Gothic Viewpoint: Erik van Os on His Work in Progress
On his website gothic-novel.com, artist and writer Erik van Os details his intense creative project, a story he’s been working on for more than a decade and a half. We talked to him about what the story is, and what it will turn out to be.
Classic Tales: The Story Behind African-American Classics
Co-editors Tom Pomplun and Lance Tooks discuss the work behind their new book, African-American Classics, which features the works of Trevor von Eeden, Jeremy Love, Christopher Priest, and many others.
Work in Progress: Julia Wertz
Artist and writer Julia Wertz explains the meaning behind her previous works and how it’s her upcoming books that are the real stories she wants to tell.
Paul Kupperberg on Archie and the Gang in the 21st Century
Get ready for the big wedding! Archie Comics’ Lt. Kevin Keller is marrying his sweetheart, Clay Walker. Longtime comics scribe Paul Kupperberg discusses the nuptials as well as all the new events coming up for Archie and the Gang.
Beyond Innocent: The Avi Arad Interview
Hollywood producer Avi Arad discusses his new book, the manga thrill ride The Innocent, a wild ride incorporating vengeance and the afterlife.
Graphic Journos: The State of the Graphic Journalism Art
Graphic journalism is a vast repository for some amazing nonfiction work. Some of the leaders in the field offer their insights into the hard-to-define genre.
Violently Young: Writing Skullkickers
Writer Jim Zubkavich explains the fine line he walks in creating Skullkickers, a series aimed at young adults. How do you craft a story that's just the right mix of "young" and "adult" to keep readers satisfied and parents happy? Here, he explains how he does it.
Creating Success within The High Tech High School Graphic Novel Project
High Tech High is a charter school in Chula Vista, California, specializing in math, science, and engineering course work for its students. It’s also the home to multimedia instructor Patrick Yurick, who three years ago founded the Graphic Novel Project. It was an afterschool venture with 15 students and a dream that, as Patrick describes it, “based on the quality of their dedication and work, we would create a comic that would be of the quality to exhibit at Comic-Con International.” This past summer, Patrick and his students’ dream was realized when they exhibited at the con and even hosted a panel there. Here, Patrick describes what made the Graphic Novel Project (GNP) so successful.
Meet the Gurus!
Mary Klucznik is a library media specialist at Chittenango High School in New York State. Over the past year, circulation for graphic novels there has increased three-fold, and a lot of it is due to the fact that she has enlisted students (now called The Gurus) to help with collection development. She shares her success story with us here.
What Graphic Novels Do for My World
"I think graphic novels and manga have made a huge difference in the lives of many of our readers and in my life as well," says Decatur, Texas, librarian Denice Herrara. For the past three years, she's been in charge of her library's graphic novel and manga section, and here she shares her story of how she made it a success.
Alexander Finbow
Writer, actor, director, and producer, and now heading up Renegade Entertainment, Alexander Finbow has led a diverse and exciting career. Starting up a comic book company, along with a host of other talented creators, is his latest endeavor, and perhaps the most exciting. We talked to him about what it takes to get a new comic company off the ground these days.
Five Years of First Second
To mark its fifth anniversary, First Second’s editorial director Mark Siegel and editor Calista Brill discuss the past, present, and future of the comics company.
Andrew Dodd
Building on its publishing roots in India, comics publisher Campfire is growing a global comics base with both original works and comics adaptations of beloved classics. With an ambitious lineup of new releases planned for 2011, Campfire is making a renewed impact on the comics world. We talked with Campfire publisher Andrew Dodd to discuss the company’s roots, its publishing vision, and where it’s going in the months ahead.
Mike Pellerito
As the president of Archie Comics, Mike Pellerito oversees a line with decades of history, nostalgia, and all-American prominence. It’s also a line that has recently seen updates that bring it firmly into the 21st century, from the marriage of Archie to the introduction of a gay character. We caught up with Mike to discuss what he sees going on in the industry and how Archie Comics can be a part of it.
Francoise Mouly
The art editor for The New Yorker and the publisher of Toon Books, Francoise Mouly is a force to be reckoned with. Here, she explains her editorial vision for Toon and outlines the goals ahead.
