Northwest Press

Christensen and Brill Named Two of Out Magazine’s OUT 100 for The Power Within

// November 17th, 2011 // // The Power Within

OUT Magazine revealed today that Charles “Zan” Christensen and Mark Brill—creators of the anti-bullying comic THE POWER WITHIN—have been recognized as two of 2011′s “OUT 100″, described by the magazine as an “annual salute to the year’s most inspiring people”. Other notable honorees this year include Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Sandra Bernhard, Justin Bond, Dustin Lance Black, David Mixner, Harmony Santana, Chaz Bono, and Tim Gunn.

Christensen and Brill started work on THE POWER WITHIN in October of last year for 24-Hour Comics Day, an event where artists and writers attempt to create a complete 24-page comic book in 24 hours. Their story focused on a boy named Shannon who deals with bullying at school by escaping into a super-powered alter-ego but ultimately has to find the strength to face the harassment in real life.

The decision to do a comic that tackles antigay bullying was prompted by the previous month’s numerous reports of teen suicides linked to bullying and harassment. Those reports spurred Ellen Degeneres to speak out to raise awareness and Dan Savage to start the It Gets Better Project.
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New York Comic Con 2011

// October 13th, 2011 // // Events, Misc

Northwest Press will be partnering with Prism Comics and Charles “Zan” Christensen will be appearing at New York Comic Con, along with Kris Dresen, Tony Breed, Dylan “NDR” Edwards and Jeff Krell, as well as super-awesome Fanboys of the Universe. Prism has been to NYCC before, but never pulled out all the stops. It’s going to be memorable!

APE was a Glorious “Waste of Time”

// October 5th, 2011 // // A Waste of Time, Glamazonia, Teleny and Camille

Northwest Press made its first solo appearance at San Francisco’s Alternative Press Expo over this past weekend, and introduced con-goers to the latest addition to the NWP lineup: Rick Worley’s delightfully inappropriate A Waste of Time.

Rick was on hand to sign copies of the book, do sketches and chat with fans. The response to the book was overwhelmingly positive, and I think it’s bound to get gift-wrapped and put under a lot of Christmas trees later this year.

The Waste of Time release party at Mission: Comics and Art on Saturday night was a lot of fun, too with beer and wine and comic books galore.

In addition, Northwest’s APE table hosted Lambda-Award-winning artist Jon Macy—who signed copies of Teleny and Camille and his new fantasy series Fearful Hunter. We occasionally got visits from neighboring Justin Hall, author of Glamazonia: The Uncanny Super-Tranny, who was tabling across the aisle from us.

Northwest Press publisher Charles “Zan” Christensen was featured on Justin’s Queer Cartoonists panel on Saturday, and engaged in a lively discussion about sex, reaching the right audience, and how to make it all work on a shoestring budget.

Next up, Northwest Press will be making appearances at this weekend’s Geek Girl Con in Seattle—including a panel discussion about how our sexual, gender and race identity influence our comics reading and creation—and the next weekend we will be joining Prism Comics for New York Comic Con!

Alternative Press Expo 2011

// October 1st, 2011 // // A Waste of Time, Events, Glamazonia, Teleny and Camille, The Mark of Aeacus, The Power Within

Northwest Press is proud to be exhibiting at Alternative Press Expo this year, and debuting a brand-new book by Rick Worley called A Waste of Time! Come by the booth, meet Rick and pick up his hilarious, snarky and sweet collection, and meet Jon Macy (Teleny and Camille), Justin Hall (Glamazonia: The Uncanny Super-Tranny) and Charles “Zan” Christensen (The Power Within, The Mark of Aeacus).

The Gay Comics List loves The Power Within!

// September 19th, 2011 // // The Power Within

One of the biggest challenges in doing “advocacy” storytelling is striking a nice balance between getting your message across and telling a good story. If you fail, you end up with something much less entertaining than preachy. The most rewarding feedback we’ve gotten since releasing our anti-bullying book The Power Within is that we’ve succeeded in telling an engaging, honest story that resonates with readers, and isn’t just a “me too” message book. François Peneaud, who reviews everything, it seems like, on his site The Gay Comics List, has seen his fair share of preachy comics, and I’m glad to say that The Power Within wasn’t one of them.

As much as one can enjoy seeing queer characters in both mainstream and indie fantasy fiction, the problems of the real world should always take precedence. Sometimes in a ham-fisted way, and sometimes in a moving, heartfelt way that shows the sincerity and skills of the creators involved. Fortunately, it is the latter that happens with Zan Christensen and Mark Brill’s The Power Within, a comic about LGBT teen bullying.

