I know we've thrown around the words of graphic novel and comic book in class but I wondered if and what the technical differences were, or if by popular discourse they had converged, as to be synonymous. Here is what I found:
Many comic books eventually get republished into a book format, sometimes referred to as a trade paperback. V for Vendetta is an example of this; it was first released as ten different comic book issues, but is now compiled and sold in one binding. This single bound volume would then only be available after an entire story arc or a whole series has been published. You could also have syndicated comic strips that, after their complete run, are bound in a singular collection and sold, like Calvin and Hobbes. Like magazines, comic books are typically given an ISSN number, being suggestive of a shorter shelf life while graphic novels will posses an ISBN, like any standard book that have a longer shelf life. With most graphic novels you get just one story from beginning to end, but there can be sequels, as with Maus and Persepolis. Comics may start in the middle of things, at the beginning or end, but you never get an entire story in one comic book, they always require subsequent serial issues for completion.
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I find this very interesting. I never really sat down to think about the differences between a graphic novel and a comic. To be honest, I thought they were pretty much the same thing which can't entirely be ruled out. The concept of them, pictures along with text, are the same but there is like you said a broader difference between them. Comics do tend to be written in a series and aren't as long as novels and graphic novels do tend to be just like regular books in comic form.
ReplyDeleteI was deeply confused by these words. I thought that they were interchangeable but now I am thinking that they are a little different. I haven't heard a definite answer/definition for these words. I might be confused because I really don't read comics. The idea that comics can start anywhere in the story is interesting but I can also see a "graphic memoir" doing the same with a purpose. I don't want to offend any hardcore comic or graphic memoir fans out there!
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