Comic Books: Internet Resources

Comic Book Resources
http://www.comicbookresources.com/
Widely regarded as the premiere comics-related site on the Web, sponsored by comic book fan and professional Web-page designer Jonah Weiland . Provides a variety of original ongoing columns, together with an outstanding collection of Web links covering hundreds of resources. Columns include Beau Yarbrough's twice-weekly "Comic Wire" news update and Steven Grant's thought-provoking "Master of the Obvious," a weekly opinion feature.

Yahoo Comic Book Sites
http://dir.yahoo.com/Entertainment/Comics_and_Animation/Comic_Books/
Links to more than 1,200 sites, organized into 16 major categories. Especially good for links to publisher's Web sites.

Comic Book Collecting
http://comicbooks.about.com/
Highly selective, well-organized guide to Internet resources of all types, including online price guides, magazines, worthwhile fan-sites, and much more. Maintained for About.com by long-time comics collector Keith Gebelein

Google Comics Directory
http://directory.google.com/Top/Arts/Comics/
More than 5,000 links to comics resources, including publishers, fan sites, creators' home pages, conventions, and much more.

Digital Webbing Comic Sites
http://www.digitalwebbing.com/sites/
Links to more than 2,500 comics-related Web sites, covering creators, publishers, retailers, fan pages, tools for collectors, manga , online comics, and TV/film-related sites.

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Diamond Comic Distributors Online
http://www.diamondcomics.com/
Web site of America 's largest comic book distributor. Includes weekly news, highlights from the monthly Previews catalog, a list of comics shipping this week, and a list of new comic titles for the month.

Comicon
http://www.comicon.com/
Billed as an online comics "convention," Comicon is a diverse portal which hosts Web pages for comics professionals, online retailers, discussion groups, Web-based comic books and strips, a directory of real-world comics conventions, daily news, interviews, and much more.

Comic Book Galaxy
http://www.comicbookgalaxy.com/
Another well-developed site with news, previews, and reviews.

Digital Webbing
http://www.digitalwebbing.com/
A broad-based Web portal with news, previews, interviews, profiles of up-and-coming creators, columns, and an extensive guide to external Web resources.

Cinescape Comics
http://www.cinescape.com/0/Comics_2.asp
Site maintained by Mania Entertainment LLC, publisher of Cinescape magazine. Current reviews, plus brief news industry news, and previews are available online at no charge. Additional "premium" features--primarily feature articles, columns, and editorials--features are available to magazine subscribers only.

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Comics Worth Reading
http://comicsworthreading.com/
Extensive collection of well-written reviews by long-time fan Johanna Draper Carlson, notable as one of the few sources for a female point of view.

Slush Factory
http://www.slushfactory.com/
News, reviews, and interviews, plus columns by industry pros John Byrne, Alex Robinson, Dwayne McDuffie, and Collen Doran.

Artbomb
http://www.artbomb.net/faq.jsp
Lively reviews of high quality graphic novels in a variety of genres. The professed mission of this site is to raise the level of discourse on comic books and encourage comic book fans to expand their reading interests. Browse the archive of reviews by genre or by author/artist. Artbomb is the brainchild of popular comic book writer Warren Ellis, with reviews provided by a cadre of like-minded contributors.

The Fourth Rail
http://www.thefourthrail.com/
Weekly reviews of current comic book releases of all types. Written by Randy Lander and Don MacPherson , two of the Internet's most experienced and prolific fan-reviewers. An archive of previous reviews is also maintained.

The X-Axis
http://www.thexaxis.com/
Highly opinionated, highly entertaining reviews from Paul O'Brien, one of the most articulate fan voices on the Internet. As the name suggests, the X-Axis focuses on Marvel's X-Men family of comics, but O'Brien regularly reviews all types of other titles as well. Updated weekly, with an archive of previous reviews.

Savant
http://www.savantmag.com/
Stylish, intelligent, and highly regarded weekly online magazine containing reviews, essays, rants, and recommended reading. Launched by comics fans Matt Fraction, Alec Austin, & Dave Potter.

Tony's Online Tips
http://www.wfcomics.com/tony/
Weekly newsletter with commentary and reviews, written by Tony Isabella, long-time comic book writer and editor. Isabella's commentary often digresses to issues of censorship, politics, and personal events in the Isabella household, but his opinions about comics are always informative, informed, and entertaining.

