Resources for Librarians

On this page you'll find links to some of the useful resources I've created for libraries and librarians. Some are comic book related; some aren't. Some are actually comic books in their own right!

E-Books
All works in this section are © C. Michael Hall and licensed for non-commercial use under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (BY-NC-ND) license.

GRAPHIC NOVEL COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT
Written and Illustrated by C. Michael Hall
Are you struggling with the challenges of graphic novel collection development? Let me help! Fresh from its successful debut at the 2013 Kansas Library Association's annual conference is Graphic Novel Collection Development, a 32-page guide full of tips, tricks, and advice from a lifelong nerd who has worked in both the library and comic book fields...and you can download the printable PDF version for FREE! Just right-click and "Save Link As..."

FUNDAMENTALS OF READERS' ADVISORY
Written and Illustrated by C. Michael Hall
Readers' advisory can be a challenge for librarians and circulation clerks; this quick-start guide demystifies the basics of this valuable art/science, and can be downloaded for FREE! Just right-click and "Save Link As..."

FIVE ESSENTIAL PRINCIPLES OF COMICS & CARTOONING
Written and Illustrated by C. Michael Hall
Based on the fundamental concepts I've taught in my college courses on creating comics and cartoons, this simplified (only eight pages!) approach to teaching the foundational material was devised as the cornerstone of a library program! Download it for FREE and start your own comics class in your library (or at home!). Just right-click and "Save Link As..."

REFERENCE ON-THE-GO: A CIRCULATION CLERK'S GUIDE TO EASY, FOUR-STEP REFERENCE INTERVIEWS
Written and Illustrated by C. Michael Hall
This handy training tool was designed to help librarians teach circulation staff the rudiments of reference interviews. Not only are these skills useful in small libraries where everyone wears multiple hats, they're easily transferable to basic circulation and search services, enabling clerks to provide a much higher level of customer service no matter where they work. And as is usual with my stuff, it's FREE! Just right-click and "Save Link As..."

Miscellaneous Tools

GRAPHIC NOVEL MINI-POSTER AND SHELF-TALKERS
Designed and Illustrated by C. Michael Hall
Need to draw patrons' attention to your graphic novel location? Need help keeping it all separate on your shelves? This document contains a promotional mini-poster and four shelf-talkers that will solve your problem...for FREE! Just right-click and "Save Link As..." (These tools are © C. Michael Hall and licensed for non-commercial use under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (BY-NC-ND) license.)

Library Comics
The following are instructional/informational comic books I was hired to create for libraries (often along with my friend and fellow librarian Matt Upson). These comics inspired a mini-movement among libraries, some of which have made instructional comics of their own. With the exception of Library of the Living Dead, which is © C. Michael Hall and Matt Upson, these works are the intellectual property of their parent institutions and are presented here solely for archival purposes.

These files are quite large and are easiest to read when downloaded first, where possible.

Library of the Living Dead
Written by C. Michael Hall and Matt Upson; Illustrated by C. Michael Hall and Dustin Evans
Created as a guide to Miller Library at McPherson College in McPherson, KS. NOTE: Right-click link and select "Save Link As..." to read.

Monster Clash
Written by C. Michael Hall and Matt Upson; Illustrated by C. Michael Hall and Dustin Evans
Created as a guide to the Wilton Library Association in Wilton, CT.
NOTE: Right-click link and select "Save Link As..." to read.

Supreme Librarians in Metaspace
Written by Matt Upson; Illustrated by C. Michael Hall and Dustin Evans
Created as a marketing tool for the MLS program offered by Emporia State University's School of Library and Information Management. NOTE: Right-click link and select "Save Link As..." to read.

Sundown at the Library
Written by Matt Upson and C. Michael Hall; Illustrated by C. Michael Hall and Dustin Evans
Created as a guide to the Graham Library at Coffeyville Community College in Coffeyville, KS. NOTE: Right-click link and select "Save Link As..." to read.

Secret of the Pirate Library
Written by C. Michael Hall with developmental assistance by Matt Upson; Illustrated by C. Michael Hall and Dustin Evans
Created as a guide to the library at Independence Community College in Independence, KS. NOTE: Right-click link and select "Save Link As..." to read.

Articles
Comic Book Guy in the Classroom: The Educational Power and Potential of Graphic Storytelling in Library Instruction
By Matt Upson and C. Michael Hall
Published in the Kansas Library Association's College and University Libraries Section Proceedings, Vol. 3 (2013)

5 comments:

  1. Mike:" I love your reference interview for circulation" article. The content is useful and the illustrations make it fun..BTW, where can I get some of those cat-eye glasses your librarian graphic wears?-kur

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    1. Y'know, those cat-eye glasses have made quite a comeback in recent years! I did a quick Google search and found a ton of 'em! Just goes to show you: a true classic STAYS a classic. :)

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  2. Mike, I read the Graphic Novel collection development and loved it (my library has some changes to make). The one thing that stuck out to me was the idea of merging all of the collection levels together. The one problem is that every time I bring this idea up the first concern is Junior level readers getting into the adult stuff while browsing the combined section. How do you guys mitigate that issue? I'd love to merge all sections but the Junior section seems to be a tough sell.

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    1. To be honest, I'm not sure most kids would be attracted to the more adult stuff, simply due to the fact that the art and trade dress aren't generally as kid-magnetic as, say, the Marvel Adventures covers. But your concerns are definitely worth addressing!

      When I talk about merging your GNs into one area, I'm talking about geographically: get them into the same part of the building. They can be on the same shelves, but I don't mean intermingle them on the shelf! Our shelves have labeled sections. You can put the GNs in the same shelves, using colorful shelf-talkers to get kids' attention and direct them to their section. You can also use book stands to display the latest kid-friendly titles to again, draw kids towards the area the all-ages product is shelved.

      Another trick is to shelve all the adult GNs higher up, out of kids' eyeline. If you just can't convince yourself to keep all the GNs in one area, you can skip moving the junior GNs into the main area, but don't shelve anything there that isn't "kids only." There's a lot of kid-friendly GNs that won't circ to teen and adult readers no matter where they're shelved; that stuff can stay in your kids collection where it will find its audience. Don't doom all-ages crossover titles like Bone and Mouse Guard to a section in which no teen and adult readers can access them.

      I hope that helps! I will probably write more on this at a later date.

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    2. That definitely helps to point me in the right direction. To clarify I did not intend to mingle everything on the shelf (merge was the wrong word) but instead have all of the collections in the same location. The concern of my co-workers seemed to be kids browsing into the Adult and YA sections of the larger graphic novel area. But the ideas of putting the adult items on top shelves and promoting the junior materials properly should help with that. Here's to hoping I can swing them my way (with a little help from your article)

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