Graphic Novels

A graphic novel is a book-length work of sequential art that uses a combination of text and images to tell a complete story, often with complex narratives and developed characters. Visual storytelling engages different aspects of literacy than traditional reading, and graphic novels can be an interesting and fun way to engage with narratives beyond traditional reading.

Graphic novel: a format of book that uses sequential art to tell a story

Graphic novels can be any genre. They often feature stand-alone stories with more complex plots than comics. Many are nonfiction and feature recounts of history or personal narratives.

Comic or comic book: stories told through sequential art that are typically shorter in length than graphic novels and are published on a regular schedule

Comics famously feature superheroes, but they don't necessarily have to. Sometimes they are published in compilations called an omnibus.

Comic strip: short form comics often printed in newspapers, magazines, and online

Although many comics follow a continuous story line, comic strips are usually shorter (only a handful of panels) and have self-contained stories.

Manga: comics and graphic novels from Japan

Check out this list for other frequently used graphic novel and comic book terms!

This handout from The Center for Cartoon Studies breaks down key vocabulary to describe comics and graphic novels.