The Ninth Art
http://www.ninthart.com/
Entertaining and literate essays, commentary, and reviews. Billed as a resource for the "discerning reader."

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Recommended Graphic Novels for Public Libraries
http://my.voyager.net/~sraiteri/graphicnovels.htm
Compiled by Steve Raiteri , young adult librarian at the Greene County ( Ohio ) Public Library. Arranged by category, plus a basic list of 30 titles recommended for any library starting a GN collection.

The Comics Get Serious: Graphic Novel Reviews
http://www.rationalmagic.com/Comics/Comics.html
A growing archive of book reviews, updated monthly, arranged by title and subject. Reviews written by librarian Aviva Rothschild.

Get Graphic at Your Library
http://www.ala.org/ala/yalsa/teenreading/trw/trw2002/trw2002.htm
An introduction to graphic novels in libraries, compiled by librarians Francisca Goldsmith and Steve Raiteri . Created for Teen Read Week 2002 and sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association of ALA.

No Flying, No Tights
http://www.noflyingnotights.com/
Well-written reviews of graphic novels organized by genre, with indexes by title, publisher, and creator. Maintained by library science student Robin Brenner and her friends.

YALSA's 2002 Popular Graphic Novel Nominations
http://www.ala.org/ala/yalsa/booklistsawards/greatgraphicnovelsforteens/gn.htm
Nominations for ALA 's annual list of popular paperbacks for young adults. This year the list contains a separate section on graphic novels.

Recommended Manga Titles
http://www.koyagi.com/recManga.html
Another worthwhile site from Gilles Poitras . Extensive, annotated list of recommended titles for schools and libraries, with cautionary notes on sex and violence.

Recommended for Teen Readers
http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/units/lml/comics/pages/recommended.html
Recommended comics and graphic novels, organized by age level and genre. Compiled by Michael Lavin, librarian at the University at Buffalo.

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Comics Reference Books
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/7875/bookstore.html
Bibliography of encyclopedias, handbooks, histories, and other reference books relating to comic books. Compiled by librarian Miriam A. Gan -Spalding.

Comic Books: A Research Guide
http://www.nypl.org/research/chss/grd/resguides/comic
Annotated bibliography and pathfinder compiled by the New York Public Library.

Comics Scholarship Annotated Bibliographies
http://www.comicsresearch.org/
Annotated guide to book-length scholarship on comic books and related topics. Covers history, criticism, anthologies, interviews, and more. Compiled by Gene Kannenberg , Jr., an English Professor at the University of Houston.

Comics Research Bibliography
http://www.rpi.edu/~bulloj/comxbib.html
Extensive and diverse bibliography ( unannotated ) to books, journal articles, and news stories about comic books. Compiled by Michael Rhode and John Bullough.

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A History of Sequential Art
http://www.comic-art.com/history/history0.htm
A 10-part narrative history of pictorial story telling, from cave paintings to modern comic books. Also provides a 5-part chronology of comic book and comic strip events. Sponsored by Richard Halegua , comic book historian, dealer, and owner of the Comic Art & Graffix Gallery.

History of Superhero Comic Books
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/8580/noframes.html
A five-part, illustrated history written by comics fan Jamie Coville . Includes brief biographies of several key figures, plus links to other Internet resources.

Comics Archive
http://my.execpc.com/~icicle/main.html
Extensive guide to the comics of the Golden and Silver Ages, including title checklists, character fact files, and scanned images. Maintained by comics collector David W. Stepp.

Comic Books in the '50s
http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/comics/index.html
A guide to the history of American comic books during the 1950s, including background on the Fredric Wertham , the crusade against comics, and the Comics Code Authority. Provides a database of comic book images, searchable by title, genre, theme, and/or year. Maintained by librarian Michael R. Lavin.

Frederic Wertham Article
http://art-bin.com/art/awertham.html
Interesting article about Frederic Wertham (author of Seduction of the Innocent) and his anti-comics crusade of the early 1950s. Written by Dwight Decker and published in the Art Bin, an international e-journal covering art and culture. Full title: "Frederic Wertham : Anti-Comics Crusader Who Turned Advocate."

