» The Mother: In an excerpt of her new graphic memoir, Rachel Deutsch explores the messy reality of being a new mom—bruised boobs and all.

» Swapping Genders with my Ex: We saw our future in each other—one where both of us would change.

All of our classes are sliding-scale and we have free spots available for people who can’t afford the price—get in touch if you’d like to request a free spot!

• Queer Economies of Care with Gili Rappaport and Joaquin Golez // How do queer folks keep each other alive, fed, housed, and laughing—especially when the system isn’t built for us? This six-week class blends queer theory and comics with creative writing and drawing, transforming stories of queer survival and care into comics and zines. Sundays, Nov. 2 - Dec 7, from 10am-12pm PST/1pm-4pm EST

• Autobio Comics Workshop with Al Benbow // Want to make a comic about your life? Al will go over examples of autobiographical comics, the process of making authobio comics, how to ethically include other real people in your comics, and discuss the self as a character. By the end of the workshop, participants will have the opportunity to create and share a short autobio comic of their own. Thursday, November 13, 4-6pm PST/ 7-9pm EST

• Intro to Digital Drawing with Procreate: Do you have an iPad but feel intimidated by drawing on it? This workshop led by Audra McNamee will support you in learning tips and tricks to illustrate in the app Procreate. Saturday, November 15 from 9-11am PST/12-2pm EST.

Free Events

• Talk: Drawing Resistance — Graphic Rage and Making Nonfiction Comics: Authors Aubrey Hirsch, Shay Mirk, and Eleri Harris celebrate the release of their new graphic nonfiction books with a talk about how making comics is an act of political participation and essential self-expression. Monday, October 27 from 4-5pm PST/7-8pm EST

• Chronic Illness Comics Club - Our very chill monthly meetup to make art about experiences with chronic illness meets this Sunday to draw on the theme of body horror. Oooo! Sunday, October 26 from 11am-12:15pm PST/ 2pm-3:15pm EST

How did you want this memoir to be different from other books about pregnancy and parenting? 

I guess as with any memoir, I wanted this book to be authentic to me and to tell my story in all its weird and vulnerable nuances. I wanted my voice to come across because I think that stories about pregnancy, birth and early motherhood are so important and different voices matter. I knew, in many ways, my story was not universal, while in other ways, it was. I think it's relatable in its uniqueness. Becoming a mother is a crazy thing!  I went through a kind of identity crisis, relationship tumult, and a lot of depression and anxiety during pregnancy. Then, I had an explosion of euphoria after the baby was born and felt the most love I'd ever felt in my life. I was overjoyed, but also exhausted and lonely. I hope that by being true to that story, it will be true and meaningful for others. I think there's room for all kinds of motherhoods stories, not just a few. We should all tell our stories loudly! How courageous of us to do this kind of insane, beautiful, and terrifying thing! 

What are you proud of about this book? 

I'm proud that I wrote a graphic novel! I'm so proud that I was confident enough to finally call myself a cartoonist. 

And finally, what's the number one best gift for a parent of a newborn? Besides time and money? 

My book! haha... Also, give new mothers so much appreciation. Tell them: You did this incredible thing. I see how hard this was. I see how magical this is. This is work, so much work. You are now qualified to be the president or the boss of any job that exists. You are also qualified to be wrapped in the softest cotton, placed in a tree nook for a year, and fed little berries and ice cream. You can stay longer than a year if you want! You are now allowed to walk naked in the middle of the street, dipping your hands into a jar of Nutella and then licking it all off, making fierce eye contact with any man you pass by. You are now permitted to roam shirtless, never cut your hair again (or cut it all off now!) and bleed into moss. 

Building on our monthly Chronic Illness Comics Club meetups, we’re publishing a zine! It’s called Tired AF: Comics About Chronic Illness.  We are looking for memoir & nonfiction comics about chronic illness. Learn more here!

• People of Boston who love food! Super rad artists Mariah Rose Marie and Shaina Lu are leading a series of free cooking, comics, and collage workshops on the Boston University campus in November. Eat up this opportunity to make zines about tasty food.

• Are you working on a sci-fi comic? The Otherwise Fellowship offers two $500 grants to support “creators from communities that have been historically underrepresented in the science fiction and fantasy genre and those who are working in media other than traditional fiction.” The deadline to apply is December 15.

• Australian literary magazine Island is looking for pitches for its 2026 graphic narratives issue. The pay rate for eight-page comics is $1600 (nice!). The magazine takes submissions from people in Australia and New Zealand and Australians living abroad. The deadline is November 5.

• These are some big grants: The Bobby Anspach Foundation is offering two $50,000 grants and three $8,000 grants to visual artists from anywhere in the world whose “whose practices expand empathy, nurture connection, and respond to the ecological and social challenges of our time.” The deadline to apply is December 30, 2025. Get in there!

Crucial Comix is supported by the Sequential Artists Workshop. Thanks friends!

This newsletter is written by Shay Mirk. If you have comics or opportunities you think we should feature, email Shay at [email protected]. 💌