» A Brief History of “Coming Out” by Hazel Newlevant 

Coming out is a queer rite of passage. This excerpt from the new book Queer and How We Got Here illustrates the history of how coming out has evolved. 

» I Won’t Pretend These Missiles are Stars by Anonymous

What does war feel like? This comic from an anonymous artist in Iran shares what life was like on the ground in Tehran as the United States and Israel carried out a bombing campaign.

Artist Talks

Nate Powell, the National Book Award-winning artist of March and acclaimed graphic essay collection Save It For Later, joins us for a free one-hour talk about the craft of making nonfiction comics. Register here.  Wednesday, July 1st, 5pm-6pm PST/8pm-9pm EST

Free Meetup

Comics Publishing Mixer -  Are you trying to break into the comics industry? Join this free online event connecting people in comics publishing! Register here. Tuesday, June 23rd, 4pm-5pm PST/7pm-8pm EST

Classes

✨ All of our classes and workshops are online and sliding scale.✨

» Make Your Dang Comic with Kane Lynch: Whether you’re new to making comics or an experienced illustrator looking to push yourself through an artistic block, this eight-week-long beginner-friendly class will kickstart your creativity and put you on track to create a finished comic you’ll be proud of. July 7 – August 25, on Tuesdays from 4pm-6pmPST/7pm-9pm EST

Upcoming One-Off Workshops 

TONIGHT! » Magical Realism in Comics: Ignatz award-winning artist Sanika Phawde delves into using magic to tell real-life stories—sometimes the emotional truth of a story can feel too monumental to communicate through realism.  Thursday, June 4th from 4pm-6pm PST / 7pm-9pm EST

» Teaching comics - How to design your own workshop: Are you interested in running a comics class at your local library, community center, or online? Well, sign up for this workshop about designing a workshop, facilitated by artist Sarah Maloney!  Monday, June 8 at 4pm-6pm PST/7pm-9pm EST

» EUROPEAN TIME ZONE → Queer Monster Lab: Draw new queer monsters and villains in this two-hour workshop taught by Berlin-based artist HX. From Jafar to Scar, Frank-N-Further to Ursula, Poison Ivy to Mystique, our heroes, anti-heroes, and beloved pop culture queer villains (AKA our queer childhood crushes) are finally getting company. Thursday, June 11th at 9am PST/12pm EST/6pm CET

→ Check out all our upcoming classes

Two Question Interview with Hazel Newlevant 

We asked artist Hazel Newlevant about the process of creating their new book Queer and How We Got Here: A (Personal) History. 

You did a ton of archival research for the book. How did you decide what to keep in and what to cut? What guided your storytelling? 

I began with a list of "canon events" in my gender and romantic journey, alternating with historical topics that shed light on those moments. That set the agenda for my research. The scope of the book is pretty sweeping—for instance, my youthful slutty phase is juxtaposed with the history of birth control and the sexual revolution. What guided my storytelling: I wanted to emphasize the material bases of changing gender relations, and historicize things that might be taken for granted, like the current construction of "masculinity." I also highlighted protest tactics that I found particularly inspiring and fun to draw! Queer print culture gets my special attention, too. It's thanks to the gay newspapers, magazines, and small presses that a lot of this history is even documented. Plus, I like doing little renderings of books and magazine covers in my own style.

The Trump administration is literally trying to erase LGBTQ stories and histories that don't conform to a white supremacist viewpoint. That puts a lot of pressure on authors like you to keep this history alive. How did you balance trying to write for the current moment and readers in the future? 

Since I started working on the book in 2019, history has marched on, and not in a good direction. It's been horrible to watch these attacks on bodily autonomy and gender self-determination, the very things I'm celebrating. These years have certainly made clear that any triumphal narrative of progress is a lie. The historical sections aim to contextualize my own experiences, so I didn't try to follow every thread to the present moment, but I did append some sections with more recent (grim) developments. It was a sad day when I had to change "Roe v Wade is" to "Roe v Wade was." 

Given the setbacks, it's all the more important to understand how these victories and cultural sea-changes were created in the first place. I won't pretend to have a precise theory of change, but I do see Queer and How We Got Hereas a good jumping-off point to learn about various social change tactics that have been effective in the past, and could be adapted for the present and future.

