Picture by Bartek Ambrozik
In real life, it is usually easy to tell who is speaking. We see their lips move. We hear their voice. We are surrounded by signals that help us concentrate on the substances of what is being said.
In good fiction, we want the reader to feel immersed in the story. We want them to feel as if they are actually hearing the words being spoken. But, of course, our reader is not actually there, and does not have any of the usual signals.
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“Sequential Art” is the rather lofty term that Will Eisner used in his seminal work Comics and Sequential Art*to describe the process of arranging pictures, images and words to narrate a story. It is central to comic book writing. With so little space to tell the story, each image in each frame must successfully catch the essence of the action whilst establishing the drama, tension and mood. Comic book writing is not just about drawing the picture but also about choosing which picture to draw.
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Is there a fundamental difference in the best ways to structure factual essays and fictional stories? Recently I’ve begun to wonder if they are closer than I thought.
I have a spiel I give to students. It goes like this: An essay, paper or presentation is not like a story or a novel. You are not spoiling it for me if you start by telling me how it ends. I do not want to be surprised by your conclusions. Instead, I want to know where you’re going right from the first paragraph.
We’ve all heard the saying “tell them what you’re going to tell them, tell them, then tell them what you’ve told them.” But what are you supposed to tell them? A lot of students lapse into vague generality; “I’m going to talk about such and such” or “I’m interested in this and that.” But the most important part of a paper isn’t the theme, it’s the idea – in the same way that the most important part of a story is not the genre but, well, the story! If you aren’t telling me the story, or your idea, then why am I reading your paper?
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