As a part of Northeastern Illinois University’s Visiting Writers Series, graphic novelists A.K. Summers, Nicole Georges and Phoebe Gloeckner will engage in a panel discussion about their individual work as well as the medium of graphic narratives. University of Chicago professor and expert on comics and graphic narratives Hillary Chute will moderate the discussion.
The uniquely crafted stories deal with everyday life situations, particularly those surrounding womanhood. Summers’ “Pregnant Butch” humorously deals with a woman’s struggle to balance her “butch-ness” with being pregnant. Georges’ “Calling Dr. Laura” illustrates a story about the perils of family secrets through the eyes of a young girl. Gloeckner’s “A Child’s Life” captures a teenage girl’s loss of innocence when dealing with hazardous situations.
“We are very lucky to have all three of them. It is a big thing for us to bring writers of this caliber from a growing genre,” said Christie Miller, director of Northeastern’s Office of Cultural Events. “Their stories are funny and poignant in dealing with serious issues like abuse, coming of age and LGBT issues. It will be great to get inside their minds in how they told their stories.”
English Assistant Professor Alicia Erian and Professor Ryan Poll are responsible for inviting the writers for this first-ever graphic novel panel. Poll teaches a class titled The Graphic Novel: Literary, Cultural and Linguistic Approaches, and will bring his class to the panel.
“The Visiting Writers Series connects major writers with our classrooms,” Miller added. “We are happy to put these writers on the forefront at Northeastern and expose our students to them.”
Free and open to the public, the panel discussion will be held on Tuesday, March 24, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Auditorium, 3701 W. Bryn Mawr Ave. in Chicago.
