With an industry amounting to 870 million dollars, graphic novels have a lot of appeal. A lot of original work has been produced in recent years, which has made graphic novels more popular. In addition, famous works like Agatha Christie’s novels have also been scripted and published in graphic form. There is no end to the possibilities of a graphic novel. But you need to get it just right to get an edge. Here are 5 tips to help you produce a top quality graphic novel.
1. Write an outline of the story
A good graphic novel must tell a good story. You need to have a tightly scripted story for it to make an impact. Write your story down before you begin work on the drawings. This will help you in structuring your novel properly and eliminating unnecessary extras. The written story will also be useful in serving as a guide to creating the novel. A good story is the basis of a good graphic novel, so take some time to establish a working script before anything else.
2. Be a good artist
Learn different methods to draw your panels. If you plan to work on your project with someone else, make sure you find someone who can complement your work. It is important that you focus on your strengths here. If you love drawing animals, but can’t work with landscapes, make sure that your story does not focus on landscapes but on animals. Try to cut down on the time spent in drawing with the help of different software tools. Understanding perspectives is essential for producing a graphic book, so experiment a little with them before you set down to work. And finally, learn about the details of how to represent human anatomy because it is one of the most important angles to producing a graphic novel, and also one of the most difficult.
3. Create thumbnails
Thumbnails are your friends. With thumbnails, you will be able to see the entire story worked out in the first and subsequent drafts. It is far easier to make corrections or improvements at this stage than at the final stage when all the artwork has already been completed. Thumbnails will help you get the feel of how the story reads. It is better to thumbnail the entire story and then read through it quickly, so you can easily point out things that need to be reworked. This might be one of those things that you are too lazy to do sometimes, but it saves you a lot of work in the end.
4. Consolidate
A graphic novel speaks to the reader with its images. Though the writing can be of importance, the story must not depend on the text. So avoid writing walls of text within the slides. Instead, concentrate on telling the story through the graphics. The entire action must be consolidated into the images and the story must flow freely. Consider the text and speech as an assisting tool rather than the main basis of the story.
5. Be aware and spread awareness
Sexism is the scourge of the graphic novel and comic book industry. Ever notice those voluptuous breasts popping out of the dress or the butt being pointedly shown from the best angle or even the crazy, impossible contortions that women in graphic novels seem to be able to perform? If you want to have a wide mass appeal, including from women, try drawing regular men and women. Put normal clothes on your heroines. Remember, there is a vast untapped audience of women out there who might just appreciate your effort to be different.
Image credit: Ana Ulin on flickr and reproduced under Creative Commons 2.0
Kavitha is a freelance content writer and French translator, and has been working in this field since 2008. She has degrees in computer applications and international business and has a background in business and international trade. She enjoys learning languages and is currently learning Japanese. Her interests vary from books and writing to travelling and history.