Digital Graphic Narrative Planning

Use this booklet to help structure your planning and collate your planning documents.

Considerations:

There are lots of things to consider in this project. Fill out each section in detail to show you have thought about each one. You should imagine that this is a live project, so considerations like cost, quantity and codes of practice must be thought about in that context rather than just as a college project.

Costs:Other than the physical production of the books itself, I can’t think of anything else that would cost money in this production. I already own or have access to the equipment I need, free of charge. Advertising and marketing however would be something that would cost money, getting my book out into the public is a great way for it to get exposure and buyers.

Available resources:Graphics tablet, Microsoft word, computer, Paint Tool SAI, paper, mechanical pencils, Pens, Photoshop.

Quantity:I will most likely print 1000-1500 books as I’m unsure how well they’ll sell, but if it’s a hit then there will be enough to be sold while more are being printed. This quantity is good for both possible scenarios, if the book doesn’t sell well, then I haven’t spent thousands of pounds printing thousands of books; however if it does sell well, I have the time to produce more before they run out.

Audience and Target Market:My target audience are children aged 5-7. I feel the book’s language is at this level while the story is understandable and not too complex for this age range. I don’t feel I’m advertising towards any specific gender, as space travel and aliens coupled with a dress-up aspect appeals to a wide range of kids. 5-7 is around the time when kids start to develop interests such as aliens, trucks, cowboys, fashion ect so I feel parents and other relatives may want to buy it for the child to read; it offers the educational aspect by practicing reading while catering to their interests.

Quality Factors:All of my work will be done digitally, so the largest quality problems I face is successfully backing up my work and the possibility of files not being saved to the correct file format and ruining the quality. Losing my work due to hard-drive failure or loss of memory sticks could prove to be catastrophic, so I will back my pages and progress up on a variety of different systems: Google drive, my memory stick as well my laptop hard drive.When it comes to loosing quality due to file format using lossy compression- I will simply make sure that I save all of the digital artwork as PNG files meaning the quality of the file won’t be compromised when saved.Time management will also be a large factor, I will make sure I use all my available time to complete my project on the deadline.Codes of Practice:The 1982 PA code of Practice on Author Contracts (Updated in 2010) states that to have a co-operative and constructive relationship between book authors and their publishers must abide by various rules to make sure the contract is fair and balanced.

1) The publishing contract must be comprehensive, clear and unambiguous. This means that there cant be any large segments of wordy text that is hard to understand but essentially gives the publisher unwarranted power, so that they can make changes how they seem fit without asking the author.

2) The contract must be clear in regards to the ownership of the copyright. Many times this becomes blurred in the contract and can lead to exploitation.

Regulation:My book isn’t going to also be a toy, so safety regulations to do with moving parts and small components wont apply to me. However if the did, I’d have to abide by the laws set in place due to The Toys (Safety) regulations 2011. I must make sure the toy has been “Designed and manufactured to comply with the essential safety requirements during its foreseeable and normal period of use” (www.gov.uk/guidance/toy-manufacturers-and-their-responsibilities)I must carry out safety inspections on the toy, making sure that there are no sharp edges or items that could be choked on by younger children. Considering my book will be aimed at 5-7 year olds, this wont be as much of a concern yet still essential.Copyright:Due to the copyright act of 1988, I must not use any other creator’s work without first asking permission. The use of another writer’s intellectual and legal property is illegal and could land me in trouble with their publisher. I have made an adaptation of a classic fairy tale who’s original author is unknown and deceased, as well as it not being the exact same, I’m simply using the classic formula to create something of my own creation. I have designed and will illustrate each character and background myself, where I have taken inspiration from various sources, I have created a cast of characters unique in that they came from my imagination.

Ethical Issues:I don’t believe there will be any ethical issues in my story or illustration, I have not included any grossly stereotypical depictions of a certain race, gender or sexuality. Considering most of the characters I will be depicting will be aliens I can have free rein with how I characterise and draw them. Ethical issues authors need to look out for are racist depictions, misinformation when trying to be educational, bigotry towards any group be majority or minority, sexual references or language (considering this is a childrens book) and making sure there is not any cultural appropriation.

Resources:A successful project relies on good planning. Considering all the resources you will need for a project and then assessing which you already have and which you need will help ensure you are ready to start your project.

If there is a resource you don’t currently have, then consider how you are going to get it before you go in to production.

Resource:Do you have it? What do you need to do to get it?

 Graphics tablet  Yes

 Computer  Yes

 Photoshop  No  Use the college’s version.

 Paint Tool Sai  Yes

Production Schedule:Delivering your project on time is vital. In order to do this, you need a solid plan of action. This will help you divide up your work in to manageable chunks to be tackled one at a time. It will also allow you to plan which tasks need to be done in which order. It will also allow you to track your progress each day. If you are falling behind, you will need to modify the way you work. If you work faster than expected, you can clearly see what the next steps you need to take are.

Each session is a half day of college.

Session 1:

Session 2:

Session 3:

Session 4:

Session 5:

Session 6:

Session 7:

Session 8:

Session 9:

Session 10:

Health and safety:Your health and safety and that of those around you is very important. Just like in industry, an accident could prevent you from working. Whilst we don’t work in a highly dangerous environment, there are still risks. Some are short term, such as trips and spillages whilst others, such as long term damage to eyesight or back problems, may affect you much later in life.

Consider the risks based on the activities you will be undertaking during the project. Explain how you could prevent them from happening.

Ensure you reference appropriate pieces of legislation, design to protect people at work.

Health and Safety Issue How can you prevent it?