Comics
Short comic examples
Here are six very different examples of short comics. I made them for different reasons, with different tools, for different audiences. A “comic” doesn’t necessarily mean funny drawing — the combination of words and pictures, and the time suggested between each panel, can convey any mood or human experience.
Graphic Novel: The Big Book of Bisexual Trials and Errors (Northwest Press, November 2017)
In 2017 I compiled my Bisexual Trials and Errors comics with Northwest Press. This autobiographical account of few years after my first big breakup is still close to my heart.
Publisher’s Description:
“Elizabeth Beier chronicles her true-life romantic tales as she breaks up with a long-term boyfriend and starts to date women. Beier tackles the complexities of sexuality and self image with a conversational and immediate art style, telling stories anyone who's ever struggled with dating can relate to.”
Some Sample Pages…
The Big Book of Trials and Errors was named one of the best LGBTQ graphic novels of 2017 by The Advocate. Other reviews include:
““The Big Book of Bisexual Trials and Errors by Elizabeth Beier details an authentic and honest queer experience. It’s not afraid to be frank and intimate with its readers. The artwork clearly comes from a very personal place and lets readers feel right at home in the story.”
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“Funny, lively... roughly honest. This raw chronicle is a dispatch from the front lines of modern app-assisted dating.
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“Her black-and-white ink drawings uncover people’s idiosyncrasies, via her sensitive brush strokes... So when she meets up with someone from an online dating site, we not only get a sketch, but also a description, a character, a story.”
“Elizabeth Beier’s The Big Book of Bisexual Trials and Errors (Northwest Press, 2017) is a wonderfully readable, highly relatable graphic novel detailing Beier’s coming-of-age as a bisexual person. In this excerpt, our heroine makes the acquaintance of a sexy stranger, who looks to be a promising paramour. Beier’s art beautifully captures the giddy, hormonal excitement of mutual attraction in full bloom.
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““This is a definite recommendation if you’re a fan of Lucy Knisley or Ellen Forney, and Beier is a cartoonist to keep an eye on. The Big Book of Bisexual Trials and Errors is a great addition to the canon of queer comics, as well as to the body of bisexual representation.”
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from the foreword:
“As Elizabeth grows from young girl to confident queer, the literal walls of her work come crumbling down: the lines and marks get bolder and more dynamic, and the traditional comic book grids and portrait-based storytelling give way to the abstract, the strange, and the divine.” — Avery Trufelman
Comics for The Lily
I am a regular comics contributor for The Lily, a publication of The Washington Post that elevates stories about women. Click a thumbnail to see the comic.
Comic for The Nib: Decade since Prop 8
I wrote a comic for The Nib in 2018 about the decade since Prop 8. Prop 8, which passed in 2008, stripped LGBT Californians of the right to marry. In the decade since, nationwide equality was achieved — but injustice and discrimination still persist. Intersectional activism is needed to secure equal rights for all. Click to enlarge or go here to read the original article.
Starcasters
A short story the (first) time I had a crush on a female best friend. Pages in order — click and enlarge to read through.
