The first webcomic, Witches and Stitches, started in 1985. The medium was largely ignored by major publishers until webcomics started booming in the mid 2000s, with mainstays like Drawn and Quarterly, Questionable Content, and Cyanide and Happiness making waves. The medium, which started out as most humor, branched out into other genres. Unlike mainstream publishing and comics, there were no gatekeepers, giving creators freedom to explore niche interests in a way traditional comics can’t.

The medium is still evolving. With webcomics gaining more respect and readers, major publishers have been inking artists to deals. Books that started as webcomics, like Emily Carroll’s excellent Into the Woods, have garnered critical and financial success. Webcomics have always been a great place for young artists and writers to hone their craft. Now they’re a destination, a place major publishers are scouring for the next big hit.

Here are 7 upcoming graphic novels that started as webcomics.

The first webcomic, Witches and Stitches, started in 1985. Even still, the digital medium was largely ignored by major publishers until the webcomics boom of the mid-2000s, with mainstays like Questionable Content and Cyanide and Happiness making waves. The medium, which started out as most humor, branched out into other genres. Unlike mainstream publishing and comics, there were no gatekeepers, giving creators the freedom to explore niche interests in a way traditional comics can’t.

With webcomics gaining more respect and readers, more and more webcomics are jumping into print. Books that started as webcomics, like Emily Carroll’s Through the Woods, have garnered critical and financial success. Webcomics have always been a great place for young artists and writers to hone their craft. Now they’re a destination, a place major publishers are scouring for the next big hit. Now, here are some new and upcoming graphic novels that began life as some of the Internet's most exciting webcomics.

Related: Ava's Demon: Michelle Czajkowski Fus' Webcomic Lands at Skybound

THE CONTRADICTIONS

Unlike many of the other entries on this list, Sophie Yanow’s The Contradictions isn’t funny, nor is it intended to be. The publisher says that this graphic memoir explores “that time in your life where you’re meeting new people and learning about the world—when everything feels vital and urgent.” Yanow’s art is a starkly contrasting black and white, with cartoonish figures moving through stylized worlds. The Contradictions won the Eisner for Best Webcomic in 2019, and it's not hard to see why. It’s exciting new work from a writer-artist who seems set to be a cornerstone for the industry for years to come. The Contradictions is now available in print from Drawn & Quarterly.

I HOPE THIS HELPS: COMICS AND CURES FOR 21st CENTURY PANIC

Webcomic artist Tommy Siegel is a jack-of-all-trades, a “singer-songwriter-guitarist-bassist-producer in Jukebox the Ghost, Narc Twain and Drunken Sufis” according to his Talkshow page. He challenged himself to draw a comic every day for 500 days, and he ended up with 500 comics, 171,000 Instagram followers and one book deal. I Hope This Helps is an absurdist take on the anxieties of the internet era. His comics manage to be timely and timeless at once. Andrew McMeel Publishing just released I Hope This Helps: Comics and Cures for 21st Century Panic, and you can get a taste of his work on Siegel’s Instagram.

CHICKEN THOUGHTS: COMICS ABOUT BIRDS

Sarah Wymer’s comic strip, Chicken Thoughts: Comics About Birds, chronicles what goes through the minds of pet “birbs.” The comics are an adorable testament to the writer-artist’s love for her avian pets. Wymer’s comics are typically four-panels, revolving around conversations between two birds, a bird and a human, or a bird alone, thinking. Chicken Thoughts is at its funniest when Wymer leans into the absurdity, playing around with inventive spellings of words and how ornery birds can be. Chicken Thoughts: Comics About Birds will be available starting November 1, but you can check out her comics now on the series’ Reddit page.

Related: Webtoons and Tapas the Game for Webcomics - Here's How

ONE OF THOSE DAYS

Yehuda and Maya Devir are a husband and wife team who draw comics of their life together. According to their website, Yehuda’s style is “influenced by American comics” while Maya’s style is “a realist artist.” The different art styles blend well. One of Those Days repeatedly gone viral because of how relatable their relationship is. Whether they’re drawing the way the water only ever warms one partner in the shower or they way a hug from your partner can turn a bad day around, their love feels real and endearing. In a world of chock full of irony, One of Those Days is refreshingly genuine. Their book, One of Those Days, on November 10, but you don’t need to wait until then. Their comic strips are currently available on their website.

CITY MONSTER

Reza Farazmand’s career took off when he started the webcomic Poorly Drawn Lines. He keeps a rigorous three-new-comics-a-week schedule and found time to write and illustrate City Monster as well. According to Penguin, “City Monster is set in a world of supernatural creatures and follows a young monster who moves to the city. As he struggles to figure out his future, his new life is interrupted by questions about his mysterious roommate—a ghost who can’t remember the past.” The illustrations and humor are reminiscent of Poorly Drawn Lines. Farazmand’s City Monster will be available from Penguin on November 17, 2020. You can catch up on Poorly Drawn Lines while you wait.

Related: Friday: Brubaker & Martin on Blending Occult, Noir for New Webcomic

BARELY FUNCTIONAL ADULT: IT'LL ALL MAKE SENSE EVENTUALLY

Meichi Ng's work features drawings reminiscent of Cyanide and Happiness juxtaposed against existentially troubling conversations. Like many of the other artists on this list, Ng has a deep understanding of the struggles of modernity. The humor in Barely Functioning Adult comes from the clash of the simple images with the emotional complexity of their jokes. If a real person said, “So I had a breakdown and started sobbing uncontrollably the other day,” it would be upsetting. However, it's hilarious when a sublimely simple cartoon says the same thing. Harper Collins will publish Barely Functioning Adult: It’ll All Make Sense Eventually on November 24, 2020. Ng is still regularly posting comics on her Facebook page.'

Related: Marvel Launches 'Heroes at Home' Webcomic Series

STRANGE PLANET: EXISTENCE CHRONICLE

Even if you don't realize it, you may already be familiar with Nathan W. Pyle’s comics. They go viral on social media platforms like Facebook seemingly every week. In each, blue humanoid alien creatures perform mundane human activities and describe them in hilariously literal terms. One of Pyle's aliens describes a birthday by saying: “This is where the planet was when you emerged.” Pyle’s comics are constantly shared because of how well they highlight the absurdity of our existence. So much of what humanity does is dictated by tradition, and Strange Planet interrogates how weird tradition can be. Strange Planet: Existence Chronicle will be available on December 1, 2020, from HarperCollins. The comics are available on Pyle’s Instagram.

KEEP READING: Webtoon: Why So Many of the Most Popular Webcomics Are Romance

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