Foreword: Time-traveling in a lost worldIntroductionChapter 1. A brief history of the photonovel1.1 A working definition1.2 Origins, evolution and decline1.3 Fame versus shame1.4 Photonovels: between tradition and emancipationChapter 2. Belgian editorial context: a language divideChapter 3. Popular Belgian women’s magazines with photonovels3.1 Lectures d’Aujourd’hui / Lectuur voor Allen3.2 Mon Copain3.3 Chez Nous / Ons Volk3.4 Femmes d’Aujourd’hui / Het Rijk der Vrouw3.5 Bonnes Soirées / Mimosa3.6 Piccolo and Tiptop3.7 Vrouw en Huis3.8 Panorama3.9 Rosita3.10 Ons Land met Iris3.11 Madame3.12 Joepie3.13 Other magazines3.13.1 Roman Film complet, Sandra / Katia and Sérenade3.13.2 HUMO and Sportif ’68 / Sport ’68Chapter 4. Making photonovels4.1 Creating a photonovel4.1.1 Subject4.1.2 Script and plot4.1.3 Director4.1.4 Photographer4.1.5 Actors4.1.6 Layout4.1.7 Translations4.2 Print process4.2.1 Photomechanical processes4.2.2 The evolution of rotogravure4.2.3 Color printing4.2.4 Press printed photographsChapter 5. Photonovels inside the magazines5.1 Photonovels and advertisementConclusionAppendix: Complete list of all the photonovels published in Belgian magazinesBibliographyAcknowledgmentsThe importance of the Belgian contribution to the history of the photonovelThe Belgian photonovel is the missing link in the amazing history of the photonovel, a comics-inspired form of visual narrative that combines elements from very different genres and media, ranging from literary melodrama, cinema, and of course comics. This monograph discloses the specific Belgian contribution to the genre, in close connection with the singularities of the Belgian women’s and general magazines where these photonovels appeared. If the photonovel is generally considered a typically French or Italian genre, this study demonstrates the importance of a different tradition, which appropriated the foreign models in a very original way. Belgian photonovels are distinct, not only because they tell other kinds of stories, but also because they interact with other types of magazines in ways that are very different from the mainstream forms of the genre in Italy and France. Finally, this lavishly illustrated study is also the first in scrutinizing the technical aspects of magazine printing techniques in the development of the photonovel.The Belgian photonovel is the missing link in the amazing history of the photonovel, a comics-inspired form of visual narrative that combines elements from very different genres and media, ranging from literary melodrama, cinema, and of course comics. This monograph discloses the specific Belgian contribution to the genre, in close connection with the singularities of the Belgian women’s and general magazines where these photonovels appeared. If the photonovel is generally considered a typically French or Italian genre, this study demonstrates the importance of a different tradition, which appropriated the foreign models in a very original way. Belgian photonovels are distinct, not only because they tell other kinds of stories, but also because they interact with other types of magazines in ways that are very different from the mainstream forms of the genre in Italy and France. Finally, this lavishly illustrated study is also the first in scrutinizing the technical aspects of magazine printing techniques in the development of the photonovel.