Awards | Chivalry, the short story by Neil Gaiman adapted into a graphic novel by Colleen Doran, has won a Locus Award in the category of “Illustrated and Art Book.” The graphic novel, which was published by Dark Horse, was up against several traditional art books and a few other graphic novels like The Night Eaters in the category. Artist Charles Vess also won another Locus Award in the category of “Best Artist.”
Industry | Writing for the Daily Beast, Chris Kindred talks to several comic creators about the #ComicsBrokeMe hashtag that Shivana Sookdeo created after the death of Ian McGinty and the stories they shared about working in the comics industry.
“The act of creating hundreds of well-illustrated pages takes serious time, significant strain on the body, and mental stamina. So many of us have sustained significant damage to our health trying to make ends meet,” Sookdeo told Kindred.
The article also notes the creation of the Cartoonist Cooperative, a creator-run organization trying to address these issues within the industry.
Awards | The Lambda Literary Awards recognized Emma Grove’s The Third Person and Sas Milledge’s Mamo in their annual awards program for “the very best in LGBTQ+ literature.” Mamo, published by BOOM! Studios, was recognized in the LGBTQ+ Comics category, while The Third Person, published by Drawn and Quarterly, won in the Transgender Nonfiction category.
Manga | ICv2 reports that for the first time in more than a decade, VIZ Media plans to raise the price of new manga next year — from $9.99 to $11.99. That still keeps them on the low end of pricing compared to other manga publishers.
Digital | Hoopla, the digital app used by libraries, has expanded their comics section with the addition of more manga.
Banned Books | Writing for Publisher’s Weekly, Heidi MacDonald spoke with librarians around the U.S. about how they’re fighting back against the onslaught of censorship attempts they’re currently facing.
Creators | Following the passing of John Romita Sr., The Comics Journal has posted a very extensive obituary about Romita’s career and impact.
Creators | Brian Heater talks to Daniel Clowes about his upcoming graphic novel Monica, which draws from his own childhood and his relationship with his mother.
Creators | KQED, the public news/radio station in San Francisco, interviews Thien Pham about his recent graphic novel Family Style, which uses food to tell the story of his immigration from Vietnam to the United States.
“I’ve wanted to tell this family story for a long time, but there were things preventing me from it in the past. I never had a tight enough connection with my parents to get the full story, my art style wasn’t where I wanted it to be and I didn’t have a fresh enough perspective. Coming to America as a Vietnamese immigrant has been told before. It’s a universal immigration story, and I didn’t know how to tell it at the level I thought it could be. I needed time to figure it all out,” Pham said.
Music | Jaelani Turner Williams writes about the intersection between comic art and hip-hop for okayplayer.
Retailers | Lucky’s Comics in Vancouver, BC is looking for a new home.
Reviews | Greg Burgas shares his thoughts on Rich Tommaso’s Black Phoenix.