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Emil Ferris (; born 1962) is an American writer, cartoonist, and designer. Ferris debuted in publishing with her 2017 graphic novel My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, which was praised as a "masterpiece" and one of the best comics by a new author.
Ferris traces her Hispanic lineage from Indigenous Mexico to Spain, Germanic peoples, French, Irish diaspora emigres, and Sephardi Jews Jewish descent from her mother's side and is also of Lebanese people descent from her father's side.
Ferris' mother took diethylstilbestrol when pregnant, leading Ferris to say she was biologically male but transformed to female in utero, and she therefore identifies with others who have gender dysphoria. Ferris identified early in her life as a lesbian but later on came to see herself as bisexual.
She was sexually abused as a child, which she says negatively affected her ability to draw in a cartoon style for many years.
Ferris was obsessed with monsters as a child, eagerly looking forward to Creature Features on Saturday nights, which had monsters she would weep for. Ferris had scoliosis, and to get attention on the playground, she told horror stories. Ferris has discussed how she saw herself as a child: observing the oppressive social role her beautiful mother, as well as other humans, had to play.
As a child, Ferris was part of a theatrical troupe near the Graceland Cemetery — which she visited, hoping to find monsters or a ghost. Ferris gained an understanding of World War II by talking to Holocaust survivors who lived in the neighborhood of Rogers Park, which she had moved to. She would visit the owner of a gallery who had an identification number tattoo, as well as elderly survivors, forming a connection between their experiences and monsters.
In 2001, when she was 40, Ferris contracted West Nile fever from a mosquito bite. Three weeks after going to the hospital, she was paralyzed from the waist down and lost movement in her right hand. She eventually regained motor functionality and returned to working and drawing, receiving a MFA in creative writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
While recovering from the paralysis caused by West Nile fever, Ferris worked on her graphic novel. My Favorite Thing Is Monsters tells the story of Karen Reyes, a 10-year-old girl and fan of monster movies (like Ferris herself) who, growing up amidst the social tensions of 1960s Chicago, investigates the death of her upstairs neighbor. The book is written and drawn in the form of Reyes' diary notebook, with Hatching artwork drawn with a ballpoint pen.
The 400-page My Favorite Thing is Monsters (volume one) was released in 2017 by Fantagraphics, receiving praise from authors like Art Spiegelman, Alison Bechdel, and Chris Ware; it was regarded as one of the best comics of 2017. My Favorite Thing is Monsters volume two was released on May 24, 2024.
In April 2022, Ferris was reported among the more than three dozen comics creators who contributed to Operation USA's benefit anthology book, Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds, a project spearheaded by editor Scott Dunbier, whose profits would be donated to relief efforts for Ukrainian refugees resulting from the February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Artistic influences
In terms of artistic influences, Ferris was exposed to the works of Francisco Goya and Honoré Daumier as a child, as well as Collier's illustrated Dickens. Cartoonists who were inspirations for her include Robert Crumb, Alison Bechdel, and Art Spiegelman. She has also cited horror film posters and stories from EC Comics as ideas for the mock covers she drew in My Favorite Thing is Monsters.
Career
Ferris worked as a freelance illustrator and toy designer for clients such as McDonald's and Takara Tomy before becoming an author.
Personal life
When Ferris contracted West Nile virus at age 40, she was the single mother of a six-year-old daughter named Ruby.
Awards
External links
target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Archive of official author site
Categories: American Female Comics Artists, School Of The Art Institute Of Chicago Alumni, American Female Comics Writers, American Graphic Novelists, Ignatz Award Winners For Outstanding Artist, 1961 Births, Living People, American People Of Lebanese Descent, Lambda Literary Award Winners, Artist, Lgbtq People From Illinois, Lgbtq Comics Creators, Eisner Award Winners For Best Coloring, American Bisexual Writers
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