Graphic novels and comics appear to be simple in execution but dig below the surface and you'll find that they are extremely complex. A number of elements work hand in hand to make comics work as a medium. What are those elements? How do they work together? And how can I use those elements in the development of my own comic? Arboreal was my senior thesis and my foray into the world of comics through the lens of design. Essentially, I researched and reverse engineered the medium in order to fully understand it before using an original narrative to create a graphic novel concept pitch packet in the form of a booklet. Comics and graphic novels are a passion of mine and one day I hope to bring Arboreal to completion.
A painstaking amount of time and effort was put into researching the medium of comics. Sources will be listed at the end of the page.
One of the key sources for the project was Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics trilogy. These books put names and descriptions on comic elements and made for an easier time organizing research and diving deeper into elements of the medium. Some important takeaways from researching. these elements could be boiled down to three main things that make the medium what it is.
Artists exist on a triangular spectrum with their art being categorized anywhere between the three points of realism, representation, and abstraction.
A term coined by McCloud, closure in comics refers to implication, or the portrayal of time and motion in a static visual medium.
The way words interact with panels and panels interact with words.
The project resulted in a pitch packet, a collection of documents the artist/author would show a publisher with the goal of being published. Due to variance in testimonies and publisher requirements, I consolidated the information on pitch packets I found and created my own set of requirements to navigate for the project. My pitch packet consists of a logline (story summary of a couple sentences, a full story summary (which in my case is a rough draft), sample spreads, and an iconic image.
Alongside the folklore of Celtic and Norse mythology, a lot of the media I consume influenced my interest in the medium and the original narrative. I constructed a mood board to reflect my influences.
An isolationist monk with eldritch power must leave seclusion to track down the one she believes is responsible for massacring her order, while contending with the authority of the Ministry, tension between the Human and Si species and the looming presence of an interdimensional threat.
The Prime Elder--a large, immobile tree-like creature that is born from the petrifaction of an eldritch entity--creates the universe. It creates five planes to house its failed creations in the form of nature and wildlife, including a race of giant stone golems known as the Fomorians. Through trial and error the Elder creates a divine chosen people in its image who have a mixture of tree-like, insectoid, and humanoid features, the Aosi. The Aosi have the ability to control nature and the elements through an ability called “Weaving”, which is tied to their conception through the blood of the Elder. One Aosi in an act of hubris uses the blood of the Elder and the flesh of his own people to create a derivative race, humans. For his crime, the Aosi are cast out of Mell, the divine plane, and lose their divinity, turning into the Tuasi. The Tuasi blame the humans for their fall and humans live as a lower, serving class to the Tuasi. The humans revolt against their creators and learn that through using the blood of the Tuasi they can harness their same power of weaving. Through these new blood rituals, and massive sacrifice, humans unintentionally tear a hole into the outer dimension, Abheis, where the Elder originally lived before creating the universe. Soul energy consuming Eldritch creatures are let loose into reality. This event comes to be known as the “Breach”. The humans and Tuasi unite against this new threat, during which the Elder unlocks humanity’s latent ability to weave. Special humans also begin to surface, known as Aberrants. Aberrants, born with large amounts of special strains of the Elder’s blood, have abilities closer to those of the eldritch creatures with the power to control more abstract concepts like matter and the subconscious without adhering to the laws of nature. After a long war, the breach is contained. Aberrant sects are established on every plane, secluded from greater society. They train in their monasteries in preparation for another breach to occur. Over the years they grow complacent to their purpose and fade into myth due to their isolationist ideals. Humans are exiled to their own plane in a tense treaty with the Tuasi. Isolated, they initially struggle to survive on their own but make great strides in understanding Weaving. The humans unite under a coalition, and the Ministry of Resin Research and Regulation is established as an agency of the coalition government before splintering off as an independent faction. Humans invent a technology-focused school of weaving that has the ability to manipulate complex concepts beyond those of nature and the base elements. Eventually, the humans breach their exile due to overpopulation and enter a second war with the Tuasi, which ends in a stalemate and establishment of a “No Man’s Land” frontier plane, home to both Human and Tuasi. Namara, one of few Tuasi who now work under the Ministry, departs on a Ministry led expedition into Abheis, accompanied by a number of Aberrants, including Ciar. The expedition ends in disaster, with Namara enthralled by one of the powerful eldritch beasts that lurk there. He orchestrates a series of events, with the intent of bringing about a second breach in order for the eldritch entities to consume the universe and the remaining power of the Elder. He manipulates Ciar by initiating a purge of abbeys where aberrants who went on the expedition reside, falsely accusing them of being influenced in some way by the creatures of Abheis. This results in the deaths of a majority of aberrants, including Linn and Ciar’s fellow Aberrants, spurring Linn to pursue Ciar in a quest for revenge with assistance from Ciar’s estranged brother, Rand and an agent of the Ministry, Siobhan. Namara intends to attempt to create a false god through fusing two aberrants (Linn and Ciar) as a facsimile of the eldritch creatures their powers originate from. He succeeds, resulting in the deaths of the two in order to create a new, singular being which brings about a second breach. This being is oblivious to its purpose and is presumed dead by Namara. Through its own learning, it manages to regain the memories of its past lives, and seeks out its former allies in an attempt to repair the damage done by the eldritch creatures and reseal the breach.
