First Anniversary of the Charlie Hebdo Attack
Ylan MuiWashington Journal January 9, 2016
http://www.c-span.org/video/?402665-5/washington-journal-roundtable-first-anniversary-charlie-hebdo-attack
Colin Jacobson, Alexandria
Marjorie Silverberg, Alexandria
Liniers is among the most globally recognized cartoonists from Argentina, a nation with a strong cartooning tradition still largely unrecognized in the US. His diverse body of work includes formally experimental comics, painting and material for younger readers. For more than ten years, Liniers has drawn a hugely popular daily strip, Macanudo, for the Argentine newspaper La Nación. The Big Wet Balloon (TOON Books) is his first book to be published in the United States. Moderated by Bill Kartalopoulos.
The rise of crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter has created new opportunities for funding comics projects while raising many questions about the issues surrounding network-based fundraising. Additionally, comics artists are increasingly seeking other sources of funding, from sponsorships to grants, to support their projects. Isaac Cates discusses these issues and more with T. Edward Bak, Box Brown, Marnie Galloway, and Spike C. Trotman.
Eleanor Davis (How to be Happy) shares an autobiographical presentation that has something to do with finding truth in fiction and the strange passions inside an author/reader relationship. Moderator Tom Spurgeon (The Comics Reporter) follows Davis's presentations with questions about her work, and answers audience questions.
This panel considers different aspects of the process, problems and possibilities of making art for internet-based platforms. It includes questions of art-media, digital medium specificity, online platforms, audience, culture, and content. Bill Kartalopoulos leads a discussion featuring Sam Alden (It Never Happened Again), Emily Carroll (Through the Woods), Blaise Larmee (altcomics.tumblr.com), and Rebecca Mock (rebeccamock.tumblr.com).
Jules Feiffer has reinvented the comics form multiple times in his diverse and storied career. In 1956 Feiffer broke new ground with a truly modern comic strip intended for an adult audience in the pages of The Village Voice. In addition to his incisive comics, Feiffer has distinguished himself as a playwright, screenwriter, children's book author, and much more. His most recent books are the graphic novel Kill My Mother and the picture book Rupert Can Dance. He discusses these and more in conversation with Bill Kartalopoulos (Series Editor, The Best American Comics).
Raina Telgemeier has distinguished herself among the leading American artists producing graphic novels for younger readers. Her autobiographical graphic novel Smile has spent more than two years on the New York Times Graphic Books bestseller list, and her follow-up, Drama, has won the Stonewall Book Award among other distinctions. She has recently published a sequel to Smile titled Sisters. Telgemeier discusses her work and her process with moderator Isaac Cates (Cartozia Tales, University of Vermont) in this special spotlight session.
Lynda Barry changed the fate of North American comics with her pioneering comic strip, "Ernie Pook's Comeeks," which ran in alternative weekly newspapers for more than twenty years. Her celebrated books include, "One! Handed! Demon!," and, "What It Is," as well as the illustrated novel, "Cruddy." Ms. Barry is currently an assistant professor of art and Discovery Fellow at University of Wisconsin Madison. Her latest book is, "Syllabus: Notes from an Accidental Professor." In this SPX 2014 panel, Ms. Barry discusses her career and current work in conversation with Slate Culture Editor Dan Kois.
The world of Spanish-language comics from South America to Europe is examined in this SPX 2014 panel. Colombian comics editor Daniel Jiménez Quiroz (Revista Larva) discusses Colombian and South American comics and leads the discussion that includes Spanish comics critic Santiago Garcia, Colombian comics critic Pablo Guerra, and North American editor Scott O. Brown
In 2004 a group of students at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) formed the loosely-defined art group Closed Caption Comics, their collective activity centered around an eponymous comics anthology which ran for nine increasingly ambitious issues. Ten years later, the members of the group are productively focused on individual projects. Several of them discuss their common roots and current work, including Ryan Cecil Smith (S.F. #3), Molly Colleen O'Connell (Strip Mall, Poety Unlimited), Noel Freibert (Weird Magazine), and Conor Stechschulte (The Amateurs). Moderated by Brian Nicholson.
How do comics get reviewed? What role do publicists, pitching and marketing plans play in determining coverage? What kind of coverage do editors prefer? To what extent is it possible to get a reviewer's attention, and how is that best accomplished? And how do individual critics evaluate work? Johanna Draper Carlson (Comics Worth Reading) investigates these questions and more with Brigid Alverson (School Library Journal), Michael Cavna (Washington Post), Dan Kois (Slate), Heidi MacDonald (Publishers Weekly), and Douglas Wolk (The New York Times).
