Drawing Words and Writing Pictures: Making Comics from Manga to Graphic Novels by Jessica Abel

by Jessica Abel

"A gold mine of essential information for every aspiring comics artist. Highly recommended." --Scott McCloud Drawing Words and Writing Pictures is a course on comic creation ? for college classes or for independent study ? that centers on storytelling and concludes with making a finished comic. With chapters on lettering, story structure, and panel layout, the fifteen lessons offered ? each complete with homework, extra credit activities and supplementary reading suggestions ? provide a solid introduction for people interested in making their own comics. Additional resources, lessons, and after-class help are available on the accompanying website, www.dw-wp.com.

Genres: Comics, Art, Nonfiction, Writing, Graphic Novels, Drawing, Reference

Library Binding

First published June 10, 2008

About the author

Author and coach Jessica Abel is the author of Growing Gills, Out on the Wire, La Perdida, and two textbooks about making comics, Drawing Words & Writing Pictures and Mastering Comics. Abel’s latest work of fiction is the Eisner-nominated Trish Trash: Rollergirl of Mars.

Reviews

[Vivian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is actually incredibly insightful with short lesson/information section followed by exercises for both groups and individuals without critique/collaborative feedback partners. If you don't have the resources or opportunity to take an art class then this is a fantastic substitute. It addresses everything an interested comic book artist could want from materials to layout to narrative to technique. I am legit impressed. Granted this isn't my particular cup of art, hence why I'm reading it--can't help it, I'm naturally curious. I would buy this for an emerging drawing artist as a resource.

[Laura Cushing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book from the library led me to one conclusion- I need to buy this book. There is just far too much useful material in it for me to digest in the period of a library loan. The book is set up like a course on drawing and writing comics - and I would love to be able to have my own copy so that I can follow that course and do all the exercises.

Definitely on my To Purchase list.

It's very well written and gives plenty of examples and exercises. There are even supplemental materials available for free on the book's website. It takes into account comic artists of all skill levels - even people who just draw stick figures can benefit from this book if they want to learn to make comics.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow. This book is so definitive that it's easy to get bogged down. Great resource, but if I relied on just this, I"d lose my mind and stop drawing comics altogether. More of a reference book than a how-to, at least for me.

I guess I do things the easy way -- pack of markers, regular office paper folded up, and a scanner! But it's nice to know all the "real" ways out there, too, and the examples and other tips are helpful.

[Parka · Rating 5 out of 5]

(More pictures at parkablogs.com)

Drawing Words and Writing Pictures is more of a course that a book on drawing comics. The authors Jessica Abel and Matt Madden, both comic artists and teachers, have designed the book to follow a 15-week semester. It's easy to follow and each lesson builds on the previous.

The course is comprehensive and covers everything from paneling, storytelling, transitions, lettering, inking, character development, etc. Basically every form of education you need to create your own comic.

Each lesson has plenty of illustrated examples from the authors and other artists like Craig Thompson, Osamu Tezuka, Paul Pope, etc. You're exposed to many styles, genre and ways of creating comics. The instructions are so clear it's almost like hand holding, but of course you still have to do all the hard work. And the lessons end with homework so you can actually practice what was taught — practical.

This is a really helpful guide on drawing comics. Highly recommended to aspiring comic artists. Well worth the price.

This is as close as it can get to attending a real comics drawing class.

[Truebluedah ♪ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was brilliant! Perfect for beginners!
👌🏼

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Can’t wait to try out these tips!

[Debbie Hoskins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written as a comic textbook. I will give it the designation of graphic novel bible. They also have a website that supports the book. It's written for classes, groups, and those working alone. Very supportive and you will learn tons! Jessica and I would argue over the term graphic novel. I like it; she likes the term "comics."

[Dani · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this while searching for another book on making graphic novels. Even though this ended up not being the book I was looking for, this had a wealth of information for making a graphic novel and in great detail as well. And something I thought was cool was all the tools they mentioned were all hand drawn. Talk about an awesome way to show importance! So yeah, this was a great book and I recommend it to anyone that was detailed information on making a graphic novel.

[Rhys Lindmark · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book wasn't really for me. It focuses on the craft of making comics—sketching, inking, scanning—instead of what comics provide you as a medium of expression. I'm using Midjourney, so didn't need to understand the traditional craft.

If you're interested in the craft, read this. If you're interested in how to produce the medium, reading Scott McCloud's Making Comics and Understanding Comics.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very comprehensive guide for those learning the art of comic books. Full of tips from drawing to world-building, designing pages and all the considerations needed in a comic book or graphic novel. Very useful and instructive.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential for writing, illustrating and teaching graphic novel.

