The Broken Heart at the Center of Comics
A downloadable project
ALL PROCEEDS FROM THE DIGITAL VERSION OF THIS ESSAY WILL GO TOWARDS PALESTINIAN RELIEF / GFM CAMPAIGNS
The Broken Heart at the Center of Comics is a 28 pg. collaborative essay about burnout in comics by Ashanti Fortson with contributions from Sunmi, Shannon Wright, and Lillie J. Harris. Ashanti explains how it is nearly impossible to build a sustainable career making comics, laying the blame at the feet of publishers who embrace the capitalist prioritization of cheap labor and as much profit as possible. Cartoonists have little power to push for better pay, which is especially true if you are not a white man in the industry.
Sunmi, Shannon, and Lillie provide first-hand accounts on how the industry has broken the heart of comics for them, which Ashanti identifies as the desire to share stories. Insightful and damming, The Broken Hear at the Center of Comics is an important document in the push for sustainable labor practices in the comics industry and beyond.
This essay was originally published in Gladiolus Magazine, published by Black Josei Press.
*The description of this essay was generously written by Neil Brideau of Radiator Comics. Cover design and publication design by Binglin Hu.
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Gut-wrenching…; I also want many people I know to see this and read it, absorb something from it. The disrespect of lives & craft at the mouth of...consumption;I see the thoughts in this reflected in many cartoonists and artists, have felt it, and want to acknowledge the collective effort of putting words to page about it. There’s a lot to chew on here that I won’t divest in a comments section; I wanted to say appreciate the care and pain and hope that I can feel from this. Very much worth a purchase & read.