The Legacy and Lessons of BROWNSTONE

Writer Samuel Teer is back to finish out the RFT trilogy dedicated to Brownstone, his collaboration with cartoonist Mar Julia. Since his last visit, Brownstone won the prestigious Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature, and Samuel goes into detail about the impact that accolade has had on his career and mental health. The discussion doesn't shy away from the darker aspects, including Samuel's tumultuous relationship with HarperCollins, the industry's shortcomings in supporting creators of color, and the emotional toll of navigating publisher gaslighting. Samuel also sheds light on his upcoming projects, like Castles to Cholos with Alex Moore and Pok-ta-Pok, a three-volume sports manga series with Abrams, as well as give some other recommended Latinx reads for Latino Heritage Month. Through it all, Samuel's resilience and dedication to improving the comics landscape shine through, making this a must-listen in-depth exploration of his fight to make his voice heard and make the comics world better than he found it. [This episode is number 820 in a series.]  CHAPTERS 00:00 - Preamble 03:18 - Winning an Award But Leaving HarperCollins 09:24 - Printz Award Pedigree 10:18 - Challenges with HarperCollins 18:39 - The Printz Award Ceremony31:46 - The Speech 46:46 - ALA Conference, Post-speech 54:22 - Depression 55:38 - The Call 01:04:30 - Fallout and Support 01:06:26 - Mental and Physical Health Struggles 01:08:42 - Understanding Harper Collins' Structure01:09:45 - Larry Young Recharge01:12:32 - Latino Heritage Snub01:15:18 - Advice for Young Creators 01:23:39 - Creatives versus Labor01:34:28 - The Value of a Good Literary Agent01:39:47 - Book Recommendations and the Importance of Buying Books  01:42:09 - Outro