Liz Prince talks as part of a panel on her new graphic memoir TOMBOY.
This book takes a look at fitting in during her preteen and teen years and remaining true to herself even years later.
How she started -
I came into prominence in the comic scene with books that are comprised of short, autobio gag comics, and those are something that are fairly easy for me to make; that doesn’t mean that they are worthless, they make a lot of people, and myself, very happy, but they are instant gratification for me as an artist. I can draw a short comic about my cats and post it online immediately and get some likes and “LOLs” and call it a day. These are the things that my fans have seen over the years. But behind the scenes, I had a few false starts on some larger projects.
Why she did this book -
I drew this book because I was actively courted by the publisher, who was looking for non-fiction graphic novels by women. Other publishers have invited me to pitch a project to them before, but none had come to me saying that they really really wanted one. It took me about a year to have a project worth pitching: Zest Books is a teen/young adult publisher, and none of my other ideas for books would have worked for them, so it wasn’t easy for me to come up with a concept that I felt excited to work on, that would also fit the audience. And before I was confident in pitching this project, I had to be sure that I could actually fill a book with it. Tomboy is my story of growing up with gender identity issues. For the first half of my life I wanted to be a boy; this book deals with the reasons why, and the reactions to, my staunch refusal of being a girl. Before I pitched the book, I did an outline of what episodes I would discuss, and how long I felt the book would be. I guessed around 150 pages. I was presented a contract which gave me less than a year to complete the book; I signed in June 2013, the finished book was due March 15th, 2014. I was someone who had never successfully completed a graphic novel before, and I just jumped into an agreement that would have me completing one in about 9 months.
How she feels about the book -
It ended up being more personal, and more about gender politics than I imagined it would. I know that people will feel very strongly about this book, both in a positive way, and in a negative way, but I take solace in knowing that both reactions will spark discussion on what gender should mean, and what it shouldn’t. I’ll put myself on the chopping block as a sacrificial lamb, if it can help us move forward, as a culture who can eschew gender stereotypes.
TAKE A LOOK! ZEST BOOKS IS SENDING ONE LUCKY WINNER A COPY OF THE BOOK!
Check out some other bloggers as they talk about Tomboy.
October 31st
proseandkahn on Tomboy
proseandkahn on Tomboy
November 1st
The Busy Mom’s Kitchen on Tomboy and Alice + Freda Forever (with giveaway)
The Busy Mom’s Kitchen interviews author Liz Prince
The Busy Mom’s Kitchen on Tomboy and Alice + Freda Forever (with giveaway)
The Busy Mom’s Kitchen interviews author Liz Prince
November 5th
Concert Katie on TomboyWord to Dreams on Tomboy (with giveaway)Word to Dreams interviews author Liz Prince
November 6th
sarah HANNAH gómez on Tomboy (with giveaway)
sarah HANNAH gómez on Tomboy (with giveaway)
November 8th
November 10th
Book Referees on Daisy to the Rescue (with giveaway)Good Books & Good Wine on Tomboy (with giveaway)
Book Referees on Daisy to the Rescue (with giveaway)Good Books & Good Wine on Tomboy (with giveaway)
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