Womanthology: Space #1, creators include: Sandy-King Carpenter, Tanja Wooten, Stephanie Hans, Bonnie Burton, Jessica Hickman, Ming Doyle, Jordie Bellaire, Anna Bowie, Sarah Elkins, Maja Sukeile Klockljung, Chrissie Zullo, Stacie Ponder, and Rachel Deering
Womanthology: Space, the follow up to the hit Kickstarter project, Womanthology: Heroic, starts off with the first of five out-of-this-world issues: Moon. Each issue contains three 6-page stories, plus pinups, how-tos, and more, by women of all ages and experience. Check out a haunted space station, a snarky robot, and so much more in this debut issue.
I know from past messages that Aussie comics fans aren’t always sure which pros are among their numbers, and aspiring Aussie creators have to contend with the vast distance between them and the Big Two editors.
Pros at this year’s Adelaide Oz Con include none other than DC artist Nicola Scott (Birds of Prey, Secret Six, the upcoming Earth-Two) and OEL mangaka Queenie Chan (The Dreaming, In Odd We Trust)! In addition, Nicola Scott will be doing portfolio reviews on Sunday morning! Be sure to sign up early at the Information Booth.
There is also an artists’ alley, but I can’t find a listing for who’s there— tell me if you are! Or go there and discover new Aussie lady creators!
Seattle: Emerald City Comic-Con at Washington State Convention Center, with a long list of ladies attending: Trixie Biltmore, Marian Churchland, Katie Cook, Colleen Coover, Camilla d’Errico, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Rachel Dodson, Becky Driesdadt, Cat Farris, Agnes Garbowska, Joëlle Jones, Emi Lenox, Natalie Nourigat, Nei Ruffino, Gail Simone, Jen Van Meter, Christina Weir, Chrissie Zullo. PLUS: A Womanthology Panel with Gail Simone, Cat Staggs, Bonnie Burton, and Joamette Gil!
Birmingham UK: MCM Expo featuring Lily Mitchell, Gemma Bedeau, Lisa Cummins, Alice de Ste Croix, Lizz Lunney, Nikki Wynne, Jade Thompson, Katherine Ellis, Charlotte Bailey, Lily Beardshaw, Sarah Fogg, Shaz Jubeen, Laura McNulty, Gem Sheldrake, Catherine Reda, Jenika Ioffreda, Kit Jo Yuki, and Elenawing at the National Exhibition Centre
Though I have been very subdued this past week since the last possibilities of going to NYCC this weekend have faded out, I can feel lucky that panel liveblogs are a thing!
The editors of Womanthology, Renae DeLiz, Mariah Huehner, Suzannah Rowntree, Nicole Falk, and Bonnie Burton gathered for a panel to talk about their whirlwind summer of conceiving of the project on Twitter, getting seasoned pros and total newbies alike signed on for it, and then becoming the #1 funded comics project on Kickstarter, before moving on to what happens next— for both the anthology and women in comics as a whole.
They discussed the challenge of wrangling 155 creators into one book, but were delighted with the level of talent that turned out. While they were pleased with the response to the project and the amount of women eager to create comics, they noted that many women undervalued their talent and had come close to giving up hope entirely. For more women to break into the industry, “[They] need to assert themselves more,” De Liz stated, but also opined that “the industry needs to open up more also and seek out different styles.” The importance of networking at conventions and online also came up.
They found hope for the future in the much more equalized success of webcomics, but also in the success of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Just as Womanthology carries diverse story matter, the fact that men enjoy a cartoon aimed at young girls proves on a large scale that good stories know no gender. In talking about the depiction of female characters, Huehner stressed the importance of “telling human stories….Female characters can be messed up too, but it needs to be because she’s crazy not because she has a uterus.”
While the future remains uncertain about the possibility of another volume, Womanthology: Heroic will be solicited in the January Previews and will go on sale in comic shops before being released in bookstores on International Women’s Day, March 8, 2012.
