Why Women Don’t Work at Marvel
- Posted by Johanna on August 1, 2006 at 10:14 pm
- Category: LinkBlogging
Gail Simone, at her message board, responds to the question of why not many women submit to Marvel, seeking work there:
I like Marvel. I have a lot of friends at Marvel. But there is definitely a Howard Stern/partytime/fratboy/strip club element.
Again, I like Marvel. But when I was there, it was INEVITABLE that every female who left or was let go would be referred to as a ‘crazy bitch’ at some point. I don’t blame any one person for it, but it is something that could bite them in the ass if they’re not careful.
And on the flipside, big kudos to editors like Mike Marts who could NOT have been more gracious and welcoming. And Joe Quesada has been nothing but nice to me as well. It’s not the individuals, it’s just sort of an institutionalized faux ‘badboys’ environment, to my mind.
As a final cavaet, let me add that it’s been some years since I was there and it all may have changed since then.
Later in the thread, an aspiring woman writer says that it’s not a good economic decision. With limited time and energy, she’d rather dedicate her efforts to a different field, one where she doesn’t have to fight an offensive atmosphere, can more easily get work, and oh, yeah, make more money.
That bit about how the men talk about the women behind their back, how it’s always made out to be the woman’s fault, fits in with my experience at DC. (Again, that was several years ago now.)
I think the guys who work in superhero comics, because they were fans first, are used to feeling picked on, so when they get the chance to blame someone else, they take it. It’s never their fault. They run the clubhouse, so they think they always make the right decisions and obviously deserve their positions. (That also explains the defensiveness to fan feedback you often see.)
August 2, 2006 at 12:15 am
I’m glad Gail’s adding her voice to this, but it’s also what I and many other women have been saying since January.
August 2, 2006 at 12:18 am
I’ve said this before, Lea.
There’s more than one bandwagon.
Gail
August 2, 2006 at 2:22 am
That’s a very valid point you make, Johanna. Bang on. I really can’t add to it. I’m so happy to not be working in a comic store anymore. As a gay man, there’s only so much gentle deflection and attempts at civilized arguements you can manage before wanting to punch a couple heads in. So, instead, I walked away and let the snake eat its own tail.
Gail, keep making great comics. Your presence inspires more than you could know. You’re like the uber rock chick inspiring girls to pick up a guitar. Your comics are damn fun.
Craig
August 2, 2006 at 7:30 am
Thank you, Craig, you just made my day. :)
Gail
August 2, 2006 at 12:25 pm
See, here’s the thing. Every time I’ve spoken to Gail and Devin Grayson… (and actually Lea does this as well) at convention, they are extremely gracious when I’ve asked how they deal with the “frat boy” mentality of most fans and creators. It wasn’t until I got to speak with Colleen Doran for about an hour that I realised as someone who doesn’t have to make his living in this industry I don’t have to put up with it at all. My own “zero tolerance policy if you will.”
It is absolutely inexcuseable that this industry should be so bad that any creator be they gay or straight, male or female, should ever feel that it’s “not a good economic decision” to work in comics. Grrrrrrrr…. reading stuff like this just makes me want to go down to my lcs and start beating fanboys with their own Jim Balent posters. If the comics industry continues to alienate over half of its potential fan and creator base, I predict that it will eventually take up residence in some remote mountainous area and start eating random groups of lost tourists.
August 2, 2006 at 1:03 pm
It’s kind of important here to make a distinction…the fact is, DC has not only been nothing but INCREDIBLY gracious to me, but having spoken with Dan about this often, they’re headed in a direction of open-ness that I agree with whole-heartedly.
I think it’s just as wrong to paint all publishers with the same brush as it is to pretend that sexism no longer exists in the industry.
Gail
August 2, 2006 at 3:51 pm
I agree, Gail, but I had my own share of sexist experiences when I worked at DC. I see the core problem as endemic to the superhero-based industry, with degree of problem varying somewhat based on who’s in power when.
August 2, 2006 at 7:55 pm
As a woman comic book retailer I know that men dominate the industry, both in terms of tallent and as consumers. But thanks to women like Gail and Johanna, we have made some inroads.
I was a stock broker a few years ago, so I was prepared to work in a male dominated industry thanks to that. Sounds like male stock brokers and male comic book creators like those at Marvel are not that different. They both have a deep-rooted “boy’s club” mentality that is hard to completely get rid of. Any woman who comes around threatens their sense of security and machismo. Now, this isn’t all stock brokers or comic book guys, but it seems like, in any industry that’s been largely a men’s playground for years can be generally unwelcoming to us ladies. And until more women become end-product consumers, it will be tough to crack that nut (no pun intended). One of my goals is to get more women to read comics, as well as to get more PEOPLE to read non-superhero comics. Hopefully as diversity increases, it will become easier for women to get involved in creating comics for a living.
July 2, 2008 at 11:41 am
Did it ever occur to either of you that you may just be unpleasant, obnoxious, and generally just bad employees?
July 2, 2008 at 12:14 pm
No, not when I got excellent performance reviews from both my boss there and everywhere else I’ve worked.
Fanboys always want to blame the victims, because they hate thinking about sexism, because it may cause them discomfort about their own attitudes and behavior.
August 26, 2008 at 9:39 am
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January 8, 2009 at 10:45 am
I would more than welcome strong female talent to my company espescially for their fresh perspective and the possibility to increase female readership.
January 10, 2009 at 8:31 am
That reminds me of this interview with Marguerite Abouet about her latest book, and women and comics, on France 24’s Culture magazine. The whole video is in English, and Genie Godula interviews Abouet in the 2nd and 4th parts of the video. OTOH, if you don’t want to know what happens in Aya book 4 until after you read Aya book 3 (already released in French and the English translation’s due in June 2009) then skip it because the interview includes a big spoiler.