Scott McCloud is well-known for his nonfiction comics (NFC). He has theorized how comics work and also helped describe how Chrome, Google's Web browser, works. Other artists have used NFC to great effect, such as Art Spiegelman, Will Eisner, and Joe Sacco. The dynamic combination of visual and linguistic symbolizing in comics makes it a great tool for research and argumentation, as well as narrative memoirs and fiction. Scott was generous enough to answer some questions I had about this genre of comics.
The format I've used to lay out the conversation echoes some of Scott's online comics---the panels aren't fitted together tightly on a page, but are strung together along a line. The image to the right is an excerpt of an online, non-fiction comic Scott has created. This image links to his site, where he demonstrates how these linking lines can convert a computer monitor from a 'page' to a 'window.'
In the interview below, my questions are presented in an initial dark box, followed by Scott's responses. Click the following links to view a themed segment; press the HOME key on your keyboard to jump back to the top of the page. Some segments include links to relevant pages away from the Kairos site.
Orientation and Methods
Info Design
Words/Images/Interplay
Formats and Metadiscourse
Speculations