Yvan Alagbé and Dominique Goblet are foundational figures in the poetic comics movement represented by the the avant-garde publishing house Frémok. Alagbé's work expresses in harsh lines and soft tones his narratives of mysterious desire and explosive cultural conflict, as in his most recent book, École de la misère. Goblet's work troubles the distinctions between fiction and autobiography, and between narrative comics and poetic image-making. Her new graphic novel Plus si entente was produced collaboratively with Kai Pfeiffer to test the possibilities of narrative within the comics form. Moderated by Bill Kartalopoulos.
Robyn Chapman has been documenting the movement in comics towards very small publishing, otherwise know as micro-publishing. Robyn briefly shares findings from her upcoming publication (The Tiny Report: Micro-Press Yearbook 2013) and speaks with a range of publishers—from the micro-press to traditional small press—to discuss how they print, sell, and distribute their comics. Panelists include Chuck Forsman (Oily Comics), Keenan Marshall Keller (Drippy Bone Books), Justin Skarhus and Raighne Hogan (2D Cloud), and Anne Koyama (Koyama Press).
Inkstuds host Robin McConnell takes his popular comics-focused radio show on the road with special guest co-host Brandon Graham in tow, in a series of live Inkstuds programs. In Bethesda, Michael DeForge (Lose #6), Simon Hanselmann (Megahex), and Patrick Kyle (Distance Mover) will kick off their own book tour live on stage as McConnell and Graham's special guests.
Comics educators Josh Bayer and Sally Cantirino from the Sequential Artists Workshop (SAW) in Gainesville, FL, guide the audience through a complete cartooning exercise. A fun, educational creative workshop for everyone, from experienced cartoonists to those who have never drawn a panel of comics. No matter the age or experience level, attendees leave this workshop having drawn their own comic!
The 2014 Ignatz Awards Ceremony. The Ignatz Award, named for the character in the classic comic strip Krazy Kat by George Herriman, is the festival prize of the Small Press Expo. Since 1997 The Ignatz has recognized outstanding achievement in comics and cartooning. The Ignatz recognizes exceptional work that challenges popular notions of what comics can achieve, both as an art form and as a means of personal expression.
2014 WINNERS:
OUTSTANDING ARTIST
* Sam Bosma, Fantasy Basketball
OUTSTANDING ANTHOLOGY OR COLLECTION
* QU33R, Various (Edited By Robert Kirby)
OUTSTANDING GRAPHIC NOVEL
* This One Summer, Jillian Tamaki and Mariko Tamaki
OUTSTANDING STORY
* Brownout Biscuit from Octoups Pie: Dead Forever, Meredith Gran
PROMISING NEW TALENT
* Cathy G. Johnson, Jeremiah; Boy Genius; Until It Runs Clear
OUTSTANDING SERIES
* Demon, Jason Shiga
OUTSTANDING COMIC
* Wicked Chicken Queen, Sam Alden
OUTSTANDING MINICOMIC
* House of Women, Sophie Goldstein
OUTSTANDING ONLINE COMIC
* Vattu, Evan Dahm
Herding artists for an anthology is like herding cats for a cat rodeo but when you finish the former you've got a brand spanking new comics anthology for readers everywhere to enjoy. This panel gets you together with Isaac Cates (Cartozia Tales), Josh Bayer (Suspect Device), Josh O'Neill (Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream) and Annie Stoll (1001 Knights) to talk about how to give up your life to the higher calling known as Comics Anthology Publishing. Moderated by Kelly Phillips.
Bill Griffith, creator of the long-running daily comic strip Zippy the Pinhead, breaks new ground with his first long-form graphic novel, Invisible Ink from Fantagraphics. Alternating between Bohemian Manhattan and suburban Levittown of the 1950' and 60's, as well as the present, Griffith tells the story of his mother's long hidden affair with a man who was a cartoonist and crime novelist. Comics journalist Chris Mautner discusses with Griffith his move to the graphic novel form and the story of how he pieced together the true picture of his mother's life.
The international traditions of the absurd, surrealism, dark comedy and farce come to the global internet through the hands of European cartoonists Joan Cornella (Spain), Bendik Kaltenborn (Norway) and Brecht Vandenbroucke (Belgium). Best American Comics series editor Bill Kartalopoulos talks to these artists about making comics that cheerfully transgress boundaries of nation, form and taste.
Brandon Graham returns to SPX for Royalboiler Redux. Get ready for a conversation on the state of indie comics with Farel Dalrymple (The Wrenchies), Liz Suburbia (Sacred Heart), and Ron Wimberly (Prince of Cats). Moderated by the Royal Boiler himself.
