Megan Kelso (born 1968 in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...

) is an American comic book artist and writer.

Early life and education

Kelso received her B.A. from Evergreen State University, where she studied history and political science.

Career

Kelso started working in the 1990s, with the

minicomic A minicomic is a creator-published comic book, often photocopied and stapled or with a handmade binding. In the United Kingdom and Europe the term small press comic is equivalent with minicomic, reserved for those publications measuring A6 (105& ...

, ''Girlhero'', which won her a

Xeric Foundation The Xeric Foundation is a private, nonprofit corporation based in Northampton, Massachusetts, which for twenty years awarded self-publishing grants to comic book creators, as well as qualified charitable and nonprofit organizations. The Xeric Fou ...

grant in 1993. She has since published several other projects including ''Queen of the Black Black'' and ''The Squirrel Mother.'' In 2004, she was the editor of the female cartoonist anthology, ''Scheherazade: Stories of Love, Treachery, Mothers, and Monsters'' (published by

Soft Skull Press Counterpoint LLC was a publishing company distributed by Perseus Books Group launched in 2007. It was formed from the consolidation of three presses: Perseus' Counterpoint Press, Avalon Publishing Group's Shoemaker & Hoard and the independent S ...

). This anthology showcases the work of 23 major female graphic novelists of the time, including veteran and emergent graphic novelists. From April 1 to September 9, 2007, Kelso published a weekly comic strip in ''

The New York Times Magazine ''The New York Times Magazine'' is an American Sunday magazine supplement included with the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times''. It features articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted many notable contributors. ...

'' titled ''Watergate Sue''. Her ''Artichoke Tales'' graphic novel for Fantagraphics Books was published in 2010. She is currently working on her third collection of short stories. Among many other publications, Kelso had a story (which she co-created with

Ron Rege Lavender Diamond is an American, Los Angeles-based band, fronted by singer Becky Stark. History While living in Providence, Rhode Island, Stark began performing as Lavender Diamond in a play that she and puppeteer Xander Marro wrote, created a ...

) in ''SPX 2004,'' the annual anthology published by

Small Press Expo The Small Press Expo (SPX) is an American alternative comics convention. A registered 501(c)(3) that was created in 1994, every year since its inception, SPX has put on a festival, known as The Expo, that provides a forum for artists, writers an ...

(SPX). Kelso has also created work for several magazines, including the now-defunct

Tower Records Tower Records is an international retail franchise and online music store that was formerly based in Sacramento, California, United States. From 1960 until 2006, Tower operated retail stores in the United States, which closed when Tower Recor ...

' Pulse Magazine. She received two

Ignatz Awards The Ignatz Awards recognize outstanding achievements in comics and cartooning by small press creators or creator-owned projects published by larger publishers. They have been awarded each year at the Small Press Expo since 1997, only skipping a ...

in 2002, for Outstanding Artist (for ''Artichoke Tales'' #1 and her story in ''Non'' #5) and Outstanding Minicomic (for ''Artichoke Tales'' #1). Kelso has develop and led a workshop, "Comics for Writers," at various events, including the 2014 Seattle Graphic Novel Panel, hosted by the Graphic Artists Guild and sponsored by

Fantagraphics Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and the erotic Eros Comix imprint. History Founding Fantagraphics was founde ...

Selected Bibliography

''The Squirrel Mother: Stories'' (2006), Fantagraphics Books ''Artichoke Tales'' (2010), Fantagraphics Books ''Queen of the Black Black'' (2011), Fantagraphics Books ''Who Will Make the Pancakes: Five Stories'' (2022) Fantagraphics Books

Personal life

She is married and lives with her husband and daughter in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, Washington.

External links

*
NYTimes Magazine strip

Ellen Forney, Megan Kelso and Raina Telgemeier on Process
at The Comics Journal 1968 births Living people Alternative cartoonists American women cartoonists American female comics artists American comics writers Female comics writers Artists from Seattle Ignatz Award winners for Outstanding Artist 20th-century American artists 20th-century American women artists 21st-century American women artists American cartoonists Evergreen State College alumni

References

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