Literature: Different Media Forms

In this post, Booksify's comments on how literature can reach the big screens or art flow into pages in a novel. Please consider checking out the examples we mention!

“I was losing myself so quickly that I felt like I was melting away and turning into an entirely different creature. But even so, my mistakes, those feelings, my rage, that pain, my disappointment, and helplessness—all of it—made me who I was today. It was me. It was all me.” – Bloom Into You: Regarding Sayaka Saeki Volume 2. (Nakatani Nio, Hitoma Iruma)

The Regarding Sayaka Saeki light novel series is a spin off of Bloom Into You – which was a romance manga that was later adapted into an anime. As much as I loved seeing Bloom Into You come to life with voice-acting and colours – the supporting character of Sayaka’s story put into a three-part light novel series ended up stealing my heart. In the manga, she’s the one who lost the love interest and we don’t see the beginnings of her feelings nor how she came to be who she is. Transferring a supporting character from a story where illustrations greatly outweigh writing – straight into a novel is no easy task, yet it was executed perfectly. From the first volume’s chirping cicadas, sweltering heats and breathless dives into cool pools – every sound, sensation and sight embedded into my brain as I read. The novels use first-person which is but another of the many deviations from the original media format.

Nakatani Nio (creator of the manga/ characters), at the end of the last volume says she asked Hitoma Iruma (the writer of the novels) to make Sayaka very happy. I believe the most important part of creating a story and transferring it to different media formats is believing in your characters and their presence in your art. Every protagonist to antagonist and supporting character is a piece of art and potential – it is up to the artist how far they uncover their stories but it should never be a blatant ‘never.’ Whether it be Heartstopper or the Sayaka Saeki light novels – to see your favourite story and characters change form and reveal all the bits your imagination hadn’t sought before – it’s beautiful, being a writer or a reader. I highly recommend reading the manga and then the light novels for the best experience after you’re finished with our BOTM!

“… the feeling of my breath being stopped by her lips made me feel almost as though I had landed somewhere... It gave me an odd sense of arrival and relief.” – Bloom Into You: Regarding Sayaka Saeki Volume 3. (Nakatani Nio, Hitoma Iruma)

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A classic film character originally developed through DC comics, Harley Quinn has been adapted several different times through various media ranging from comic to movie to television series or even to video game. While animation, live action, the text of a book, or DC comics original adaption of her have all proved to be packed with action, excitement, and strong personality, I find my favorite exploration of Harley Quinn’s character development was narrated in of Stejpan Šeijić’s “Harleen.” Pairing gorgeous and intricate artwork with his own authentic and immersive storytelling, Šejić takes Harley Quinn’s story to another level.

“At first it seems like another nightmare. In this dream, I walk a long, winding road through a warped version of Gotham. I’ve dreamt of this road before. I’ve seen the terrors that await me at its end. And yet, every time, I keep walking. Every time I think, this time will be different. And this, I’m right… Yes, this dream is different. For the first time, his face is not monstrous. He smiles… and I make the worst mistake of my life… I smile back.” -- Harleen: Volume 1. Stjepan Šejić.

While her character in literature and movie settings has been criticized in the past for the amount of plot holes surrounding her decisions and the seeming lack of realistic personality, Šejić is able to fill every plot hole and craft Harley’s character into a very real, very human entity. Focussing on the various aspects of Harley Quinn, Šejić delivers insight into her original goals in psychiatry, creates a compelling and realistic arch for her romance with the Joker, and ultimately depicts insanity and her criminal nature in a way that both demonstrates character development and reconnects itself with Harley’s original intentions before becoming “a villain.”

Aside from Šejić’s exquisite textual depiction of Harley Quinn, a major aspect of this book that grabbed my attention and stole my heart was the artwork. As Šejić is responsible for both the written text and the visuals throughout the entire series, he truly hones the purpose of each sentence, phrase, or fragment and captures it on paper. His illustrations of characters are consistent but still unique from one another and add a large amount of flow and engagement to each volume. If his writing on its own doesn’t manage to charm you, his artwork, representative of his skill and passion, will certainly capture readers’ attention.

Through and through, Šejić’s “Harleen” is a masterpiece of a series which beautifully details Harley Quinn’s story arc in an authentic, intimate, and exceedingly unique way. For all fans of comics, graphic novels, action, or superhero/villain universes, this series is a must-read.

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The first commentary was written by Nat, and the second commentary was written by Anya!