Crime Boss
http://www.crimeboss.com/
Fan site dedicated to crime comics of the 1940s and '50s. Contains an extensive gallery of cover art, several historical articles about the genre, and links to other Golden Age fan sites.

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NCRL: New Comic Book Release List
http://www.comiclist.com/
Weekly list of new comic book issues scheduled for distribution to stores. Posted every Monday night, with listings of comic books to be shipped nationwide on Wednesday. Also provides link to a weekly "Late Comics" report, listing books which were scheduled to ship but have not. Maintained by comics retailer Charles Le Page.

Diamond's Top 300 Comics
http://www.icv2.com/index.html
Monthly ranked list of 300 top-selling comic book titles based on retailer's orders placed with Diamond Comic Book Distributors. Look for the latest list in the “top stories” sidebar on the homepage.

Comic Books for Young Adults
http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/units/lml/comics/pages/
Designed as a tool for school and public librarians, this site provides guidelines for developing a comic book and graphic novel collection, including background on comic book formats, genres, publishers, and reviewing sources, together with lists of recommended titles and suggestions for choosing age-appropriate materials.

Comic Book Awards Almanac
http://users.rcn.com/aardy/comics/awards/index.html
Extensive catalog of comic book award winners, arranged by award and year. Covers major U.S. awards such as the Eisner and the Harvey , as well as lesser-known awards, foreign awards, and non-comics awards given to comic book creators (e.g., Paren ts Choice award, Hugo award). Compiled and maintained by library technician Joel Hahn.

Diamond Bookshelf for Libraries and Schools
http://bookshelf.diamondcomics.com/
Tools for librarians and teachers from Diamond Comic Distributors, the nations largest comic book jobber. Highlight of the site is the lists of recommended graphic novels arranged by age level and instructions for ordering through Diamond. Also provides Dewey Decimal classifications and recommended subject headings for every book on the list, book reviews by librarian Katharine Kan, lesson plans for the classroom, and a glossary of comics terminology.

BWI Title Tales
http://www.bwibooks.com/
Bibliographic citations (including price, age-level, and a brief synopsis) covering more than 1,600 graphic novels available for sale. Most listings include a cover scan and many provide a review and/or MARC cataloging records. Registration is required and access is restricted to public librarians. Sponsored by Book Wholesalers, Inc., a book jobber specializing in the children's and young adult markets.

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Diamond's Comic Shop Locator Service
http://csls.diamondcomics.com/
Directory of comic shops in the United States , Canada , and the U.K. , searchable by ZIP or Postal Code. Brief profiles available for many listings. Sponsored by Diamond Comic Book Distributors. A toll-free telephone version is also available at (888) COMIC BOOKS.

Masterlist of Comic Book and Trading Card Stores
http://www.the-master-list.com/
Free online directory of comic book stores in the United States and elsewhere. Browse the list by state and city. Lists store name, address, and phone number.

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Grand Comic Book Database Project
http://www.comics.org/
A volunteer consortium of comic book collectors which has banded together with the intent to index every comic book ever published. The Project, now in its fifth year, includes records for nearly 50,000 comic books, representing more than 800 publishers and 6,500 titles. Users can search the database by title, individual issue, creator (writer, artist, etc.), or character.

MSU Comic Art Library Reading Room Index
http://www.lib.msu.edu/comics/rri/index.htm
Author/title/subject index to the extensive collection of comics and comic journals at Michigan State University . Includes indexes to comics by genre, an index to periodical articles by subject, comic book title, and creators' names, and several topical bibliographies. Maintained by Randall Scott, MSU comics bibliographer.

Librarians in Comics
http://www.ibiblio.org/librariesfaq/combks/combks.htm
Brief, annotated bibliography of comic books and graphic novels in which a librarian or library plays a role. Maintained by Canadian librarian Steven Bergson.

Don Markstein's Toonopedia
http://www.toonopedia.com
Concise, well-written encyclopedia-type profiles on hundreds of comic-related topics. Focus is on animated cartoons, but extensive coverage is given to comic books, including articles on major publishers, characters, and series. Compiled by Donald M. Markstein, a professional writer, editor, and lifelong comics and cartoon fan.

