Getting Graphic
with William S. Dean

New Times for Readers & Writers

Welcome to 2008 and the spinning, vertigo-inducing New Age of the graphic novel. The struggle for dominance is over. Old school print-only books are not dead by any means, but peaceful co-existence is achieved. Doubt me? Then take a stroll into your local Borders or Barnes & Noble and take a gander at the shelves where the majority of today’s readers stand browsing or engrossed in glossy, larger than standard publications. And don’t be surprised if you see names familiar in any and every genre. From horror to science-fiction/fantasy, from literature and fine art to erotica, graphic novels are the medium and the message is clear: You want us.

Erotica Readers & Writers Association has lightly covered graphic novels in the past with brief reviews and overviews (Graphic Novels: Vividly explicit), but, frankly, today that’s not enough. As readers, you want to go behind the scenes and keep up with what’s coming at you. As writers, you need to know the bones and flesh, to explore the creative minds that are leading you, and the publishers who want you in their pantheon. You want it, so, we’re launching a brand spanking new section that will be your track into graphic and adult novels.

First off, let’s be clear that the very term “graphic novel” is a fluid thing. Like any genre or medium, it’s self-defining. That means it is constantly changing, morphing, altering, adapting, and expanding to embrace the concepts imaginative writers, artists, editors, and publishers are bringing to the reading and buying public. One of the all-encompassing adjectives that best applies right now is “pervasive.” That goes for content as well as promotion.

For example, once considered a small niche, graphic novels are now so prominent that for the past few years smart Hollywood producers and project creators have been plumbing the genre for big-budget screeners like Sin City, Constantine, and Hitman. Like interactive multi-player games, graphic novels are becoming the stepping stones into your big screen entertainment options. Small screen, too, as IDW Publishing, for example, promotes its own tie-in trio of books inserted in the newly released DVD of 30 Days of Night.

Interactivity and promotion are keystones for graphic novel publishers and creators. Home-printable posters of the artwork from new graphic books is just one of the innovative ways of bringing product right down to the grassroots where readers and buyers live. Podcasting, too, is becoming more and more prominent, with artist-writer interviews, video of art panels, and up-to-the-minute presentations of forthcoming works.

One of the better movers and shakers online is The Graphic Novel Archive where you can roam through over 9,000 graphic novels and collected editions and subscribe to their free newsletter.

In the spring, Harry Abrams, Inc. will be bringing out the long-awaited Erotic Comics : A Graphic History from Tijuana Bibles to Zap Comix. Considered classics in the genre, the old Tijuana bibles date from the 1920s and 1930s with sexual adventures featuring cartoon characters such as Popeye, Betty Boop, and Blondie. Zap Comix were the harbingers of today’s “adult comic books” featuring stories and art from R. Crumb and tales of The Furry Freak Brothers, Fritz the Cat, and Mr. Natural. If you’re too young to have participated live in the psychedelic, free-love generation of the 1960s, this is your chance to get a taste of the mindset and get your groove on.

Icarus Publishing, which specializes in Manga and Anime graphic books is already promoting its content in bit-torrent download format with over 100 pages of uncensored stories and art. How much more media savvy can you get when graphic novels are becoming available via bit-torrent?

It’s not merely the latest flash node either, as graphic novel courses are popping up prominently in university and college English courses. Professor Philip Nel’s English 440 is a good example of graphic novel classes.

The London Book Fair, scheduled for April, 2008, will feature over 50 graphic novel publishers, literary representatives, and trade commissions from the United States, India, Italy, the Russian federation, Germany, Australia, Canada, France, Belgium, and Spain, as well as across the UK.

All this means is that if you’re not already thinking about, reading, writing, or creating art for the graphic novel medium, you’re simply not cutting-edge. Now, there’s nothing wrong with old school, we all appreciate the traditions and quality, but to paraphrase a famous gentleman, the choice is now yours—whether to be one of the giants, or to stand on the giants’ shoulders to look into new vistas opening up in graphic novels.

See you next month…

William S. Dean
January 2008

Recommended premium online sources:

• Adult Cartoon Zone has a stunning collection of everything in the adult graphic world.

• Hentai DVX has an extensive library of uncensored full length hentai movies and clips, all downloadable.

• Manga HQ features hardcore Japanese manga, yaoi, premium series, and more.

• Adult Comics World is a cartoon lover's heaven. Includes Bill Ward collection and much, much more.

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