Jim Steranko: "Harnessing Mythology: Reflections on Narrative Theory"

I greatly enjoyed reading Steranko's article; it was interesting to learn about the approach of a professional comic book artist/author. Some of the techniques mentioned were in fact techniques I frequently employ, such as viewing each scene "on the movie screen of imagination" or listening to music while working that corresponds to the scene at hand. But the portion of the article that struck me the most was at the end, where Steranko went through a page with panel-by-panel explanations. It was incredible to see just how important each line of each panel was--not a single one out of place. Something so easy to take in at a glance had an amazing amount of thought put into it. I personally have never given panel layouts very much thought, just tossing in characters and props almost haphazardly. As an amateur, I could easily see where my attempts at comic-drawing fall short compared to the work process of a professional. This article was both insightful and inspiring, and I plan to keep some of Steranko's advice in mind on my next project.