Artist Biographies
http://www.comic-art.com/biograph.htm
Brief biographical data for hundreds of major comic book creators, living and dead, plus biographical profiles for several dozen of the most prominent artists and several artist interviews. Sponsored by Richard Halegua , comic book historian, dealer, and owner of the Comic Art & Graffix Gallery.

Lambiek Comiclopedia
http://www.lambiek.net/
Searchable gallery with more than 2,000 artist biographies, including samples of their work. Strong international coverage. Sponsored by Lambiek , the oldest and largest comic store in the Netherlands.

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Secret Origin of Good Readers
http://www.night-flight.com/secretorigin/index.html
A resource guide for teachers on using comic books in the classroom. Discusses the relationship between comic books and reading skills, provides lists of recommended comics and graphic novels for children and teens, and offers ideas for classroom activities using comic books and comics concepts. Edited by Robyn A. Hill, with contributions by teacher Kristine Rodriguez, artist Richard Jenkins, and others. First presented at San Diego 's Comic Con International in 2001.

National Association of Comics Educators
http://www.teachingcomics.org/
A variety of resources, including course syllabi, lesson plans, classroom exercises, study guides, articles, and reference tools. Resources are intended for college-level instruction, but the site provides a wealth of ideas, some of which could be adapted for younger students. Many resources are contributed by comic book professionals, including Trina Robbins, Jessica Abel, and Stan Sakai. The site is maintained by James Sturm, an award-winning comic book artist, writer, (The Golem's Mighty Swi ng ) and former faculty member at the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Diamond Bookshelf Lesson Plans
http://bookshelf.diamondcomics.com/lessonplans/default.htm
At the moment, only one lesson plan is posted here, a guide to Linda Medley's wonderful Castle Waiting. The lesson plan was created by elementary school media specialist Allyson A.W. Lyga . Site sponsor, Diamond Comic Distributors, hopes to add more in the future.

BRIDGES: CrossGen Comics for Education
http://www.crossgen.com/education
Publisher CrossGeneration Comics ( CrossGen ) has created two extensive study guides with the help of five classroom teachers. The first, using their Meridian comic, is for grades 4-8. The second, based on their Ruse comic, is for grades 9-12. The site also provides a message board for teachers and students.

Daryl Cagle's Teacher Guide
http://cagle.slate.msn.com/teacher/
Lesson plans for elementary, middle, and high school teachers relating to editorial cartoons. Cagle is president of the National Cartoonists Society.

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Comics Research Libraries
http://www.lib.msu.edu/comics/otherlib.htm
Extensive directory of research-level special collections in academic and public libraries which focus on comic books, comic strips, cartoons, and related media. Includes links to home pages. Maintained by librarian and comic book bibliographer Randall Scott of Michigan State University .

MSU Comic Art Collection Index
http://www.lib.msu.edu/comics/index.htm
Home page of the MSU comics collection, one of the best in the country. Includes collection development policy, various indexes, and catalogs, and a description of the collection.

Words and Pictures Virtual Museum
http://www.wordsandpictures.org/
For serious students of comic art, this site provides links to research libraries with special collections on comic books, universities with programs on comic book studies, and museums with permanent or temporary exhibits on comic art. The Virtual Museum also offers a strong international perspective, with links to comic books resources in Europe and Asia . Sponsored by the nonprofit Words & Pictures Museum of Fine Sequential Art.

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Sequential Tart
http://www.sequentialtart.com
High-quality e-journal written by and for female comic book fans. Well-written reviews and thought-provoking commentary, plus news, interviews, and ongoing features.

Museum of Black Superheroes
http://www.blacksuperhero.com/history.html
Provides a variety of materials, including a brief overview of black super-heroes, profiles of major characters, an image gallery, links to articles about black super-heroes and black comic book creators, and a guide to additional Web resources (including links to current projects by African-American artists. Site maintained by Omar Bilal .

Jews in Comics
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/5756/JWISHC.HTM
Critically acclaimed, though far from comprehensive guide to specific comic book stories featuring Jewish or Israeli characters, settings, or themes, both favorable and unfavorable. Stories range from traditional super-hero fare, to historical fiction, to anti-Semitic polemical tracts. The annotated bibliography includes links to other sites, though some links are no longer up to date. Maintained by Steven M. Bergson.

