Comics: A Brave New World

For those of you who saw the Holy Homework, Batman! Comics in the Classroom! presentation at in-service, the powerpoint is now available online. It includes a useful, partially annotated bibliography for those interested in exploring the subject further. You can access the presentation through the Faculty Information link on the Library's Home Page, where you will also find information on how to make student research projects more successful, the value of scheduling research instruction to improve student success, how to put materials and textbooks on reserve and the advantages to your students of doing so, and how to request that library purchase specific materials.

The possibilities for enjoying and working with comics have multiplied radically with the internet. Just as comics themselves have undergone a revolution in content, style and genre, the ways in which people can interact with them have as well. Interested in finding comics? Various comics can be read online, from contemporary strip comics at Comics.com to some of the more obscure (and justifiably so -- yes, I'm referring to you Yank and Doodle) Golden Age titles. Then check The Webcomic List, an archive catalog of regularly updated web comics that provides rankings, user comments, a most recent update posting, and a forum for discussions related to web comic topics. (Webcomics you may want to investigate: xkcd, 1.00 FTE, and The Oatmeal (off-color but funny).

Tools to Create Comics

Even people who regard themselves as non-artists have tools that enable them to create comics and comic books online. And depending upon the nature of what users want to do, the degree of sophistication of the results can be amazing. For example, Marvel provides a site that lets users write their own comic book or comic using templates of characters, backgrounds, etc. As with any tool of this nature, options are strictly controlled. The characters are restricted in terms of poses and are all in teenage motifs. Similar sites that let users play around with familiar characters are the South Park Create an Avatar, which let's you assemble a South Park character that looks any way you want it too, and Simpsonize Me or the Create a Simpsons Avatar from the Simpsons Movie site, which let you turn yourself into a Simpsons character. HeroMachine 2.5 lets you create your own Superhero, while Joystiq Mii Characters lets you create Miis (as used in Wii games) that can move free from the video game.

Want panel templates to use yourself or to give to students for comic project? The web provides multiples sources. Comic strip printables offers a variety of non-standard layouts in addition to a full complement of more traditional panel patterns. The Create a Comic Project's Template page has further non-standard panels to add to your collection. Here is a simulated full script for a comic book that instead explains how the manuscript functions to guide the artwork. The Read.Write.Think Project has a Comic Creator that enables users to assemble a very simple comic using standard elements. Of even more use, potentially, is the planning sheet sheet, which can guide novice strip writers through the process of creation. A much better simple construction tool is Make Beliefs Comix creator, which lets users change characters emotions and add other elements that are more important to older potential cartoonists.

Toondoo is comic creation with a flexible range of options. The site that lets users participate as individuals or lets educators subscribe for extremely reasonable rates based on time and number of users. The educator option enables instructors too create social networks, embed the site elsewhere, get additional clip art with an educational focus, customize their clip art and monitor the site in ways not available to individual users.

Especially for Teachers

TeachingComics.org is a web site that while primarily focused on material for those teaching about comics has plenty of useful resources for those who are instead teaching with comics. The handouts and exercises both contain very valuable resources to increase both an instructor's and students' understanding of the medium. Want more information about comics as a form? Here are some good sites to investigate: Artbomb.net (check out Jessica Abel's quick introduction) and Comics Worth Reading.

And in time for Halloween...

A couple of free creepy Halloween comic books online!