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1. Creative warm up
You have 5 mins to choose an personal item
from your bag and turn it into a character
• Explain your character
• Give your item a personality
• Human characteristics
• How does your character move
• What relationships does it have?

2. Comics and Graphic novels
Creative thinking and analysis

3. Today’s aim:
come up with ideas.

5. Types of comic book and graphic
novels

6. Comic strips
• A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in
panels
• Usually short at a page or less
• display brief humor or form a story, often with text in
balloons and captions.
• Strips are written and drawn by a comics
artist or cartoonist.
• As the name implies, comic strips can be humorous.
• Traditionally printed in black and white in newspapers
• Daily strips are smaller
• Sunday strips are larger like this one

7. Comics• 64 to 96 pages
• Thinner and printed like a magazine with
matte (not shiny) low quality paper
• Held together with staples
• Magazine with volumes and issue
numbers (periodical)
• A comic book may contain a single story, 2
stories, or as many as 3 or 4 stories
between its pages, which may or may not
all have the same characters.
• Lower cost (£3.00)

8. Graphic Novels
• A graphic novel is a book made up of comics content.
• Graphic novels are larger in content with 60- 500 pages
• Often bound like books rather than magazine style
• Higher quality glossy paper
• Usually contain a single story with the same cast
• Single publication
• Higher priced (£10)

9. Digital comics
• Comics or Graphic novels which
you can read using a digital
device.
• You can read digital comics on a
tablet, smartphone, or PC using
a variety of comic book
readers, some of which include
their own integrated stores.

10. Motion comics
• A motion comic (or animated comic) is a form
of comics combining elements of print comic
books and animation.
• Individual panels are expanded into a full shot
while sound effects, voice acting, and animation
are added to the original artwork.
• Motion comics are often released as short series
covering a story arc of a long running series or
animating a single film of a graphic novel.
• Comics are converted episodes

11. Comic strips
• A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in
panels
• Usually short at a page or less
• display brief humor or form a story, often with text in
balloons and captions.
• Strips are written and drawn by a comics
artist or cartoonist.
• As the name implies, comic strips can be humorous.
• Traditionally printed in black and white in newspapers
• Daily strips are smaller
• Sunday strips are larger like this one

12. Comics• 64 to 96 pages
• Thinner and printed like a magazine with
matte (not shiny) low quality paper
• Held together with staples
• Magazine with volumes and issue
numbers (periodical)
• A comic book may contain a single story, 2
stories, or as many as 3 or 4 stories
between its pages, which may or may not
all have the same characters.
• Lower cost (£3.00)

13. Graphic Novels
• A graphic novel is a book made up of comics content.
• Graphic novels are larger in content with 60- 500 pages
• Often bound like books rather than magazine style
• Higher quality glossy paper
• Usually contain a single story with the same cast
• Single publication
• Higher priced (£10)

14. Digital comics
• Comics or Graphic novels which
you can read using a digital
device.
• You can read digital comics on a
tablet, smartphone, or PC using
a variety of comic book
readers, some of which include
their own integrated stores.

15. Motion comics
• A motion comic (or animated comic) is a form
of comics combining elements of print comic
books and animation.
• Individual panels are expanded into a full shot
while sound effects, voice acting, and animation
are added to the original artwork.
• Motion comics are often released as short series
covering a story arc of a long running series or
animating a single film of a graphic novel.
• Comics are converted episodes

16. What are panels?
• How do we read them?
• Why are they different sizes?
• Are they different shapes?
• What affect does it have on
the pace of the graphic
novel?

17. How is Text used?
• Sound effects
• Speech
• Titles
• Expressions and
emotion

18. How is the story told?
• Visually
• With written text
• Emotions
• Characters

19. How is colour used?
• For mood
• to create atmosphere
• For contrast between light
and dark
• In comparison to other
comics
• For continuity throughout
• To identify objects and
characters

20. What do you think about the art?
• What is it? What is it about?
What is happening?
• Is it a realistic depiction?
• Have any parts been
exaggerated or distorted? If so,
why?
• How does it tell the story?
• What is the medium of the
work? (paint, pen, pencil)
• What is the shading like?

21. TASK: Individually write about the different types of
graphic novel and comic book and
Use examples that we have discussed
• Comic books
• Graphic novels
• Comic strips
• Motion comics
• Digital comics
• panelling,
• text,
• storyline,
• colour
• visual storytelling
• The art style

22. You should tackle your ideas like you
tackle a problem….
Creating Ideas and concepts is about thinking of ways to make what seems impossible,
possible.

23. What is a Concept?
It is a story
A concept is a story told with
two major parts:
- Content (what story you
want to tell)
- Form (how you want to tell
it)
In design and animation,
everything is a concept.
Everything tells a story.

24. TASK: generate ideas
• Mind map ideas for your comic book/ graphic
novel
• Fill out the story outline

25. Concept Designing

26. Concepts

27. TASK
Design a character using one of these shapes.

29. Brain writing (extending ideas not
criticising)
• In your groups come up with
3 ideas each (describe or
sketch)
• When I say you will pass your
concepts to the right and that
person will add, modify or
extend your ideas.
• After a few rounds we will
discuss ideas

30. Mind map out ideas for your comic/
graphic novel
• Come up with ideas for a
comic book or graphic
novel
• Think about:
- Characters
- Type of comic/ graphic
novel
- Story
- Setting
- Styles (dark, humour,
etc)