Press Release

The Gwan Anthology

The Gwan Anthology is a 214-page collection of creator-owned short stories, art, and pros, centered around themes of foreign lands, the immigrant experience and cultural fusion.

The overall goal for this anthology is to highlight and celebrate comic creators who produce work with a sense of the immigrant/expat perspective, expressing both the joys and challenges of such a journey. The anthology is open to any genre: sci-fi, fantasy or slice of life; open to both real and imagined experiences.

What is Gwan?
Gwan (g’waan) is a common word in Jamaican patois and the Caribbean vernacular, yet also has roots in the Irish language. Although, this word is usually translated to “go on” and sometimes “get out”, gwan has a myriad of uses. Its meaning can change depending on the context and is more likely to be heard in use conversationally between close friends ie. “A watta gwan (What’s going on/How are you doing?)” or “Gwan rude boy (Show us what you got, hot stuff)”

It is within this vein of layered meaning and switching contexts, that immigrants and their children must strive, adapt and overcome, creating their own spaces and identities. The Gwan Anthology will be a collection that attempts to weave a common thread through shared stories and a place where independent creators can showcase their talents.

Highlights

• The anthology was largely funded by a modest Kickstarter campaign, which raised over $6K, twice the requested minimum.
• The Gwan Kickstarter campaign was featured on the Project We Love curated selections by Kickstarter
• Gwan features art contributions by Glyph Award winner, Jerome Walford; multi Glyph Award winner and Eisner Award nominee, N Steven Harris; Jason Brubaker (creator of reMind and Sithrah); accomplished DC comics artist, Alitha Martinez; rising indie comic stars such as Paul Louise-Julie (Yohance); and many others, over 30 artists and writers located in many countries across the world.
• Gwan includes Old Man & the Tea a winner in the Cartoon Art & Cartoon Art Third Annual by The Society of Illustrators
• The Cover for Gwan was featured in the August 2016 issue of ImagineFX magazine

About Forward Comix
Forward Comix is a multi-award-winning, small press publisher, based in Brooklyn New York that was founded in 2012. The socially conscious brand currently publishes select works in the form of graphic novels and literary fiction. With a strong commitment to excellence, Forward Comix follows a passion: to see more diversity, better understanding and care for the world in which we live.

Forward Comix is best known for its cop drama /sci-fi superhero graphic novel series, Nowhere Man, currently with six trade paperback books in the series, each numbering 40 pages or more in full color. Glyph Award winner for Best Male character (2014), HBO / Cinemax – UASE – Urban Action Comic Award (2015), Comic Attack Best of 2015 nominee.

For more information head to  forwardcomix.com, twitter: @forwardcomix, facebook.com/forwardcomix.