How Comics Work

"There's a million books on how comics are put together, but none from the master storyteller behind the greatest graphic novel of all time. This is Orson Welles giving you a movie tutorial. If you're serious about this business this should be sitting on your desk." Mark Millar, writer/co-creator of Kingsman: The Secret Service, Kick-Ass, Wanted, Civil War "Essential reading." Garth Ennis, co-creator of Preacher, The Boys, Crossed, Hitman and writer of Hellblazer and The Punisher "I would have to say this is the comic book equivalent to Charles Darwin's Origin of Species." Forbidden Planet International A masterclass taught by Britain's first Comics Laureate , Dave Gibbons, this is the most authoritative guide on how comics are made today. Packed full of rare and unpublished material from Gibbons' archive it reveals insider tips on how comics such as 2000 AD and Watchmen were made. Written in collaboration with award-winning writer and editor Tim Pilcher, this unique guide takes you through each stage of the comic's creation process, from scriptwriting, to moving through character and superhero design, to lettering and colouring and finally on to covers and logo design. Throughout this insightful course are real-life examples of Gibbons' art, revealing how he solved actual problems with practical solutions, and unique behind-the-scenes insights into the creative process. Learn the stages of layout and page planning through the initial designs of Give Me Liberty; discover Gibbons handy tips for lettering using never-before-seen examples from The Originals; and find out the secrets of successful writing with sample scripts from The World's Finest and The Secret Service.

This anthology explores tensions between the individualistic artistic ideals and the collective industrial realities of contemporary cultural production with eighteen all-new chapters presenting pioneering empirical research on the complexities and controversies of comics work. Art Spiegelman. Alan Moore. Osamu Tezuka. Neil Gaiman. Names such as these have become synonymous with the medium of comics. Meanwhile, the large numbers of people without whose collective action no comic book would ever exist in the first place are routinely overlooked. Cultures of Comics Work unveils this hidden, global industrial labor of writers, illustrators, graphic designers, letterers, editors, printers, typesetters, publicists, publishers, distributors, translators, retailers, and countless others both directly and indirectly involved in the creative production of what is commonly thought of as the comic book. Drawing upon diverse theoretical and methodological perspectives, an international and interdisciplinary cohort of cutting-edge researchers and practitioners intervenes in debates about cultural work and paves innovative directions for comics scholarship.

Chester Brown reinvents the comic book medium to create the critically acclaimed historical biography Louis Riel. Brown won the Harvey Awards for best writing and best graphic novel for his compelling, meticulous, and dispassionate retelling of the charismatic, and perhaps insane, nineteenth-century Metis leader's life. Brown coolly documents with dramatic subtlety the violent rebellion on the Canadian prairie led by Riel, an embattled figure in Canadian history, regarded by some as a martyr who died in the name of freedom, while others consider him a treacherous murderer.

Beloved cartoonist Robert Fun has earned a devoted following for his circle-shaped newspaper comic strip, celebrating the wholesome American family by drawing inspiration from his real home life... but the Fun Family bears some dark secrets. As their idyllic world collapses and the kids are forced to pick up the pieces, can they escape the cycle of art imitating life imitating art? In his debut graphic novel, Benjamin Frisch presents a surreal deconstruction of childhood, adulthood, and good old American obsession.

Traces the 3,000 year history of storytelling through pictures, discussing the language and images used.

As the sun sets on the 1970s, the spirit of the Love Generation still lingers among the aging hippies of one "intentional community" high in the Ozarks. But what's missing? Under impossibly close scrutiny, two families wrestle with long-repressed secrets... while deep within those Arkansas hills, something monstrous stirs, ready to feast on village whispers. National Book Award-winner Nate Powell returns with a haunting tale of intimacy, guilt, and collective amnesia.

Offers undergraduate students with an understanding of the comics medium and its communication potential. This book deals with comic books and graphic novels. It focuses on comic books because in their longer form they have the potential for complexity of expression.

Presents instructions for aspiring cartoonists on the art form's key techniques, sharing concise and accessible guidelines on such principles as capturing the human condition through words and images in a minimalist style.