Dim's Write Stuff

Not all fairy tales are happily ever afters. Or are they? Not all graphic novels commit to a bright and cheery disposition. Or should they? But one thing's for sure - not all giants are Hagrid-esque friendly, so you'd better beware.  Blunderbore by consummate creative duo, Sofie Laguna and Marc McBride , is a superlative example of colouring outside the lines of expectation, ripe for readers of middle grade fiction, lovers of fantasy and graphic novel aficionados. Although to be frank, every single line both sketched and scribed of this work is rendered with pencil sharp precision.  Chapter One, enter the giant; Blunderbore the aforementioned not-so-beguiling baddie in this thriller. He is impressively large, grotesque with a fierce appetite for village livestock and bright shiny things aka gold. All this is painstakingly depicted in the first six or so pages with nary a word spoken. The villages are far too busy running for their lives to explain the direness of their situa...

-   I often describe my ideas as niggles, but a more accurate description would be having a giant billboard in my head with a sign that says, ‘Do this cool thing next’. Sometimes I metaphorically drive right past, knowing it’s not a detour I want to take. Other times I’m exiting early with a carload of craft supplies and paper. In the case of my debut graphic novel, it was a billboard that would not go away; it was lit up at night, nudging the corners of my days with whimsical little ideas, characters that would join the scenes playing in my head, and a loose storyline waiting impatiently to be written I made the turn towards my little gnomes early and with great excitement. As a collector of trinkets, my small-hatted friends have been companions in my garden for many years, and it brings me great joy to imagine their lives amongst the plants, playing survival of the fittest (the plants, not the gnomes). I knew there was a story there, but I didn’t know where it would lead me. As ...

There's nothing to not like about Stanton's latest junior graphic fiction series, Fluff . Except maybe bullies, which Gilbert and his gigantic fluffy bunny buddy do, with a passion. In fact their borderline self-righteousness and desire to wreak revenge on their arch nemesis, Carl, becomes their soul purpose and the core of this cute and quirky tale which features tonnes of turtles, parmesan cheese, drones and undies in weird places. Kids will love the zaniness, the absurdity, the talking fish (I did) and the extremely brilliant illustrations swimming with motion and madness (the facial expressions alone are a crack up).  What makes a great graphic novel experience superlative are the touches of tenderness secreted amidst the crazy. Stanton does this quietly and with great effect beginning with the 'bit at the beginning' which is in fact the hook for book #2 right there (for me anyways). Along with the series's namesake of course.  We learn that Gilbert lost his f...