Comic strip A
comic strip is a short work of comics which has its origins in the world of newspapers, but may also appear in magazines or other periodicals, as well as in books. In comic strips, generally the only unit of
encapsulation is the
panel.
Dailies ''
daily comic strip (1913) As the name implies, a
daily comic strip is a comic strip that is normally run six days a week in a newspaper, historically in black and white, although colour examples have become common. They normally run every day in a week but one (usually Sunday), in which the strip (the so-called
Sunday strip) appears larger and usually in colour. Several daily strips are short and limited to one tier ("single-tiered").
Sundays '' Sunday comic strip (1922)
Sunday comics are comic strips that traditionally run in newspapers on Sundays (Saturdays in some papers), frequently in full colour. Before
World War II, cartoonists normally were given an entire page to themselves, and often would devote the page to a single comic strip, although many would divide the page between a main strip and a "
topper" (which would sometimes run on the bottom). Wartime paper shortages brought down the size of strips, and to this day Sunday pages normally are made up of a multitude of strips. Some series will publish an
annual issue once a year which is two to three times as large as a regular issue; "while they don't have to be one-shot stories, generally annuals are used as ways to tell stories that don't fit within a single issue or can't be included in a full arc".
Trade paperback A
trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually presenting either a complete miniseries, a
story arc from a single title, or a series of stories with an arc or common theme.
Graphic novel Graphic novel is a term whose definition is hard to pin down, but usually refers to a self-contained, book-length form. Some would have its use restricted only to long-form narratives, while at the other extreme are people who use it as a synonym for "comics" or "comic book". Others again define it as a book with a square-bound spine, even if it is a collection of short strips. Still others have used the term to distance their work from the negative connotations the terms "comic" or "comic book" have for the public, or to give their work an elevated air. Other than in presentation and intent, they hardly differ from comic books. Some prefer not to use the term "graphic novel" at all. Amongst the criticisms is the fact that the use of the word "novel" excludes non-novelistic genres, such as journalism, biography or history. Others believe the term has become too general, a catch-all for all kinds of content, and thus meaningless. Towards the close of the 20th century, the three major comics-producing traditions—American, western European (especially the
Franco-Belgian), and Japanese—converged in a trend towards book-length comics: the
comic album in Europe, the in Japan, and the graphic novel in the English-speaking countries.
Webcomics Webcomics, comics published via the
Internet on the
World Wide Web, have emerged since the beginning of the 21st century. As they are not limited by the size and shape of a physical page, they can make use of what
Scott McCloud calls the
infinite canvas, where the individual comics can make use of different sizes and dimensions. Webcomics are also capable of incorporating multimedia elements, such as sound, animation and bigger panels (scrolling panels). In South Korea, an infinite canvas format caught on called the
webtoon. A
slide show-like format for webcomics was described by French cartoonists Balak in 2010, which he dubbed
Turbomedia. ==International comics==