Graphic Novel - Spring 2019 - Svab

Scene From A Book/Poem/Song - DUE Tues., March 26

Your next major assessment is a creative project where you will create a single graphic narrative page that depicts a scene from a book, a poem, or song. The goal is for you to create a piece of paper that graphically depicts a scene from a book/poem/song you have read. This is an adapted or interpretive work, not a wholly original one. When planning your work, consider all of the strategies, techniques, and narrative details we have discussed in our works so far, including the use of text, captions, and dialogue; bleeding, frames and panel design; and perspective/camera angle, etc. Since your only major limitation is that you can use only one page, consider what information from your scene is crucial, and what can be left out. You can use any tools at your disposal, including, but not limited to: ink, pencil, paint, pastel, collage, photography, Adobe Photoshop (or Illustrator or InDesign), or any graphic web tools. You can even use the little magnetic dudes we played with on the board.

Your final product will be a piece of paper that clearly depicts a scene from a book you have read. Your page should be clear and legible, informative and interesting to look at, and demonstrate the time you took to carefully craft it. Your work will be shared with a broader audience (online). So choose, think, and plan carefully.

Previous examples:

Spring 2015

Spring 2016

Spring 2017

Spring 2018

(Scroll down for the slideshow on each page.)

Some rules:

• Your chosen scene should be from a book/song/poem you have read before, and it doesn’t have to be a book you read for school. Avoid picture books (Dr. Seuss is already visual, so making your own version of a page from The Cat In The Hat is redundant), and avoid anything that will have too many visual references for your broader audience (like books that became famous movies, like Lord of the Rings or the Harry Potter books).
• A scene shouldn’t be more than a page or two from a book, depending on the context. Don’t choose something that will contain way too much information, characters, or description. Splash pages are acceptable, but you need to make sure you fully depict the theme and tone of your selection.
• If choosing a scene from a book that has been made into a movie (e.g., The Great Gatsby) avoid using the film(s) as a reference. I.e., don’t print out pictures of Leo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby from the Internet and just glue them on a page. Use your own imagination and visualizations of the scene to inform your work. In fact, it may be better to choose a scene from a book that doesn’t have a film version (or at least one you haven’t seen).
• Choose a style and stick with it. If you’re using a web-based tool like StoryBoard That or Bitstrips, use only that tool. That will give you uniformity and a certain signature look. If you want to use only stick figures, for a simple, clean look, that’s great. Stick with that. Choose something that works with your interests and skill set.
• Feel free to work with black and white only, or integrate colors as you see fit.
• It will probably make the most sense for your text to come from the scene itself (whether dialogue or description), but if you want to work sans^[1] text, that may be cool as well.
• When turning in your completed page, attach a photocopy or printout of the scene text/poem/song lyrics.  
• Your page can be an 8 ½ x 11 in. normal piece of paper, or it can be larger, like a poster size.

Final Page Due: Tues., March 26

You’ll have time in class to work on this on Fri., March 22. If you’re planning on working by hand, bring any necessary materials you need (paper, pens, pencils, posterboard, markers, etc.).

Graphic Novel - Spring 2019 - Svab - Scene From A Book/Poem/Song - Grading Rubric

Your grade will be computed out of 100 points--25 points each in four categories.

Content: Does your page depict a scene as part of a greater narrative? Does it cover too much ground, just enough, or too little? Were the included details (both visual and text) significant, and how do any omissions affect the page?

Style: What medium did you use? Did you use it effectively? Do you have a uniform style throughout the page? If you chose to use color, did you do it effectively and thoughtfully?

Layout: This category does not reward complexity; don’t think you need 27 weirdly-shaped panels just to look complicated. Instead: Are your panels artfully and thoughtfully arranged? Are they easy to follow? Do they contribute to, as opposed to distract from, the narrative?

Completeness/Neatness: Is your final page neat, organized, and printed out? Did you attach the original scene text (printed out or photocopied)? Is it pleasing to the eye? Or does it appear rushed?