Angry Girl Comics

kind of along the same line as the post I just reblogged, I just want to emphasize how much I owe my...

Mon, 20 May 2013 18:27:14 -0400

kind of along the same line as the post I just reblogged, I just want to emphasize how much I owe my librarians. I was a bored kid in a small suburban town and the library was my go-to hangout spot (because, you know, I was that cool). apart from doing my homework— oh, let’s be real. Okay. When I was blowing off doing homework at the library while waiting for my mom to pick me up, I’d just go through a bunch of books in the teen section, which was started while I was a freshman in high school. The timing could not have been better.

our new teen librarian was a dream come true. she was cool and really good about dealing with middle and high schoolers because lord knows I was obnoxious at times. she recommended me some of the most formative books of my life and when she left that position about two years later the replacement she found was also equally awesome and started an anime club and a manga club for the library. both of these ladies were joys to talk to and I cannot begin to tell you about how many times I ran my mouth to them about whatever novels I was writing then or stuff I was drawing and they were 110% supportive and caring and wonderful. I’m absolutely sure I would not be drawing and writing the things I put out if it were not for their recommendations and their encouragement.

and now a copy of Shattered with my first published comic in it is sitting on the shelf where the graphic novels are kept at my town library.

go hug your librarians, you guys. or if they don’t like hugs, shake their hand. or if they don’t like handshakes, just tell them how awesome they are. they deserve all the appreciation you can give.

The Woman Warrior and the complexity of Chinese American identity | Malinda Lo

Mon, 20 May 2013 17:52:45 -0400

The Woman Warrior and the complexity of Chinese American identity | Malinda Lo:

For those of us who occupy the spaces between identities — because of our personalities or because we have a foot in more than one subgroup — finding representation anywhere, in any form of media, can be extremely rare. It can be tempting to hand a person a book and say, “This is where you fit in,” but in many, many cases, that won’t be true. It may end up alienating the person more than making them feel welcome.

this is some spot-on commentary.

my high school English teacher who was also Asian American herself gave me a copy of Woman Warrior to read. while I liked what I read and if I had to pick right now I’d pick Maxine Hong Kingston over Amy Tan, what’s frustrating was that in high school I felt like these were my only two options in terms of being represented as a Chinese American in Literature with a capital L. I read other books like Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (which, despite some pretty terrible purple prose and holy shit orientalist stereotypes, I enjoyed because of the relationship between these two girls who loved each other so much) and Memoirs of a Geisha (wow barf). this was super frustrating.

a little later into my high school career though our local library hired two really awesome, socially aware librarians who kickstarted the “teen” section and made sure to include a lot of really diverse novels and graphic novels and even a lot of manga. it was there I was introduced to folks like Gene Yang and a poetry anthology called Yellow Gurl where all the writers were Asian American teens which was super cool. also Street Magic by Tamora Pierce, which was the first time I had ever seen an Asian character in a high fantasy setting who was a badass and a mage. I saw myself more in those characters than I ever did in anything else I’d read up until then.

granted, I also read all of these books with a divided attitude because I was also somewhat resentful, like, “wow you’re only recommending me this because I’m Asian”, which is an attitude I’m still struggling to unlearn. it depends on the day, but sometimes when people ask “oh have you read this it has an Asian main character” half the time I’m like oh cool! I have to check that out!!! but sometimes I get ornery like…why are you expecting me to be some kind of authority on Asian American identity when I just want to draw my comics and I don’t speak for anyone but myself?

I think the only way to combat this box that we all get stuffed into because of x y and z is to keep making art to not necessarily INTENTIONALLY break all of the stereotypes but to let as many people’s voices be heard in whatever way they want to be.

dear America, you made me into a loudmouthed brat who takes...

