October 27, 2022

From full-time teaching to full-time comics, with Gene Luen Yang

59 minutes

Gene Luen Yang is a prolific cartoonist whose personal work is deeply rooted in the Chinese-American experience. He’s best known for his original graphic novel American Born Chinese, and his work with franchise stories such as Superman and Avatar: The Last Airbender. Hear how Gene went from being a computer engineer and high school teacher to full-time cartoonist and recipient of a MacArthur “genius” grant.

More from the episode

How did the success of American Born Chinese change the trajectory of his career?

Gene opens up about quitting his day job: “It felt like breaking up with somebody.”

What do coding and comics have in common? And how did teaching help Gene become a better writer?

The difference in how he approaches licensed vs. creator-owned work, and the benefits of doing both.

Gene talks about the importance of learning to finish, and the anxious voice inside his head that keeps him on track.

How he juggles working on multiple projects at once with being a husband and parent.

About Gene Luen Yang

Gene Luen Yang writes, and sometimes draws, comic books and graphic novels. As the Library of Congress’ fifth National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, he advocates for the importance of reading, especially reading diversely. American Born Chinese, his first graphic novel from First Second Books, was a National Book Award finalist, as well as the winner of the Printz Award and an Eisner Award.

His two-volume graphic novel Boxers & Saints won the L.A. Times Book Prize and was a National Book Award Finalist. His other works include Secret Coders (with Mike Holmes), The Shadow Hero (with Sonny Liew), Superman from DC Comics (with various artists), and the Avatar: The Last Airbender series from Dark Horse Comics (with Gurihiru).

In 2016, he was named a MacArthur Foundation Fellow. His most recent books are Dragon Hoops from First Second Books and Superman Smashes the Klan from DC Comics.

Connect with Gene Luen Yang

https://geneyang.com/

https://www.ted.com/speakers/gene_yang

https://twitter.com/geneluenyang?lang=en

https://www.facebook.com/cartoonistgeneluenyang

https://www.instagram.com/geneluenyang/

Additional links

Visual Scripting: using InDesign to write comics

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