[Salgood Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Use it in teaching my own courses!

[Danielle Ma]

ILUS course with Daniel Drennan Elawar

[Troy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is basically a text book for learning how to draw comics.

And it's a damn fine one.

I've always liked to read 'how to' books, even when I already know how to do something. You can never know everything and a good 'how to' book should always teach you something new. This book is a very good 'how to' book. The practice sessions look sensible and effective (even though I haven't done any of them and only plan on trying out a few). The history and theory of comics is solid. The sections on how to construct comics and comic stories was a stand out. And the section on tools, for me, was a real eye-opener. I can't wait to go try out various nibs!

A damn fine primer to anyone who wants to make a comic, or even to those who feel like they already know how to make a comic.

My only concern - and this has little to do with the book - is that comics are slowly being taught in colleges and universities. This scares me, since professionalization, in the U.S., seems to creep into every profession, even (or esp.) professions that do NOT need to be accredited. Since the 60s, the comic world has remained remarkably free-wheeling, with creators coming from every walk of life, their only connection a dorky love of comics. But the time will come where a MFA in comics will be necessary in order to get a book deal, much as an MFA from Yale, CalArts, or Columbia is practically required in order to get a show from a decent gallery. This type of professionalization, I believe, has had dire and devastating effects on the art world and will have dire and devastating effects on the comic world. I love school, and I love text books like Drawing Words & Painting Pictures but I hope the stranglehold of college accreditation doesn't take the comics world by the neck, as it has the art world.

[Jessi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Drawing Words and Writing Pictures can be a guide or a course on how to draw, write, illustrate, create, etc. your own comic book. It is for any kind of comic lover: Superhero, manga, or personal artistic vision—what I call a graphic novel, but I know others don’t agree with that label. The introduction is done as a comic, but also as text, for an alternate way of looking at it. There is also a website that goes along with it where they encourage students to scan in and upload their work to show the world. There are also teaching guides for instructors and summaries of all the chapters for students, and the book encourages use in the classroom. They suggest creating a group if you are not a student although they also have special instructions if you are a Ronin (want to work at your own pace, on your own).

There is an organizational guide for the book as well, and each chapter has suggestions for further reading. There are examples from existing comics and web comics, exercises and information. There is a lot of text, but reading the comics on the page makes you want to know why they were chosen, so it encourages you to read everything. Everything is very encouraging and fun.

I would definitely recommend this book to any older teen or adult interested in learning to draw comics, or any instructor looking for a guide or resource. It is very organized and linear, so a more “artistic mind” might have a hard time sticking to it. If I wanted to try drawing my own comic, I would probably use this book.

[Teen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Drawing Words and Writing Pictures can be a guide or a course on how to draw, write, illustrate, create, etc. your own comic book. It is for any kind of comic lover: Superhero, manga, or personal artistic vision—what I call a graphic novel, but I know others don’t agree with that label. The introduction is done as a comic, but also as text, for an alternate way of looking at it. There is also a website that goes along with it where they encourage students to scan in and upload their work to show the world. There are also teaching guides for instructors and summaries of all the chapters for students, and the book encourages use in the classroom. They suggest creating a group if you are not a student although they also have special instructions if you are a Ronin (want to work at your own pace, on your own).

There is an organizational guide for the book as well, and each chapter has suggestions for further reading. There are examples from existing comics and web comics, exercises and information. There is a lot of text, but reading the comics on the page makes you want to know why they were chosen, so it encourages you to read everything. Everything is very encouraging and fun.

I would definitely recommend this book to any older teen or adult interested in learning to draw comics, or any instructor looking for a guide or resource. It is very organized and linear, so a more “artistic mind” might have a hard time sticking to it. If I wanted to try drawing my own comic, I would probably use this book.

Jessi

[Jason Fella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've bought just about all the "How To Draw Comics" type books out there, and they are mostly pretty mediocre. They have some good info in them, but leave many more questions unanswered. This is definitely the best of the bunch, especially since it talks about much more than just the drawing part of comic creation. Panel design, inking, lettering, etc. is all in here. The presentation and writing style is nice and it flows well.

The only real complaints I have about this book, were mentioned by one of the other reviewers, and I have to agree: 1) there is a LOT of wasted space in this book, where the print and/or pictures take up like half or 2/3 of the page. And 2) the type face is a little small. This wouldn't be such a problem if the books dimensions didn't make it a little unwieldy and big. So, the impressive page count isn't as impressive as I previously thought. If they fixed those two problems, I'd most likely give it 5 stars.