A number of six page scenes were sketched out to be considered for the final three sample spreads. Pictured below is the refined final selection alongside the original sketches.
The iconic image is a visual representation of your narrative that should "summarize" it in a way. However, I doubled the purpose of the iconic image with that of a cover image as well. For Arboreal, I wanted the cover to evoke a reverent, prophetic feeling; that these two characters fates are tied. This goal is what eventually caused me to decide on the main stained glass visual theme. Everything in the design of the image is considered from imagery to color palette.
These elements came together to form a physical concept booklet. The type of paper printed on was researched and considered however due to time constraints and product sourcing issues, the goals for printing weren't quite met. The cover was to be printed on 80# glossy cover paper while the inside was 60# text. Test booklets were printed anyways with available resources.
This book gives an overview of the elements that make the medium what it is, and discusses how these elements interact with one another in synergy. It also talks about the nuances of the medium and how certain elements work under the surface.
This book gives an eastern perspective of the comic making process, specifically that of acclaimed mangaka Hirohiko Araki, one of my inspirations. He discusses processes of narrative development, character writing, and the process of putting ideas to paper. Lots of design-adjacent thinking in this one.
A more in depth look at the process of making comics and how to apply things discussed in the first book, Understanding comics. Discusses various types of panel-to-panel transitions, integrating panel shape and presence into the narrative, and more.
A look at how the art form of comics is shifting in real time. Things like new formats and medium are discussed such as web comics.
Graphic novel authored and drawn by my professor and project consultant, Paul Sizer, an example of a graphic novel made with design principles in consideration.
Example of larger format graphic novel with a unique art style. Puts into practice things discussed in other sources.
Comprehensive guide to character design. Echoes lots of general design sentiment, and gives good examples of the character design process and real designs.
All of the above websites have information on what a pitch packet contains. There are a lot of variables that change depending on who you’re asking, so my deliverables are a condensed, substantial version of a pitch packet appropriate for the project.
Overview of the comic medium in the eyes of the godfather of comics, Will Eisner. Scott McCloud cited Eisner’s books within his own that are on this list.
A compendium of information regarding cartooning and caricature relating to the medium. Has a lot of material for study in terms of stylized anatomy and expression work.
A deeper look at the writing and narrative aspects of graphic novels and comics. Eisner talks more about what writing a good narrative is about and using elements of the medium effectively in the context of narrative.
Podcast episode featuring Scott McCloud. They discuss the medium of comics and McCloud reiterates on many of his ideas he talks about in his books, while giving meaningful examples and comparisons for context.
Another of Paul Sizer's novels, this one with color and other additional design elements carefully considered. Paul uses color and extra design elements such as embellishments in the margins to enhance the presentation of the narrative.
Masterclass of graphic storytelling, Maus is a well-known graphic novel for both its graphic acuity in both design and narrative as well as the controversy surrounding the novel.
New comic series inspired by an open source novel. Inspired by the art and colorwork, good example of a modern comic.
Lecture by author Kurt Vonnegut for Case Reserve University. He speaks about narratives and the “shapes” that they take by moving from positive to negative points in the story.
One of Paul’s most recent comics. Uses colors and color grading to serve narrative, even more so than bpm. Design of the overall booklet is considered more than ever, especially within the pages.
The first graphic novel I was exposed to. 10 book series that can only be described as a modern epic, with a main cast of strange cartoon characters juxtaposed by their realistic, rough environment and people they interact with.
Manga that is a great example of different points of “the triangle” diagram featured in McCloud’s Understanding Comics. Uses a variety of art styles, representing certain characters like the main character Punpun and his family as cartoon/abstract birds and Punpun’s inner monologue as a realistic halftoned portrait of a Japanese man.
