Mid-Semester Break 27-29/04/16 Wednesday-Friday

The break is almost over and I am rather relieved to say that I have completed and edited the contextual review. On Friday I read over everything I wrote, and I was quite happy with it. I know it is far from perfect, or even a good literacy review, but there is only so much I could write about in 3000 words with 20-25 references. The biggest trouble I had with this essay was trying to fit all the ideas and contexts within the word limit. It was difficult to address every material in-depth, while also comparing it with other materials and evaluating and justifying them all. I know it may be partially because my vocabulary is very limited and I struggle to find more intellectual words to describe my ideas, and it also may be that my focus was shifting throughout the writing. There were many elements that I wanted to address, but omitted in the end due to the word count, but to be frank I was glad that the limit was no more than 3000 words. Or I would have been more frustrated. For now, what is done, is done. I may iterate the editing closer to the due date, but I am going to leave the contextual review for now.

So I have decided to take a bit of a break in the last few days of the break. I need to move on to the methodology soon, too. I still may be a bit lost now, but hopefully I'll find the appropriate methodology for my project.

I took my younger sister and brother watch "Zootopia" on Thursday. It was a pleasant movie and I really enjoyed it.

On Wednesday I spent a day with my siblings and my father. It was a rare chance that he had any time free for us, and we went out shopping. The four of us had some quality family time, and we brought back some presents for my mother, the hardest worker I have ever encountered in my life.

All in all it was a great holiday I had. I was able to balance work and relaxation, and time-managed myself well. The biggest accomplishment may be that I finished my contextual review. Whether it is up to standard or not, would be up to the marker.

I managed to do a coloured version of "Blue Babe". I am not particularly good at digital painting so I took the opportunity to do this piece. I always spend a lot of time painting, but then it's done it looks bad compared to what other people have done in only a third of the time I used. And that really brings me down, but the only thing I can do is to continue practicing; and hopefully I'll get better someday.

Mid-Semester Break 25-26/04/16 Monday-Tuesday

Monday was ANZAC Day and I attended a memorial in our community. It was very solemn and meaningful, and it drove me to reflect upon the sacrifices made by the men of the past for exchange of a free country. I then went home and helped my parents with their work.

On Tuesday was when the bulk of my writing was done. I analysed "The Art of Pho" and "Murat: Non Stop Bar", and justified them as great examples of contemporary interactive comics. I then concluded my essay with stating that there is still room for comics to evolve and mutate. I intend to edit my essay as a whole tomorrow. I know that this version is just a splurge pass, where I spill everything in my mind on the page. I understand that to write a sophisticated contextual review would require me to delve deeper into the issue of comics and interactivity, and I would also have to present more questions regarding this topic. But for now I believe I have already fulfilled the word limit (if not over), and the rest is left for the editing process. I know I'm not a very intelligent person, nor am I eloquent or articulate; but I do hope to strive for a better mark for this essay.

Here is how the conclusion reads:

Whether it is the narrative structure, the layout, or the medium itself, practitioners will continue their pursuit in expanding comics’ potential and territory. The comics are no longer limited by content, and it is free to explore and discover new innovative ways to engage its readers. As technology continues to advance, comics may become more and more accessible to readers of all ages. And by looking at the benefits of which comics could bring to a developing audience, it becomes obligatory for it to evolve as well. There is no telling what lies ahead for comics in the future, but creators will venture there and mine their way through and excavate further the limitless possibilities of the comic medium. Lev Manovich states: “…the result of the hybridization process is not simply a mechanical sum of the previously existing parts but a new ‘species’--- a new kind of visual aesthetics that did not exist previously”[1] As Manovich describes it, comics may take on other multi-media aspects, and become further hybridized forms, branching its path into untapped realms.

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[1] Suzanne Buchan, Betti-Sue Hertz and Lev Manovich, Animated Painting (San Diego: San Diego Museum of Art, 2007), 4.

I managed to add colour to this drawing. Is it narcissistic to be obsessed with your own characters?

Mid Semester Break 22/04/16 Friday

I went ahead and wrote my findings on motion comics and interactive comics. Writing helped clarified my thoughts, and I was able to find opinions on both sides of the arguments. Those were all worth mentioning, but the referencing process was rather long and tedious. In my writing I have discussed the diverging views on motion comics, and the advantages of a hypercomic. I have yet to investigate interactive comics that employ both animation and gaming elements. In my essay I will delve deeper into reader participation in each of these different comic forms, and make judgments based on existing material as to what works or what does not. I believe I am on track, and I hope to complete this contextual review within the next week.