Bonnie Barber
This summer, on July 14, the public library in Carrollton, Texas, will host an innovative 39 Clues-themed tween event. They’ll also incorporate the audience’s love for graphic novels and manga into the daylong event, which is being coordinated by youth services librarian Bonnie Barber. We talked to Bonnie about her love of comics.
Michael Gianfrancesco
The New England Comic Arts in the Classroom conference is coming up on Saturday, March 26. This day of education for K-12 teachers and preservice teachers will feature keynote speakers, and several smaller workshops that will enable teachers to better incorporate comics, graphic novels, and manga into their educational programs. High-school teacher Michael Gianfrancesco, one of the codirectors of the conference, took some time to answer our questions.
Peter Tatara
Peter Tartara works for New York Comic-Con overseeing all the various panels, screenings, special events, and other goings-on at the big show. He does similar work for the New York Anime Festival, C2E2, and the Star Wars Celebration. In preparation for this week’s New York Comic-Con, we asked him our Behind the Scenese questions to get to know him a little better.
Jackie Estrada
Jackie Estrada has been a staple in the comics industry for decades now. If you’ve attended the annual Eisner Awards ceremony at San Diego Comic-Con, you’ve witnessed her running the show as its administrator (she’s also done more behind-the-scenes work for the show, such as creating the Artists’ Alley). She’s worked as an editor of several comics and books about comics, and she’s a cofounder (along with her husband, author Batton Lash) of Exhibit A Press. With such an impressive résumé, Estrada was someone we wanted to find out a little more about. So we did.
Todd Kent
Todd Kent is a writer and filmmaker from Dallas whose latest project is the documentary Comic Book Literacy. The film explores how comics are utilized in the classroom and features interviews with several creators and comics readers discussing how comics promote a love of reading. Here, Todd talks about his love of comics.
Find out what graphic novels and manga are coming up in the months ahead. Check here for a list of new titles coming soon.
Cinema turns to graphic novels for great inspiration! See what's headed to a movie theater near you, and find out what's coming on DVD.
Find out which works have gained the respect and admiration of the industry. These award-winners are the best of the best.
Best-of Lists
Every year, multiple venues (including GNR!) compile their lists of the best books of the previous year. Find them here!
The Indie Bestsellers
The good folks at the American Booksellers Association have released the Indie Comics & Graphic Works Bestseller List for the two-month period ending January 22, 2012. I'm glad to see Habibi topping the list! Here's the top 10; click the link to visit the ABA page for the entire list.
We Can Be Heroes
DC Entertainment is doing a very cool thing. It's teaming the Justice League with real-world charitable organizations Save the Children, MercyCorps, and International Rescue Committee to help raise money and awareness for hunger in the Horn of Africa (which includes Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya). Because they're facing a horrible drought, the worst in six decades, millions of people are in danger and facing starvation. DC is matching donations 100 percent (50 percent on items purchased).
Friends with Boys
A formerly home-schooled begins her first stint in high school, but she’s haunted in many ways in this winning graphic novel.
Jimmy Gownley, Moving On
All of us here at GNR are big fans of Jimmy Gownley, both in his Amelia books and in person (if you ever get a chance to see Jimmy on a panel at a comics convention or elsewhere...go; he's great). So it's sad to hear in this PW story that he's ending his Amelia Rules! series, but its awesome to learn he's putting his talents to work on something new.
A Batman Top 10
New York librarian Ryan Donovan sifted through decades' worth of Batman tales to pick his Top 10 favorites. Check out what he recommended and see if they make your own list here (and check them out from your local library if you haven't read them yet!).
MashUp Radio Discusses Digital Comics
In just a few hours, MashUp Radio with Peter Biddle will air “Comics In a Digital Age” featuring Ryan Penagos, editorial director for Marvel Digital Media Group and Marvel.com.
Upcoming Comics Conventions
Is there a comics-related convention coming to an area near you? Check here to find out and to get all the information you need to plan ahead for tons of upcoming shows.