Mon, 20 May 2013 01:20:59 -0400

dear America, you made me into a loudmouthed brat who takes internet trolls too seriously, but I’m very grateful that you did

sometimes my mom looks at me and goes “you were such a nice little kid what happened”

AMURRICA HAPPENED with all the good things like Polly Pockets and all the bad things like racist elementary school kids who pulled up their eyes at me

but yes when I was three I charmed the immigration officials in China who were about to arbitrarily not give me a visa but upon me telling them the story that I was going to go see my dad and he would take me to see the alligators, the alligators who were the parents of my stuffed alligator, they gave me one.

and so America you are stuck with me, no matter how many times throughout grade school I was told “go back where you came from”

I JUST WANTED TO SEE SOME ALLIGATORS OKAY

雨爱- “Rainy Love” (go listen to the Rainie Yang...

Sun, 19 May 2013 16:53:44 -0400

雨爱- “Rainy Love” (go listen to the Rainie Yang song!)

Mimi Wu and Todd Park

sinidentidades: On the Street: UndocuAsians Come Out Asians are...

Sun, 19 May 2013 14:04:42 -0400

sinidentidades:

On the Street: UndocuAsians Come Out

Asians are a driving force behind migration to the U.S. and the demographic shifts; 40 percent of all migrants to the U.S. hail from Asia, and 40 percent of Asian Americans were not born in the U.S. What’s more, 1.2 million of the country’s 18 million Asian Americans are undocumented, according to the Asian American Justice Center.

So who are the country’s undocumented Asian American youth? They’re students and granddaughters and big brothers. They’re all over the country. Sitting next to you in class. Riding the bus alongside you. Probably dating your cousins. And if the latest social media campaign from the undocumented youth contingent of the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund is any indication, they’re a seriously hip crowd committed to social justice.

Raise Our Story, organized by the Asian-American undocumented youth group RAISE and launched this week, will collect and highlight stories of undocumented Asian-American youth to highlight the many faces of immigration. As the immigration reform bill heats up, RAISE youth organized the initiative to make sure that the immigration reform debate includes the stories and voices of Asian immigrants, “who are often overlooked in the narrative surrounding immigration reform,” they said in a statement. But organizers also hope the project empowers the Asian American immigrant community to speak their stories aloud.

Share yours on Facebook, at Twitter via @raiseourstory, and on Tumblr, where you can read the stories of the folks whose photos are included below.

Lydia and a frilly umbrella

Sat, 18 May 2013 17:16:04 -0400

Lydia and a frilly umbrella

Teo and Mordecai on a rainy day

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:23:31 -0400

Teo and Mordecai on a rainy day

so I heard you guys liked Chinese American Witches

Fri, 17 May 2013 15:21:41 -0400

I got an email last week from a good friend of mine about a book launch party where the author would be reading excerpts from her new e-book on… Chinese American witches

and I was like

what

oh my god

this is so exciting

WHO IS THIS GIRL SHE IS MY MIND TWIN WE MUST MEET AND I WANT TO BE HER FRIEND!

so I went to the reading and met Gwen Li, the author of The Switch Sisters. pointy hats were worn and Witches’ Brew beer was imbibed.

and guess what, guys! For the rest of today and all of tomorrow you can download the e-book FOR FREE off Amazon as part of a special promo!

GO GET IT HERE

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR???

I can’t wait to read it!

From Amazon:

As the only Chinese family in town, the Switch sisters have always kept to themselves. But when Mara Switch is framed for murder, her sisters are forced to step into the spotlight and prove her innocence—all without revealing a dark family secret.

The Switch sisters know they’re different. With ink black hair and cat-like eyes, they certainly draw stares in a small town like Ambrose, where everyone else is white and has lived in the same neat houses with the same grassy lawns for generations. Behind their Chinese faces, however, the girls are also witches. The sisters manage to keep their special powers under wraps—that is, until Mara falls in love with the mayor’s only son. Their wedding is the most exciting event in town history, but festivities abruptly end when someone is murdered and Mara is unjustly charged. Her three younger sisters know that she’s innocent. Each with a budding magical talent, the girls must bring their powers together in order to save their sister. Meanwhile, the real murderer is still on the loose…

An immigrant story inside a witch story, THE SWITCH SISTERS is the first novella in a young adult series that follows Mara, Morgan, Marie, and Mina as they grow up, fall in love, and learn to embrace who they are.

my not so secret goal in case the internet wanted to know: to be Angry Reader of the Week on Angry...