Problems aside, this is definitely not a book you want to pass on. Check it out and I'm sure you'll be pleased

[Trey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Filling the void in formal comic book education, Drawing Words and Writing Pictures is intended to be a text book for a group (or individuals) to follow over 15 weeks (either with or without a lead instructor). If you read the suggested reading and do every exercise in this book as rigorously as if you were taking a class at school, you will come out the other side a better artist/writer. And you will have in your hands at minimum a mini-comic's worth of material to (self-)publish. The book is not as in-depth in analysis as Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics, but it's way more practical, explaining the steps you need to take to turn an idea into a finished comic book in your hand.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This would be a wonderful tool if I were a beginning artist and a perfect textbook for the class I always wanted to take. But I am just a lowly writer, and this had little for me. It talked about storytelling from an artistic perspective, as in moving from panel to panel, but made no mention of writing as anything separate from the art and no mention of collaboration between writers and artists.

I didn't exactly read it cover to cover (don't really need to know how to care for brushes and such), but it's obvious there would be much more to gain from it in a classroom setting. So 5 stars in that context and for anyone who isn't me.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Drawing Words & Writing Pictures is a formal and disciplined textbook for a 15-week college course in creating comics, including homework, and with ample guidelines for DIYers as well. The authors teach cartooning at the School of Visual Arts in NYC, and this book is clearly the result of many hours in the classroom: DW&WP is the best single-volume pragmatic guide on making comics available and, like Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics, it makes an equally engaging and illuminating read for people who don’t want to be cartoonists themselves.

[Speedtribes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read for comic creators along side Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. As far as I can tell, it's pretty much a massive reference book chock full of useful technical tips, techniques, tool use/missuse, and general comics/manga theory with examples from a host of recent manga and comics creators from all over the industry.

Very useful.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides lessons for turning an idea into an actual comic strip and/or comic book. Basically a classroom in book and includes lessons and assignments.

This is a good resource for those looking to learn comics and includes important elements that are missing in many how-to-draw books.

Notes
Covers many technical aspects to drawing and has additional info on the web. Bonus!

Learning Curve
Low: Good for beginners

[Troy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The other reviewers pointed out how this is a good instruction book, and it is. My main beef with this, though? The fact that, to add a spot color (for emphasis and captions, and so on) is a great idea, but don't make that color bright and light. THey used a light orange for the color, and it makes it VERY difficult to make out words and concepts. They do a better job in the follow up book with dark purple, but this color choice was FAIL.

[Sandy Brehl · Rating 5 out of 5]

The deceptively simple subtitle (a definitive course from concept to comic in fifteen lessons) doesn't begin to reflect the detailed, comprehensive, sequential, and professional instructs ions in this self-instruction course in comic creations. it seems to me (a non-artist) that Tis book could be a master course for someone to achieve his/her dreams.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

My husband brought this home from work (he works at an art college) and it was riveting. Even though I'm not an artist, I found the technical elements of how a comic is produced fascinating and enlightening--it helped me see the medium in a different way. I imagine that if you're an artist, you'll get even more out of it.

[Jessica Duverneay · Rating 5 out of 5]

gave a teen book talk on this one for an interview - pretty sweet - acknowledges that people like to work alone, and that people like to work in groups. excellent illustrations, pragmatic information.

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

An extensive instruction book on the art of making comics. This would be a great textbook for a class, but perfect for the independent learner. Each lesson includes a homework assignment, a bibliography, and practice activities. This is an excellent tool for comic artists.

[Jeeyon]

3/8/11
I'm actually skipping around quite a bit to get a feel for their tutorials and the section on technique and inking is fantastic, the best I've read so far (it feels sacrilegious to say I enjoy it better than Scott McCloud's books, but so far I do).

[Amy Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing book about how to learn how to draw comics. I used it as a reference for teaching. It doesn't just give examples and step-by-step, it goes through all the principles so you have a real underpinning of what it's about. The exercises in it are also great.

[GRPLTeens Grand Rapids Public Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written as a graphic novel textbook. I will give it the designation of graphic novel bible. They also have a website that supports the book. It's written for classes, groups, and those working alone. Very supportive and you will learn tons!

[Corilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Instuctive and informative filled with exercises, assignments, and ideas to really get one into the habit of designing a comic strip. Written in a 15 section lesson plan just like an intro class to graphic novels would be set up like.