The Bible: Eden
The story of Eden and the fall of mankind is retold in a visually arresting graphic narrative.
Soul Stealer: The Collector's Edition
Get ready for a true nightmare in comics form. Soul Stealer is a visual treat and a captivatingly terrifying tale.
Gente, Vol. 1
Interconnected stories tell about the lives of various people involved with a Roman restaurant.
Dear Creature
Jonathan Case makes an impressive and witty debut in Dear Creature, a funny and moving tale of deep-sea wit and maybe a little gore. Well, the gore is more implied.
The Annotated Sandman, Vol. One
It’s a testament to Sandman’s lasting legacy that it can still, decades later, be mined for material. Better yet, it still presents new facets. The work is so multilayered that it stands up to repeated analysis. In fact, the reader is richer for it.
Hey Princess
In this biting autobiography, Jonssons details his various relationships and how they often go awry.
A Zoo in Winter
Legendary manga artist Jiro Taniguchi tells his story of moving from working in a textile manufacturer up to becoming a manga creator in this charming, revealing book.
Approximate Continuum Comics
If you're not yet familiar with the comics of Lewis Trondheim, you probably should be. One of France's top creators, Trondheim's work is just starting to regularly appear on these shores.
Flashpoint
DC Comics' 2011 summer-event series and precursor to the hyped relaunch of their New 52 lineup, Flashpoint signaled the end for much of the DC Universe continuity and a clean slate for an entirely new batch of reimagined characters and series.
The Amazing Spider-Man: Spider Island
Manhattan is overrun with insects giving thousands of people Spider-Man-like powers. And while that may be a good thing for some, it’s a dangerous situation for everyone else, one that requires the combined might of many of Marvel’s greatest heroes, including the amazing wall-crawler.
The Betrayal Knows My Name, Vol. 2
Girls are falling victim to the Sleeping Beauty Syndrome, Yuki is betrayed by someone he trusted, and the relationship between Yuki and Luka continues to be alluded to.
My Girlfriend's a Geek, Vol. 4
Taiga tries to handle his girlfriend Yuiko and her over-the-top geeky ways, but it may be the end of the line.
Luz Sees the Light
After becoming concerned about the repeated blackouts in her neighborhood, Luz decides to do what she can to help the environment.
The Adventures of Simone & Ajax
The bombastic adventures of a girl and her dinosaur have rarely been this much fun! Andrew Pepoy's series is a delight.
Amazing True Stories: Ellis Island
Young readers are introduced to important facets of history in the Amazing True Stories series. This volume focuses on the experiences of one family’s perilous journey to America more than a century ago.
Superheroes: An Amelia Rules! Book
In writer-artist Jimmy Gownley’s deft hands, Amelia is one of the sweetest and endearing comics series around today, yet it’s also painfully honest and real.
Sonic the Hedgehog, Book 1
All of the early adventures of Sonic, the videogame turned comic book, are collected in one massive volume.
Comics and Color
Two top comics creators—longtime illustrator and writer Trevor von Eeden and Jeremy Love, creator of Bayou—discuss how black issues, characters, and creators are treated in comics.
How the Great Graphic Novels for Teens List Comes About
The librarians behind the GGNFT list explain how it all comes together.
Comics in the Age of Digital Piracy
We hear about it all the time: digital piracy. The scourge of the entertainment industry, digital piracy has been taken on by music companies, movie studios, and major publishers. But what of comic piracy? Does it affect the industry as a whole? We talked to three people in graphic publishing to see what the state of matters is and how they are combating illegal downloading.
How Graphic Novels Thrive in High-School Libraries: A Discussion
Our tour through the library programs of schools (in relation to graphic novels) finishes here, with a discussion involving some high-school librarians talking about the problems they face, the solutions they’ve uncovered, and the issues they’ve successfully dealt with.
How Graphic Novels and Manga Are Doing in Middle Schools
With comics and manga getting further respect in schools and libraries, we checked in with middle-school librarians to see what they had to say—what issues they faced bringing graphic novels into the schools, what young readers were responding to, and what the positives and negatives are for their jobs.
