I believe Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics to be the perfect introduction to a class like this. It addresses all the major themes of the genre, both technical and creative. He explains comics and the way people consume them like a science, which I found extremely fascinating. Many of his points were concepts that I was vaguely aware of, but had not actually given much thought to before. Why are cartoons so relatable? What makes them such an effective form of communication? The answers to these questions are something every comic artist and fan ought to be familiar with.
For me personally, the part of the book that hit closest to home was the chapter where McCloud outlined the six steps that are critical for the creation of comics. In his explanation, we are shown a number of characters with the ambition to be a comic artist. Each one of them ends up at a different level of success depending on the extent of their perseverance. I felt like the overall message of this section could be applied to many different types of artists. I found myself saying "Oh, I would much rather be this person!" with each new introduction. The chapter varies quite a bit from the rest of the book, which has a strong emphasis on the mechanics of the medium (transitions, contrasting styles, etc.) up until this point. However, here is seems as if McCloud, knowing his book would be read by aspiring comic artists, speaks to us very directly. His implication being that if we truly have a passion for the art, we should never give up on it. And while I found the entire book to be very informative and interesting, it was this particular point that stuck with me and got me really excited to continue this course and learn as much as I can about the world of comics.
I had a similar reaction when I read that part of Understanding Comics, the one where McCloud breaks down the six steps of creating comics. Personally, I am glad that McCloud added that it is alright for an artist to stop at any level if they want to end up at that position—they can do assistant work, etc. and it is completely valid and respectable. However, I agree with you that McCloud implies that, if we want to, we should "never give up on it" and settle at a certain point; we should continue to delve deeper in our work and tackle the more fundamental parts of art (ultimately, "why am I making this?").
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