→ Read an excerpt of Queer and How We Got Here

Sapphic Graphics

Our summer intern Chai chose four fun graphic novels (and one webcomic!) that celebrate sapphic stories. These comics are near and dear to their heart as a lesbian cartoonist! 

• The Deep Dark by Lee Knox Ostertag is a coming-of-age story about Mags Herrera and the secret she keeps in her basement—one which leaves her bleeding and exhausted every morning. Rich in magical realism, the story explores identity, familial cycles, grief, and love in a way that is sure to stick in your mind long after you’ve shut the book.

• The Pirate and the Porcelain Girl by Emily Riesbeck and NJ Barna is a fantasy swashbuckler tale following porcelain-skinned Ferra Brickminder as she enlists the help of the disgraced pirate orc Brigantine de la Girona to sail across the sea to her ex-girlfriend’s home. What follows on their adventurous story is a delight to read.

• The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz is a whimsical comedy about the noble Lady Camembert’s attempt to gain her father’s inheritance by disguising herself as a man. She winds up catching the attention of Princess Brie, and as the two grow closer, Camembert’s secret becomes harder keep. What follows is humor, vulnerability, and, of course, a whole lot of grilled cheese sandwiches.

• Forgive-Me-Not by Mari Costa is an enemies-to-lovers fantasy about a changeling princess and faerie heir forced to be on the run together. Princess Aisling is grappling with the news that she is not human, as she has believed her whole life, but rather a fae changeling secretly swapped as a baby. Now forced together, faerie Aisling and the human find their frustrations with one another might just blossom into something more. This book is perfect for any D&D lover who enjoys angsty yearning and witty banter!

• Lady of the Shard by Gigi DG is a webcomic I am currently reading and immensely enjoying! It follows an acolyte in love with the Radiant Goddess she serves. An unexpected offering on an altar sets off a romance of deep devotion—and an interdimensional war between the gods.

→ Buy these books via Bookshop.org

Crucial is tabling at two comics fests this June! These festivals are free and are a great way to connect with artists. Catch us here:

🍁 Toronto, Canada: TCAF on Saturday/Sunday, June 6th and 7th, 10am-5pm, TABLE 192

🦫 Portland, Oregon: Books With Pictures Con on Saturday, June 13th, 11am-7pm

» Some rad comics festivals are now open for applications!  The Non-fiction Comics Festival in Burlington, Vermont is now accepting applications for exhibitors, as is Comics Arts LA, and Seattle’s Short Run. 

» Mini-grants to comics creators: The Comics Advocacy Group is giving away 20 $500 grants to comics creators (including editors, colorists, and collaborators) who need additional support in making comics. The deadline to apply is June 7th, so get in there! 

» A $1000 grant to one lucky comics creator is being offered by the group Make More Comics. The grant judges are looking for creators looking to publish new work and preference is given to artists who completed projects just waiting for a publisher. The deadline is June 15—read all the details here. 

» Have an idea for a digital comic? The Cartoonist Cooperative is hosting a Digital Comics Residency, offering $1000 and a “hosted virtual canvas” for those interested in launching a webcomic pilot or publishing a new comic. Submissions are open until June 30th.

» Canadian humor and culture magazine Geist is looking for pitches for comics “with a strong literary focus and sense of humor” from Canadian artists. They pay $650 and submissions are open until June 15th. More details here. 

» Want to write about comics? The online comics literary magazine SOLRAD is looking for people to write critical analysis, essays, and interviews about comics. They pay $100 an article. Check out all the details here!  

We got the sad news last week that beloved Crucial community member Kayte Young died after a brief illness. We were proud to publish her beautiful comic In Lieu of Flowers. As a poet, radio host, and cartoonist, Kayte touched the lives of many people as she cheered on their creative work. It feels deeply unfair that Kayte is gone—she was working on several ambitious comics and had many more stories to tell. Even as she has passed on, the connections she created will still shine. Kayte has inspired an uncountable number of people with her vulnerable work and dedication to building community. Thank you, Kayte. —Shay Mirk

This newsletter was written by Shay Mirk with help from our summer interns Chai Turner. Crucial Comix is supported in part by our backers on Patreon and by the Sequential Artists Workshop.