'Nancy Drew' Graphic Novel Series

The more than seventy-year-old literary icon Nancy Drew is just about done with her professional makeover within the publishing industry. An incredibly popular character at the center of a successful franchise of mystery and detective stories for decades upon decades, Nancy Drew has given generations of readers just as much excitement and suspense, as she has given readers moral dilemmas. This April however, through Papercutz, the Nancy Drew series will be reborn as a newly formatted series of stories. That is, Nancy Drew will be made over as a graphic novel character. The decision to change the book series into a comic modeled after Japanese comics ("manga"), comes as a result of the increase in popularity of the style and craft of eastern comics.

The graphic novel and manga-style approach to re-designing the classic book series comes from a series of individuals that are well concerned over the tradition of the Nancy Drew series. "Look at Veronica Mars and Kim Possible -- their origins are clearly Nancy Drew. My goal was to keep up the Drew mystique in a fast-paced comic book format," Stefan Petrucha, writer for the series, told SunTimes.com. "You'll have all the drama, the suspense, locations and lots of visual moments."

Additionally, the story will still feature all of the characters central to Nancy's life as a freelance detective. Bess Marvin, George Fayne and Nancy's steady boyfriend, Ned Nickerson, all get make their appearances here and there throughout the graphic novel series Nancy Drew. It is the goal of the Papercutz company to give a new generation of readers--dedicated comic book fans--their due exposure to the classic literary icon. And ultimately, the demographic of the comic series, presently set at ages nine through to twelve, is dependent upon the accessibility of the comic to its reading population. Papercutz, is confident that with their skillful team of writers and artists, and appreciation for the tradition of mysteries and problem solving, the Nancy Drew graphic novel series will be a popular selling franchise.

The first installation of the manga-style revamped Nancy Drew series, hits most book shelves at the end of the month of April (some sources date April 30th). Published by Papercutz, the first volume of Nancy Drew, "The Demon of River Heights," will be many readers first installation of the classic characters exploits; and as such, Papercutz hopes that the identifiable characters will be something worth remembering. Papercutz is a division of the respected graphic novel publisher NBM.

Illustrator for the series, Sho Murase commented to SunTimes.com: "What I like about Nancy Drew is her character. She is strong, feminine, smart, and finds herself in difficult situations but always manages to come out on top. It's an exciting character to portray, especially in comic form, which mainly has been geared toward teenage boys in the realm of superheroes."

Petrucha, as the writer for Nancy Drew, is a seasoned veteran when it comes to writing. Having worked within and outside of the mystery genre on titles such as Topp's X-Files comic, several Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck comics, and much more. An author known for crafting an incredibly cool charisma for his characters, and managing an entirely personable environment for his readership, Stefan Petrucha is certainly taking the next step by jumping into the world of graphic novel publishing.

Murase, as an illustrator for the Nancy Drew graphic novel series, is well versed in the visual arts. Her work consists of animation and the construction of comics. Having worked with publishers such as Image Comics and (currently) with Tokyopop, Ms. Sho Murase is a highly talented and confident artist that is definitely aware of the industry's need for one so skilled a she.

Everyone's favorite girl detective makes her dazzling graphic novel debut! Nancy also makes her debut in a horror film concerning a monstrous River Heights urban legend -- but is it really an urban legend or does the River Heights Demon truly exist? And will Nancy, Bess, and George live long enough to find out? Based on Simon and Schuster's newly re-launched series of best-selling Nancy Drew novels by Carolyn Keene. Written by Stefan (X-Files, Kolchak) Petrucha, and illustrated by Sho (Sei) Murase.

The adventures and exploits of Nancy Drew and her friends have never gone unnoticed in the world of children's literature, and have always been understood as an influential puzzle piece when it comes to inspiring children to take up to their local libraries in search of the new and interesting. Here in April of 2005, her iconic status will dawn a cool wardrobe, a cell phone, a laptop, and perhaps more, as in the Nancy Drew graphic novels she comes to face several new challenges.