Aram Zucker-Scharff

dcwomenkickingass:

Everyone! Listen to This Speech by Gene Luen Yang on Diversity and Comics Right Now

On Saturday, writer Gene Luen Yang gave a speech at the National Book Festival where he discussed the issue of diversity in publishing and specifically in comics and it is amazing.

The award-winning Boxers and Saints author began his speech by discussing the importance of Dwayne McDuffie to his own entrance in to comics and to comics overall. McDuffie, of course, fought for diversity in comics ultimately creating his own comic company so he could see people like himself in comics.

Yang talks about the importance of that company, Milestone, because the character Xombi was also an Asian American male.

But he also addresses the issue of diversity in terms of the writer’s responsibility and overcoming the fear of “not getting it right” and suffering the wrath of the Internet.

I strongly recommend that every writer or potential writer in comics listen to this speech. I strongly recommend that every editor and publisher in comics listen to this speech. I strongly recommend every comic reader listen to this speech. And I strongly hope that every person who diminishes diversity in comics with snide remarks listens to this speech.

You can also read the transcript here.

p-dpa:

The Evolution of the Amazon Kindle in 1 GIF, GadgetLove (2014)

Diversity Is Not Enough: Race, Power, Publishing:

romancecanon:

“The publishing industry looks a lot like these best-selling teenage dystopias: white and full of people destroying each other to survive.”

“We can love a thing and still critique it. In fact, that’s the only way to really love a thing. Let’s be critical lovers and loving critics and open ourselves to the truth about where we are and where we’ve been. Instead of holding tight to the same old, failed patriarchies, let’s walk a new road, speak new languages. Today, let’s imagine a literature, a literary world, that carries this struggle for equity in its very essence, so that tomorrow it can cease to be necessary, and disappear.”

Such a great read.

Really good read.

25 Hard (and hilarious) Truths about Writing and Publishing:

penamerican:

25 Home Truths to help you enter the murky swamp that is the writing/publishing world with your eyes open, such as:

#16. THAT HONEY BOO-BOO MIDDLE GRADE SELF-HELP SCI FI COOKBOOK MAY BE WHAT GETS YOUR LITTLE TINY LITERARY NOVEL PUBLISHED SO SHADDAP ABOUT IT

I know, we all like to grouse…

Heh, funny and useful.