Graphic Narrative Gutters

To be considered a graphic novel rather than a picture book or illustrated novel the story is told using a combination of words and pictures in a sequence across the page.

Graphic narrative gutters.

A distinctively long gutter implies a long span of time or major change of scene. Reader moves from one panel to the next and comes to a conclusion about whats happening. The gutter sometimes occupies more space than the panels and actively contributes to the narrative in various ways. A visual or implied boundary and the contents within it that tell a piece of the story.

Gutter the space between the panels. Although others agree with chute s use of the term graphic narrative and include comic books and manga as well in their definition gardner herman 2011 labio 2011 states that the term. Monnin s 2010 graphic novel vocabulary the basics. Graphic novels can be any genre and tell any kind of story just like their prose counterparts.

The gutter is the space between panels. A splash or splash page is a large often full page illustration which opens and introduces a story. This thesis is about the significance of the gutter in graphic narrative. A tier is a singular row of panels.

The format is what makes the story a graphic novel and usually includes text images word balloons sound effects and panels. First i will delve into the surface of the physical appearance of the gutter its function as a frame and a passe partout and inevitably how this affects the way we look at the gutter through the image and sequential art. In some cases it is used to express the duration of time and or changes of location by its length. Visual or implied boundary and the contents within it that tells a piece of the story.

Vertical gutters can be made thinner than horizontal gutters in order to encourage the reader to group each row of panels for easier reading. As the reader moves from one panel to the next they predict and conclude what is happening. The space between the panels. This basic way of storytelling has been used in various forms for centuries early cave drawings.