The Secret Loves of Geek Girls was a smash hit 2016 anthology that delved into the passions of some of the best and brightest female creators in comics, illustration, and prose including Mariko Tamaki, Irene Koh, Annie Mok, Trina Robbins, Marguerite Bennett, Katie West, and Margaret Atwood. Well received by fans and critics alike, the book was a much needed antidote to the often grim and gritty male-centric world of mainstream comics. “The Secret Loves of Geek Girls was a book that offered up all the stories about love and dating we wish we read in teen magazines when we were younger and never saw,” said editor Hope Nicholson.
To celebrate Pride month, Dark Horse has announced a brand new follow-up anthology, The Secret Loves of Geeks. Stepping away from the female-focused first collection to include creators of all genders, editor Hope Nicholson enthused, “It was really exciting to do a project that’s feminist but also resists the idea of only two genders. I was happy to feature a few stories from creators who identify as nonbinary, as well as many men and women.”
The Secret Loves of Geeks includes another incredible roster of creators from Batgirl‘s Hope Larson and Young Animal’s Gerard Way to the return of literary groundbreaker Margaret Atwood.
“Margaret’s lovely and I’m still always shocked when we get to work together!” said Nicholson. “The best part was pairing her off with my friends Michael Walsh and Jordie Bellaire as her collaborators. I loved seeing the creepy, funny story that resulted.”
The prospect of seeing Atwood matched up with the incredible talents of Bellaire, arguably contemporary comics most prolific and talented colorist, and Walsh, whose uniquely gorgeous art in books like Worst X-Man Ever and Hawkeye have made him a household name with Marvel fans, is an unbelievably exciting one for readers too.
For new readers who’ve yet to experience the joy that was the The Secret Loves Of Geek Girls but want to know more about this new anthology, Hope explained, “vulnerability is the aim of this collection. It’s full of true stories that might be like your life or might not be. Either way, readers have an unprecedented opportunity to see inside the souls of some of the most talented creators in the world. It’ll be a treasure to read.”
Other creators taking part in the newest Secret Loves collection include Patrick Rothfuss (The Name of the Wind), Dana Simpson (Phoebe and Her Unicorn), Gabby Rivera (America), Hope Larson (Batgirl), Cecil Castellucci (Soupy Leaves Home), Valentine de Landro (Bitch Planet), Marley Zarcone (Shade), Sfé R. Monster (Beyond: A queer comics anthology), Amy Chu (Wonder Woman), and more, not to mention a “cat-tastic” cover by the incredible Becky Cloonan (The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys).
The first book was funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign and later distributed by Dark Horse, who Nicholson said “really shined” when it came to getting the book out to a wider audience. However, this follow up collection will be put together and published by Dark Horse, released on Valentines Day 2018, and is available for pre-order now.
Images: Dark Horse
