Alongside being the editor of graphic narratives for Island magazine since 2022 I have been consistently advocating (nagging) for change: we need more comics in more places. Literary spaces have ignored comics for far too long and frankly - IT’S BORING. Comics are left out of literary awards, magazines, publishing slates, festivals …
Here are some of the resources I’ve produced to help advocate for these changes to be shared amongst the comic making community and with literary spaces so they can begin to think more broadly.
A regularly updated list of places that publish comics in Australia and NZ - magazines and book publishers
2026 - “Dear Writers Fests…” an open letter by Joshua Santospirito about the lack of comics in literary festivals, published on Overland’s website:
2024 - massive resource to best understand the current publishing ecology around graphic novels in Australia as compared to lessons from the USA by Sophie Splatt: https://publishers.asn.au/Web/Latest/APANews/20240924-BDEF-2023-report-handbook-to-graphic-novel-publishing.aspx
2023 - a comic Joshua Santospirito made about the lack of comics in literary mags, published on Island’s website: The Last Ever Comic To Be Published In A Literary Magazine … Ever!!
2022 - Webinar about comics in literary spaces in Australia - discussion with Eleri Harris, Safdar Ahmed and Joshua Santospirito from late 2022