# A Customizable Generator for Comic-Style Visual Narrative

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2401.02863 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.02863/

## Key facts

- Cited by 4 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 2 of its 23 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 14 Dec 2023.

## Builds on (most cited first, 2 of 2)

- [Sketch-based Manga Retrieval using Manga109 Dataset](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1510.04389/) (2015)
- [The Amazing Mysteries of the Gutter: Drawing Inferences Between Panels in Comic Book Narratives](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1611.05118/) (2016)

## Built on by (most cited first, 4 of 4)

- [Collaborative Comic Generation: Integrating Visual Narrative Theories with AI Models for Enhanced Creativity](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.17263/) (2024)
- [GameTileNet: A Semantic Dataset for Low-Resolution Game Art in Procedural Content Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.02941/) (2025)
- [Narrative-to-Scene Generation: An LLM-Driven Pipeline for 2D Game Environments](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.04481/) (2025)
- [Robust Symbolic Reasoning for Visual Narratives via Hierarchical and Semantically Normalized Knowledge Graphs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2508.14941/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

We present a theory-inspired visual narrative generator that incorporates comic-authoring idioms, which transfers the conceptual principles of comics into system layers that integrate the theories to create comic content. The generator creates comics through sequential decision-making across layers from panel composition, object positions, panel transitions, and narrative elements. Each layer's decisions are based on narrative goals and follow the respective layer idioms of the medium. Cohn's narrative grammar provides the overall story arc. Photographic compositions inspired by the rule of thirds is used to provide panel compositions. McCloud's proposed panel transitions based on focus shifts between scene, character, and temporal changes are encoded in the transition layer. Finally, common overlay symbols (such as the exclamation) are added based on analyzing action verbs using an action-verb ontology. We demonstrate the variety of generated comics through various settings with example outputs. The generator and associated modules could be a useful system for visual narrative authoring and for further research into computational models of visual narrative understanding.