MariNaomi

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MariNaomi
MariNaomi in 2021
MariNaomi in 2021
BornMari Naomi Schaal
1973 (age 47–48)
Texas, U.S.
https://marinaomi.com/

MariNaomi (born as Mari Naomi Schaal; born 1973) is an American graphic artist and cartoonist who often publishes autobiographical comics and is also well-known for creating three online databases of underrepresented cartoonists.

Career[]

MariNaomi's has been drawing comics since 1997, starting out as a zine creator.[1][2] Her comics are usually autobiographical. She talks about the search for her roots, her status as a mixed race queer woman, as well as her feminism. Her article "Writing People of Color" discusses how people of color should approach writing about people from a race that is not their own.[3] MariNaomi stated "I feel like race is such a sensitive issue that I wanted feedback and I wanted to know how better to do it and to share that information.".[2]

MariNaomi wrote an article It Happened to Me: I Was Sexually Harassed Onstage at a Comic Convention Panel for XOJane in 2013 describing her experience of being harassed on stage as a panelist at a comics convention.[4] She did not name her harasser, but Scott Lobdell later came forward and issued a public apology for his actions.[5][6]

MariNaomi founded and maintains three online databases of cartoonists: the Cartoonists of Color Database, the Queer Cartoonists Database and the Disabled Cartoonists Database.[7][8][9] In 2014, she began the Cartoonists of Color Database and created the Queer Cartoonists Database soon after.[10][11] In 2019, she launched the Disabled Cartoonists Database.[12] The opt-in per creator database Queer Cartoonists contains 775 entries as of May 2018 and has been reported to be helpful in the professional careers of upcoming cartoonists.[13] Librarians and archivists specializing in comic book studies have also highlighted the need for open access databases like these.[14]

Since 2017, she and fellow author Myriam Gurba have been hosting an advice podcast called AskBiGrlz where they answer listener questions.[15]

Personal life[]

Her mother is Japanese and her father is a Caucasian American. Born as Mari Naomi Schaal in Texas in 1973, she grew up in Mill Valley, California and later moved to San Jose, California.[2] She began using the name MariNaomi in 2003. She worked in illegal hostess bars while she briefly lived in Japan.[16] She wrote about those experiences in her memoir, Turning Japanese.[17]

Publications[]

  • Kiss & Tell: A Romantic Resume, Ages 0 to 22 (Harper Perennial, 2011) ISBN 0062009230
  • Dragon's Breath and Other True Stories (2dcloud/Uncivilized Books, 2014) ISBN 1941250017
  • Turning Japanese (2dcloud, 2016) ISBN 1937541169
  • I Thought YOU Hated ME (Retrofit Comics, 2016) ISBN 1940398495
  • Losing the Girl (Graphic Universe, 2018) ISBN 1541510445
  • Gravity's Pull (Graphic Universe, 2018) ISBN 1541545265
  • Distant Stars (Graphic Universe, 2020) ISBN 1541587006
  • Dirty Produce (Workman Publishing Company, 2021) ISBN 1523513314

References[]

  1. ^ "This Cartoonist Perfectly Captures the Highs and Lows of Friendship". Los Angeles Magazine. 2016-09-14. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Illustrating the Awesome and the Awkward: MariNaomi's Memoirs". Giant Robot Media. 2017-07-11. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  3. ^ "Writing People of Color by MariNaomi". Midnight Breakfast. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  4. ^ "IT HAPPENED TO ME: I Was Sexually Harassed Onstage at a Comic Convent…". archive.fo. 2013-12-21. Archived from the original on 2013-12-21. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  5. ^ susana-polo (2013-12-20). "Scott Lobdell Outs Self as Comic Con Panel Sexual Harasser". The Mary Sue. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  6. ^ MacDonald, Heidi (2013-12-19). "Scott Lobdell: I apologize to MariNaomi". The Beat. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  7. ^ "About MariNaomi". MariNaomi.com. 2019-02-13. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  8. ^ Aoki, Deb (2019-04-17). "MariNaomi Shines a Light on Diverse Cartoonists". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  9. ^ Steyels, Mike (2016-09-24). "A Peek Inside the Essential 'Cartoonists Of Color' Database". Vice. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  10. ^ Steyels, Mike. "A Peek Inside the Essential 'Cartoonists Of Color' Database". VICE. VICE. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  11. ^ MariNaomi. "MariNaomi, Cartoonist/Community Organizer - XOXO Festival (2018)". YouTube. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  12. ^ MariNaomi (October 8, 2019). "I am very pleased to announce that we have just now full-on LAUNCHED the DisabledCartoonists.com database!". Twitter. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  13. ^ Bergdahl, Esther (28 May 2018). "Rainbow Connection: LGBTQ Publishing 2018". Publishers Weekly.
  14. ^ Quamme, Margaret. "Virtual Art+Feminism events at Ohio State highlight databases". The Columbus Dispatch.
  15. ^ Gurba, Myriam; MariNaomi. "AskBiGrlz". AskBiGrlz.
  16. ^ Davies, Rachel (2016-05-24). "Exploring Japanese Identity as a Hostess in Illegal Expat Bars". Vice. Retrieved 2019-06-25.
  17. ^ Dueben, Alex (2016-06-17). "MariNaomi Explores Being Young and "Turning Japanese"". CBR. Retrieved 2019-06-25.

External links[]

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