Here is an excerpt from my essay:

"Comics in the Digital Age:

With the advancing technology in nowadays society, it becomes necessary for comics to break free of its printed media, and move into the digital realm. There have been many attempts to expand comics’ potential in a digital environment; whole web pages have been dedicated to hosting comic page scans and original web-comic creations; discussions arose in reader-led sites such as Fourth Frame Forums[1], cinematic and animation elements have been integrated into various comic books and graphic novels to create what has been known as the notorious motion comic[2]; and lastly, some comics have employed interactive aspects as a way of exploration of the comic medium. As an intrinsically hybrid form, comics are continuing to evolve by incorporating elements from other media, and expanding its potential. Practitioners have devised ways to explore these relatively new forms of comics, and the latter two forms mentioned have been drawing more attention of recent times." 

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[1] Andrew S. Gordon, "Fourth Frame Forums: Interactive Comics for Collaborative Learning", in 14th Annual ACM International Conference on Multimedia (Santa Barbara: ACM, 2006), 69.

[2] Craig Smith, "Motion Comics: Modes of Adaptation and the Issue of Authenticity", Animation Practice, Production & Process 1, no. 2 (2012): 358.

I foresee that by the end of my first iteration, I will need to go back and edit out a lot of things I have written. There is a fair amount of information regarding comics I could discuss; but it is essential to keep the topic focused and the prose clear. 

Here is a monster I drew on the train. I seem to be rather fascinated by this type of amalgamation of flesh and body parts of various biological species. It is disgusting in a good way.  

Mid Semester Break 21/04/16 Thursday

Thursdays were mainly dedicated to meeting with my supervisor and sketching. My supervisor gave me some useful papers for my research, and I could use those as contextual reference. I also did quite a few concept sketches for my project. There weren't anything new in terms of discovery, but I do enjoy a couple of days during the week when I'm not draining myself with research. Academic papers are quite difficult to get into and focus on for long periods of time.

Here are my sketches done today:

Mid- Semester Break 19-20/04/16 Tuesday-Wednesday

I must apologize for my inactivity on Tuesday. I took my younger siblings out on a trip north of Auckland to purchase some items. It was fun spending time with them, and I had a sense of leadership when guiding them through the city.

Back on the topic of my project, I continued with more reading on Wednesday. I read a couple of useful academic sources regarding motion comics and interactive comics, as well as a paper by Lev Monovich about hybrid media. Craig Smith was one of the very few people who investigated and analysed motion comics and their production in depth. My focus was not here, though it was informing to learn about the various difficulties and censure that motion comic adaptations receive. Smith analyses mostly motion comics that are adapted from original comic books and graphic novels, and he discusses the issues concerning authenticity and respect for the original material. It was quite rare to find scholarly papers surrounding motion comics, let alone advocate them, since the majority of the comic community (both readers and creators) seems to scowl when the term is mentioned. Smith brings about some strong arguments in support of motion comics, and I stand by in a neutral position, as my project is not too concerned with this area. But it should be acknowledged, that motion comics and interactive comics are hybrid media. This was discussed briefly in Monovich's article, that by integrating certain parts of an existing artifact to another does not just create an additive combination, but something entirely new.

An important who practices experimental digital comics is Daniel Merlin Goodbrey. He was mentioned in a paper about the study of emergence and interactive narrative through comics on a multi-touch interface. The experiment described in the paper itself was interesting, though I find the set up of a custom large multi-touch surface not exactly pragmatic; the stylistic features and narratives of the comic were not very appealing, but the focus was on the user experience of an interactive narrative within the comic. The ideas were certainly compelling, as the practitioners were striving to create a new experience in interacting with comics both physically and cognitively. From this paper I received insight as to how to program such a narrative, and some aspects of this kind of storytelling that I should be aware of. The interactions made with the user must forward the narrative, thus causing the user to feel more involved and therefore engaged in the story. It was also from this paper (by Daniel Andrews, Chris Baber, Sergey Efremov and Mikhail Komarov) that I discovered Goodbrey's work in "Hypercomics", super-large scale comics that inhabit a digital environment with multiple story lines that are intertwined with each other, and the reader may zoom in on any of them to examine the narratives. McCloud states that the computer screen is an infinite canvas, a vast space for comics to exist without the physical limitations of paper; and this hypercomic may fit in that canvas perfectly. Goodbrey has also made various different short comic narratives that require the reader to explore the digital space of the comic in order to unravel the story. Some of them demand of the reader to make decisions in choosing a path, some of them are adventure type games in a comic format, allowing the reader/user to go on a journey and discover the narratives themselves. All these were very fascinating, and as I read/played through a couple of them, I found myself quite invested in the narratives. Though one of the interactive comics became a bit repetitive as I had to constantly journey back and forth within the world of the comic to find items in order to advance the story. I was made aware that the interactivity of these comics, like the animation in motion comics, has varying degrees. How much is enough interactivity? How much is too little and the comic just becomes one of those web-based comics that one clicks to turn a page? I hope these questions are what my lecturer regards as "deep questions". But reading these materials has definitely shed new light on my understanding of interactive comics, and I am one that believes comics' potential is yet to be explored.

My rendition of the "Little Mermaid"; with the mermaid princess and her prince. Here is the pencil sketch on normal paper.

