Comic book writers have always been a minority in the industry, and that still holds true today. Men dominate the field, and while there are a few female creators making waves with their work, the number of women that are able to do a living writing is still fairly small. However, there are a few exceptions, and one of the most notable is G. Willow Wilson. She has become one of the most prominent female comic book writers thanks to her work on Ms. Marvel, The New Avengers, and her current series Captain Marvel. Let’s take a look at some of the other top female comic book writers:
Kelly Sue Deconnick
Kelly Sue Deconnick is a comic book writer and author of the ‘Captain Marvel’ webcomic and the series “Pretty Deadly” series. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, The Washington Post, Wired, The Los Angeles Times, Vogue Magazine, The Village Voice, and The New Yorker.
Alison Bechdel
Alison Bechdel is the writer behind the award-winning graphic novel ‘Fun Home’. Her characters are complex, multi-dimensional, and relatable. When thinking of her, it’s hard not to think of the famous graphic novel that she has written, but she is much more than that.
Karen Berger
Karen Berger began her career at Marvel Comics in 1976 as the assistant editor before working her way up the ranks to become the company’s Executive Editor and Vice President. She made a name for herself in the industry for being a woman in a position of power in the male-dominated comic book industry. After leaving Marvel in 1987, she went on to work for DC Comics, where she first joined the editorial department, then the writers’ department, before becoming the editor-in-chief of their mature-audience imprint Vertigo in 1996. She held this position until she departed from DC in 2003.
Gail Simone
Gail Simone is an award-winning comic book writer and editor. She’s won over 25 awards and has published in over 500 publications. Her publications include Futures End, Secret Six, Batgirl, and Rose: The Batman Series. Gail has also been nominated for a Nebula award for her work on Deadpool.
Rachel Pollock
Rachel Pollock is a video game journalist who often writes about women in the industry and portrays them in video games. She has also written an essay on anti-feminism. Rachel Pollock is a writer and editor at Bleeding Cool. She has worked for Marvel, DC Comics, Image Comics, IDW Publishing, and more. She’s published a number of creator-owned works, including the Image Comics series ‘Angelic’ and the creator-owned series such as ‘The Inexplicable Adventures of Dr. McNinja’ and ‘Lady Sabre & the Pirates’.
Louise Simonson
Louise Simonson is one of the most influential comic writers of all time. Her work spans decades and ranges from the classic Spider-Man to the current comic ‘Thor’. She is arguably the most successful female comic book writer of all time and has penned a massive number of main issues and stories. I would like to talk about another of her notable works, a comic book series that looks into the possible future and explores a possible world called the Marvel 3075 Universe.
Louise Simonson was born on November 6th, 1963, and lives in Waukesha, Wisconsin. She is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin in Madison and a former teacher who now works as a freelance comics professional. She has worked for Marvel Comics since 1980.
Ann Nocenti
Ann Nocenti is one of the most important names in modern comic book history. She’s had a huge impact on the direction of comics and the women who came after her. Ann Nocenti was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on October 4th, 1950. Her first comics work was in the seventies. In 1978, she joined DC Comics, where she created the character ‘Gwendy,’ a teenage girl with superpowers who found herself drawn into a world of espionage and murder. She then went on to create ‘The Steranko Girls,’ a spin-off from the popular ‘Sgt. Rock’ superhero, and the first woman to write a comic book series on their own, without a male partner.
Ramona Fradon
Ramona Fradon is a comic book writer who’s mostly known for illustrating ‘Aquaman’ and ‘Brenda Starr’ with a special passion for comics featuring female characters. She’s madly in love with superheroes and has a huge collection of comic books.
Flo Steinberg
Flo Steinberg is a writer who has been working in the gaming industry for several years. Her recent work has appeared in video game magazines such as GamePro and Nintendo Power. She has worked on several video games, including the following: Commander Keen 5, Haze, Need for Speed: Underground 2, and Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition.
Elizabeth Holloway Marston
Many female comic book writers go completely unmentioned or completely forgotten by the public, while those that do get much more attention than they deserve. One of the most famous and one of the best, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, was the wife of famous comic book writer (and feminist) William Moulton Marston. She was a woman who played a major role in both of her husband’s work, even if her contributions to the characters did not receive as much attention as they deserved.