by rory midhani
I do this list every year around this time, but this year it might be more important than ever. With the election of Trump and Pence and a Republican Congress, LGBTQ people and women are targets in a way we haven’t been for a while, and we’ve been a pretty big target for a long time. So, now that we’re in danger of losing our jobs, our homes, our health insurance and even our lives, we need to lift up our community whenever we can. And one great way to do that is to support queer and trans artists financially. Queer artists aren’t only creating art that’s especially vital right now, they’re doing so while trying to survive in Trump’s America. So if you’re looking for a place to spend your gift money this holiday season, please take a look at this list. You can find even more people to support by looking at last year’s list.
Annie Mok
Mok is a trans woman and one of my favorite cartoonists. She does great comics for Rookie and you can check out her online store and Gumroad shop to pick up her comics, which is something I’d definitely suggest.
The greatest trans girl comic of all time, from Trans Girl Next Door.
Kylie Wu
Wu is another trans woman, and another terrific cartoonist. She makes the hilarious comic Trans Girl Next Door, which is my favorite regularly updating trans comic. You can support her Patreon or buy shirts and prints from her store.
Art by Wendy Xu.
Suzanne Walker
Walker writes Mooncakes, illustrated by the wonderful Wendy Xu. This comic is about a non-binary werewolf and queer witch who are twenty-something friends flirting and fighting off horse demons. You can support the comic on Patreon.
From Agents of the Realm by Mildred Louis.
Mildred Louis
Mildred Louis is, in my opinion, better at drawing faces and coloring comics than anyone else on the internet, and her webcomic Agents of the Realm shows both of those things off, as well as some awesome queer college-age magical girls of color. You can support her on Patreon or through her two online stores.
The cover for Pasty Walker, AKA Hellcat! #1 with Brittney Williams and Kate Leth right there to the right of Patsy’s ear.
Kate Leth
Kate Leth is the writer behind my all-time favorite superhero comic, Patsy Walker, AKA Hellcat. She also writes amazingly wonderful and real autobio comics that you can see if you support her Patreon (which is totally, 100% worth it) and has maybe my favorite online stores of anyone on earth. Support Kate.
Brittney Williams
Williams is the Hellcat artist, as well as working on the terrific Goldie Vance. You can follow her on Twitter.
Art by Marguerite Sauvage.
Marguerite Bennett
Bennett is another one of my favorite superhero comic writers, with titles like DC Comics Bombshells, Angela Queen of Hel and the upcoming Batwoman in her resume.
Art by Natacha Bustos, colors by Tamra Bonvillain.
Tamra Bonvillain
Bonvillain is one of the best colorists in weekly comics, working on books like Doom Patrol, Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, Great Lakes Avengers, Alters and Angel Catbird. You can follow her on Twitter.
Our Terrific Saturday Morning Cartoon Cartoonists
Cameron Glavin is a brilliant artist who not only draws great auto-bio comics, but is also responsible for the Dead Lesbian set of enamel pins and the Queer Deer shirt (did you see that that deer is a trans girl?). To see what they’re up to, you can follow them on Tumblr and Instagram. Anna Archie Bongiovanni makes the amazing comic Grease Bat, about a group of queer friends, Scout, Andy, Ari and Gwen who are all very different, but make for a great team together. I love this comic and I love Archie. You can support them on Patreon. Next up is Yao Xiao, who does the always terrific Baopu comics and beautifully illustrates for essays. You can buy her prints in her etsy shop. Another creator is Megan Praz, who writes often ridiculously easy to relate to comics about queer life, and can be checked out on her website. This year we’ve also added “Foolish Child” writer and artist Dickens (@deathtodickens on Twitter) and “O, Hey! It’s Alyssa” creator Alyssa Andrews (@alyssashmalyssa on Twitter).
From Aatmaja Pandya’s Travelogue
Aatmaja Pandya
I love Pandya’s gorgeous and soothing webcomic Travelogue and completely am in love with her art style. If you’re a fan too, you can support her on Patreon or buy things from her online shop or Gumroad.
Blue Delliquanti
Delliquanti is the person responsible for creating one of only two robots I’ve ever seen that I’m not afraid of, the transgender teen girl Sulla. You can buy her comic or art online or support her on Patreon.