This is the coloured version. I worked longer than I hoped to on the tail of the mermaid, but I guess I am moderately pleased with how it turned out. The pencil lines were retained to act as guides for the colouring process. I still need to improve on lighting and shading, as well as finding suitable colour palettes. 

Mid- Semester Break 18/04/16 Monday

I finally got my hands on "Reinventing Comics" by Scott McCloud. I looked everywhere for this book and no library or online sources had it, but I asked a friend who is involved in comics whether or not he had a copy, and he did! I will credit this person in my exegesis to thank him and his wife for all the help they given me.

Back to "Reinventing Comics", I read the introduction and the last two chapters, to get an overview of the book and also to read on what was relevant to my project. I found out that McCloud is a very passionate comic-lover, and he really wants to see comics grow beyond what it is. I get the sense that he simply wants the general public to know the potential of comics, that it is not just constricted to funny strips or superheroes. I guess I am somewhat on the same boat as McCloud, and his ideas from "Understanding Comics"  may have cultivated my notion to expand the scope of comics. It is also part of the reason why I am doing this project, an attempt to draw more people into comics.

In the last chapter "Digital Comics", McCloud describes the monitor as an infinite canvas; a vast space for comics to grow in. But in contrary to my idea, McCloud stands opposed to the supplement of sound and motion in comics. He points out that, through those elements some creators wish to make comics "come alive", but because comics portray time through space with static images and relies on reader's ability to fill in the gaps, sound and motion become superfluous. McCloud asserts that if immersion was to be achieved through sound and motion, film has already done that. McCloud advocates the growth of the very essence and roots of comics, its capability to simulate time through space, sounds through silence and motion through still images, in the digital realm. The type of expansion McCloud dicusses is the temporal map of comics, conveying time through space; and since the computer screen is an infinite canvas, unlimited by area or number of pages, creators are free to experience all kinds of different panels and layouts. The interactivity McCloud sees in comics lies with the shared experience of creator and reader (much like Eisner's idea). One concept that McCloud and I agree on, is that within a digital environment, comics' interactivity can be exploited by integrating elements that would actually require the reader to exercise more work: clicking and dragging, choosing a path, revealing a detail in a hidden window, etc. Elements that demands more from the reader, instead of spoon-feeding them with multimedia cliches like sound and motion. McCloud believes that comics' static, silent nature should be preserved, and digital media should let it remain so.

McCloud's insightful account was incredibly helpful and eye-opening. He actually predicted that motion comics (comics with added sound and limited animation) would not be an enduring medium. And it turned out to be true. I will take McCloud's discussion into consideration, and I will find other sources that might have opposing views on this matter, but all in all this book has provided me with great information and a basis for discussion and arguments.

Mind-map for my project

Week 07 15/04/16 Friday

I was mostly focused on doing more concept drawings today. I usually did this on Thursdays, but I ended up doing more methodology research yesterday. I draw quite slow, and as I was at home there were a lot of distractions that impeded me from doing work. I was also responsible for the house cleaning and that always took up quite an amount of time. So for the majority of the time I was either doing chores or drawing. No writing was achieved today, nor was there any progress in my contextual review. But should not be too much of a problem since I will be using my concept sketches as part of the methodological framework as a piece of evidence for my process.

And here is what I drew today. I apologize that there is not a lot to document today.

I want to accumulate as many drawings and sketches as I can before the actual production, to show my thought process and work. 

Week 07 14/04/16 Thursday

I was continuing my research about methodologies and exegesis layouts. The paper by Linda Candy was incredibly helpful, it summarized the requirements for a thesis/exegesis very nicely. I also did more research concerning interactive comics. What I found on the internet was a lot of examples (good and bad) of interactive web comics made with HTML5. There were several good ones that I would recommend to others, and could be good reference points for my project, as well as appropriate context to locate it. The more favorable characteristics of the comics I liked consisted of stylistically surreal elements, and had more interactivity in the comic. The sound in these comics are mostly quite neutral, meaning that it was mainly for the atmosphere. More sound effects were added in when the reader clicked on an object in the comic, or the characters in the comic made noises, etc. There was animation in these comics, some were smoother and flowed better than others; while some had composited still images placed on different layers so a sense of depth is integrated, others had each image in the panels animated in some way: oscillating fans, beer bubbling, etc. The effect was interesting, and the comics were beautifully crafted at first glance, but after a while some of the looping animation became a bit distracting and also strained my eyes. Animation and interaction should only be used to further the story or build atmosphere, not just as a gimmick to make the comic "look cool". I am speaking subjectively, but I also got a little dizzy when reading the side-scrolling comic. The comic would progress via the movement of the mouse, so if I placed the mouse to the right of the screen, the comic would scroll automatically. The speed of the scrolling was dependent on the position of the mouse, and I took a few moments to grow accustomed to it. Personally, it was not a preferred mode of reading.

The research did open my eyes a bit. That there are many people who are striving to advance the comic medium, and trying to find ways of improving the craft. I hope to create some nuances in the interactive comic field.

