Elizabeth Viscomi

Thistlefell Academy: Night Class

“Thistlefell Academy: Night Class” is an example of my wish fulfillment in having a hard-of-hearing main character in an urban fantasy genre. “Night Class” is an online narrative graphic novella about a hard-of-hearing student who has to take a dreaded night class, meets a gargoyle student, and encountered an unexpected challenge. The main themes I am exploring with this project are coming-of-age, urban fantasy, disabilities both mental and physical, and accommodations and advocating for yourself, and that asking for help isn’t a weakness or a burden. The title “Thistlefell Academy: Night Class” refers to the story’s duration of time, the setting the main character is in, and how I plan to create a longer story form for Thistlefell Academy, its characters and its world. The software used for the project was Clip Studio Paint. Some brushes used for inking, colouring effects, and erasing were custom made to evoke a sense of traditional media. The format is in B5 size dimensions (182 x 257 mm) with 350 dpi and a 5 mm bleed, with 22 pages and a cover in full colour.With a focus on character design and storytelling, being inspired by Stephen Silver’s character designs and juvenile graphic novel El Deafo by Cece Bell, my goal for this project is to create something I would have loved to see in a narrative medium. To not only see a character like me, disabled and enduring certain daily struggles, and to see that character as a main protagonist on magical adventures.