Job:05-19413 Title:Creating Comics
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Creative Process
This project was done in collaboration with
writer Shannon O’Leary, whose script provided
a rough page layout with a detailed description
of each individual panel. This particular story is
an historical account, so research was done in
order to properly represent the party members
and their dress, landscapes, props, etc. There
were a number of discussions between writer
and illustrator that led to certain creative deci-
sions; for example, this story originally featured
two main protagonists whom the creators later
decided to composite. Given that this story
is very emotionally driven, the compositions
were designed to describe the feelings of the
characters. Large empty spaces and sparse text
give the reader a sense of solitude, emptiness,
silence, and desperation.
Ryan Alexander-Tanner
Creating Comics
10
Title: Forlorn Hope
Client: The Bridge Project
Anthologys (Scraped Knee, 2009)
Media: Brush, pen, and ink on Bristol (2007)
R
yan Alexander-Tanner has worked as a com-
ics journalist, created instructional comics for
big companies, designed logos and advertise-
ments, taught children, created gallery exhibitions, and
collaborated with some real characters.
He received a 2008 Xeric grant to publish his solo
comics project, Television. He is currently completing a
book of theory and practice for teachers in comics form
with acclaimed educator William Ayers.
Job:05-19413 Title:Creating Comics
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Job:05-19413 Title:Creating Comics
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Title: To Teach Page 14
Client: William Ayers and Ryan Alexander-Tanner (Teacher’s College Press, 2010)
Media: Brush, Pen and Ink on Bristol (2009)
Because this work is an adaptation of a book of theory and
practice, it was first necessary to develop an outline for each
chapter with author William Ayers that described what ideas
from the original text were most crucial. Once our priorities were
established, I was able to develop a loose outline of the chap-
ter’s narrative, as well as key images, icons, and sequences.
Each page was given a job to do in order to describe the ideas
from the original text. This page is the opening of the second
chapter, a section focused on developing a full relationship
and understanding of each of your students rather than mire
them with simple labels and clinical generalizations. I wanted
to open with a simple exchange between teacher and student
for several reasons. The stage is set, the reader is given a sense
of the characters’ relationship, a precedent for speaking with
students is established, and the idea of the student’s percep-
tion of himself through drawing is created. In order to develop
this page I drew a mock-up for Bill, showing him how many
panels are on the page, what each panel is meant to do, and
outlining how many words can fit into each one. Bill then did a
free write, which the two of us edited and then cut and pasted
into the sequence. At this stage I was free to make suggestions
and insert my own ideas, sometimes leading to big changes or
new approaches. The page was roughed out with the dialogue
inserted, all in pencil. When the chapter was more developed
we return to these pencil roughs and revisited and reevaluated
what we’d made before I went over it with a ballpoint pen,
making changes where necessary. These pen-drawn pages
made a script (shown here) that was submitted to our editors
before any final drawings were done. This script page is unusu-
ally similar to the final, as many of the pages of the book were
reworked between these two stages (some entire sections were
completely redone).
Ryan Alexander-Tanner
Ryan Alexander-Tanner
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