Later, he says:

The Power Within goes well beyond what’s expected of a project done with the best intentions. It’s a moving depiction of what’s unfortunately the real life of some teenagers in our society, and the creators involved can only hope it will contribute, in its own ways, to the improvement of that situation.

Check out François’ site for the whole Power Within review, and take a look at his numerous other reviews of great LGBT comics. It’s truly a treasure trove.

The Power Within reviewed at Comics Bulletin

// September 17th, 2011 // // The Power Within

Jason Sacks at Comics Bulletin recently reviewed Mark Brill and Charles “Zan” Christensen’s anti-bullying comic, The Power Within and gave the book highest marks: five out of five silver bullets! We were especially pleased to note that the book had reached beyond the LGBT audience and resonated with a straight married man with three kids; we were able to portray the experience of being bullied in school as a gay teen in a way that everyone can relate to.

This is not a maudlin or preachy comic; instead The Power Within effectively puts readers inside the head of a young teenager who’s struggling to find his own unique way in the world. In some ways it doesn’t even matter if Shannon is gay; what’s more important is that he is a depressed outsider who feels hated by everyone around him.

He’s subject to bullying, but the bullying could just as much been because he’s a creative kid, or a brain, or handicapped, or even if he’s just depressed because his parents are getting divorced. What’s important is that Shannon feels like an outsider, like someone who will never be an insider. Because of this, he’s become the victim of bullying, and that bullying helps to lead a tremendous level of self-hatred in him.

Check out the whole review of The Power Within at Comics Bulletin!

Bent-Con 2011

// September 8th, 2011 // // Events, Glamazonia, Teleny and Camille, The Mark of Aeacus, The Power Within

Northwest Press was proud to make its first solo convention appearance at the inaugural Bent-Con last December, and we’re thrilled to be attending this year’s show, which will be bigger and better than ever, in a brand-new venue, spanning two days, and with more special guests than you can imagine! This is shaping up to be a “must-go” annual convention event. Join Charles “Zan” Christensen (The Power Within, The Mark of Aeacus), Jon Macy (Teleny and Camille), Justin Hall (Glamazonia: The Uncanny Super-Tranny) for the queerest comics show you ever saw!

“That Comic Isn’t About Me” at GeekGirlCon

// September 8th, 2011 // // Events

GeekGirlCon is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting awareness of and celebrating the contribution and involvement of women in all aspects of the sciences, science fiction, comics, gaming and related Geek culture through conventions and events that emphasize both the historic and ongoing contribution and influence of women in this culture. They are having their first annual convention on October 8th and 9th at the Seattle Center Northwest Rooms in 2011, and Charles “Zan” Christensen from Northwest Press will be moderating a panel discussion about gender, sexuality and race in comics.

That Comic Isn’t About Me: Gender, Sexuality, and Race in Comics

Unless you’re a famous historical figure, a super-powered mutant, or the author of the story, odds are the comic isn’t actually about you. But that’s not usually what we mean when we think that. How important is it for us to easily identify with the characters being portrayed in a story, and what effect does that have on the diversity of the comics landscape? Why do readers so often overlook stories featuring characters whose gender, sexuality, race, class, or culture differs from their own? And how does the creator’s sense of identity seep into their creative work in both overt and subtle ways? Are we also tempted to tell stories just to people we identify with?

Join Ashley Cook (Giant Fire-Breathing Robot), Chris Lange (The Capitol Hillbillies), and Gail Simone (Batgirl, The Fury of Firestorm) (and perhaps another special guest or two) for a lively discussion about how our identities impact our comics reading and creating.

The Power Within Reviewed at PostModernBarney

// July 28th, 2011 // // The Power Within

Dorian Wright at postmodernbarney.com has written a glowing review of the new Northwest Press book, The Power Within, written by Charles “Zan” Christensen with art by Mark Brill, and featuring a bunch of superstar special guests, including Gail Simone, Phil Jimenez and Greg Rucka.

The story exists strongly within the shadow of the recent media attention given to the high suicide rate in gay teens and the “It Gets Better” project, but successfully avoids any hints of maudlin emotion or preachiness. Instead the story feels very honest and is genuinely affecting. Christensen’s script deserves credit here, but so does Brill’s art, which has an approachable, cartoony feel that still allows for very expressive characters.

Read the whole review of The Power Within here! And make sure to request a copy from your local comics shop!

Read a preview of “The Power Within”!

// July 10th, 2011 // // Misc, The Power Within

Check out this 10-page preview of Charles “Zan” Christensen and Mark Brill’s The Power Within right here on Northwestpress.com, thanks to an embedded Google Docs viewer. The book is available to order through Diamond Comic Distributors using item #JUL111189. Ask for it at your local comics shop!
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