dare i?

i love graphic novels. however, if you asked me about the thousands of underground word-picture publications i would fail to tell you which ones i thought had the most exquisitely drawn illustrations or which alan moore book i thought had the most profound message about society. i'm not going to lie to you, readers: i really don't know much at all about the would of graphic novels, and i'm not going to pretend i do. this lack of knowledge was probably what caused my first (and presumably last) attempt at writing/illustrating a graphic novel, well, what the young kids would say, an "epic fail".

ah, yes...but it's come time again to embark on a new literary mission in ela class - the second round of independent writing projects. and i think i'd like to take another stab at the graphic novel. and this plan didn't just pounce upon me like the metaphorical puma of good ideas. it's been nesting in the back of my brain ever since i completed my first graphic novel in the seventh grade. my (very minor) perfectionist ways have forced me to have a constant desire to make what formerly was a screw-up into something better. sometimes my more prominent, lazy, procrastinator side dominates, yet this time, my love for the peanut butter-and-jelly relationship of words and pictures is pushing me forward, into the depths of challenge.

my first graphic novel was about a young, pious girl suffering from the black plague in the middle ages. (what fun!) it was a comedy, too. no, just kidding. i thought it was a good idea from the start, but as the writing process progressed, it turned into a nightmarish experience that i was desperate to abandon. although i personally believe any story can be adapted into a graphic novel, drawing pictures of sickly children lying listlessly on flea-ridden bales of hay was not my idea of an inspirational writing experience.

this time, i plan to write something more personal. about myself. not exactly a memoir, because i believe that memoirs shouldn't be written unless you are inches from death (but still able to pick up a pen or type on a keyboard). i guess it would be more of a documentation of my life right now, in the midst of stress and confusion and angst. i have a million ideas swimming around in my cerebral sea and i feel the need to put them down on paper. the story isn't exactly linear, nor does it have a set point. but it will. all i have to do is harness my inspiration and courage, even though it sounds painfully corny. i'm determined to master the art of the thing i love most about literacy. wish me luck.