Lesbian Autobiographical Manga Hits North America

My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness, an autobiographical manga written and drawn by Kabi Nagata was published in English earlier this month.

Beginning as an online hit through Pixiv--a Japanese online community for artists--it was then picked up by Seven Seas Entertainment to be brought to Western markets. The story follows Nagata growing up in the modern world, her struggles with mental health and eating disorders, and discovering her sexuality, all leading up to the point where she, at 28-year-old having never had any sexual experiences, finds herself hiring a same-sex escort.

Drawn simply in black and white with hints of pink, it's a very brutally honest look at Nagata's life. Despite her saying she's normally quite introverted, she was unafraid to expose the details of her personal journey for the sake of creating good manga content.

It had been rated in the Top 3 Manga for Women in 2017 by Japanese publishing company Takarajimasha's manga guidebook: Kono Manga ga Sugoi! (This Manga is Amazing!) and has received high reviews on Goodreads.

Lissa Pattillo, production manager at Seven Seas Entertainment said about the manga:

"My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness is a book we are immensely proud and excited to be publishing. As the top yuri publisher in North America, we’re keenly aware of the impact and importance that stories about same-sex relationships can have on our audience. While our yuri titles offer wonderful tales of dramatized romance, My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness is an autobiographical comic, written by a queer author who is brave and talented enough to share her story in a both moving and highly entertaining way, depicting not only her explorations of sexuality, but many other personal aspects of her life that will resonate with readers."

(cited from: http://www.otakustudy.com/manga/2016/10/kabi-nagatas-autobiographical-manga-lesbian-experience-loneliness-brought-western-markets/) 

I read the first 25 pages of the manga and really enjoyed it! Nagata definitely doesn't shy away from sharing the darker details of her eating disorder and I found I was able to really connect with her feeling of displacement, of desiring a place to belong. Only being the first few pages, she didn't yet touch upon her sexuality, but one review stated that the manga "[explores] realistic and emotional and mental dynamics in lesbian relationships... that the events leading up to Nagata's meeting with the sex worker shed a new light on how we can think about yuri" (Ana Valens of The Mary Sue).

If you're interested in reading the first 25 pages before picking it up, you can do so here. Or check out the ratings and reviews on Goodreads here.

In North America, it's available online through Indigo, Barnes & Noble, and/or Amazon.

If you've read it already, hit up the comments down below and let me know what you think! Just from the first few pages Nagata's caught my attention, so I'm very interested to dive into the rest of it!

Stay shining my darlings,

~ Tilly ~

Fans Sign Petitions & Send Flip-Flops to Save 'Sense8'

In beautifully dedicated fashion, Sense8 fans have taken action to voice their disagreements with its cancellation on the first of this month.

Petitions have popped up all over the internet from Twitter to Tumblr and beyond to renew the beloved show for a third season, to continue to showcase diversity on mainstream television and find closure for the cluster's story.

Another, more creative, operation has gone underway, where fans are called to send a single flip-flop to Netflix with the message that "Sense8 needs closure like Lito needs his flip-flop #renewSense8"--a reference to a fan favourite moment in Season 1.

(Photo Credit: https://twitter.com/MelissaStout11/status/870972713141252096/photo/1)

If you're a fan of Sense8 and would like to show your support for its renewal, you can sign and share the Change.org petition here.

And/or if a more assertive motion is your thing, you can learn more about Operation Flip-Flop here.

Don't let this show go down without a fight!

Sending good vibes out to you my darlings,

~ Tilly ~

Netflix Cancels 'Sense8' on the First Day of Pride Month?!

Some sad news rains down on the first day of Pride Month. Earlier today, Netflix announced the cancellation of The Wachowski's Sense8 after its two-season run.

The drama first premiered on Netflix in June 2015, introducing us to eight characters from around the world who are all mentally linked, dealing with their own and then each others' daily lives and the mysterious and dangerous company trying to track them down. It wasn't a perfect show, oftentimes very unstructured, but it was a strong leap towards representation with a diverse cast that even included a trans-actress (Jamie Clayton) playing a trans-character.

Netflix's VP of original content, Cindy Holland, issued a statement today about the cancellation:

"After 23 episodes, 16 cities and 13 countries, the story of the Sense8 cluster is coming to an end. It is everything we and the fans dreamed it would be: bold, emotional, stunning, kick ass, and outright unforgettable. Never has there been a more truly global show with an equally diverse and international cast and crew, which is only mirrored by the connected community of deeply passionate fans all around the world. We thank Lana, Lilly, Joe and Grant for their vision, and the entire cast and crew for their craftmanship and commitment."

No particular reason for its cancellation has been stated but with it being a largely expensive production there could be a multitude of reasons. It does come as a hurtful surprise, however, with it having a much stronger second season and the fact that today is the first day of Pride Month--it all feels like a slap to the face of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Fans are understandably outraged, calling foul on all fronts, making queries as to why other less-than-impacting shows are receiving renewals when Sense8 was just building momentum. Adding fuel to the fire is the cancellation of Baz Luhrmann's The Get Down (also featuring POC's and LGBT+ characters) that was announced just last week after only a single season.

Losing two popular shows that not only represented but celebrated diversity has made the beginning of Pride Month feel a little despairing. 

But all is not lost, be loud in your disappointment, make it known that shows like Sense8 and The Get Down, that celebrate love and acceptance despite vast differences, are so vital in moving the world forwards. And then support the shows: raise their numbers, keep them buzzing, let Netflix know that we're not letting go without a fight.

Stay happy my darlings,

~ Tilly ~