Thursdays were the days when I met my supervisor. It was helpful talking to her, as she suggested that I look into existing interactive comic materials. She also advised me to create a mind map visualizing all the different aspects that I have in mind for my project. This would include everything from context to the stylistic features, and softwares to target audience, etc. Next week we will look at this mind map to get a better picture of what I am planning to do. But I agree on every level with my supervisor that I should read more on the interactive comic field, or even on hybrid media, as comics, is a cross-breed of multi-disciplines.

Here's Xiao again. I wanted to add to colour to this one but I didn't have time. Maybe later today.

 

Week 07 13/04/16 Wednesday

Today we were given examples of a tutor's methodological frameworks he employed in his studies. The overview clarified my understanding concerning the assignment a bit more. I went on to research about methodologies and interactive comics. I found a useful paper regarding Practice-Based Research and Practice-Led Research. Practice-based research will ultimately produce a creative artefact, along with documentation of the practice. The documentation serves to situate the artefact within a wider context, and justify its reason being. Practice-led research is concerned with the workflow; the documentation or thesis of this kind of research may stand alone without the final artefact. For now I believe that my project is practice-based. I am aiming to create a material by the end of this research that can be published or exhibited. The "Practice Based Research: A Guide" paper by Linda Candy explains that practice-based research requires a large amount of contextual material in order to determine the creative work's location, and whether or not it is able to advance the knowledge of the respected field in a scholarly and academic way.

Following that, I did some light research around interactive comics, and I managed to find some interesting things. Without using any databases for academic results, there are many different kinds of interactive comics. Most are original webcomics created by everyday people; the interaction occurs between the creator and the reader, where the reader is able to comment and suggest what decisions or which path the named protagonist should make or take. There are also websites dedicated to one comic, and it integrates limited animation into its pages, allowing small interactions when the reader clicks on an icon. These comics also have very specialized styles that fit the comics' themes, and the reader usually clicks on speech bubbles or arrow icons to "turn" the pages. This is also an interesting path I could take. But I assume if I were to experiment with all of these possibilities, then my project would be practice-led, as there is no fixed destination where the practice would go. I may need to discuss this further with my supervisor. I also need to continue with my contextual review. For now I have moved away from comics and on to interactive comics. When contemplating about producing my project, I get rather excited. I love the process of comic making and I love to receive feedback from readers. But the impediment which is the writing aspect of my degree frustrates me, I hope to complete the contextual review and research methodology as swiftly and as competently as possible, so I can implement the creative aspect of my project.

Seven Deadly Sins - Envy

Week 07 12/04/16 Tuesday

Today was the reading group where I presented a chapter from my readings to the class and discuss why it is relevant to my project. Mine was an excerpt from Will Eisner's "Comics and Sequential Art", emphasizing that comics is a form of reading that requires constant attention and decoding from the reader.

I learnt about a web comic site that hosts animated comics in the form of gifs. A classmate introduced this to me and it was the most helpful thing this week so far. I could post my comic on this website and document the interactions with the commentators as a part of the methodological process. My supervisor also pointed out that I may need to shift my focus on to the interactive aspect of the project, and start reading on the existing materials for insight as to where my project will go. I will take this suggestion and begin reading into this field. As I have mentioned before, gaming is an untouched realm for me, so with the website made known to me via the classmate would be a good starting point for me to create some interactivity within the project.

Seven Deadly Sins --- Lust

  

Week 07 11/04/16 Monday

Back at the computer, I was typing the splurge version of my essay. I have been reading "The Aesthetics of Comics" by David Carrier, a philosophical view on comics on the train. Carrier presents the deep philosophical implications that comics represent, from its hybrid mix of prose and illustration alluding to the "mixed" sociological and sexual orientation, and the unity between body and soul. I was never into philosophical discussions, I have always thought of them a way of seeing simplistic issues as something beyond what they truly portray, and delving too deep into rather basic concepts. But Carrier presents a different view point on comics, and raises its importance in art history. He also makes connection between comics and political and sociological issues. I may use this book as a means to deepen the discussion in my essay.

I reiterated my essay today, editing and attempting to make improvements, but I fear that I would go over the word limit. There was actually a lot I wanted to communicate in this writing, but I had to constantly remind myself that I had to weigh the different materials and critique them, not just use them once and move on to the next. The review requires me to make critical judgments, and also tests my ability to synthesize and integrate the information. I must also ask deep questions adequately. I tend to get caught up in structuring my paragraphs, unable to decide which ideas and concepts should be prioritized. When I was writing this second edit of the essay, my thoughts were quite muddled in my mind. It was true that I had a lot to discuss concerning comics, but I had to focus on what is essential. I still have not evaluated McCloud's book yet.

