Queer Comics
A Critical Guide
Will be published approx. on 18. February 2027
Book
Hardback
208 pages
978-1-350-47709-4 (ISBN)
Description
An international and intersectional introduction mapping the history, impact, key critical issues and seminal texts of the genre, Queer Comics looks at queer creators and queer content in graphic narratives beyond . Not advocating for a canon but instead offering new avenues for exploration beyond what has thus far been very US-focused, this book surveys the queer experience, looks at the genre as a queering of an already queer medium and dives into how it can speak to all communities.
Accessible and inclusive in the easy-to-navigate structure of the Bloomsbury Comics Studies series, the book covers:
- A broader cultural landscape beyond American underground comix including manga, pornography, Tijuana Bibles, contemporary webcomics, zines, children's and YA comics and adult graphic memoirs.
- key texts by creators such as Alison Bechdel, Howard Cruise, Yamaji Ebine, Crystal Frasier, Megan Rose Gedris, Kay O'Neill, Jem Yoshioka and Tab Kimpton among many others
- Themes from censorship, stereotypes and queer coding to explicit material and reclaiming the queer monster
- Critical ideas linked to the genre, including visibility and erasure, binaries, self and mainstream publishing.
Taking a lead from queer and comics studies, the book also features a glossary of crucial terms and resources for further reading.
Accessible and inclusive in the easy-to-navigate structure of the Bloomsbury Comics Studies series, the book covers:
- A broader cultural landscape beyond American underground comix including manga, pornography, Tijuana Bibles, contemporary webcomics, zines, children's and YA comics and adult graphic memoirs.
- key texts by creators such as Alison Bechdel, Howard Cruise, Yamaji Ebine, Crystal Frasier, Megan Rose Gedris, Kay O'Neill, Jem Yoshioka and Tab Kimpton among many others
- Themes from censorship, stereotypes and queer coding to explicit material and reclaiming the queer monster
- Critical ideas linked to the genre, including visibility and erasure, binaries, self and mainstream publishing.
Taking a lead from queer and comics studies, the book also features a glossary of crucial terms and resources for further reading.
Reviews / Votes
Queer Comics is a comprehensive, well-researched, and well-argued scholarly work that will undoubtedly appeal to students and researchers alike. The authors' engaging, conversational approach-paired with their scrupulous attention to detail and sharp critical perspectives-make this book a welcome addition to the critical comics and comics history corpus. * Tahneer Oksman, Maymount Manhattan University, USA *More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
8 bw illus
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
454 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-350-47709-4 (9781350477094)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Tof Eklund is a Lecturer in Language and Culture at Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand. An aneurotypical nonbinary parent, and an occasional game designer and zine comics creator, their research interests lie at the intersection of the theoretical, the subcultural, the digital, the creative, and the queer, and their passion is for how people find and create meaning, for good and ill.
Sam Orchard is Assistant Curator of the New Zealand Cartoons and Comics Archive at the National Library of New Zealand, and a working comic artist. He has developed comic resources and contributed to publications and journals across the globe. Sam is particularly interested in inclusive and intersectional ways of working that acknowledge the importance of accessibility, decolonisation and feminism.
Sam Orchard is Assistant Curator of the New Zealand Cartoons and Comics Archive at the National Library of New Zealand, and a working comic artist. He has developed comic resources and contributed to publications and journals across the globe. Sam is particularly interested in inclusive and intersectional ways of working that acknowledge the importance of accessibility, decolonisation and feminism.
Content
Chapter 1: What are Queer Comics?
Introduction
Who are we?
What is Queer?
Comics are Queer
Queer in Form
Definitionally Resistant
Peripheral Art Form
Constantly Evolving
Queer in Function
Sites of Resistance and Subversion
Engaging in the politics of representation
As an accessible tool to speak back to power
Queer Comics: A Summary
Chapter 2: Queer Comics Histories
Pre-20th Century Histories
Queer-Coded Comics and Early Queer Comics
Moral Panics and Comic Book Bans
Queer Beginnings
Establishing Voices
Queer Comics go Mainstream
Conclusion
Chapter 3: Social and Cultural Impacts
Technological impacts: Webcomics and Crowdfunding
The rise of queer webcomics
Crowdfunding
Case Study: Ngozi Ukazu's Check, Please!
Impacts of these technologies on traditional publishing
Smartphones, Market Changes, and Backlash
Queer Comics and the impact of Censorship
State-Based Censorship and Criminalisation
Book Challenges: "Community"-driven Censorship
Queer Hearts, Minds, and Bodies
Intersex comics
Fatness in Queer Comics
Disability in Queer Comics
Neurodivergance in Queer Comics
Aging Queerly in Comics
Ace Comics
Spirituality and Indigenous Frameworks in Queer Comics
Conclusion
Chapter 4: Key Texts
Moomins and Kake
Tom of Finland's Kake
Tove Jansson and the Moominverse
The Legacy of Laaksonen and Jannson
Horror Hospital Unplugged
Kari
Tarot Yohualli Ehecatl
Apsara Engine
Conclusion
Chapter 5: Critical Questions
What are the obstacles facing queer comics?
Capitalism
Artificial Intelligence
Anti-Diversity Campaigns: Comicsgate
Homonormativity
"Acceptable" Narratives
"Unacceptable" Narratives
The New Queer Comics Underground
Sexually Explicit and Pornographic Comics
The Monster and Queer Identity
Conclusion
References
Chapter 1 References
Chapter 2 References
Chapter 3 References
Chapter 4 References
Chapter 5 References
Introduction
Who are we?
What is Queer?
Comics are Queer
Queer in Form
Definitionally Resistant
Peripheral Art Form
Constantly Evolving
Queer in Function
Sites of Resistance and Subversion
Engaging in the politics of representation
As an accessible tool to speak back to power
Queer Comics: A Summary
Chapter 2: Queer Comics Histories
Pre-20th Century Histories
Queer-Coded Comics and Early Queer Comics
Moral Panics and Comic Book Bans
Queer Beginnings
Establishing Voices
Queer Comics go Mainstream
Conclusion
Chapter 3: Social and Cultural Impacts
Technological impacts: Webcomics and Crowdfunding
The rise of queer webcomics
Crowdfunding
Case Study: Ngozi Ukazu's Check, Please!
Impacts of these technologies on traditional publishing
Smartphones, Market Changes, and Backlash
Queer Comics and the impact of Censorship
State-Based Censorship and Criminalisation
Book Challenges: "Community"-driven Censorship
Queer Hearts, Minds, and Bodies
Intersex comics
Fatness in Queer Comics
Disability in Queer Comics
Neurodivergance in Queer Comics
Aging Queerly in Comics
Ace Comics
Spirituality and Indigenous Frameworks in Queer Comics
Conclusion
Chapter 4: Key Texts
Moomins and Kake
Tom of Finland's Kake
Tove Jansson and the Moominverse
The Legacy of Laaksonen and Jannson
Horror Hospital Unplugged
Kari
Tarot Yohualli Ehecatl
Apsara Engine
Conclusion
Chapter 5: Critical Questions
What are the obstacles facing queer comics?
Capitalism
Artificial Intelligence
Anti-Diversity Campaigns: Comicsgate
Homonormativity
"Acceptable" Narratives
"Unacceptable" Narratives
The New Queer Comics Underground
Sexually Explicit and Pornographic Comics
The Monster and Queer Identity
Conclusion
References
Chapter 1 References
Chapter 2 References
Chapter 3 References
Chapter 4 References
Chapter 5 References