Award-winning author and graphic artist MariNaomi came to Fresno State Saturday to share her personal stories growing up and how they made it into her graphic memoir “Kiss and Tell: A Romantic Resume.”
The author’s reading of her memoir was part of the university’s annual WordFest.
MariNaomi said it was important to be truthful about what she experienced as a female in her adolescents, even if that meant recording stories that were taboo.
“I didn’t care about what others had to say,” MariNaomi said. “People want to read the scandalous stuff. They don’t care about what you ate that day.”
She also talked about the difficulties of getting her stories published and how her agents wanted her to be more accessible on social media by tweeting at least once a day. This helped her generate more fans and to network.
Andy Chuang, a Fresno State alumnus, heard on Twitter that MariNaomi was speaking on campus and was interested in learning more about the drawing aspect of comics.
“It’s a form of communication and certain things can only be communicated visually,” Chuang said .
MariNaomi said that the storyline of a graphic novel is more important than the actual graphics. She would rather read a graphic novel with a great story line than one with great graphics, but a horrible story line.
Spencer Willow, a Fresno State student, attended the memoir to support a friend who was interested in graphic illustration. Willow read graphic novels as a kid, but was more impressed with the graphics than the storyline.
“I think that drawing is more important when it comes to comic books, because if it was just a good storyline, then it would probably be a novel,” Willow said. “You have to have good art to make it into a comic book.”
MariNaomi also has short comics that are available online through TheRumpus.net, SFBay.CA and Tapastic, a website that connects readers with artists to showcase their webcomics.
MariNaomi will be coming out in May with a new graphic memoir called “Turning Japanese,” that consist of short stories of her trying to reconnect with her culture while working at a bar.