For now, my writing reads:

It may be appropriate to examine first what constructs the comic, and the working mechanisms behind the craft. Comics, as Will Eisner suggests, communicates a language.[1] The makeup of this language consists of both image and text, confined within panels and speech bubbles, and altogether conveys meaning. Eisner believes that the language of comics is the cross-breeding of prose and illustration, and to interpret it requires the sophistication of its reader. Before one can read words, one must learn the language, vocabulary, and grammar; such as before one can read comics, one must understand the disciplines of comics. We rarely refer to reading comics as “looking” at comics. This is because reading is an active process, and the reader is in a constant state of interpreting the given material. Reading informs us, and we are able to extract information from words, and this process is similar to reading comics. Scholar Thomas Wolf explains that: “The reading of words is one manifestation of this activity; but there are many others --- reading of pictures, maps, circuit diagrams, musical notes…” [2] This reconsideration of the term supports the notion of comics as a form of reading which encompasses the deciphering of both text and imagery, an idea posed by Eisner. In his book “Comics and Sequential Art”, Eisner demonstrates the intricacies of the comic, through his own experiences as a comic artist and teacher. There are many great examples from Eisner’s own works that portray comics as an effective way of communication. For instance, when discussing the panel outline and its various different styles and purposes, Eisner presents a page from “The Spirit”, which utilizes a frame in the form of cracked grounds and walls to establish a subterranean setting.[3] “Comics and Sequential Art” is a comprehensive investigation into each aspect of the comic, examining their roles in creating an effective way of narrative. Eisner also has constant reminders that the interpretation of comics heavily relies on the mutual experiences of both reader and creator. In an analogical sense, comics unifies art and literature, as well as the imaginations of its reader and maker. Through Eisner’s prose it is easy to understand the craft of comics, yet there seems to be something lacking in his definition of comics, and how it exactly captivates its readers.  

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[1] Eisner, Comics and Sequential Art, 1.

[2] Thomas Wolf, "Reading Reconsidered", Harvard Educational Review 47, no. 3 (1977): 411-429.

[3] Eisner, Comics and Sequential Art, 52.

I tried drawing a caricature of an old man I saw on the train. Colour combination and palettes have always been a weakness of mine, I hope to improve this somehow. 

Week 06 08/04/16 Friday

I planned and began writing my contextual review on Friday. The new plan for my essay omits the horror aspect of the project, and focuses on the effectiveness of comics and why it is beneficial for children; as well as how it can be taken furthered with digital technology. It is very similar with my third year project except it intends to turn comics into an interactive game rather than an animated short.

I am going to write my essay paragraph by paragraph. I have made an overview plan for the essay as a whole, and I will do the same thing for each paragraph, keeping each topic clear and focused.

The first paragraph into the discussion involves how comics function, what makes it engaging:

Closure - "seeing the parts but perceiving the whole"; it is the heart of comics, and the language of comics is built upon it.
Panels - a defining feature of comics, the panels have various styles and purposes. It does not merely separate the images of the comics, but it can also be used to set the timing, spacing, location and even mood.
Speech Bubbles/Balloons and Lettering - the texts in comics not only provides more insight for the comic, but they are essentially extensions of the images. Different types of speech bubbles can convey the type of sounds and voices in the comics. Miscellaneous styles of texts can represent onomatopoeia, diegetic and non-diegetic sounds. The comics itself is silent, but through the use of these speech bubbles and texts, and the reader's participation, comics are given a voice, unique to each individual reader.
Cartooning - simplified characters in lush, rich environments (e.g, Bone, Tin-Tin) enables the reader to situate themselves within the setting and story of the comic. This is not a necessary trait of all comics, but it is worth mentioning as a way of immersing the reader within the comic.

Here is what I have of the first paragraph so far:

Many may consider comics as a hybrid of word and image. A breed of art and literature that utilizes both but belongs to neither[1]. This form has been named “sequential art”, by the great comic artist Will Eisner. Through existing as a combination of the two, comics has developed its own “language”, one that “…relies on a visual experience common to both creator and audience.”[2]  It will be necessary then, to discuss and evaluate what makes up the vocabulary of this unique language, and what makes it effective. An emphasis on “reading” when the action of “reading comics” occurs, this term has been long established that it is not confined to the deciphering of text. Scholar Thomas Wolf explains that: “The reading of words is one manifestation of this activity; but there are many others --- reading of pictures, maps, circuit diagrams, musical notes…” [3] Reading encompasses the decoding of both the written and the visual. The pictures of a comic are not merely “looked” at, but “read”, interpreted and understood. Reading in its entirety is an active behaviour. It requires input from the reader, and when the reader participates, they become engaged. How then, does reading comics differ from reading text or imagery alone by themselves? A vocabulary of comics has been mentioned before, and this vocabulary cannot function unless the reader contributes to the comic. Comics’ vocabulary is built on the foundation of closure. Eisner has attempted to explain this by showing different framings of a character: “When the full figure is shown, no sophistication is required of the reader. The entire image is complete and intact… In the close-up, the reader must supply the rest of the picture in conformity with what the physiology of the head suggests.”[4] This sophistication and supply required of the reader, is better summarized by McCloud: “This phenomenon of observing the parts but perceiving the whole…it’s called closure.”[5]

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[1] Scott McCloud, Understanding Comics (New York: HarperPerennial, 1994), 17.

