The Invisible War is a graphic novel due to be launched this month by the Scale Free Network art-science collaborative, a Melbourne based micro-publisher, inspired by the wonders of the micro-world. 

This extract is from The Invisible War, a graphic novel to be launched next week. It is being released by Scale Free Network art-science collaborative, a Melbourne based micro-publisher, inspired by the wonders of the micro-world. 

The graphic novel was created by a team of collaborators:

• Art director, Briony Barr is a conceptual artist who regularly works with scientists. 

• Science director, Dr Gregory Crocetti worked for a decade as a microbial ecologist and loves microbes so much that he forgives those that occasionally make him sick. Briony and Gregory (co-founders of Scale Free Network) created the storyboards for the graphic novel, which required image-searching everything from diarrhoea to cans of bully beef to the fungus living on cheese. 

• Writer, Ailsa Wild is the author of two Small Friends books and the Squishy Taylor series. She only studied science up to year 10, but knows a thing or two about narrative! 

• Ben Hutchings, the illustrator, has been self-publishing comics since the early nineties and is the co-founder of Australia’s first cartoonists’ studio, Squishface Studios.

The Invisible War was inspired by the recent discoveries of our science advisor, Dr Jeremy Barr, whocurrently performs science experiments at San Diego State University, USA. In order to create this book we consulted closely with experts from all over the world. 

To find out more about the project, or to pre-order a copy, go to www.TheInvisibleWar.com.au