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Librarian's Guide to Anime and Manga
http://www.koyagi.com/Libguide.html
Brief introduction to anime and manga , including a well-written overview, a discussion of violence, nudity, and sexual content, a list of recommended titles, and a bibliography of books and periodicals. Maintained by Gilles Poitras , author of the Anime Companion and editor of the monthly USA Anime and Manga Report.

Anime Web Turnpike
http://www.anipike.com/
Extensive guide to Web sites for both anime and manga . Links are categoried by series, publisher, fan sites, clubs, news groups, and general resources. A separate section covers currently popular series, such as Dragonball Z, Sailor Moon, and Pokemon .

Anime 101
http://www.umich.edu/~animania/anime101.html
Concise introduction to anime and manga , including FAQs , purchasing guidelines, and terminology.

Shoujo Manga
http://www.matt-thorn.com/
Excellent introduction to Shoujo manga -- manga -style comics written by women for female readers. Includes a description of the medium, a history of manga , lists of classic and recommended comics, bibliographies, and links to other sites. Maintained by cultural anthropologist and translator Matt Thorn.

UseNet Manga Glossary
http://www.aestheticism.com/MangaGlossary/gloss.html
Detailed glossary of manga -related terms, compiled by Iain Sinclair for the rec.arts.manga Newsgroup.

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Comics Continuum
http://comicscontinuum.com/index.htm
Daily news, interviews, and previews of upcoming movie and TV projects, including publisher press releases. Edited by Rob Allstetter and staff.

Comics 2 Film
http://www.comics2film.com/
Current news and archived stories about comic book properties which have been or are in the process of being made into motion pictures, television programs, or animated cartoons. Extensive background data, history, industry news, and rumors associated with hundreds of comic book projects.

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ORCA
http://www.orcafresh.net
The Organized Readers of Comics Associated is an international membership association whose mission is to promote the reading and enjoyment of comic books. The group encourages the formation of local chapters

Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
http://www.cbldf.org/
Nonprofit organization devoted to the protection of First Amendment rights for comic book creators, publishers, and retailers.

Friends of Lulu
http://friends-lulu.org/
Nonprofit group which promotes comics by and about females, as well as comics readership by women and girls.

Popular Culture Association Comic Art & Comics
http://www.comicsresearch.org/CAC
Information from the Popular Culture Association relating to comics. Includes calls for papers and a citation guide to comic books.

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Graphic Novels in Libraries (GNLIB-L )
http://www.topica.com/lists/GNLIB-L/
Unmoderated electronic discussion list. Membership limited to librarians and professionals in the book trade. At some point in the future, the service will move from Topica to a host using Listserv software.

Comic Scholars Discussion List
http://web.english.ufl.edu/comics/scholars/
Academic forum for the discussion of comic art.

Frequently Asked Questions - Comics Newsgroups
http://users.rcn.com/kateshort/faqs/
One of the most popular forums for comic book discussions on the Internet is the rec.arts.comics .* hierarchy of Newsgroups via Usenet. More than a dozen topical Newsgroups have been established, covering such categories as Marvel comics, DC comics, comic strips, and fan-fiction. This well-organized and up-to-date guide, maintained by long-time Usenet contributor Kate Hahn ("Kate the Short"), provides an introduction to the comics Newsgroups, answers to frequently-asked questions, tips for new participants, and links to the FAQs for the individual rec.arts.comics Newsgroups.

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Creating Comics
http://www.members.shaw.ca/creatingcomics
Extensive list of links to resources for novice comics creators, including articles, reference tools, and sample scripts. Topics include writing, illustrating, lettering, submitting, and self-publishing. Maintained since 1997 by David A. Law

Frequently Asked Comics-Pro Questions
http://www.twistandshoutcomics.com/smallpress/comics-pro-faq.html
Concise answers to numerous questions relating to comic book creation, production, and publishing. Maintained by Mike Meyer, comic artist and colorist and administrator of the Comics-pro discussion list.

Comics and Art: DIY
http://www.artbabe.com/comicsandart/diy/diy_make.html
Detailed, step-by-step guide to the process of drawing comics, including advice on tools and materials. Written by artist Jessica Abel, best known as the creator of Artbabe comics for Fantagraphics.

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