[2] Will Eisner, Comics And Sequential Art (New York: W.W. Norton, 2008), 1.

[3] Thomas Wolf, "Reading Reconsidered", Harvard Educational Review 47, no. 3 (1977): 411-429.

[4] Eisner, Comics And Sequential Art, 43.

[5] McCloud, Understanding Comics, 63.

Two pictures in one post?! Whaaaa?? Haha, I just really wanted to show this drawing. I was quite happy with how it came out. I think I might do more of these if I find the time. Line art on paper and colours in Photoshop is actually quite an enjoyable and quick process to get artworks looking pretty. 

Week 06 07/04/16 Thursday

I began reading John Berger's "Ways of Seeing" for insight into how we see and interpret things. it is a very interesting read regarding art and images, meaning and value. This book, does not address comics, however, and I have yet to find anything that could assist me in supporting my view on reading comics as an interpretive skill. I did find the section concerning nude paintings in the Renaissance period fascinating, as it discusses the objectification of women beginning from an extremely early era, evident in its art and history. I probably should not go in too deep about this topic, but it new knowledge worth noting.

I also discussed the function of the game/interactive aspects with a friend well-respected in the New Zealand comic scene. He said that I should apply for ethics approval because it would valuable to survey what people think about interactions and animations within a comic. He also pointed out that this project's more specific target audience would be comic readers, rather than gamers; as gamers are less likely to be drawn to a comic. Another suggestion was that there should be a currency/sub-currency system in the game, where players could earn items that would assist them during game play. Personally, I think that would be extremely complicated to code, and I should be doing research in this area. However, this does raise an important point about how I construct the game narrative, the decisions the players make must be something they care about, it should be related to the story itself, concerned with the issues within the narrative. For example, if the player reaches a path divided into two, it may not simply be choose right or left; instead, it would be more engaging if a secondary character entered and suggested a path, and the choice would be between to trust this character or not, and thus splitting the narrative from there.

I have written an introduction to my comic, and I am aiming to launch into drafting the layouts during the mid-semester break. I should also start planning the decision making parts of the comic where the reader's choice will alter the narrative. I will have to read more on this, particularly on Narrotology.

Introduction

There is a little girl who lives on a large rose farm. Her parents are farmers, and they work all day taking care of the roses, but they do not have time to play with the little girl. The girl has a very special dinosaur toy that her father gave her for her seventh birthday. She loves him very much, and plays with him every day. The girl loves to explore her family’s farm; there are always new places to discover and sometimes new friends to make. But the girl never went into the old greenhouse at the very far end of the farm. She is afraid to go in there, because there are always strange noises coming out of the mouldy, disgusting-looking greenhouse. But one day, the girl’s precious dinosaur goes missing. She searches everywhere for him, but he is nowhere to be seen. The girl eventually decides to venture into the creepy greenhouse to look for her best friend. 

True Ending (The Main Ending as Intended by the Creator)

The girl nervously steps into the old greenhouse. The weeds have out-grown the roses, and have taken over the entire area. It is a whole forest in there, and there is something lurking in those bushes. The girl begins going deeper into the jungle of mangled plants, getting her t-shirt caught on the occasional rose bush. Then, she discovers a completely different world to her own behind the wild weeds. Curious creatures she has never seen before have made their home in this peculiar-looking world. She tries to ask them whether or not they have seen her dinosaur. Some of them are helpful and some of them ask her for favours in return. But eventually she finds her dinosaur, who is in the hands of the biggest, meanest creature of all. The girl confronts the monster, but politely, asking him to return her toy. The monster refuses, and lunges at the girl. The girl runs away in fright. She runs through the strange trees and creatures of the other world, runs past the weeds and roses, and straight back home. She tells the story to her parents, who comfort her, and tell her they will take her out on a trip the next day. The girl feels much better with the company of her parents, and goes to bed. That night, she does not hear the strange noises from the old greenhouse anymore. 

Some concept sketches I did for the old greenhouse. I like how antique greenhouses are designed; there is a sense elegance and mystery in them. 

Week 06 06/04/16 Wednesday

I have left comics' history aside for now, and delved back in the theory and principals behind comics; its vocabulary, grammar and language, what it is that makes comics unique. Will Eisner's "Comics and Sequential Art", as well as Scott McCloud's "Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art" were my first go-to resources to deepening my understanding of comics. I have read McCloud's book a year ago, and it is high-time that I did some revision. I have also skimmed through a bit of Eisner's writing, but now I am focusing on his interpretation on how comics works. I like both of those books because they are all supported by visual aids; as it is appropriate, because comics is essentially a visual medium. Eisner's book has many wonderful descriptions of the language and techniques that construct a comic, and how they assist in sequential art narrative, but since they are all based on his comic making experience, I must be conscientious about bias. There are also many features in this book that I can consider in employing to my own project. Furthermore, McCloud's book discusses further how comics function, and the interaction it creates with its reader. Though both materials involve the idea of reader participation, McCloud was able to pin-point this phenomena more effectively, a term which he calls "closure"; and this is part where I will make the most evaluation and judgments, as it is a crucial part of comics.