Art by Carolyn Nowak and colors by Maarta Laiho.
Kat Leyh
Leyh not only writes Lumberjanes, one of the best all-ages comics of all time, but she also has some terrific online stores and a great patreon that you can support.
Natalie Riess
Her Space Battle Lunchtime is my favorite new comic of the year and if you’re not reading it, please pick it up now. It’s brilliant, full of heart and action and one of the most adorable things I’ve ever seen. You can read her webcomic Snarlbear or check her work out and contact her through her website.
Melanie Gillman
Gillman draws and writes the super amazing webcomic As the Crow Flies, about some queer kids at a Christian camp. Their work with colored pencils is unparalleled. You can support them on Patreon or buy their comics on Gumroad.
Art by Cathy G. Johnson.
Cathy G. Johnson
Cathy G. Johnson writes comics that always make me think and completely enrapture me. She’s a brilliant writer and artist. You can buy her comics and art at her online store or support her on Patreon.
click to enlarge
Molly Ostertag
Molly is a friend of mine and also one of my favorite artists in the world. I’m absolutely in love with both the Witches who Sing illustrations she did for us for Witch Hunt and with Strong Female Protagonist, the comic she does with Brennan Lee Mulligan, especially now that Feral is back and flirting again. You can buy SFP merch online.
Emily Randazzo
Emily Randazzo is a non-binary cartoonist and one of my good friends. They’re one of the best people at character creation that I’ve ever seen. If you want to commission them, check out their Twitter for more information.
Art by Sophie Campbell.
Sophie Campbell
Campbell is the iconic artist of Jem and the Holograms as well as her own comics Wet Moon and Shadoweyes. In addition to buying her books, you can support her on Patreon.
From Witchy by Ariel Ries.
Ariel Ries
Witchy is one of my all-time favorite webcomics, and Ries is one of my favorite artists. If you’re into gorgeous colors, amazing world building and character design and queer witches of color, you can read her webcomic, support her on Patreon and buy things from her online store and gumroad.
Hazel Newlevant
Newlevant has been a favorite of mine for a long time. She edited the amazing girl gamer anthology Chain Mail Bikini and sells her own comics in her own store as well as her terrific auto-bio comic No Ivy League.
New Releases (December 14)
BTVS Season 10 Vol 6 Own It TP
Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #5
Gotham Academy Second Semester #4
Gwenpool Holiday Special: Merry Mix Up
Welcome to Drawn to Comics! From diary comics to superheroes, from webcomics to graphic novels – this is where we’ll be taking a look at comics by, featuring and for queer ladies. So whether you love to look at detailed personal accounts of other people’s lives, explore new and creative worlds, or you just love to see hot ladies in spandex, we’ve got something for you.
If you have a comic that you’d like to see me review, you can email me at mey [at] autostraddle [dot] com.
Thank you so much for this list !
If I dare to add two of my favorite webcomics creators :
Susanna Nousiainen, who writes ShootAround, a webcomic about a high school basketball team and their coach surviving a zombie apocalypse
Comic : http://www.webtoons.com/en/drama/shoot-around/list?title_no=399
Patreon : https://www.patreon.com/suspu
Robotsharks, who writes Sharp Zero, a romance webcomic about superheroes
Comic : https://tapastic.com/episode/170613
Patreon : https://www.patreon.com/robotsharks
This is great, thank you. Also, that that deer shirt looks pretty damn cool!
Thanks for this awesome list. Last summer I met the wonderful Tab Kimpton and only just found the time to read their Khaos Komix, Tom and Alex. You can read them at http://www.discordcomics.com/. As it says in their banner, these are “stories where no trans people die.”
Gotta check out Hellcat now. It’s been on my list, but this is pushing it to the top
So almost totally unrelated, but does anyone have a good strategy for storing their comics? I don’t mean to like, resell or keep pristine, I mean so you can easily find what you’re looking for etc. I have books and shelves and stuff, it’s just without a spine they’re a little more complicated. Thanks for any feedback!
Keep them in card folders, by genre or artist/writer, title or whatever you prefer?
I know you asked a few weeks ago, but I use bookends to keep my trades on the shelf without bending or falling over, and I use cardboard comic storage boxes for single issues. You can easily flip through that way or even put in dividers.