Build a Comics Collective in your hometown! Local creators Andrew Cohen (DC Conspiracy), Monica Gallagher (Bmore Into Comics), Emily Gillis (Square City Comics) and guests Dan Mazur (Boston Comics Roundtable), Jason Green (Ink and Drink Comics) and Cheese Hasselberger (House of Twelve) discuss the fun and friendships to be found in a comics collective! Moderated by Matt Dembicki.
The indie comix scene is one of the best places to find stories by queer creators and comix for queer readers. SPX celebrates queer representation in comix with Anna Archie Bongiovanni (Autostraddle Saturday Morning Comics), Yao Xiao (Autostraddle Baopu Comics), Hazel Newlevant (If This Be Sin), and Kevin Jay Stanton (Burl and Fur) as the panelists discuss what it means to them. Moderated by Dylan Edwards.
STEP ASIDE, I'M A SHARK! Two of our favorite creators sit down for a discussion of webcomics, writing for all ages, and their latest works. SPX is thrilled to present Kate Beaton, creator of "Hark! A Vagrant!", "The Princess and the Pony" and her SPX 2015 debut "Step Aside, Pops: A Hark! A Vagrant! Collection" in discussion with Noelle Stevenson, creator of "Nimona" and co-creator of Eisner Award-winning series "Lumberjanes." No sharks or ponies were harmed in the making of this panel. Moderated by Heidi MacDonald.
(The following is a story written by Mark Hartsell, editor of the Library of Congress staff newsletter, The Gazette.)
http://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2016/01/a-new-ambassador-for-reading/?loclr=ealocbby Liza Donnelly
Washington Post Comic Riffs blog January 7 2015"The talk about race in America hinges on how comfortable white people are with it. Because once white people are too uncomfortable, they'll either say you're pulling the race card, or just say, 'Enough.'"This week's show: Gentleman cartoonist Keith Knight! Keith & I met up at a cafe in Chapel Hill last month to talk about comics, race, fixing the Star Wars prequels, his career as a Michael Jackson impersonator, the literature course that made him a political artist, his campus lecture tour on race relations, the importance of crowdfunding, the reasons he continues with a daily comic strip (and two more strips), why you never see black people on Antiques Roadshow, the songs that will turn any party out (excluding tracks by MJ and Prince), the case for Off The Wall over Thriller, whether it's an honor or a disgrace to be the first non-white guest on this podcast in two years, and more! Give it a listen!
Author Gene Luen Yang is the author of books including American Born Chinese and Level Up.
It's off to post-war Iraq for ex-CIA officer Tom King's new one, ass-kicking superhero Patsy Walker returns, and supernatural black ops are on the menu in Cry Havoc
[in print as 'Graphic novelist draws on his own experiences]
by Matt Conner
Bam Smack Pow January 4 2015
http://bamsmackpow.com/2016/01/04/rafer-roberts-brings-archer-and-armstrong-back-to-valiant/
Comic Book Resources December 21st, 2015
By GEORGE GENE GUSTINES
A version of this article appears in print on January 4, 2016, on page C5 of the New York edition with the headline: In a First, Graphic Novelist Is National Envoy for Children's Literature.
New York, NY, January 4, 2016—The Children's Book Council (CBC), Every Child a Reader (ECAR), and the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress (CFB) have announced the appointment of Gene Luen Yang, Printz Award winner and two-time National Book Award finalist, as National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. The program was established by the three organizations in 2008 to highlight the importance of young people's literature as it relates to lifelong literacy, education, and the development and betterment of the lives of young people. Yang will travel nationwide over the course of his two-year term promoting his platform, "Reading Without Walls," showing kids and teens that reading is a vital part of their lives, and speaking to parents, teachers, librarians—everyone invested in young people's literacy—about how better to connect with kids and teens and help them love reading. Yang succeeds beloved and esteemed authors Jon Scieszka (2008–2009), Katherine Paterson (2010–2011), Walter Dean Myers (2012–2013), and Kate DiCamillo (2014–2015) in the position. Gene Luen Yang is the first-ever graphic novelist to be named National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.
The inauguration ceremony, presided by acting Librarian of Congress David S. Mao and featuring both Yang and DiCamillo, will take place on Thursday, January 7 at 11 a.m. in room LJ-119 of the Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First St. S.E., Washington D.C. The event is open to the public; no tickets are required.
"I'm thrilled and humbled to be appointed National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. Reading breaks down the walls that divide us. By reading, we get to know people outside of our own communities. We gain knowledge others don't expect us to have. We discover new and surprising passions. Reading is critical to our growth, both as individuals and as a society. The Children's Book Council, Every Child a Reader, and Library of Congress all empower people by getting them to read. I'm honored to take up that mission myself and to carry on the amazing work of the ambassadors before me," said Gene Luen Yang.