I have also begun to form a narrative for my project. I may have to do more research on Narrotology to further develop the framework to which I will apply to the practice.

Since my project is going to be an multi-ended interactive comic, it is imperative that I consider the multiple narrative structures I can employ to the project. The most common form of narrative may be the Hero's Journey; and I intend to utilize this for my own story. I am mindful that the story is aimed primarily towards children, and therefore it may be difficult for younger readers to comprehend more eccentric narrative structures; though I am not ruling out the possibility for them to understand complex narratives through the use of comics.

The initial story idea is revolved around a little girl, the main protagonist of the story, as she goes on an adventure/journey to find her lost toy/companion (the call to adventure). The girl lives on a rose farm (as drawn from own personal, and my younger sister's experience of living on a farm), and she ventures into one of the dilapidated greenhouses to search for her toy. There she discovers an entirely different, whimsical and creepy world, where she finds numerous curious creatures that either help or impede her on her journey (meeting the goddess). She eventually finds the great big monster who has kept her toy captive (meeting the monster, or the "big bad"). The girl courageously confronts the monster, rescues her toy, and finally returns home (return from the journey).

This story is extremely simple and straightforward, but I believe, if it is polished and presented well, it can appeal to a younger audience. I also need to consider other outcomes of the story, and the many interactions the protagonist has with the inhabitants of the other world. I will have to research more into game/comic narrative, and the multiple-ending type narratives to better my understanding of this concept. I intend to produce a final product that will provide various choices for the reader, that they have the freedom (albeit illusory) to shape the narrative. The number of endings is infinite, but I wish to create them in a way so that players/readers would be driven to replay/re-read the comic again to experience all the different endings.

Here is a simplified diagram of the mapping and structure the multi-ended project. Like some of the existing choice-based games, there will be a main ending, or "true" ending, as the final outcome of the narrative intended by the creator; the players, however, are allowed to deviate from this depending on their decisions made throughout the game. 

Week 06 05/04/16 Tuesday

We were given a new assignment today about Research and Methodology. It is essentially the frameworks applied to the project in order to implement it. I have been introduced to the philosophical ideals of methodology, yet I do not know any at this very moment, nor do I have much of an idea of which one to apply to my research. A more useful point I have taken away from class is that practice-led research seems to be more appropriate for my project. It focuses more on the process of the journey that will eventually lead to an architect. Also, action-research (?) is another suitable methodology I could employ. It is a cycle that includes reflection to action to product, and then to reflection again. In the past few years of my study, I have been unconsciously implementing this method for all my projects. They were all planned and carried out in a systematic pipeline, and the journeys were usually very linear (though this method is not necessarily a linear process). Without argument, I will again be employing this method to my project this year, but this time I would have to be extremely conscientious in documenting my process. I have also thought about applying Mixed-Method and Narrotology as methodologies; though I am not entirely certain what Narrotology means in terms of methodology. I only comprehend Narrotology as the study of narrative structure, perhaps if it were a methodology, it would imply the construction of the research as a narrative? I can only make assumptions at this point. I find my time extremely limited. There are so many readings I want to go over, and I am already feeling the pressure as each day goes past. I always reflect on my progress, to determine whether or not I have done enough work for the day. For now, there are three big assignments due at the end of this semester: Contextual Review, Research and Methodology, and the Seminar Presentation. I am going to prioritize the Contextual Review for now, I hope to complete it much earlier before its deadline so that I may move on to preparing my methodology and seminar.

Regarding the topic of methodology, I have begun sketching environment concepts for my project. Research methodology may be supported with visual aids, and that would majorly helpful. As a creative person, imagery is a crucial part of presentation and understanding. I probably should ask around and do research on the type of methodological framework I wish to employ, as well clarification on what I should be practicing exactly; and I should dedicate some of my time to do more specific and detailed documentation. It is, essentially, a sophisticated journal that is being consistently being added to, or a workbook elaborating the thought process behind everything. I personally quite enjoy doing that, as I am right now; but to present the methodology as a formal piece of academic writing seems cumbersome. But the Honours Degree is that one step from simple tacit knowledge, and references from other practitioners and theories must be drawn.

I have begun to splurge write my essay. I have gone past the planning process, at this very moment I am simply putting everything down on paper (digital paper); though I have made changes to how I structure my essay. I have decided that the history of comics, while essential to have knowledge of, is not entirely useful in this particular context. Therefore I will only refer to the attacks made on comics throughout history as a negative and out-dated perspective; a way to show that such views were wrong and had no solid evidence to convict comics as being harmful. It may also serve as a background, and situate my project beyond this point, proving that comics had come a long way since the mid to late-1940s. This topic will be addressed in the second paragraph, following the first where I discuss the unique and effective properties of comics.