Thu, 16 May 2013 16:05:40 -0400

my not so secret goal in case the internet wanted to know: to be Angry Reader of the Week on Angry Asian Man

in Chinese mythology, the Dragon Kings ruled the four seas and...

Tue, 14 May 2013 01:28:26 -0400

in Chinese mythology, the Dragon Kings ruled the four seas and often had fearsome half-human half-dragon forms. throughout the land in shadowy groves and clandestine coves lurked fox spirits, beautiful, cunning creatures who often took the form of seductive young women. while the Dragon Kings often were frightening in appearance, their children were quite lovely and could take fully human forms.

I wanted to draw a fairy tale story with a fox spirit and a dragon prince.

please do not remove my commentary if you do reblog, thank you!

ATTN: Korean or Korean American actresses based in NYC/surrounding area!

Mon, 13 May 2013 22:50:00 -0400

You should audition for my friend Max’s show! He is looking for a specifically KOREAN or KOREAN AMERICAN actress to play a Korean American girl in his new play, so none of that “All Asians are interchangeable” crap. Here’s his message from me, which he asked me to pass on to you. Please consider auditioning if you’ve ever wanted to be in a show, even if you have no prior experience!

From Max:

I’m directing a great play by Mara Wilson called Sheeple for this year’s New York International Fringe Festival. We’re seeking a Korean actress to portray a rebellious high school student named Soo Min. Here’s a blurb about the play:

Sheeple is a “period piece” set in the latter half of George W. Bush’s presidency. When he discovers his best friend Alberto is considering enlisting, Nick hopes his would-be girlfriend and his LaVeyan Satanist older brother will help talk Alberto out of it. However, as the afternoon progresses, Nick discovers that the problem with encouraging people to think for themselves is that they often will. A coming-of-age story about belief, politics, identity, heartbreak, loss, family, and the teenage burden of having to know everything,Sheeple is about what happens when “everything you know is wrong.”

It’s a really funny, sad, honest play and it should be a lot of fun. Rehearsals will be June-July with performances in August.

Anyone interested can email me (maxareuben@gmail.com) to set up a time to come in and read.

also, feel free to signal boost!

Witch fashion

Mon, 13 May 2013 16:00:33 -0400

Witch fashion

COLD STEEL events

Mon, 13 May 2013 11:44:00 -0400

kateelliottsff:

To support the release of the third and final volume of the Spiritwalker Trilogy I will be at the following bookstores/events:

Borderlands Books, San Francisco, CA: Thursday June 27 at 7 pm

with Katharine Kerr who will also have a new book out, Sorcerer’s Luck.

Mysterious Galaxy San Diego, Saturday June 29 at 2 pm

with Andy Duncan and Clarion students (should be fun AND educational).

New York City: NYRSF reading Tuesday July 2 (other author TBA) at 7 pm

University Bookstore, Seattle, WA: Monday July 8 at 7 pm

Powells Beaverton, Portland OR: Tuesday July 9 at 7 pm

All events will include reading from Cold Steel, from my forthcoming YA fantasy, and maybe even from the epic fantasy trilogy I’m currently working on, or possibly I will read a short story instead although that might necessitate you believing I can actually write a short story. Which I can. I totally can.

PLUS Q&A (you have to bring the Qs).

AND I will either have print copies of The Secret Journal of Beatrice Hassi Barahal available (art by the awesome Julie Dillon!!!!) OR if it is not yet finished I will have a rough version with some of the illustrations to display and a place to sign up with your email/address to get notification when the print and e-book versions are ready for purchase.

Please know that I would love to see you. Yes, you! Especially YOU!

And your friends, family, or indeed any passers-by you can snag off the street. If I’m not coming to a city near you then send friends or family who live in the area to the event! The more the merrier. If enough people come I will sing OR demonstrate how to paddle an outrigger canoe and punch sharks.

I plan to attend the Sirens Conference in Oregon in October (it’s a wonderful small conference — come if you can!) but besides that the events listed above will be my only appearances in public venues/conventions this year (as far as I know).

