent reader absorb text but
only if they understand the conventions of the comic book. However, manga is
read by both fluent and reluctant readers.
It uses a special typography.
There is a balance in the combination of pictures.
There are some “silent” pictures – how does this compare
with film?
Vocabulary
There are icons. Certain pictures always mean certain things.
They offer a simplified reality.
The “mask” refers to facial expressions. Again, this is a
language we learn.
The reader becomes the cartoon character.
Often, the characters are two-dimensional cartoon but the backgrounds
are three dimensional and realistic.
Moving from cell to cell
From panel to panel we get:
- moment to moment
- action to action 65%
- subject to subject 20%
- scene to scene 15%
- aspect to aspect
- non sequitur
Those produced in English are all pretty similar. Japanese ones
are quite different with much of 5. Maybe this is because of the length? It is
interesting to study how the passing of time is shown.
Six steps to creating the graphic novel
- First you think of your idea.
- Then you decide on the form.
- How are you going to include idiom? How will you make the abstract concrete?
- Your graphic novel needs just as much structure as your prose novel.
- You apply your craft (writing and drawing).
- You work being aware of the graphic surface.
Is this valid for all creative acts? For comics, graphic novels
and manga there is a movement between the mind- hand- paper– eyes –mind.
Deconstructing a graphic novel
Using the text in front of you, look for the following:
- Is all script UPPER CASE BOLD FOR EMPHASIS (but actually not always)?
- Is the art sequential?
- Is it sequential visual art?
- How does pace do here for comics what time does for film?
- How is time shown generally?
- How are icons used?
- How is reality simplified?
- Can you identify examples of the mask?
- Whose point of view is this story?
- Which role does the reader have?
- How do the characters contrast with the background?
- Does every picture read towards the bottom of the cell?
- Look at how the story moves from panel to panel. Can you identify:
- moment to moment
- action to action
- subject to subject
- scene to scene
- aspect to aspect
- non sequitur
- What about the effect of:
- Angry reds
- Placid blues
- Anxious textures
- Liquid shapes
- Quiet lines
- Cold greens
- Shapes of speech bubbles
Creating the Graphic Novel
Move through these stages:
- idea
- form
- idiom
- structure
- craft
- surface
BUT – also remember the other aspects of story structure,
showing telling, dialogue, pace etc.
Submitting a graphic novel
Normally you only send a synopsis and a few pages of
text. You don’t normally complete the
text until you have a contract.