Some action sketches I did on the train.

Week 06 04/04/16 Monday

Continuing with my reading on "Ten-Cent Plague", I have discovered that comics had been a target of censure throughout the years. In its earliest form as the Sunday supplements, snobby elitists and critics have despised it as "a national degradation", up to the mid 1940s as comic books flourished, Catholic religious heads regarded comics as "the cause of juvenile delinquency". From my stand point, the sophisticated class of people from the end of the nineteenth century had misguided views on the Sunday supplements, as they were intended to be crude, illiterate and nonsensical, for their target readers were the under-privileged proletariat, who were only able to comprehend the picture stories depicted in the comic strips of newspapers. As for the dogged Catholic leaders who blamed comics as the main reason for teenage misbehaviour after the Second World War, they failed to see that that was the tragic effect the war had on the youth, and their misconduct was a product of fatherless homes and absent mothers, working for a living. There was no valid evidence that pointed to comics as a cause or motivation for juvenile delinquency; the Catholic Church convicted comics to such crimes, as they feared they were losing their followers to it, and thus they launched an attack on comics in an attempt to rally the parents, to assist them in defending the children from comics' so-called deteriorating effect.

I am up to the fifth chapter now, delineating the events concerning comics during the late 1940s. It was a time when the parents were collectively beginning to believe the articles reprimanding comics and its violent content, and were starting to respond to them. At this point it would get more interesting, as I am intrigued by how comics were almost killed during this period, and furthermore, how comics raised back to popularity again. I can only read on.

I was also planning my first paragraph to my essay. I believe that it would be effective to discuss all the hardships comics had endured and survived throughout the years. Though it certainly is not the only medium that suffered from substantial attack, it definitely is an interesting story to tell. I think that depicting those events would raise awareness in the reader, that they should be grateful for the existence of comics, and thankful that men and women had dedicated sweat and tears into keeping comics alive. Well, I am at least.    

I have revived my "Seven Deadly Sin" concept and drew a new series. Each sin is depicted by a different animal skull. This one is wrath as a roaring lion.

Week 05 01/04/16 Friday

I had began reading "Men of Tomorrow: The True Story of the Birth of the Superheroes" by Gerard Jones. He approached the American comics' history a differently than David Hajdu, by deatiling the personal lives of significant figures involved in it. I finished the first chapter and it was an interesting read, but it did not relate a lot to my project. I have to be patient when it comes to researching material, I know I will strike gold soon with this book. I did find another book written by Jones that may be of use to me, called "Killing Monsters: Why Children Need Fantasy, Superheroes and Make-Believe Violence". The title alone drew me in, so far I have yet to find a copy through the university or public library; however, there were a lot of reviews regarding this book. I could look at those for a rough idea of what the book is like.

I also spoke to my supervisor on Thursday, discussing my concern with the weak connection of the feeling of creepiness and children's comics. She said that it may not be an issue to be addressed just yet, as my focus could be more on comics as a medium and evaluations on what makes it unique, and how interactive elements could help further that reader participation. This was incredibly helpful and it cleared my mind lot, it also made my research easier as now I just need to focus on what I care about most: comics; and how gaming aspects could create immersion.

So with those in mind, I wrote a new essay plan:

Intro - Present the argument that comics are effective in ways of communication and education
         - Purpose that comics still have potential to evolve

Para. 1 - A brief discussion on the history of comics
            - Mention key events and the people involved
            - Evaluate how comics are now so widespread today
(Books to reference: "Ten-Cent Plague", "Men of Tomorrow"; I may also need to look at comics' history in Japan, though only briefly to get a rough idea)

Para. 2 - Discussion on the elements that make comics unique and effective
            - Use of text and imagery
            - The function of speech bubbles
            - "Cartoonization" (not a key element to comics but can be mentioned, examples include "Bone" and "Tin-Tin")
            - The Gutter and Closure, the heart of comics; these are what makes comics transcend beyond just a hybrid of word and images
(Useful books for this section: "Understanding Comics"; "Comics and Sequential Art"; "The Aesthetics of Comics")

Para. 3 - Comics can be an educational tool
            - Builds on cognitive skills and reader participation
            - Fuels imagination, practices reading in both text and images
(Supporting references: "Killing Monsters"; "Including Graphic Novels in the School Curriculum"; "The Seeing 'I'")

Para. 4 - Comics in the digital age
            - Present that comics are lending their narratives to the gaming industry
            - A brief description of how some comics are attempting to evolve. Some are more welcomed than others; mention the general view on motion comics- why does/ does not it work?
            - How games and interactivity is immersive, and hypothesize that those elements could potentially further the engagement with comic readers
(References/examples: "Wolf Among Us"; "Walking Dead"; "Art of Pho")

More environmental concepts for the project