Women In Comics Month: Interview With Bess Pallares

In honor of Women in Comics this March, PREVIEWSworld talks with editorial assistant Bess Pallares!

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

Bess Pallares: I’m Bess Pallares and I’m the editorial assistant at Oni Press. I mostly assist our editor-in-chief James Lucas Jones on his books, and right now I’m really enjoying working on our upcoming series Jeff Steinberg: Champion of Earth, by Joshua Hale Fialkov (writer), Tony Fleecs (illustrator), Luigi Anderson (colorist), and Jenny Vy Tran (letterer). Aside from my work at Oni, I freelance edit the series Enormous and Spiritus from writer Tim Daniel for 215Ink. I’m also finishing my master’s degree in book publishing and a certificate in comics studies at Portland State University.

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

Bess Pallares: I’ve been working as a comics editor for about a year and a half. Before that I had a five-year career in journalism and communications, but I’ve been in love with comics since I worked at my LCS (The Splash Page in Billings, Montana) during high school. I started out freelancing on Enormous when I first left my communications job and moved to Portland for grad school. Through the Comics Studies Program at PSU I received an editorial internship with Milkfed Criminal Masterminds—the comics/production company owned by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Matt Fraction—and then completed another editorial internship with Oni Press, where I stayed on in my current position.

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

Bess Pallares: The books themselves really inspired me to pursue a career in comics editing. I love this medium and the collaboration between creators. Since I’ve entered the industry, though, I’ve met an embarrassment of wonderfully supportive people, including Brian Michael Bendis, everyone at Milkfed, and my current colleagues at Oni Press. I haven’t met a single person who’s made me feel unwelcome in the industry, and I’ve received the best advice and help in succeeding from these people every step of the way.

PREVIEWSworld: In your opinion, how has the comic book industry evolved in terms of gender?

Bess Pallares: From my perspective there’s much more awareness now of women working in comics, but in a way that awareness also has reinforced the incorrect idea that women are new to comics. There are certainly more of us, but we’ve been here the whole time. Oni Press actually has gender parity. Our marketing department is 100 percent women, and editorial is 60 percent female. I’ve been lucky to work with companies where women are treated as creative equals, though I know many companies have big strides to make in that regard. I think one of the most important industry changes in terms of gender has been in the bookselling arena, with a greater emphasis on female-friendly stores and the influence of The Valkyries.

PREVIEWSworld: What stereotypes do you see surrounding women in comics? How could people of all genders go about breaking those stereotypes?

Bess Pallares: I think some see female comics creators and fans as being anti-sex and anti-violence, which to many people threatens longstanding thematic hallmarks of the medium. While some women (and people of all genders) dislike those things, women are just as capable of writing sexy books and violent books as men, though that sex and violence might look different because we have different perspectives. I think welcoming a greater diversity of storytelling from women and giving female creators the chance to take on traditionally violent or sexy books can help build trust among editors, creators and fans in this regard. I can’t wait to see what Becky Cloonan does with Punisher.

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

Bess Pallares: On the page, I want to see women represented with the same depth and diversity of personality, motivation and skill that I expect from all comics characters. There’s a lot of gray area between mewling sex kitten and “strong” woman, and I want to see every shade. Also, some more realistic breasts would be great. Something’s wonky with the gravity around breasts in comics. In the industry, I want to see more women being met with the same welcoming encouragement I’ve received, as well as greater understanding of the history of women’s contributions in comics.

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

Bess Pallares: Making comics is a lot of fun, but it’s hard work, too. Study the industry, pay attention to the fine details in developing your skills, present yourself kindly and professionally to everyone you meet whether you think they can help you or not, meet people just to meet them instead of to seek favors, keep up on industry news and trends, find internships, and keep plugging away.

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

Bess Pallares: So many! There’s no way I can give them all their due credit here, but a few current favorites are are Sarah Graley, Jackie Lewis, Corin Howell, Carey Pietsch, Natalie Riess, Katie Skelly, Erika Moen, and Cat Farris. 

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