Women In Comics Month: Interview With Whitney Leopard

In honor of Women in Comics this March, PREVIEWSworld talks with associate editor Whitney Leopard!

PREVIEWSworld: Tell us a little bit about yourself! What are you currently working on? 

Whitney Leopard: Hey, my name is Whitney Leopard and I'm an associate editor at BOOM! Studios. I'm currently working on Adventure Time, Over the Garden Wall, and Lumberjanes. 

PREVIEWSworld: How long have you been working with sequential art? What titles, companies, and creators have you worked with over your time in comics?

Whitney Leopard: I've been interested in comics ever since I was a kid—from reading the X-Men and manga, to eventually majoring in Sequential Art in college at the Savannah College of Art and Design. After graduating, I worked a lot of various jobs in comics before interning at Archaia. Shortly after my internship, I was hired on as an assistant editor at BOOM! Studios and have been there ever since, working on everything that I can. 

PREVIEWSworld: Did you have a mentor or hero in the industry that inspired you to pursue a career in comics? 

Whitney Leopard: My biggest influence, when it comes to my career in comics, was my professor, Tom Lyle, at SCAD. He's the guy who sat me down and asked me what I really wanted to do in comics, listened to the things that I enjoyed, and then explained to me what editorial was. It became my goal to become an editor since that conversation and I hope I've done him proud. 

PREVIEWSworld: How do you want to see women represented in comic books 10 years from now?

Whitney Leopard: I'm sure this has been said many times over but I want to see women as terrifically unique and diverse in comics as they are in real life. It would be amazing to see all sorts of women represented in comics, different backgrounds, races, body types. I think we're taking a step in the right direction but there is always more we can do. 

PREVIEWSworld: If you could give advice to any aspiring editors, executives, writers, or artists, what would you tell them?

Whitney Leopard: Keep on truckin’. Keep your head and work as hard as you can because you can get there. Everyone has their own version of a success story but you will most likely have to get there a different way, which will be hard and sometimes it won't be fun, but if this is what you want to do then the end result will definitely be worth it. 

I would also ask that you give people the benefit of the doubt; there is a lot of negativity out there and you don't need to let it drag you down. That being said, don't be stupid and make sure you read all of the fine print. Too many people have jumped into things without full understanding of what they were getting into. If you don't understand something, don't be afraid to ask. If you still don't understand after they answer you, then keep asking until you find an answer you like or maybe take a step back and see if it's the right fit for you. 

Above all else, have fun. I love my job and all the amazing people I've had an opportunity to work with and that's a lot of fun. 

PREVIEWSworld: And lastly, are there any up-and-coming women creators who you would recommend readers check out?

Whitney Leopard: Basically, anything by Mairghread Scott, if you get the chance. I love her work on Transformers and got to work with her on her creator-owned Toil and Trouble, which is amazing. Kelly and Nichole Matthews are twins (twins are awesome) who draw comics together, they also worked on Toil and Trouble, but you should check out all of their other work as well. I could probably list ladies for days but these are some awesome chicks that you should be checking out if you aren't already: Carey Pietsch, Carolyn Nowak, Jen Wang, Jillian Tamaki, Leigh Luna, and Chrystin Garland.  

See more Women In Comics Month interviews in our special section on PREVIEWSworld!