Comics & Graphic Novels, Certificate

Telling your stories

Comics & Graphic Novels employ visual storytelling, a compound language of words and pictures. Visual storytellers create narratives of every imaginable genre including fiction, non-fiction, and creative non-fiction, and their broad skill-set is applicable to comic books, graphic novels, comic strips, web comics, and edutainment comics. This unique program addresses the specific needs of creators to understand, learn, and demonstrate their skills as visual storytellers.

What to Expect

In this one-year certificate, you will take two academic terms. Courses include creative writing, character design, structural drawing, perspective drawing and more.

In this program, you'll develop a wide range of visual storytelling skills, including scripting, storytelling layout, pencilling, inking, lettering, and colouring techniques (both traditional and digital), life drawing, character design, and perspective. You will also learn the essentials of publishing to help manage your career as a visual storyteller, and on graduating you will have created and published a full-colour comic book to exhibit at a comic arts festival.

As a graduate

As a graduate of this certificate program, you may choose to become a freelance comic book or graphic novel creator, working with established publishers or connecting directly with your audience online and at comic conventions. You'll have produced an impressive portfolio to demonstrate your abilities to publishers, clients and prospective employers, and may also pursue career opportunities in gaming, animation, graphic facilitation, illustration, or advertising.

If you'd like to continue your studies, you can stay at Camosun to pursue related programs, including the Diploma in Arts and Science Studies.