Summer is finally settling in and with it is my first-ever newsletter. It’s been a little over a year since my first graphic memoir, And Now I Spill the Family Secrets, was published, and my second memoir, A Brief History of My Affairs, was recently acquired by Pantheon. This new book chronicles my journey living in different cities in the devastating aftermath of unhealthy relationships until I finally embarked on a path of healing (thank you therapy). The book was sold on proposal, with an excerpt, and now the real process beings. Which brings us here.
This newsletter will document the making of my new book, with all the behind-the-scenes goodies that usually never see the light of day. Research, cut scenes, photographs, conversations, notebooks, etc.. Alongside the making of every book is a hidden library of material that gets lost or stored. I mean to shed light on both the practical methods of making an illustrated book, as well as the invisible archive behind this book in particular.
An illustration from my new book.
For a long time, I didn’t know how to make a graphic memoir. Despite studying both illustration and writing as an undergraduate and graduate student, comics were not a significant of the curriculum and the process of how to make one remained mysterious. I read McCloud’s Understanding Comics and other guides, but I could never think in panels and so the methods never quite matched what I imagined making.
After years of trial and error, I developed a process that’s particular to the type of books I like to make (with lots of words and full-page drawings), but can also apply to anyone wanting to make a graphic memoir or novel. Here’s an overview:
Define the Timeline
Write & Revise
Draw the Storyboard
Sketch Pages
Ink Drawings
Design the Book
Copy Edit
Hand in the Final File
What I basically learned to do was parse the parts of a book, which allows me to revise each element on its own without completely impacting everything else. For instance, I now write everything first rather than simultaneously drawing and writing. This way, I can refine the story until it does exactly what I want it to do, and not waste time on illustrations that might get cut. The storyboard works in the same way, helping me edit out pages before spending hours on full-scale drawings. Having a clear method gives structure to what can sometimes feel like a chaotic and unpredictable process. (As a fan of The Home Edit, I very much appreciate this kind of organization. It’s like having clear, perfectly labeled bins in your pantry closet.)
So! Each month, as I write and draw my way through A Brief History of My Affairs, I will send a dispatch from the studio detailing which part of the process I’m in, how it’s going, and whatever else is happening. (Like right now it’s 6am and the kids are sleeping and birds are chirping and it’s my favorite time of day.) If you have a specific question, send me a note and I’ll do my best to answer. In the meantime, thank you so much for following along!
Ciao ciao,
Margi