"Gene Yang is a talented writer. He is a brilliant artist. His stories are thought-provoking, genre-bending, utterly original examinations of the human heart. In short, Gene Yang is a Renaissance man. I am so honored to pass the torch of this sacred task to Gene. No one is better suited for bringing us all together," said Kate DiCamillo, two-time Newbery Award winner and National Ambassador for Young People's Literature Emeritus.
"What an inspired choice the selection committee has made in Gene. He is a brilliant storyteller who makes meaningful and profound connections with readers of all ages. And he has been a de facto ambassador for reading, inclusion, and graphic novels for years. I can't think of anyone better than Gene to break down the walls stopping people from becoming lifelong lovers of reading," said Jon Yaged, President & Publisher of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group.
Jon Colman, Executive Director of the CBC added, "We couldn't be more pleased with the selection of Gene Luen Yang as the next ambassador. He embodies everything that we look for in this position and we can't think of a more fitting person to be representing young people's literature over the next two years."
"We are thrilled that Gene Luen Yang has agreed to be the new National Ambassador for Young People's Literature," said John Y. Cole, director of the Center for the Book, which administers the ambassador program with the Children's Book Council. "Gene's message of inclusion and acceptance of all people is especially relevant today. The Library of Congress looks forward to the next two years of Gene's promotion of reading and literacy among young people."
The National Ambassador is selected for: his or her contributions to young people's literature, the ability to relate to kids and teens, and a dedication to fostering children's literacy as a whole. The selection is based on recommendations from a CBC-ECAR-CFB-appointed committee comprising educators, librarians, booksellers, and children's literature experts.
The members of the selection committee for the 2016–2017 ambassadorship were:
● Betsy Bird, Collection Development Manager of Evanston Public Library
● Shelley M. Diaz, Senior Editor, Reviews at School Library Journal
● Kate DiCamillo, Newbery Medal–winning author, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, 2014-15
● Jonathan Hunt, Coordinator of Library Media Services at the San Diego County Office of Education
● Kimberly L. Jones, Store Manager at Little Shop of Stories, Decatur, GA
● Deborah Taylor, Coordinator of School and Student Services at Enoch Pratt Free Library
● Lisa Von Drasek, Curator of the Children's Literature Research Collections at University of Minnesota Libraries
The National Ambassador for Young People's Literature program is administered by Every Child a Reader. Financial support for the National Ambassador Program in 2016 is provided by HarperCollins Children's Books, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Penguin Young Readers Group, Random House Children's Books, Scholastic, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, and the Lois Lenski Covey Foundation.
For more information about the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, visit read.gov/cfb/ambassador/.
About Gene Luen Yang
Gene Luen Yang began drawing comic books in the fifth grade; he began making comics professionally over fifteen years ago. In 2006, his graphic novel American Born Chinese (Macmillan Children's Publishing Group/First Second Books) became the first graphic novel to be a finalist for a National Book Award and the first to win the American Library Association's Printz Award. It also won an Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album. In 2013, Boxers & Saints (Macmillan Children's Publishing Group/First Second Books), his two-volume graphic novel about the Boxer Rebellion, was a National Book Award finalist and won the L.A. Times Book Prize. Gene has also won an Eisner for The Eternal Smile, a collaboration with Derek Kirk Kim. He is the author of the Secret Coders series (with artist Mike Holmes) and has written for the hit comics Avatar: The Last Airbender and Superman. Yang lives in the San Francisco Bay area. Learn more at geneyang.com.
About the Children's Book Council (CBC)
The Children's Book Council, established in 1945, is the nonprofit trade association of children's book publishers in North America, dedicated to supporting the industry and promoting children's books and reading. The CBC offers children's publishers the opportunity to work together on issues of importance to the industry at large, including educational programming, literacy advocacy, and collaborations with other national organizations. Please visit cbcbooks.org for more information.
About Every Child a Reader (ECAR)
Every Child a Reader is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to instilling a lifelong love of reading in children. ECAR administers programs including Children's Book Week, the annual celebration of books and reading, and the longest-running national literacy initiative in the country; the Children's Choice Book Awards, the only national book awards program where the winning titles are selected by kids and teens of all ages; and the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature Program. Please visit cbcbooks.org/about/every-child-a-reader/ for more information.
About the Library of Congress and the Center for the Book (CFB)
Since its creation by Congress in 1977 to "stimulate public interest in books and reading," the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress has become a major national force for reading and literacy promotion. A public-private partnership, it sponsors educational programs that reach readers of all ages, nationally and internationally. The Center provides leadership for affiliated state centers for the book (including the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and nonprofit reading promotion partners and plays a key role in the Library's annual National Book Festival. It also oversees the Library's Read.gov website and administers the Library's Young Readers Center and its Poetry and Literature Center. Visit Read.gov/cfb to learn more.