Literature - Graphic Novels: Home

"A comic strip is an illustrated narrative told in a series of frames or panels accompanied by dialogue as appropriate. It can be as short as two frames or fill a complete comic book; a single panel is a cartoon. A comic, or comic book, is a magazine or newspaper, at least half of whose contents consists of comic strips. Strips in comics tend to be comparatively long and complete within an issue, while newspaper strips can range in length from a single line of frames in humorous or “gag” strips to serials published over years (“continuity” strips)."

Source: The Oxford Companion to Children’s Literature

"Term used to describe longer (often book-length), more complex comics. In the best examples, these utilize the relationship between image and text to create a layered and involving reading experience."

Source: The Oxford Companion to Children’s Literature (2nd ed.)

"A Japanese genre of cartoons and comic books, notably longer than non-Japanese works in these genres, and particularly prevalent since the Second World War; animations in a similar style are called anime. Manga has a distinct visual style, its androgynous characters having large heads and exaggerated facial expressions."

Source: The Oxford Companion to Literature (4th ed.)

"A series of comic strips published online"

Source: The Oxford Dictionary of English (3rd ed.)