Library Con at Petworth Neighborhood Library & Comics by Women

library-con Yesterday, I was a speaker at Library Con at the Petworth Neighborhood Library. It was a small, mostly family-oriented event but well-organized and fun. I am always going to be a fan of events that make comics — of all genres and styles — more accessible to more people.

I first saw Jacob Mazer of Animal Kingdom Publishing discuss his work and the anthology of comics, prose, poetry and criticism he edits. It’s still a young publication, but I definitely think there’s room in the world for more things like this, allowing comics to reach audiences they may not otherwise. Not everything in the second issue is to my tastes, but there is some thought-provoking work in it.

Then I saw Gareth Hinds, whose adaptation of Romeo and Juliet came out last year. He talked about always loving to draw as a child and comics ended up coming naturally to him. He worked in video games for a long time before quitting to create graphic novels full-time. He broke down his process for each book and I was interested to hear he changes techniques and styles for each specific book. He also spoke about the challenges of adapting classic literature.

After that, it was my turn. I talked about comics by women (what else?) and I think it went well for it being such a big topic. My concept was not to give history but offer up titles that people can buy right now. I had a good discussion with the attendees too.

You can download my PowerPoint presentation or a PDF of it, but I’ve also created a list of the creators and titles I discussed below (with links to their websites where appropriate).

I have reviewed some of these books and written more about some of these creators. You should be able to find what you need through the tags.

History/background

Trina Robbins: Pretty In Ink

Mainstream: Superheroes

Kelly Sue DeConnick: Captain Marvel
G. Willow Wilson: Ms. Marvel
Gail Simone: Birds of Prey, Batgirl, Red Sonja

Mainstream: Sci-fi/Fantasy

Kelly Sue DeConnick and Emma Rios: Pretty Deadly
Grace Ellis, Noelle Stevenson, Brooke A. Allen: Lumberjanes
Carla Speed McNeil: Finder
Fiona Staples: Saga

Children and Young Adult Comics

Raina Telgemeier: Smile, Drama, Sisters
Faith Erin Hicks: The War at Ellsmere, Friends With Boys, The Adventures of Superhero Girl
Hope Larson: Chiggers, A Wrinkle in Time
Jennifer Holm: Babymouse

Autobiographical