Comics Terminology - Comics, Comix and Graphic Novels - Graphic Novel ("GN"), OGN

Graphic Novel ("GN"), OGN

The term "Graphic novel" (simply put a novel conveyed in pictures) is:

"Used to describe the specific format of a comic book that has greater production values and longer narrative."

The term became popularised when titles such as Dark Knight Returns, Maus and Watchmen began to break into the (non-comics) "mainstream," and from that point forwards has been more-or-less conflated and confused (erroneously) with trade paperback. While comic books are extremely similiar to graphic novels, some cartoonists, such as Ed Koren, argue that compiled comic books do not classify as graphic novels.

For that reason, the qualifying "Original" (hence "OGN") is often added to the front of the term when describing a story told through the medium of comics which debuts in the higher-production-values (increasingly as a hardback, almost-always with a spine) format:

"The graphic novel is more like a traditional novel, in that it is published on an independent schedule. It is longer in format than a periodical and typically contains a complete story unto itself. Graphic novels usually have higher production values than the typical stanpled comic book; they may be squarebound, for example, with cardstock covers. Some may be hardcover volumes. Although a graphic novel usually stands on its own as a complete story, it is possible to have an ongoing series or limited series of graphic novels telling a single story or series of related stories. A typical abbreviation in the industry for graphic novel is "GN," usually used as part of a title to indicate to a reader or browser that the title in question is not a periodical."

The term OGN is "n abbreviation for original graphic novel, often used to differentiate a graphic novel that contains a wholly new story from a trade paperback."