Royal romance of William, Kate turned into comics

LONDON (AP) -- The royal love story has been chronicled in speech bubbles and sketches.

A comic book telling the story of Prince William and Kate Middleton's romance is due to be published in April, joining a host of other books and memorabilia flooding the market ahead of the April 29 royal wedding.

"There's always been a tradition in this country of comics for girls in which the girl dreams of meeting someone famous and falling in love," said Mike Collins, the artist who did the illustrations for "Kate and William: A Very Public Love Story."

"In this case, this is what's happened and it's for real," he said.

The graphic novel will be published in two editions: The first follows the prince's life from the rugby pitches of his exclusive boarding school to his adventures in the Royal Air Force, while the other traces Middleton's half of the story with cheeky fictional diary entries that imagine her as a love-struck student who later comes to terms with the ups and downs of being a future king's girlfriend.

The two halves will come together in a collected bound edition that's presented as a flip book and includes a fictional account of the wedding day (and a kiss, too.)

The couple make a good looking comic book superhero and heroine, Collins said.

"She's got this flowing hair that's really lovely to draw, and he's got a very distinguished face," he said.

Rich Johnston, who wrote the script, said he didn't think William and his fiancee would mind having their love story chronicled in speech bubbles and cartoons.

"It's better than seeing themselves on a plate," he joked, referring to the many commemorative china items on sale.

A U.S. publishing house has also announced a rival to the comic, also to be published in April.