What people often forget is that there are smaller comics or comic strips that can make a significant impact. This is why they’re used in newspapers, magazines, and in social media campaigns on the internet. There are three essential features that are the highlights of good comics:

1. Interaction of text and image

One of the most valuable aspects of comics is the text and image interaction. Some comics don’t use text. Such works of art may look aesthetic, but they miss their soul. To create meaning and send the message across, comics must have that wonderful combination of text and image.

On the other hand, there are certain situations when an image is enough to convey the message. One good example would be an image that shows a rising sun. It need not have any text to show that the sun rises the next morning. Punchlines can be used for fun or to convey a serious message. 

Usually, they’re utilized for the climax and can be brutal, silly, sad, or romantic. Funny punchlines entertain and also convey an important message at the same time. The word ‘comics’ itself is funny, as it is derived from the Latin ‘comics, which translates as ‘of comedy’.

2. Panels

Panels are one of the things that are unique to comics. They are either square-shaped or rectangle-shaped frames with the related text and images. One of the major functions of panels is to show the sequence of events. They also organize the assorted bits of the comics or comic strips. 

It is always the intention of the makers of comics to keep the readers engaged. So, they are used mainly as a tool for character development, action, and pacing. It may happen that the reader doesn’t notice the panels while going through the text and images. This is when the comic is considered to be a real success. 

In no way does this mean that panels must not be used. They have to be used, as panels are what makes one feel that he or she is reading comics. They’re an essential part of the overall comic-reading experience. 

3. Sequence

When reading comics, readers always move through the panels in a sequential manner. This can be understood from an example. Consider this sentence – ‘He picked up an apple and then a pear and then a plum’. This is all text, but the reader moves through the words in order while reading. For easy comparison, consider the names of fruits as panels and the word ‘then’ as the spaces between them. 

This is exactly how the sequence works in both comics and prose. It tells the story without causing any inconvenience to the reader. Sometimes, the sequence of events has to be broken by inserting a frame that refers to a past event. However, this doesn’t create confusion, as it’s always explained with the text in a square or rectangular box.

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Some of them are serious while many are humorous. Comic strips are often used in newspapers and magazines. Today, they’re also widely used in different forms of advertising and online promotions. They’re made by professional graphic artists or cartoonists. Here, we’ve tried to explain the process:

1. Finding ideas

A comic strip must be treated like a short story. It needs to have a beginning, a middle, and an end. So, it would be a good idea to break down a comic strip into 3 parts. Every story of the comic strip is based on a good idea. It is, therefore, necessary to find some good ideas. 

Writing down everything that comes to mind helps in formulating a good story. Next would be finding ideas for characters, expression, speech, and settings. It is also necessary that every part has some action and the comic strip has a powerful ending.

2. Create the frames

When the ideas are formed, the next step would be to create the frames. The frame size would depend on the available space and the number of characters and objects to be included. The appropriate place for speech bubbles must be clearly marked. Utmost care should be taken that the frames are not too big or too small. What’s truly important is that they must utilize the available space in the best way.

3. Draw the characters

The drawing of characters would depend entirely on the skill of the cartoonist or graphic artist. For the ones who are not skilled graphic artists, using basic shapes to draw characters is recommended. Stick figures are relatively easier to create and won’t take much time. 

To create sound effects, starbursts and speech bubbles must be created in an appropriate manner. In the absence of some excellent digital gadgets to create the characters, a pen and pencil can be used. This would make it easier to erase the mistakes. 

4. Add text in the speech bubbles

Now, it’s time to put in some matter in the speech bubbles. It would be a good practice to double-check the spellings while adding text into the speech bubbles. For creating maximum impact, the size of the letter must be increased when a character is shouting. Showing the speech in bold would also be effective. Bold capital letters would help anyone understand that the character is shouting.

5. Add the remaining details

After the text has been added in the speech bubbles, the remaining parts can be drawn. These parts include facial expressions of the characters, movement lines, background items, and shadows on the floor.

6. Review the entire comic strip

Once the comic strip has been created as planned, it would be a good idea to review it. If any changes are required, they must be done immediately. Everything must be perfect before publishing the comic strip. Even a small mistake can ruin its appeal and even make it look like a big failure.

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They are also of the opinion that comics can play an important role in boosting creativity. In recent times, many teachers are using comics to educate their students. By reading comic books, students can have some benefits associated with learning:

1. Increased interest in reading

One might wonder how comics can help children at school. One of the important benefits of reading comics is that it keeps children interested in books. Reading plain text would certainly result in boredom. When it comes to comics, a brilliant combination of text and comic characters makes reading a pleasant experience.

They’re always eager to know what might happen next. As a result of this curiosity, they keep reading further. This gradually develops an interest in reading them, which helps them in their later stages of life.

2. Improved vocabulary and language skills

The plain text used in the books makes the process of education predictable and dull. Children would never get bored with comics, as they cannot usually tell what would happen on the next page. As a result, children develop a keen interest in reading comic books.

In the process of reading, they also develop much-needed language skills. As they pay attention closely to what the characters are saying, they get to know more about sentence formation. They also come across several new words.

Children are always curious to know the meaning of such words. They usually learn their meanings by asking their parents or teachers. They can also have a look in the dictionary to know the exact meanings. This greatly improves their vocabulary.

3. Improved learning in dyslexic children

Students with learning disabilities can be taught how to read and pronounce words by allowing them to read comics. Dyslexic children learn better with the help of imagery and visual representation of emotions. Comic books use both these elements.

This makes such books highly effective for dyslexic children to improve their learning process. Usually, students with dyslexia respond positively to the visualizations in comic books. In this way, they can avoid the stress caused by reading materials that are entirely in plain text.

4. Simplified learning process

Children usually don’t pay a lot of attention to something that doesn’t interest them. This has always been a problem with textbooks that have an overload of plain text. The educators of today need to include methods that are simpler to understand. Comics is one such tool, which effectively makes use of graphics and text.

As a result, children read and understand the stories contained in them in a better way. The traditional methods of learning have been in use for years, but they’ve not been very effective. Today, the world is evolving owing to the extensive use of technology. With the use of text and images, the learning process can be simplified to a great extent.

Comic books may not help students learn all the subjects. However, they can certainly help them in mastering the language. Their improved language and vocabulary would certainly help them in learning the other subjects with greater ease.

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