Sharjah
In a lively session titled ‘The Comic Industry’ at the 41st Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF),
Lincoln Peirce, author of the famed Big Nate series, and author Fatima Al Amri, engaged in an
exciting debate on which of the two is more important – words or illustrations.
Admitting that he gives more importance to words, Peirce said: “For me, words always come
first. You can identify a great story if you have compelling characters and crisp dialogues. If the
sketch is good but your words are not powerful enough, people will set you aside immediately,”
he said.
“I fell in love with cartoon characters through newspaper comic strips, which had minimal
panels, but powerful stories,” he said, adding, “Comics are the gateway for visual readers to
have fun while reading.”
Fatima Al Amri, on the other hand, had a differing viewpoint. She said: “Images, right from the
book cover, attract readers. Drawings formulate our impressions before words. In this visual
age, youth are more drawn to illustrations before enjoying the pathway of the story.”
She added that while colours add more vibrancy to drawings, the Japanese tradition of black
and white mangas also attract the youth with their visual appeal. “Publishing houses today need
to create more interactive content rather than the usual Q&A format. With new smart
technologies, there is a huge possibility of developing content to align with the unique thoughts
of each kid,” she said.
“Kids love sharing their thoughts with their friends. If we produce good content, the word will
spread quickly among their peers,” Fatima continued.
Enthusiastic children who attended the session asked insightful questions to the Big Nate author
on the development and depiction of various characters in his best-selling comic series.
Moderator of the session, Shaikha Al Mutairi, said the questions from the young children imply
that the reading culture is still strong amongst the new generation and that they are keen
observers of different aspects of the books they are reading.