Thursday, May 28, 2015

Armchair BEA: Visual Expressions

***So in an odd development of events, I'm catching a plane this afternoon to go to New York! I'm planning to go to the last day of BEA and then spend several days sightseeing around New York. There are supposed to be thunderstorms in the city tomorrow, so I really hope my plane isn't delayed or cancelled fingers crossed. It was a spur of the moment decision to go cross country. I got some pretty bad news today. Basically the reason I skipped BEA didn't work out and it was like extra punishment to not be able to go to BEA. So I cashed in frequent flier miles and booked a trip to New York. It's made me very happy on an otherwise awful day.


Question of the Day


There are so many ways to tell stories. Whether it's comic books, graphic novels, visual novels, webcomics, etc, there are quite a lot of other mediums to tell a story. On this day, we will be talking about those books and formats that move beyond just words and use other ways to experience a story.


I love manga. I got into it after a trip to Japan 5 years ago. There, everyone reads manga - kids, teens, adults. There is also something for everyone. Everything from cute little puppy manga to hardcore porn manga.

It took me awhile to get used to the format of manga. It goes from right to left, but that is easy to get used to. What was more difficult was getting accustomed to understanding the story from just a few words and images. Once I got used to it though, it became a very fun and meaningful genre.

Most of the manga series I like to read are the light and fluffy kind. I've read a few that were more grown up and serious. I really enjoyed those, but it general manga is escape time for me.

I've been trying to get more into Western style comics lately. I loved the first trade of Ms. Marvel and want to read more. I've also enjoyed the new series of Doctor Who comics. I'd like to start reading Saga and Neil Gaiman's Sandman, too.

How about you?

17 comments:

  1. Comics is a new medium to me -- I'm trying to understand it more, and appreciate the art more, and Kamala Khan is my first go with it! She's wonderful and such a geek, I love her!

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  2. That's awesome that you'll be able to go for the last day!!
    I love Manga too, I used to read it a ton years ago, but I stick to just a few series now. I've been reading it since before high school lol.
    I'm hoping to read Ms. Marvel and a few others soon too! I'm pretty excited about that :)

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  3. That's so awesome that you get to attend after all. Have a lot of fun!

    I've never read any graphic novels or comics but I have been wanting to especially with Marvel I'm just not sure where you start with that.

    Tina, The Bookworm

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  4. I hope the bad news wasn't too bad and that visiting BEA makes up for it! The few mangas I've read I have also struggled with adapting to the style, especially since I tend to fly over illustrations rather than linger on them! I hope I see you at the Twitter chat tonight! Thanks for sharing :) Can't wait to read the rest of your BEA posts!
    My BEA post
    Juli @ Universe in Words

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  5. Hooray that you get to attend BEA, though I'm sorry about the bad news. I hope you're doing OK and that getting to go to BEA lifts your spirits! :)

    I have never sought out manga myself but my sister is really into it and I've read a couple of series she's recommended to me. My favourite is Petshop of Horrors.. It's the perfect mix of fun, creepy and really interesting. I also really want to read Death Note, as my brother and sister both really like that one.

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  6. I'm glad you get to go to BEA. I hope your plane doesn't cancel. I want to get into manga, comics, and graphic novels more. I've read a couple of graphic novels and it lacked depth for me. I'm reading the Marvel Star Wars comics right now to see if that'll help me get into things more since I love Star Wars. I may like manga, though, because I love the art style. I just don't know where to start, lol.

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  7. Hi Alison! Don't you love those spur of the moment trips? I'm glad you had the chance to attend BEA. I'm a historical fiction novelist and I want to go to BEA in New York some year.

    I was introduced to Manga when I was attending Full Sail for my MFA. I had never heard of the genre before. We have some Manga books in the school library where I teach and I've been wanting to read one of them. Which Manga is your favorite so far?

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  8. Aw, I'm sorry life's been so hectic for you lately. :( I'm sorry you weren't going to go to BEA, but now you are! I hope you have a fantastic time and have tons of fun visiting New York. <3

    The only manga I've ever read is Sailor Moon. :) Although I am interested in a couple others, Inuyasha for one. I've seen a couple posts today about comics! I've never read them myself.

    I've tried out visual novels, which are interactive stories on the computer where you make choices and it impacts the ending. :) Kind of like the whole "Choose your own adventure" stories.

    --Amber

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  9. I am so sorry about your bad news . Many hugs and I hope that you will be able to enjoy BEA while there and sight see. (((((((((((HUGS))))))))))))))))))

    I admit that I haven't read any magna --maybe Watchmen .

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  10. Sandman was the first graphic novel I read. The story is amazing. You should read Saga It is really good!
    Jess @ Jessy's Bookends

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  11. Sandman was the first graphic novel I read. The story is amazing. You should read Saga It is really good!
    Jess @ Jessy's Bookends

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  12. One of my best friends is really into manga and keeps trying to get me to read them, but I'm not sure they're for me. Loved the few Sandman graphic novels I read, so hope you enjoy!

    Terri @ Alexia's Books and Such...

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  13. Oh, I guess I had just assumed you would for sure be at BEA like years previous. That's so great that you were at least able to make it out for the last little bit! I hope someday I will get to experience BEA - even if only for a day!

    Manga and comics - that's one area in reading that I haven't gotten into yet. Unless you count Archie comics which I used to love when I was younger, heh. But I'd like to try some more adult content (by which I don't mean porn) in manga/comics/graphic novels.

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  14. Attending one day is better than none! Everything happens for a reason. I personally am not a fan of manga. I have tried ready the fluffy kind, but it's really not for me. One of my close friends though swears by it. Well, that and fan fiction.

    Meredith @ A Book Lover's Corner

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