Making Nonfiction Comics
A Guide for Graphic Narrative
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
The definitive guide to writing, drawing, and publishing nonfiction comics from award-winning creators Shay Mirk and Eleri Harris—"absolutely essential reading" (Nate Powell)
Making Nonfiction Comics is an accessible guide to nonfiction comics perfect for graphic novel readers, writers, and of course, aspiring comics artists. This new classic is a must-have for readers of Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics and Lynda Barry’s Making Comics.
Sarah Shay Mirk and Eleri Mai Harris, award-winning graphic journalists and longtime editors of the critically acclaimed graphic journalism site the Nib, have compiled the perfect field guide to graphic journalism while showcasing valuable skills and practices for creating nonfiction comics.
Mixing comics, prose, infographics, illustrations, and interviews with some of the world’s most influential nonfiction comics creators, Harris and Mirk introduce readers to nonfiction visual stories while also articulating the standards and ethics around blending traditional journalism with the visual language of comics.
Featuring contributions from Derf Backderf, Box Brown, Thi Bui, Nicole Georges, Malaka Gharib, Nate Powell, Kristen Radtke, Victoria Ying, and more.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Former The Nib editors Mirk (Guantanamo Voices) and Harris (Be Gay, Do Comics) deliver a handy-dandy how-to for aspiring and established creators of fact-based comics. The various types of graphic nonfiction are helpfully broken down: graphic journalism, history comics, personal essay, etc. Each chapter offers spot-on tips and advice on topics including time management, research, and interviewing subjects, including that "all sources are fallible" and to "think about whether your sources represent the diverse reality of the world." There's also plenty of space devoted to the nuts and bolts of drawing, layout, and page design. Among their nuggets of wisdom, Mirk and Harris urge artists to use visual metaphors to jazz things up: "Just because it's nonfiction doesn't mean it isn't creative... push yourself not to be literal." Interviews and sidebars include an expansive array of expert viewpoints from more than a dozen accomplished creators, including Thi Bui, Malaka Gharib, Sarah Glidden, Maia Kobabe, Joe Sacco, Whit Taylor, and Josh Trujillo. Harris's appealing—and not-overly-literal—drawings keep the proceedings lively. Full of sound advice and brimming over with energy, humor, and passion, this will make an indispensable addition to the bookshelves of comics creatives of all stripes.
