David Balan

David Balan is a current student and aspiring comics creator, studying sequential art at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, Georgia. He is working on becoming both a writer and an artist, and he plans to eventually script and draw his own complete graphic novels. You can see his most current portfolio at http://www.davidbalan.com

MAGAZINE CONTENT BY DAVID BALAN (15 TOTAL)

12-6-11 CoverIdentifying the Complete Story: Diablo #1

In my last article, I discussed how Watchmen #2 was successful as an individual comic book issue by satisfying the reader with a complete chunk of story. 

11-22-11 - Get OutPacing and Punch in Watchmen #2

Watchmen is commonly thought of as one of the greatest graphic novels of our time, but it’s actually a reprint collection. The work originally came out as 12 separate issues, although they were all planned… [more]

11-01-2011 Man of SteelA Man of the Times

In the year 1942, America was embroiled in global conflict – she had entered World War II.  

09-27-2011 Detective Comics SplashThe Art of the Hook

Why read comics?  We certainly have no lack of alternative material.  In fact, we are inundated with it!  There are enough web blogs and magazines to fill our entire lives with reading material.  Why should we choose comics, and… [more]

10-18-2011 - Door CloseStorytelling from 1978 — The Rule of Action

Detective Comics #475 and #476 — “The Laughing Fish” and “Sign of the Joker” — are considered some of the most essential Batman reading of all time. And for good reasons! 

These guys are outselling every monthly comic publishedRespect Your Audience: The New 52 and Calvin and Hobbes

DC’s New 52 initiative has sparked a lot of recent controversy over the presentation of women and female characters. 

High drama necessitates a break from the established norm.The Right Number – Rules, Structure, and Rhythm

Earlier this month, I had a look at Scott McCloud’s The Right Number, an experimental web-comic with a unique format based on digital technology. The zooming format and the forward reading convention were both novel… [more]

Nothing is happening on this pagePut Your Money Where Your Panel Is: On Action Comics #1

Action Comics #1 is a simple story with a simple premise – introduce the character Superman, make the readers care about him, and put him in a dangerous test to set up for the next… [more]

09-06-2011 Right Number Panel (2)The Right Number – A New Reading Convention

Scott McCloud’s The Right Number is a compact, experimental web-comic.  It is also one of the most successful web-comics ever produced.  This is primarily due to it questioning something that most creators take for granted… [more]

08-23-2011 Page 4Reading Direction and the Story Experience

Comics are a strange thing. When you look at a comic page, if you’ve beheld a few of them before, you usually get right into reading it. Panel one first, then panel two, and so… [more]

08-16-2011 Amazing SpidermanHow to be a Super-Hero in Five Minutes Flat

J. Michael Straczynski and Esad Ribic’s Silver Surfer: Requiem is one of the best comics I have read in recent memory.  

08-02-2011 2PP PiranesiAnother Reality: The Spatial Imperative, Part 2

Two weeks ago, I discussed the importance of space in storytelling, and the power of two-point perspective. I left you all with the notion that two-point perspective, while powerful, was not really the whole story —… [more]

07-26-2011 One Point PerspectiveAnother Reality: The Spatial Imperative, Part 1

Ah, the dreaded cliché super-hero page – well drawn, beautifully rendered, and completely incomprehensible.

07-19-2011 GilgameshAll for One, One for All — The Super-Hero Story

I had originally planned to write this article at a later date, but after reading Cody Walker and Julian Darius’s columns this past week, I couldn’t resist the temptation to jump ahead. I’ve been brewing… [more]

07-13-2011 Definition of ComicsIt Takes Two – Text & Image in Comics

So, comics as an art form! A truly legitimate art form, unique and self-actualized, with debacles and triumphs all its own. Not the bastard child of film and literature, and not just for kids, male adolescents, or… [more]

STATISTICS FOR DAVID BALAN

Total Words for All Magazine Content: 30,322