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Storybook format for webcomics, does it work?
PulpTrash
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Hey everybody, I'm new to this forum so hopefully I'm not breaking any rules and what not. I will tread lightly. Anyways, for my new project I decided to use a storybook format similar to a children's book. My question is 'does it work as a narrative' and 'do you think it can still be considered a graphic novel/comic book'? Maybe it's simply an illustrated novel, I don't know.
Here are three pages from the book, let me know what you think. I'm a masochist so bring on the harsh criticism.
Here are three pages from the book, let me know what you think. I'm a masochist so bring on the harsh criticism.
PulpTrash on
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Well, tell us more about your project; what do you want to do with it? I suppose that you're printing it because it says "Staple here".
I'll be judging purely the technical aspect of graphic design, so I'll skip what I feel about your project idea and focus only on the visual aspect.
I'm not liking the over all appearance, it looks somewhat like Frankenstein's monster. There is no consistency in the style or elements that you're putting together. There is a black,squigly, uneven frame with a feathered edge and then crisp vectors that line up neatly. The images are also framed in a perfect square that's thrown off by the by the previously mentioned black, squigly, uneven frame. I'd replace the black frame for a cleaner looking one or give the same treatment to the rest of the elements otherwise it's gonna look like a jumble of elements from the web put together thoughtlessly. Why is the stripe on page 5 stretching way to the left but it is centered perfectly on the rest of the pages?
This, however, is only part of my grief. The layout itself is boring. It's a letter/A4 style document with Garamond type. Garamond is a fantastic type face, but it looks strikingly similar to Times New Roman. This combination of page format and type face make it feel like someone just chose the default settings in a word processing program. As a matter of fact, this looks like it was done in a word processing program.
Graphic designers need to justify their value by creating something that is beyond the skills of laypeople, if your layout can be accurately recreated in Microsoft Word or Power Point, then there is no purpose in having a graphic designer. This is my personal measure which I use to push myself to make me valuable as a resource.
I'd experiment with different page sizes. Try making a giant squared page or something that is not a commercialy available paper size. I also encourage you to experiment designing on page spreads (i.e. one page next to the other) rather than single pages. Books are not individual sheets, they are spreads and sometimes what looks good as a single sheet doesn't look good as a spread.
I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say you built this in Photoshop (judging not only by the feathered frame, but also by how the type is rendered). If this is correct, I highly encourage you to give InDesign a chance. It's not as intuitive but if you're familiar with the workings of Photoshop you should be able to figure out what most things do. InDesign gives you a myriad of tools that you won't find anywhere else, the most relevant to you being the ability to make multiple page documents in single pages or spreads.
I believe that if you try a different layout, give more thought to the arrangement of elements and use your typography more effectively this can look very good! I'd also avoid using black as a main background because you may end up with streaky black spots when you print... unless you're using a press, which will leave black resideu on your reader's fingers.
Thanks again for the comments.
I'm confused, is this an online comic or a print project? I suppose it's both! I would't go with a vertical layout if you're doing something for the web, as most people have horizontal monitors. I would also not recommend InDesign for web projects.
Now, I'm not saying get rid of the wiggly edge, I'm saying make things match. The edge looks very rough and hand made, while the rest of the things have a clean and sterilized look. You could change the edge for a cleaner look or you can change the rest of the page for a "wigglier" look.
As for the font, Century Schoolbook is nice. I can see you like Serif typefaces, they have a very classic feel. I would also say, look at Clarendon, it is similar to Century Schoolbook with it's bracketed serifs, but it has more options such as Light, Heavy, Black, Condensed, also as a bonus there is a webfont version available so you can keep consistency in your style even on the web!
Using a seriffed font does make sense, but you might consider using something with a more distressed look.
A few that come to mind:
http://www.dafont.com/hand-times.font
http://www.dafont.com/gf-halda.font
http://www.dafont.com/royal-pain.font
http://www.font-zone.com/download.php?fid=331
Also, I think the irregularity of the border works, but the feathered edge doesn't at all. The feathering is so regular that it destroys the gestural/expressive quality of the blot of black and reveals a bit too much about how it was made.
As for what I intend for the project, initially I wanted to print up pamphlets but then realized that using a print on demand service would be actually cheaper than printing copies at my local printer. Then I realized a POD service wouldn't be able to handle the low-key images in my book and most would be printed as pure black, not to mention the problem of ghosting and streaks. Now I think I'm simply going to have it for free on my website and as a pdf/kindle/other e-reader format, also for free. I kind of think that's the best option for this project.
What do you guys think of the picture/prose format, does it flow, or would it be better as a comic book? It's kind of a weird question, I'm just wondering if a book like SANDMAN: The Dream Hunters by Yoshitaka Amano is as much a graphic novel as SANDMAN: The Dream Hunters by P. Craig Russell. I guess I'm wondering if Amano's version is actually simply a novella with illustrations, where P. Craig Russell's version is actually a graphic novel since it tells the actions in the story through sequential images. Maybe I'm over thinking it, I guess it doesn't matter, I like both versions for different reasons.
I switched to HANDtimes font and it really improved the book, thanks. I'm always amazed how something like font can totally change the feeling of a project.