A note on bookstore events:

I’m signing at four well regarded and valued independent bookstores. You may bring personal books from home for me to sign. It is not required to buy (for example) Cold Steel or any book from the bookstore but it is always a strong show of support for independent bookstores if you can and do buy a copy of my newest book or, indeed, any book while you’re there (whether or not it is one of mine).

If you’re not able to make the event, I do always sign stock at each bookstore so you can order a signed copy afterward. If you contact any of the bookstores IN ADVANCE you can reserve a book and get it signed to you at the event (by me! not some random book signing gnome).

Finally, if you are so inclined, do feel free to signal boost this announcement. There is always always someone who says afterward: “But I didn’t know you would be here!”

I’m so excited to see the awesome Kate Elliot when she comes to NYC!!! You guys should go to any of these if you are in the area!

Some characters from an old story. Rosalie, a blind...

Sat, 11 May 2013 21:28:38 -0400

Some characters from an old story. Rosalie, a blind alchemist’s daughter and Beron, the living doll he made for her

I was complaining to friends about some asshole in the street...

Thu, 09 May 2013 01:03:38 -0400

I was complaining to friends about some asshole in the street who had yelled “KONNICHIWA” after me and one goes, “I hope he gets crushed by a ton of sushi”

amyreeder: BIG NEWS: Brandon Montclare and I JUST launched a...

Tue, 07 May 2013 12:03:32 -0400

amyreeder:

BIG NEWS: Brandon Montclare and I JUST launched a Kickstarter!!! For our new creator-owned SERIES Rocket Girl. Check it out!!!!!

THIS TIME WITH A LINK, GO ME: http://kck.st/108y2Tr

you guys should donate to this for a badass timetraveling Asian girl main character :D

Ooh Mr. Moss ooh Blatant fanservice; I kind of have a disgusting...

Tue, 07 May 2013 00:52:00 -0400

Ooh Mr. Moss ooh

Blatant fanservice; I kind of have a disgusting crush on Will of the Empress Briar if that wasn’t obvious enough

the tattoos

the troubled past

most of all THE REALLY KIND AND RESPECTFUL DUDE

GAWD WHY ISN’T HE REAL

lucyknisley: DDLL, a set on Flickr. Finally posting the...

Tue, 07 May 2013 00:19:19 -0400

lucyknisley:

DDLL, a set on Flickr.

Finally posting the photobooth photos from Drink and Draw Like a Lady 2013!

This was a really fun party, with tons of amazing, brilliant, talented ladies.

I love these photos! Everyone happy and clowning around for the camera. Photobooth photos are some of my favorite kind, because it allows the gaze of the camera to be controlled by the subject in a way that claims the image as a self-portrait.

Relatedly, women who make comics sometimes are placed behind a lense of gender, and that’s where marginalization can occur. Having this party— this celebration and opportunity to chat and feel together— by women and for women, is an important part of what I love about comics.

I was so pleased to chat and laugh among these talented and interesting ladies, and I hope to see you all again in the years to come!

Aww yay!

okay I don’t know about you guys but Evvy was a really...

Mon, 06 May 2013 23:58:00 -0400

okay I don’t know about you guys but Evvy was a really formative character for me. I read Street Magic when I was about thirteen years old, before I started watching A:TLA and I was like OMIGOD SHE’S FROM A COUNTRY THAT’S CLEARLY ANALOGOUS TO CHINA AND SHE’S A MAGE. it was one of the first times I had come across someone who was supposed to represent someone like me in a high fantasy book and I was super excited

I kept thinking about this idea where when she and Briar and Rosethorn travel to Yanjing they come across this town where is said to live a blind mage with a special kind of ambient nature magic expressed through martial art (remember in Magic Steps when Sandry was trying to find Pasco a teacher she mentioned shamans in Yanjing who dance their magic?)

and I kept thinking about how awesome it would be if Evvy ever met Toph

and then this got made

part of the LOK College AU that crosses over with...

Sun, 05 May 2013 23:33:48 -0400

part of the LOK College AU that crosses over with Suzanne’s Avengersverse! a scene from “Lin Beifong’s Office Hours”; read the fic here